Subtask Generation Skill

Break down complex Jira issues into well-defined subtasks for structured development.

When to Activate

This skill activates when:

• User asks to break down an issue into subtasks
• Issue is marked as complex (Epic, large Story)
• User wants to plan implementation steps
• Multiple team members will work on parts of an issue
• User asks for task decomposition

Subtask Categories

Development Subtasks

1. Setup/Infrastructure

   • Environment configuration
   • Dependency installation
   • Database migrations
   • Service configuration

2. Backend Implementation

   • API endpoints
   • Business logic
   • Data models
   • Service integrations

3. Frontend Implementation

   • UI components
   • State management
   • API integration
   • Styling/UX

4. Testing

   • Unit tests
   • Integration tests
   • E2E tests
   • Performance tests

5. Documentation

   • API documentation
   • README updates
   • Confluence pages
   • Code comments

6. Review/QA

   • Code review
   • QA testing
   • Security review
   • Accessibility review

Subtask Templates

Feature Implementation

Parent: [PROJ-100] Implement user authentication

Subtasks:
├── [PROJ-101] Set up authentication middleware
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 2h
│   Description: Configure JWT middleware and auth routes
│
├── [PROJ-102] Implement login endpoint
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 3h
│   Description: POST /api/auth/login with validation
│
├── [PROJ-103] Implement registration endpoint
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 3h
│   Description: POST /api/auth/register with email verification
│
├── [PROJ-104] Add password reset flow
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 4h
│   Description: Forgot password and reset endpoints
│
├── [PROJ-105] Write unit tests for auth module
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 2h
│   Description: Test coverage for all auth functions
│
├── [PROJ-106] Update API documentation
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 1h
│   Description: OpenAPI spec and README updates
│
└── [PROJ-107] Security review
    Type: Task
    Estimate: 2h
    Description: Review auth implementation for vulnerabilities

Bug Fix

Parent: [PROJ-200] Fix login timeout issue

Subtasks:
├── [PROJ-201] Investigate root cause
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 1h
│   Description: Analyze logs and reproduce issue
│
├── [PROJ-202] Implement fix
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 2h
│   Description: Apply fix based on investigation
│
├── [PROJ-203] Add regression test
│   Type: Task
│   Estimate: 1h
│   Description: Test to prevent future recurrence
│
└── [PROJ-204] Verify in staging
    Type: Task
    Estimate: 30m
    Description: Deploy and verify fix in staging environment

Generation Process

Step 1: Analyze Parent Issue

Extract from the parent issue:

• Scope: What needs to be done
• Components: Which parts of the system are affected
• Acceptance Criteria: What defines "done"
• Technical Requirements: Any specific tech constraints

Step 2: Identify Work Streams

Categorize the work:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                      Parent Issue                            │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐    │
│  │  Setup   │  │ Backend  │  │ Frontend │  │  Testing │    │
│  │  Tasks   │  │  Tasks   │  │  Tasks   │  │  Tasks   │    │
│  └──────────┘  └──────────┘  └──────────┘  └──────────┘    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Step 3: Create Subtasks

For each subtask, define:

{
  "project": "PROJ",
  "parent": "PROJ-100",
  "issuetype": "Sub-task",
  "summary": "Implement login endpoint",
  "description": "Create POST /api/auth/login endpoint\n\n## Requirements\n- Accept email and password\n- Validate credentials\n- Return JWT token\n- Handle errors gracefully\n\n## Acceptance Criteria\n- [ ] Endpoint returns 200 with valid credentials\n- [ ] Returns 401 for invalid credentials\n- [ ] Rate limiting applied\n- [ ] Logs authentication attempts",
  "labels": ["backend", "auth"],
  "timetracking": {
    "originalEstimate": "3h"
  }
}

Step 4: Create via MCP

mcp__atlassian__jira_create_issue({
  project: "PROJ",
  parent: "PROJ-100",
  issuetype: "Sub-task",
  summary: "Implement login endpoint",
  description: "...",
  labels: ["backend", "auth"]
})

Step 5: Link and Organize

1. Set Dependencies: Link subtasks that depend on each other
2. Assign Order: Set execution order in description
3. Add to Sprint: If parent is in sprint, add subtasks
4. Notify Team: Comment on parent with subtask breakdown

Estimation Guidelines

Output Format

When generating subtasks, present:

📋 Subtask Breakdown for PROJ-100

Total Subtasks: 7
Estimated Total: 17.5 hours

┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────────┬──────────┬─────────┐
│ Key         │ Summary                          │ Estimate │ Labels  │
├─────────────┼──────────────────────────────────┼──────────┼─────────┤
│ PROJ-101    │ Set up authentication middleware │ 2h       │ backend │
│ PROJ-102    │ Implement login endpoint         │ 3h       │ backend │
│ PROJ-103    │ Implement registration endpoint  │ 3h       │ backend │
│ PROJ-104    │ Add password reset flow          │ 4h       │ backend │
│ PROJ-105    │ Write unit tests                 │ 2h       │ testing │
│ PROJ-106    │ Update API documentation         │ 1h       │ docs    │
│ PROJ-107    │ Security review                  │ 2h       │ review  │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────────┴──────────┴─────────┘

Dependencies:
  PROJ-102 → depends on → PROJ-101
  PROJ-103 → depends on → PROJ-101
  PROJ-104 → depends on → PROJ-102, PROJ-103
  PROJ-105 → depends on → PROJ-102, PROJ-103, PROJ-104
  PROJ-107 → depends on → PROJ-102, PROJ-103, PROJ-104

Create these subtasks? [Y/n]

Best Practices

1. Right-Size Subtasks: 1-4 hours ideal, max 8 hours
2. Clear Acceptance Criteria: Each subtask has clear "done" definition
3. Independent When Possible: Minimize dependencies
4. Include Testing: Always include test subtasks
5. Documentation: Include doc updates as subtasks
6. Review: Include review/QA subtasks