After Action Reviews

The CI team’s involvement in After Action Reviews (AARs) is to help create consistency and objectivity in how they are conducted, documenting and storing outcomes, facilitating open conversations while eliciting constructive feedback, and translating insights into actionable steps. This includes assessing what has gone well, areas for improvement, and lessons learned to carry into the future as best practices. 

Defining After Action Reviews

• AARs are performed at the end of each project close. 

• AARs review the project as a whole, utilizing inputs from project team members. 

• Sessions and resulting outputs/action items are owned by the Continuous Improvement Team across Consulting Services moving forward.  

• AARs act as part of a Lessons Learned framework 

• Common themes from AARs held throughout the quarter will be shared with leadership. 

*For future state, we are working toward a broader lessons learned framework with the PMO that will include milestone-based retrospectives and end-of-project AARs. Mid-project retrospectives will be driven by the PMO and/or EM.  

AAR Outputs and Deliverables

At the end of every month, an AAR Monthly Review LaunchNotes announcement is published, containing the following:

• Overview of AAR sessions and types of projects reviewed

• Areas to celebrate and strengthen

• Key themes and areas of opportunity

• Recommendations for the future for more immediate impact

• Actions CI will take for long term impact and improvement

Once completed, this document is shared with team member participants for that month, as well as relevant directors and team managers to create visibility into the outcomes, lessons learned, and actions as defined in the Monthly Review.

AARs and CI Initiatives

Continuous Improvement has a number of ongoing projects with objectives that come as a direct result from team member feedback from AARs. As outlined in the Monthly Review, the key themes that emerge from AARs are immediately incorporated into ongoing CI initiatives, act as an input for backlog items, and help to inform future Continuous Improvement efforts.

AAR Key Themes are mapped to ongoing CI initiatives in LaunchNotes for visibility and tracking of CI Action Items and progress on AAR-related feedback. Team members are encouraged to "subscribe" to the relevant CI Projects on LaunchNotes for further updates on progress in these initiatives.