After Action Review (AAR): “Don’t look for mistakes, but understand what was and move on” – that is the credo of this particular technique.
An After Action Review (AAR) is a methodical review of a challenge, its solution, and implementation. The aim of this review is to identify errors and success factors
of the project visible to all members in the team, to identify further potential, to build on important strengths and to reduce obvious weaknesses.
AAR enables your team’s participants to quickly and realistically see the course and results of an entire project, understand the reasons for mistakes, determine what has worked and what needs adjustment, and ultimately learn from them.
When implementing digital transformation projects, it pays to regularly look over your shoulder to systematically learn from the experience gained . The After Action Review (AAR) offers itself as a technique to approach this valuable shoulder view in a methodical and target-oriented way.
The ARR method, while a simple, is a very practical tool originally developed by the U.S. military to reflect on, evaluate, and learn for future combat operations using a structured process.
The After Action Review is used by various companies, to learn from the past at the end of a project, a project phase or a performance period and to draw from it important conclusions for the future. An After Action Review is also excellent for personal development, for example at the end of a year, a quarter, a month or a week. The method supports employees in the digital transformation as they leave their comfort zone and embrace change.
The great thing about the ARR method is that it is absolutely flexible to use and can always induce a learning curve for those involved . Optimally, an ARR focuses not only on the “what” has been achieved, but also on the “how,” especially . How did you achieve your goals? Which measures and decisions from the past observation period are responsible for a positive development of the transformation project? The cause-and-effect relationships are to be made visible. Existing deficits become transparent, strengths come to the surface.