Once your Retrospective is set up, you need to share it with participants so they can contribute. Manager Toolkit gives you several ways to control who can access the retro and how they join.
Sharing the Retro Link
Every Retrospective has a unique shareable link. Participants do not need a Manager Toolkit account to join - they simply open the link in their browser and start contributing.
Password Protection
For sensitive Retrospectives, you can add a password. When password protection is enabled, participants have to enter the password before they can view or contribute to the board. The browser tab title also hides the retro name while the page is locked, so the name does not leak via screen-share or browser history.
See Password-Protecting a Retrospective for the full setup.
Sharing via Slack
If your team uses Slack, you can share the retro link directly as a message. Copy the link and paste it into your Slack channel or direct message. The link preview shows the retro name, making it easy for participants to identify and join. For more details on Slack sharing, see the sharing to Slack guide.
Public Access
By default, anyone with the link can access the retro. This makes it simple to share with participants who are not Manager Toolkit users, such as contractors, stakeholders, or team members from other departments who do not have accounts. If you want to restrict access further, use password protection to ensure only intended participants can view the board.
Controlling Display Names on Notes
The retro option Show authors controls whether participant display names appear on notes, comments, and reactions. It is on by default. Notes are always visible to everyone as soon as they are added - there is no reveal step. If you want anonymity, switch Show authors off in the retro settings before the session starts; participants then only see their own name on their own notes.
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