executing-plans

Executing Plans

When to Use

• Executing plans created with writing-plans skill
• Staying in current session with independent tasks
• Wanting quality gates without human delays
• Systematic implementation with verification

When NOT to Use

• No plan exists yet -- use writing-plans first to create one
• Single-task work that does not need sequential execution or review gates
• Research or exploration where the goal is learning, not building

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Core Pattern

"Fresh subagent per task + review between tasks = high quality, fast iteration"

Why Fresh Agents?

• Prevents context pollution between tasks
• Each task gets focused attention
• Failures don't cascade
• Easier to retry individual tasks

Why Code Review Between Tasks?

• Catches issues early
• Ensures code matches intent
• Prevents technical debt accumulation
• Creates natural checkpoints

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Execution Workflow

Step 1: Load Plan

1. Read the plan file
2. Verify plan is complete and approved
3. Create TodoWrite with all tasks from plan
4. Set first task to in_progress

Step 2: Execute Task

For each task:

1. Dispatch fresh subagent with task details
2. Subagent implements following TDD cycle:
   - Write failing test
   - Verify test fails
   - Implement minimally
   - Verify test passes
   - Commit
3. Subagent returns completion summary

Step 3: Code Review

After each task:

1. Dispatch code-reviewer subagent
2. Review scope: only changes from current task
3. Reviewer returns findings:
   - Critical: Must fix before proceeding
   - Important: Should fix before proceeding
   - Minor: Can fix later

Step 4: Handle Review Findings

IF Critical or Important issues found:
  1. Dispatch fix subagent for each issue
  2. Re-request code review
  3. Repeat until no Critical/Important issues

IF only Minor issues:
  1. Note for later cleanup
  2. Proceed to next task

Step 5: Mark Complete

1. Update TodoWrite - mark task completed
2. Move to next task
3. Repeat from Step 2

Step 6: Final Review

After all tasks complete:

1. Dispatch comprehensive code review
2. Review entire implementation against plan
3. Verify all success criteria met
4. Run full test suite
5. Use `finishing-a-development-branch` skill

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Critical Rules

Never Skip Code Reviews

Every task must be reviewed before proceeding. No exceptions.

Never Proceed with Critical Issues

Critical issues must be fixed. The pattern is:

implement → review → fix critical → re-review → proceed

Never Run Parallel Implementation

Tasks run sequentially:

WRONG: Run Task 1, 2, 3 simultaneously
RIGHT: Run Task 1 → Review → Task 2 → Review → Task 3 → Review

Always Read Plan Before Implementing

WRONG: Start coding based on memory of plan
RIGHT: Read plan file, extract task details, then implement

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Subagent Communication

Implementation Subagent Prompt

## Task: [Task Name]

**Context**: Executing plan for [Feature Name]

**Files to modify**:
- [File paths from plan]

**Steps**:
[Exact steps from plan]

**Requirements**:
- Follow TDD: test first, then implement
- Commit after completion
- Return summary of what was done

**Output expected**:
- Files modified
- Tests added
- Commit hash
- Any issues encountered

Stack-Specific Task Prompt Examples

Python/FastAPI:

## Task: Implement GET /api/users endpoint

**Context**: FastAPI + SQLAlchemy async + Pydantic v2
**Files**: src/api/users.py, tests/test_users.py
**Pattern**: Follow src/api/health.py for router setup

**Steps**:
1. Write test: GET /api/users returns 200 with list
2. Verify test fails (404 — route doesn't exist)
3. Implement: APIRouter, async def, Depends(get_db)
4. Verify test passes
5. Add edge case: GET /api/users/999 returns 404 ProblemDetails

**Verify**: pytest tests/test_users.py -v (all green)

TypeScript/NestJS:

## Task: Implement UsersController with CRUD

**Context**: NestJS + Prisma + class-validator DTOs
**Files**: src/users/users.controller.ts, src/users/users.controller.spec.ts
**Pattern**: Follow src/health/ module structure

**Steps**:
1. Write spec: POST /users returns 201 with user
2. Verify spec fails (404 — no route)
3. Implement: Controller, Service, CreateUserDto with @IsEmail()
4. Verify spec passes
5. Add: GET /users/:id returns 404 for missing user

**Verify**: npm test -- --testPathPattern=users.controller (all green)

React/Next.js:

## Task: Build UserTable with sorting and pagination

**Context**: Next.js App Router + TanStack Table + shadcn/ui
**Files**: src/components/user-table.tsx, src/components/user-table.test.tsx
**Pattern**: Follow src/components/data-table.tsx for column defs

**Steps**:
1. Write test: renders table with user data
2. Verify test fails (component doesn't exist)
3. Implement: columns, DataTable wrapper, sort handlers
4. Verify test passes
5. Add test: clicking column header sorts data

**Verify**: npx vitest run src/components/user-table.test.tsx (all green)

Stack-Specific Verification Commands

Stack	Test Command	Full Verify
Python/FastAPI	pytest tests/test_<module>.py -v	pytest -v && ruff check . && mypy src/
TypeScript/NestJS	npm test -- --testPathPattern=<module>	npm test && npm run lint && npm run build
Next.js	npx vitest run <file>	npm test && next lint && next build

Code Review Subagent Prompt

## Code Review Request

**Scope**: Changes from Task [N]

**Files changed**:
- [List of files]

**Review against**:
- Plan requirements for this task
- Code quality standards
- Security best practices
- Test coverage

**Return**:
- Critical issues (must fix)
- Important issues (should fix)
- Minor issues (can defer)
- Approval status

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TodoWrite Integration

Maintain task status throughout:

| Task | Status |
|------|--------|
| Task 1: Create model | completed |
| Task 2: Add validation | completed |
| Task 3: Create endpoint | in_progress |
| Task 4: Add tests | pending |
| Task 5: Documentation | pending |

Update status in real-time:

• pending → in_progress when starting
• in_progress → completed when reviewed and approved

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Error Handling

Task Fails

1. Capture error details
2. Attempt fix (max 2 retries)
3. If still failing, pause execution
4. Report to user with:
   - Which task failed
   - Error details
   - Suggested resolution
5. Wait for user decision

Review Finds Major Issues

1. List all Critical/Important issues
2. Dispatch fix subagent for each
3. Re-run code review
4. If issues persist after 2 cycles:
   - Pause execution
   - Report to user
   - May need plan revision

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Completion Checklist

Before declaring plan execution complete:

• All tasks marked completed
• All code reviews passed
• Full test suite passes
• No Critical issues outstanding
• No Important issues outstanding
• Final comprehensive review done
• Ready for finishing-a-development-branch

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Related Skills

• writing-plans -- Use to create the plan before executing it
• dispatching-parallel-agents -- For coordinating multiple independent agents when plan tasks allow parallelism
• verification-before-completion -- Ensures each task and the final result are properly verified before claiming completion