Feature Decision: [Feature Name]

Purpose

Make and document feature prioritization decisions with a structured framework. Ensures key factors are considered, stakeholders are consulted, and rationale is preserved for future reference.

Usage

• /​feature-decision [feature-name] - Make a decision on a specific feature
• /​feature-decision - Start decision process with guided questions

---

Step 1: Define the Feature

Ask the user to clarify:

1. Feature name: What are we deciding on?
2. Feature description: What does it do? (1-2 sentences)
3. Origin: Where did this request come from?
   • Customer request (which customers?)
   • Internal idea (who proposed?)
   • Competitive response
   • Strategic initiative

---

Step 2: Gather Context

Before asking decision questions, gather relevant intel:

Customer Intel

• Search for mentions of this feature or related pain points
• Check /​customer-intel output if recently run
• Look for customer quotes supporting or contradicting this feature

Roadmap Context

• Check 04-Projects/ for related work
• Verify available capacity
• Identify potential conflicts or dependencies

Strategic Alignment

• Read System/​pillars.yaml
• Read 01-Quarter_Goals/​Quarter_Goals.md (if exists)
• Check how this feature maps to strategic priorities

---

Step 3: Decision Framework Questions

Guide the user through these questions:

Impact Questions

1. Customer Impact

   • Who benefits from this? (Which customers/​segments?)
   • How many users does this affect?
   • What problem does it solve for them?
   • Scale: High / Medium / Low

2. Business Impact

   • How does this affect revenue? (Enable new sales? Reduce churn? Upsell opportunity?)
   • Does this unblock deals?
   • Competitive positioning impact?
   • Scale: High / Medium / Low

3. Strategic Fit

   • Which pillar does this advance?
   • Does it support a quarterly goal?
   • Long-term value vs short-term win?
   • Scale: High / Medium / Low

Effort Questions

1. Engineering Effort

   • Size estimate? (Small: <1 week, Medium: 1-4 weeks, Large: 1-3 months, XL: 3+ months)
   • Technical complexity? (Low / Medium / High)
   • Dependencies on other systems?
   • Risk level? (Low / Medium / High)

2. Design Effort

   • New patterns needed or existing components?
   • User research required?
   • Estimated design time?

3. GTM/​Support Effort

   • Training needed?
   • Documentation scope?
   • Support impact?

Trade-offs

1. What are we NOT building if we build this?

   • What gets deprioritized?
   • Opportunity cost?

2. What's the downside of saying no?

   • Lost customers?
   • Competitive risk?
   • Team morale?

---

Step 4: Consult Stakeholders

Identify who needs to weigh in:

• Must consult: [Based on feature type]

  • Engineering (feasibility)
  • Design (user experience)
  • Sales/​CS (customer impact)
  • Leadership (strategic fit)

• Optional consult: [Nice to have input]

Prompt user: "Have you consulted [stakeholders]? Want me to help prep for those conversations?"

---

Step 5: Make the Decision

Based on the framework, present a recommendation:

Impact/​Effort Matrix

       HIGH IMPACT
            |
    Do Next | Do Now
------------|------------
    Later   | Quick Wins
            |
       LOW IMPACT

Recommendation: [Do Now / Do Next / Quick Wins / Later / No]

Rationale:

• [Key factor 1]
• [Key factor 2]
• [Key factor 3]

Ask user: "Does this recommendation make sense? Want to adjust the decision?"

---

Step 6: Document the Decision

Create a decision document in 04-Projects/:

# Feature Decision: [Feature Name]

**Date:** [Today]
**Decision:** [Go / No-Go / Defer]
**Owner:** [User's name from System/​user-profile.yaml]

---

## Overview

**Feature:** [Feature description]
**Origin:** [Where it came from]
**Requested by:** [Customers/​stakeholders]

---

## Decision Framework

### Impact Assessment

**Customer Impact:** [High/​Medium/​Low]
- Who benefits: [Segment/​customers]
- Problem solved: [Pain point]
- Users affected: [Count/​percentage]

**Business Impact:** [High/​Medium/​Low]
- Revenue effect: [Details]
- Competitive position: [Details]
- Deal impact: [Details]

**Strategic Fit:** [High/​Medium/​Low]
- Pillar: [Which pillar]
- Quarterly goal: [Which goal if applicable]
- Long-term value: [Assessment]

### Effort Assessment

**Engineering:** [Small/​Medium/​Large/​XL]
- Size: [Time estimate]
- Complexity: [Low/​Medium/​High]
- Dependencies: [List]
- Risk: [Low/​Medium/​High]

**Design:** [Details]
**GTM/​Support:** [Details]

---

## Decision Rationale

**Why [Go/​No-Go/​Defer]:**

1. [Primary reason]
2. [Secondary reason]
3. [Tertiary reason]

