Critique sessions fail when comments float without criteria. We hand reviewers a single sheet: clarity, hierarchy, and restraint. Each gets one paragraph of evidence, not adjectives.
We also rotate who speaks first so the loudest voice in the room does not set the temperature. Quiet participants often catch contrast issues everyone else skipped.
The third paragraph covers async follow-up. Written notes land in a shared doc within twenty-four hours so nothing relies on memory.
We end with a “keep / revisit / cut” column tied to specific visuals, never to people.