Drop, Add, Keep, Improve
Updated 2026-08-13
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
DAKI is a team retrospective template organized along four dimensions: Drop, the things that should stop; Add, the things that should start; Keep, the things that should be preserved; and Improve, the things that should be changed for the better. It converts a discussion of experience into explicit choices about action, and compared with an open-ended review it is far easier to focus on concrete next steps, which lowers the abstract cost of running the retrospective.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Sort the discussion into four clear buckets: drop, add, keep and improve. - Force an explicit choice: ensure every observation lands in one of the four. - End with real owners: vote on the priorities and assign each action a named person.
Anchor fast decisions
A lightweight retrospective template that uses the four buckets of Drop, Add, Keep and Improve to quickly sort what to stop, start, preserve and change. Compared with open discussion it focuses far more easily on action, which lowers the cost of running the review.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- scatterspoke.comhttps://www.scatterspoke.com/retrospective-library/daki-retrospectiveverified
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