Product Clarify

product-clarify

What this skill does

Reviews existing PDRs for quality gaps, asks targeted clarification questions, and promotes approved PDRs to Accepted status. This is the quality gate before PRD generation.

Input: Individual PDR-*.md files in .adlc/drafts/pdr/ (status Proposed or Discovered)

Output: Updated PDR-*.md files (status Accepted where approved), regenerated pdr.md index

When to use

• After /product-specify or /product-init to refine initial PDRs
• Before /product-implement to approve PDRs (required — implement skips non-Accepted)
• Periodic PDR review before milestones
• Resolving inconsistency flags from cross-feature-area analysis

When NOT to use

• No PDRs exist (use /product-specify or /product-init first)

Execution Steps

Phase 1: Load PDRs

1. Run setup script:

sh: scripts/bash/setup-product-clarify.sh [--json]
ps: scripts/powershell/setup-product-clarify.ps1

1. Read all PDR files from {REPO_ROOT}/.adlc/drafts/pdr/PDR-*.md
2. Read constitution from {REPO_ROOT}/.adlc/memory/constitution.md if exists
3. Build inventory:

| PDR | Title | Status | Category |
|-----|-------|--------|----------|
| PDR-001 | Target Market | Proposed | Problem |
| PDR-002 | Primary Persona | Proposed | Persona |

Phase 2: PDR Quality Analysis

Check each PDR against standards:

| Dimension | Check | Severity if Missing | |-----------|-------|---------------------| | Context | Problem clearly stated | MEDIUM | | Decision | Actionable, testable | HIGH | | Consequences | Positive AND negative | HIGH | | Success Metrics | Defined with targets | HIGH | | Alternatives | At least 2 with neutral trade-offs | HIGH | | Constitution | Aligns with vision | CRITICAL |

Quality checklist:

• [ ] Clear context explaining the problem/opportunity
• [ ] Explicit, actionable decision statement
• [ ] Positive AND negative consequences documented
• [ ] At least 2 alternatives with neutral trade-offs (not "rejected because")
• [ ] Success metrics defined
• [ ] Risks identified with mitigation strategies
• [ ] Valid status value
• [ ] No conflicts with other PDRs
• [ ] Alignment with constitution/vision principles

Phase 3: Cross-PDR Consistency

1. Conflicting Decisions: Same concept, different decisions across PDRs
2. Missing Dependencies: PDRs that should reference each other
3. Terminology Drift: Same concept named differently
4. Priority Conflicts: One PDR says B2B, another assumes B2C

Phase 4: Gap Identification

Generate gap report:

## PDR Clarification Report

| PDR | Title | Gap Type | Severity |
|-----|-------|----------|----------|
| PDR-001 | [Title] | Missing alternatives | HIGH |
| PDR-002 | [Title] | Incomplete consequences | MEDIUM |

Severity:

• CRITICAL: Constitution violations, missing decision statement, no success metrics
• HIGH: No alternatives, missing consequences
• MEDIUM: Incomplete risks, unclear context
• LOW: Minor phrasing

Phase 5: Interactive Refinement

For each gap, present one clarification at a time:

## Clarification [N]: PDR-XXX — [Gap Type]

**Current State**:
[Quote current PDR content]

**Gap Identified**:
[Explain what's missing]

**Question**:
[Specific question]

**Suggested Options**:
| Option | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| A | [Option A] |
| B | [Option B] |
| C | [Custom response] |

Rules:

• Present one clarification at a time
• Prioritize by severity — CRITICAL/HIGH first
• Limit to 5 clarifications per session
• Allow user to skip non-critical clarifications
• Summarize changes after each answer

Phase 6: Constitution Violations (if any)

For Duplicates:

## Constitution Duplication Detected

**PDR**: PDR-XXX — [Title]
**Constitution Principle**: §[Section] — [Principle]

**Options**:
| Option | Action |
|--------|--------|
| A | Remove PDR |
| B | Convert to Reference |
| C | Add Context |
| D | Extend |

For Violations (⭐ RECOMMENDED: Amend Constitution):

## Constitution Violation Detected ⭐

**⭐ RECOMMENDED: A. Amend Constitution**
Update constitution §[Section] to accommodate this decision.

**Alternatives**:
B. Override in PDR — Document justification
C. Revise PDR — Change decision to comply
D. Remove PDR — Delete and follow constitution

Phase 7: Update PDR Files

1. Apply clarifications per-file
2. Update status where applicable
3. Update "Last Updated" timestamps
4. Regenerate pdr.md index

Phase 8: PDR Approval ⭐

Critical: /product-implement only processes PDRs with Accepted status.

## PDR Approval ⭐

**Total PDRs**: [N]
**Status Distribution**:
- Accepted: [N]
- Proposed: [N]
- Discovered: [N]

**Options**:
| Option | Action |
|--------|--------|
| A | Accept All — Change Proposed/Discovered → Accepted |
| B | Review Specific — Select individual PDRs |
| C | Defer — Keep current status |

Bulk approval (Option A):

## Confirm Bulk Approval

Change [N] PDRs to Accepted?

| PDR | Current | New |
|-----|---------|-----|
| PDR-001 | Proposed | Accepted |
| PDR-002 | Discovered | Accepted |

Post-approval:

## PDRs Approved

**Ready for Implementation**:
- Accepted PDRs: [N]
- Pending: [N]

Run `/product-implement` to generate PRD.md.

Key Rules

Non-Destructive Refinement

• Never delete existing PDRs without explicit user approval
• Preserve original intent when updating wording
• Add, don't replace consequences and alternatives
• Mark changes with updated timestamps

Focused Clarification

• Ask one question at a time
• Make questions specific and answerable
• Provide suggested options when possible
• Respect user's time

Constitution Authority

• Constitution violations are always flagged
• PDRs cannot override MUST principles without justification
• Suggest constitution updates if conflict is systemic

Configuration

• PDR_DRAFTS_DIR — {REPO_ROOT}/.adlc/drafts/pdr
• PDR_INDEX — {REPO_ROOT}/.adlc/drafts/pdr/pdr.md
• CONSTITUTION — {REPO_ROOT}/.adlc/memory/constitution.md

12-Factor Alignment

• Factor III (Mission Definition): Ensures product mission is well-defined before execution
• Factor VII (Quality Gates): Applies human judgment before automated generation

Common Rationalizations

| Rationalization | Reality | |-----------------|---------| | "The PDRs look fine — let's skip clarify." | Implement will skip non-Accepted PDRs, silently dropping decisions from the PRD. | | "I'll just accept all at once." | Bulk accept without review risks embedding bad decisions into the PRD. | | "A warning on constitution is basically okay." | Constitution violations are CRITICAL because they undermine product coherence. |

Red Flags

• Skipping the approval step — without Accepted status, implement ignores the PDR.
• Accepting without reading — defeats the purpose of the quality gate.
• Not flagging cross-PDR conflicts — inconsistent PDRs produce an incoherent PRD.

Verification

• [ ] All PDR files read and inventoried
• [ ] Quality checklist applied to each PDR
• [ ] Cross-PDR consistency verified
• [ ] Constitution alignment checked
• [ ] Gaps identified and prioritized
• [ ] Clarifications applied per-file
• [ ] pdr.md index regenerated
• [ ] Approval phase completed (Accept/Review/Defer)
• [ ] Accepted PDRs have status "Accepted" in their files
• [ ] No duplicate or missing PDR IDs

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: tikalk
• Source: tikalk/adlc-team-skills
• License: MIT
• Homepage: https://github.com/tikalk/agentic-sdlc-12-factors

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.