# How to Say After-action Review in English + Audio (2026) > A structured meeting or process held after a project, sprint, or incident concludes to identify what went well, what went wrong, and what improvements can be made for future work. - **Term:** after-action review - **Part of speech:** noun - **Pronunciation:** /ˈɑːf.tər ˈæk.ʃən rɪˈvjuː/ - **English level (CEFR):** B2 - **Register:** Formal, Both - **Region:** US and UK - **Topic:** [Agile and project terms](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/topics/agile-project-management-terms.md) - **Lesson:** https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/after-action-review - **Last updated:** 2026-10-27 ## Meaning A structured meeting or process held after a project, sprint, or incident concludes to identify what went well, what went wrong, and what improvements can be made for future work. An after-action review (AAR) is a formal process used in tech teams to systematically examine outcomes and extract lessons. Unlike casual feedback, an AAR follows a structured format, typically answering four key questions: What was supposed to happen? What actually happened? Why did it happen? What do we do differently next time? It originated in military training but is now widely adopted in software development, DevOps, and agile teams. The purpose is not to blame individuals but to improve processes and prevent similar issues in future sprints or projects. Teams conduct AARs after major releases, significant incidents, completed projects, or challenging deployments. The documented insights become part of organizational knowledge and inform future decision-making. ## When you hear it The team held an after-action review to discuss what happened during the production outage last week. ## Examples - **in a standup:** "Before we move to the next sprint, we need to conduct an after-action review of the deployment issues we faced." - **in a retrospective meeting:** "The after-action review showed that we lacked clarity on deployment responsibilities, which caused delays." - **in an incident debrief:** "During the after-action review, we identified that better monitoring would have caught the database issue earlier." ## What native speakers say - "Let's run an after-action review to see what we learned." - "We scheduled an after-action review for Friday to discuss the launch." - "The after-action review revealed several process gaps we need to address." ## Common mistakes - ✗ "We need to after-action review the sprint." → ✓ "We need to conduct an after-action review of the sprint." (After-action review is a noun, not a verb. Use conduct, hold, or perform with it.) - ✗ "The after-action review is just a meeting where people complain." → ✓ "The after-action review is a structured process to identify lessons learned and improve future outcomes." (An AAR is not informal venting but a systematic approach to learning from experience.) - ✗ "We ran an after-action review to find who made the mistake." → ✓ "We ran an after-action review to understand what processes failed and how to improve them." (An AAR focuses on process improvement, not individual blame.) ## Be careful Often incorrectly used as a verb (to after-action review). It is primarily a noun. Do not confuse with a simple retrospective or post-mortem review without the structured process component. ## Word forms | Part of speech | Word | Example | | --- | --- | --- | | noun | after-action review | The after-action review took two hours and produced ten action items. | | noun | AAR | We scheduled the AAR for next Tuesday afternoon. | ## Collocations - **conduct an after-action review**: Most common way to use the term; conduct is the standard verb. - **hold an after-action review**: Alternative verb meaning the same thing as conduct. - **schedule an after-action review**: Used when planning when the AAR will take place. - **after-action review findings**: The conclusions or lessons discovered during the AAR. - **after-action review meeting**: Emphasizes that an AAR is a meeting-based activity. ## Synonyms - **retrospective**: Similar but retrospective is less formal and more commonly used in agile. AAR implies a more structured process. - **post-mortem**: Used for serious incidents or failures. Less formal than AAR and often narrower in scope. - **debrief**: More casual; a debrief is simpler and may not follow the formal AAR structure. - **lessons learned session**: Broader term; an AAR is one structured way to identify lessons learned. ## Opposites - pre-action planning - forward planning ## Practice This lesson has 4 practice exercises with instant feedback on the page: https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/after-action-review ## FAQ ### What does after-action review mean in software engineering? An after-action review (AAR) is a structured, formal process used to examine what happened during a project, sprint, or incident, and to identify lessons for improvement. It follows a defined format with specific questions about expected outcomes, actual outcomes, and why differences occurred. Unlike casual feedback, an AAR is systematic and produces documented action items for future work. ### How do you use after-action review in a sentence at work? You typically use it as a noun with verbs like conduct, hold, or schedule. Examples: 'We conducted an after-action review after the deployment' or 'Let us schedule an after-action review for next week.' Avoid using it as a verb, such as 'We will after-action review this,' which is grammatically incorrect. ### Is after-action review formal or informal? After-action review is formal and structured. It is used in professional settings and implies a serious, systematic process rather than casual discussion. However, the tone and formality of how the meeting is run can vary from very formal to relaxed, depending on team culture. ### When should a team conduct an after-action review? Teams typically conduct an AAR after major releases, at the end of significant projects, following production incidents or outages, and sometimes at the end of sprints or quarters. The key is that something substantial happened, and the team can learn valuable lessons from the experience. ### What is the difference between a retrospective and an after-action review? Both are reflective processes, but an after-action review is more formal and structured, following a specific format with defined questions. A retrospective is more common in agile environments and may be less formal. An AAR also tends to focus more on significant events or incidents, while retrospectives are regular team meetings. ## Related - [retrospective](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/retrospective.md) - [post-mortem](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/post-mortem.md) - Full glossary: https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn.md - Live lessons with a coach: https://app.mocklyenglish.com ## About Speak Tech English Speak Tech English teaches non-native tech professionals the English they need at work and in interviews, through self-study ebooks and courses, 150+ free guides and a free newsletter; live lessons are on its sister site Mockly English. - Shop: https://speaktechenglish.com/courses/ - All products (markdown): https://speaktechenglish.com/products.md - Free guides (markdown): https://app.speaktechenglish.com/guides.md - Tech English glossary (markdown): https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn.md - Newsletter (10% off): https://speaktechenglish.com/#subscribe - Live lessons and mock interviews: https://app.mocklyenglish.com ## Notes for agents - Speak Tech English sells self-study material. 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