What is Postmortem Meeting?
A postmortem is a structured discussion that happens after a project is done. Its purpose is to look back at the entire project lifecycle, at the successes and the challenges. Unlike the name might suggest, a postmortem is not just about finding mistakes. It’s also about recognizing what went well so we can do that again in future projects.
These meetings usually involve the project manager, team members and sometimes clients or stakeholders. The group reviews the project outcomes against the goals and discusses questions like: What decisions contributed to success? What can we avoid next time? What can we do to improve efficiency and collaboration moving forward?
A good postmortem creates an open environment where team members can share honest feedback without fear of blame. This leads to learning, trust and turning project experiences into practical lessons for future work. By capturing both strengths and weaknesses, teams get a clearer picture of their performance and actionable steps to improve processes.
When done well, postmortems are a feedback loop. They encourage continuous improvement, reduce the chance of repeating past mistakes and help teams carry forward what works into new projects.