11.4 The Debrief

Now that the participant feedback has been collected, it is time to hold a team debrief!

Debrief: What, When, Where, Why, How and Who?

What:

A debrief is a structured, experiential, reflective practice that involves bringing together relevant staff/event personnel for a discussion about the program or event. Debriefs tend to occur soon after the end of a program or event with the purpose of processing – making sense of – the data collected through the formative and summative evaluations. Not only does the debrief allow participant data to be shared, it also provides an opportunity for staff and stakeholders to make programmatic improvements for the future. Usually, the debrief is structured with specific questions and facilitated or guided by one person or a small group. Someone should be assigned the job of taking Minutes (debrief notes) in order to have a record of the feedback. This individual will compile the rough notes into a tidy document and distribute them to debrief members a short while after the debrief has ended. A copy will be put on file for reference for the next time the program or event is run.

When:

Team debriefs should take place no more than 7-10 days after a program or event has come to an end while the data and the memories are still fresh and have not started to fade.

Where:

A debrief should be held in an accessible space, free from noise and distractions, that can comfortably accommodate all those attending. Depending on the nature of the program, the best debriefs are often held in the exact space in which the program or event occurred. Our ability to recall details is stronger when we are in the place where the program or event happened.

Why:

Debriefing is GREAT professional practice. A well-run debrief gives programmers and other stakeholders the opportunity to make sense of participant data, determine the final budget financials, list follow-ups that need to be made in response to outstanding complaints, unusual incidents or invoices, formulate a plan on how data insights will be incorporated into the next program/event, and to congratulate each other on a job well done.

How:

Debriefs can look very different, depending on the nature of the program being discussed and the people involved. Generally speaking, shorter programs warrant shorter debriefs, and longer programs warrant longer debriefs. While there is no hard and fast rule, a 3-hour recreation event should take roughly 60-90 minutes to debrief.

Who:

Terminal debriefs (debriefs that occur post-program) usually involve only those key players who helped create and run the program or event. This often includes the program-planners, activity leaders, facilitators, and key volunteers. Occasionally, debriefs will involve other staff members or personnel, such as an Agency’s Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer, or Risk Manager. Sometimes, other stakeholders, like community partners or sponsors, are invited to sit around the table as well. The debrief does not (usually) involve event participants, security, external First Aiders, keynote speakers, or VIP guests.

What Gets Discussed

To maximize everyone’s time and for the sake of quality control, the terminal debriefs should be chaired or facilitated by one individual OR a small team of individuals. Those at the helm will drive a debrief agenda forward with a view to obtaining key pieces of information and insights that will be compiled into meeting “minutes” (notes recorded during the debrief), OR, a formal report, then forwarded to the correct parties in a professional and succinct format.

Debrief topics can vary wildly from program to program, group to group, but the following items are a good jumping-off point for most:

Participant Satisfaction

• • Quantitative Feedback:
    • (Based on head counts) How many people attended the program/event?
    • (Based on numerical survey results and averages) What was the participant satisfaction rate for each of the various criteria presented in each of the quantitative survey questions? (Statistics, averages) Example: “87% said they enjoyed the activities, 71% said they enjoyed the variety of our food offerings..”
    • How many dollars did we raise?
    • How many participants were under the age of 12 years?

• • Qualitative Feedback:
    • (Based on anecdotal survey results and averages): What was the reported participant satisfaction for each of the various criteria presented for each survey question? “For activity A, the majority of participants said XYZ… “…when asked about their impressions of the quality of the recreation staff leaders, the majority responded saying…”
    • Interview Questions: What were the questions asked? When were the interviews held? What was the generalized feedback to each specific question?
    • Direct Observation: What did the programmers/activity leaders observe with X activity? Y activity? What broad and specific observations were made about this group? The flow of these activities…?
    • Participant Journals: Based on the responses in the then participants’ journal entries for Day 4 of the program, what was the overwhelming mood or reflection? What happened that day to elicit such a response?

Additional Questions to Ask at the Terminal Debrief

Any additional questions asked at a terminal debrief should encompass the “Head, Heart and Hands” aspects of the program, incorporated back in STEP 5: Program Design.

“What Happened?” Questions (Hands)

• Did the participants enjoy themselves?
• As a team, how was the set-up/preparation process on the day of?
• How was communication among the team?
• What were the participants like? (mostly teens, lots of families, etc)
• What went well?
• What could have gone even better?
• How did logistics go? Were there hiccups?
• Did we stay within our budget, or were there unexpected expenses?
• What were our total donations? Ticket sales? Merch sales? Profit? (Revenue – expenses = profit)
• How many participants came through the door?
• Were there any incidents, accidents, slips, trips, falls or near misses we should discuss?
• Were there any other risk management issues that popped up?
• What happened that was unexpected? How were plot twists handled?

“So What” Questions (Heart)

• Is there anything we need to address immediately?
• What is the significance of “this incident”/”that occurrence?”
• What does _______ consistent piece of feedback tell us about _______ activity?
• Is this going to be an issue next time?
• What was the impression left by participants when _____ happened?
• Did we meet our program/event goals? If so, how? What does this mean for us? If not, what could we have done better to reach them?
  • **Of the topics discussed at a debrief, those pertaining to whether a program or event reached its established goals is often considered the most important. If the answer to whether each goal was achieved is a resounding “Yes!” debrief, participants should pinpoint (and record) which specific objectives for each goal were satisfied and allowed each goal to be met. If a goal (or multiple goals) were not met, debrief participants should discuss reasons why. Were specific goal objectives weak or poorly articulated? Was an objective overlooked or not effectively acted upon? What should emerge from the discussion is an awareness of what could have/should have happened differently that would have allowed the goals to be met. This will be valuable information to include in the Final Report the next time the program or event is to be run.

“Now What” Questions (Head)

• What have we learned?
• What should we keep doing for the future?
• What should we change for next time?
• How will we distribute the final tasks on the task list among us so that the final work is fair and equitable?
• When do we anticipate running this event/program again?
• Who is responsible for thanking and congratulating the various parties/stakeholders? (Writing and mailing thank-you cards, sending thank-you emails, sending gifts)
• For events: Who will compile the Final Event Report that includes an event summary, the final financials, the amalgamated participant feedback, and a recap of the team debrief (the questions asked and the group’s responses)?