| name | plan-work |
| description | Plan work before coding: do repo research, analyze options/risks, and ask clarifying questions before proposing an implementation plan. Use when the user asks for a plan, design/approach, scope breakdown, or implementation steps. |
Plan work
Goal
Produce a plan that is:
- grounded in repo reality (research)
- explicit about decisions and risks (analysis)
- blocked on zero unknowns (Q&A before implementation steps)
Inputs to ask for (if missing)
- Outcome/acceptance criteria (what "done" means).
- Constraints: time, backwards compatibility, performance, security, data migration.
- Target environment(s): local/stage/prod; any feature flags or rollout requirements.
- Non-goals (what not to do).
Workflow (research -> analysis -> Q&A -> implementation)
- Research (current state)
- Read repo guidance first:
AGENTS.md,README.md,docs/(only if needed). - Identify entrypoints and owners (backend/frontend/infra).
- Find relevant code paths and patterns:
rgfor symbols, endpoints, config keys, error stringsgit log -p/git blamefor history and intent when uncertain
- If the plan depends on external behavior (framework/library/tooling), consult official docs, release notes or context7 (and call out versions/assumptions).
- Capture findings as short bullets with file paths.
- Read repo guidance first:
- Analysis (what to change and why)
- Restate requirements and assumptions.
- List options (1-3) with tradeoffs; pick one and justify.
- Identify risks/edge cases and what tests cover them.
- Collect open questions.
- Q&A gate (do not skip)
- If there are open questions, ask them and stop.
- Do not propose implementation steps until the user answers (or explicitly accepts assumptions).
- Implementation plan (only after Q&A)
- Break into small steps in a sensible order.
- Name likely files/dirs to change.
- Include the tests to run (unit/integration/build) to validate the change.
- If the change spans modules, include coordination steps (contract changes, client regen, versioning).
Deliverable
Use references/plan-template.md and fill it in.