**Trade-offs accepted:**
- Deprioritizing: [What]
- Risk: [What]

---

## Supporting Evidence

**Customer quotes:**
- "[Quote 1]" - [Customer], [Date]
- "[Quote 2]" - [Customer], [Date]

**Competitive intel:**
- [Details if applicable]

**Related conversations:**
- [Link to meeting notes]
- [Link to person pages]

---

## Stakeholder Alignment

**Consulted:**
- [Name] (Engineering) - [Their input]
- [Name] (Design) - [Their input]
- [Name] (Sales) - [Their input]

**Concerns raised:**
- [Concern 1 and how addressed]

---

## Next Steps

[If Go:]
- [ ] Create project in 04-Projects/
- [ ] Add to roadmap
- [ ] Schedule kickoff
- [ ] Update stakeholders

[If No-Go:]
- [ ] Communicate decision to requesters
- [ ] Update person pages with rationale
- [ ] Add to "not now" backlog with trigger conditions

[If Defer:]
- [ ] Document trigger conditions for revisiting
- [ ] Set calendar reminder for [when]
- [ ] Communicate timeline to stakeholders

---

## Decision Log

This decision is logged for future reference. Run `/​decision-log` to see all major product decisions.

Save to: 04-Projects/​Decision_[Feature-Name]_[Date].md

---

Step 7: Follow-Up Actions

Offer to help with next steps:

"Decision documented! Want me to:

1. Create a project file if we're building this?
2. Draft stakeholder communication?
3. Add to roadmap review?
4. Update relevant person pages with this decision?"

---

Integration with Other Skills

• Before running: Suggest /​customer-intel to gather feedback
• Before running: Suggest /​roadmap to check capacity
• After No-Go decision: Update person pages so you remember why you said no
• After Go decision: Link to /​project-health for tracking

---

Example: Real-time Dashboards Decision

# Feature Decision: Real-time Dashboards

**Date:** 2026-01-28
**Decision:** Go - Q1 Priority
**Owner:** Dave (CPO)

---

## Overview

**Feature:** Real-time dashboards that auto-refresh every 5 minutes, eliminating manual report compilation
**Origin:** Customer request (repeated pattern from 4 customers)
**Requested by:** Acme Corp (Sarah), TechStart (Mike), GlobalCo (Lisa), DataFlow

---

## Decision Framework

### Impact Assessment

**Customer Impact:** High
- Who benefits: All customers with reporting workflows (60% of user base)
- Problem solved: Manual report compilation taking 2 days/​month per customer
- Users affected: ~500 users across our customer base

**Business Impact:** High
- Revenue effect: Unblocks 2 pending deals (TechStart, NewCorp) - $180K ARR
- Competitive position: ProductX has this, we don't - closing gap
- Deal impact: Sales team reports dashboards are #3 objection in demos

**Strategic Fit:** High
- Pillar: Product Quality
- Quarterly goal: Q1-2 (Reduce customer effort)
- Long-term value: Platform capability, enables future dashboard types

### Effort Assessment

**Engineering:** Medium (3-4 weeks)
- Size: 3-4 weeks
- Complexity: Medium (real-time data pipeline + UI refresh)
- Dependencies: Data infrastructure team (capacity confirmed)
- Risk: Medium (performance at scale needs testing)

**Design:** Small (1 week) - using existing components
**GTM/​Support:** Medium - training needed, support documentation

---

## Decision Rationale

**Why Go:**

1. **Strong customer signal** - 4 customers in 30 days, increasing trend, 2 called it blocker
2. **Business impact** - Unblocks $180K in pipeline, closes competitive gap
3. **Strategic alignment** - Directly advances Q1 goal (reduce customer effort)
4. **Feasible scope** - 3-4 weeks, no major blockers, team has capacity

**Trade-offs accepted:**
- Deprioritizing: Mobile app performance improvements slide from Feb to March
- Risk: Need to validate performance at scale during beta

---

## Supporting Evidence

**Customer quotes:**
- "Takes 2 days/​month to compile reports manually. Need real-time dashboards." - Sarah (Acme), Jan 24
- "Reporting pain is my team's #1 complaint. They avoid the system because of it." - Lisa (GlobalCo), Jan 15

**Competitive intel:**
- "ProductX's dashboards are way ahead of yours. We're evaluating a switch." - Mike (TechStart), Jan 20

**Related conversations:**
- 00-Inbox/​Meetings/​2026-01-24_Acme_Quarterly_Review.md
- People/​External/​Sarah_Chen_Acme.md

---

## Stakeholder Alignment

**Consulted:**
- Mike (Engineering Lead) - Feasible, 3-4 weeks, needs data team sync
- Sarah (Design Lead) - Can use existing components, 1 week effort
- John (Sales VP) - Would unblock 2 deals, closes demo objection

**Concerns raised:**
- Performance at scale (Mike) - Addressed: Beta test with 3 high-volume customers before general launch

---

## Next Steps

- [x] Create project in 04-Projects/​Real_Time_Dashboards.md
- [ ] Add to roadmap (Q1 priority)
- [ ] Schedule kickoff for Feb 1
- [ ] Update stakeholders (Acme, TechStart, GlobalCo, NewCorp)
- [ ] Communicate timeline to sales team

---

## Decision Log

This decision is logged for future reference. Run `/​decision-log` to see all major product decisions.