Beth Archer wears two hats at DH Leonard Consulting & Grant Writing Services, LLC – as both a Registered Scrum Master (RSM) and a Grant Professional Certified (GPC) strategist. DH Leonard Consulting helps nonprofit organizations competitively apply for, receive, and manage grant funding so they can better serve their communities and drive meaningful impact. Using an Agile approach, the firm breaks down the grant writing process into iterative steps that promote faster delivery, open communication, and continuous improvement.
Beth’s passion lies in helping her remote team leverage the Scrum framework to streamline internal workflows and enhance outcomes for their clients.
“I love how using the Scrum framework has made it possible for us to serve our clients more efficiently and effectively, ”she says.
The challenge: Managing retrospectives in a fully remote team
As a fully remote organization, DH Leonard Consulting needed tools that supported distributed collaboration without adding friction. Their previous method relied on a virtual whiteboard for retrospectives, but setting it up required outside help.
“A challenge for our team is that we are all remote, so we need tools that help, not hinder, our virtual work environment. Additionally, as someone who wears both the Scrum Master hat and the team member hat, it is challenging to balance my time and ensure that I’m managing each of my roles effectively. We had a system that was working well for our team’s Retrospectives using a virtual whiteboard tool, but due to capacity constraints, we were actually utilizing a colleague outside of our team to set them up for us each week.”
Choosing TeamRetro to support agile ceremonies
When the team discovered TeamRetro, it quickly became the perfect solution.
“It is the exact kind of tool we need as a remote team. It allows us to do some of the work asynchronously, while also supporting live discussions. Because it is so easy to set up and run each Sprint, we have also been able to keep the work within our team and not have to rely on our other colleagues.”
With its ease of use and autonomy, TeamRetro allowed the team to fully own their agile ceremonies—no more relying on outside support.
Weekly retrospectives with structure, flexibility, and fun
DH Leonard Consulting runs weekly retrospectives at the end of each sprint. Using TeamRetro templates as a base, the team customizes them with questions tailored to their process, including metrics on team happiness and stress.
“We do weekly Retrospectives at the end of each Sprint. I love the templates, we use them each week; however, we are also able to edit them and add our own questions (e.g., we measure team happiness and team stress each Sprint). We also use the icebreakers, which have helped to get people warmed up and engaged.”
More engagement, less setup
Beth notes that retrospectives now run more smoothly, with less time spent on logistics and more time focused on meaningful reflection and outcomes.
“We have spent less time setting up our virtual Retrospectives and have been able to keep the work within our team, instead of asking a colleague outside of our team for support. We have regularly started Retrospectives with an icebreaker (something we previously did intermittently), which has improved the tone of and engagement during Retrospectives.”
This structured approach has enabled better follow-through and greater accountability on team actions.
Easy transition and positive feedback
“The Retrospectives, and particularly the templates. This has made our Retro setup so easy!”
The feedback from the team has been overwhelmingly positive. They appreciate the streamlined setup, consistent format, and the ability to centralize everything in one platform. Icebreakers and customizable templates have added an extra layer of engagement.
“It is easy to use and was straightforward to transition from our previous system to TeamRetro. The team also appreciates the templates and icebreakers, as well as the fact that everything is in one place.”
A tool that empowers remote teams
For Beth and her team, TeamRetro has done more than just simplify retrospectives, it’s made their agile process more impactful.
“TeamRetro has been a great addition to our team. It has made things easier and faster!”
Advice for scrum masters and agile teams
Beth’s top tip for teams starting out with TeamRetro?
“Know that there is so much room for customization! You can truly make it into exactly what you need/want.”
TeamRetro continues to support agile practices at DH Leonard Consulting, helping them deliver value to clients while building a stronger, more engaged remote team.
Try TeamRetro today and bring structure, flexibility, and energy to your retrospectives—no matter where your team is.