The Plus-Delta is the practice of reflecting on experiences that added value to an event (pluses), and experiences that could have added value to that event but were missing (deltas). We focus on deltas as opposed to “negatives” as we are looking for an improvement that can be made and not a criticism. The practice is encouraged after every meeting.

Most teams use the practice effectively, regularly identifying something they can do differently to improve future meetings, or at the very least keep from slipping back into unproductive behaviors. These are rarely groundbreaking changes, but they improve the overall quality of work for the team.

Despite that success a few teams express a reluctance to do the Plus-Delta practice. They are discouraged because sometimes when you start the practice with a new team the deltas can be a little silly. You may have to put up with requests such as “make better coffee” or “bring donuts.” Persevere. The longer your team sticks with the Plus-Delta practice the more productive these short reflections become.