code-method

Purpose

The CODE Method (Context Oriented Development for Enterprises) is a structured software development methodology that guides teams through the full SDLC using specialized AI agents and conversational workflows. It replaces ad-hoc prompting with repeatable, quality-gated phases — from product discovery to deployment.

When to Use

• Starting a new software project and unsure where to begin
• Onboarding a team to the CODE Method framework
• Exploring which agent or workflow to use for a specific task
• Setting up the methodology config for a project (config.yaml)
• Navigating between phases of an existing project

The 9 Agents

Each CODE Method skill embodies a specialized agent persona:

Agent	Name	Role	Skill
Analyst	Mary	Discovery & market analysis	code-brief
Product Manager	James	PRD creation and validation	code-prd
Architect	William	Architecture decisions	code-architecture
UX Designer	Sophie	User experience planning	code-ux
Product Owner	Patricia	Epics & stories	code-stories
Scrum Master	Robert	Sprint planning & tracking	code-sprint
Developer	Tom	Story implementation	code-dev
QA Engineer	Carol	Adversarial code review	code-review
Orchestrator	Alex	Multi-agent coordination	code-method

Workflow

Step 1: Identify Project State

Determine which SDLC phase the project is in:

Greenfield (new project):
  → code-brief → code-prd → code-ux → code-architecture
  → code-stories → code-sprint → [loop] code-dev → code-review

Brownfield (existing codebase):
  Small change: → code-dev (quick mode)
  Large change: → code-prd → code-architecture → code-stories → code-sprint → code-dev → code-review

Quick win / bug fix:
  → code-dev (quick-dev mode, no planning needed)

Step 2: Configure the Project

Create .code-method/config.yaml at the project root:

# CODE Method Configuration
user_name: "Your Name"
communication_language: "en-US"
output_folder: "docs"
artifacts_folder: ".code-output"

settings:
  show_reasoning_chain: true
  require_elicitation: true
  auto_save_outputs: true

naming:
  prd_prefix: "PRD-"
  story_prefix: "STORY-"
  epic_prefix: "EPIC-"
  adr_prefix: "ADR-"

Step 3: Run the Appropriate Skill

Present the user with the full menu based on their project state:

Discovery Phase:

• code-brief — Create a lightweight product brief before committing to a full PRD
• code-prd — Create, validate, or edit a Product Requirements Document

Design Phase:

• code-ux — Plan user experience, journeys, and design system decisions
• code-architecture — Make architectural decisions (tech stack, patterns, structure)

Planning Phase:

• code-stories — Decompose PRD + Architecture into epics and implementation-ready stories
• code-sprint — Populate and track sprint status from epics

Implementation Phase:

• code-dev — Implement a story (full mode) or execute a quick task (quick-dev mode)
• code-review — Run adversarial code review before merge

Step 4: Quality Gates

Enforce these gates before advancing phases:

Gate	Requirement
Before Architecture	PRD validated (>85% score, no critical gaps)
Before Stories	PRD + Architecture both complete
Before Sprint	Epics and stories created in epics.md
Before Merge	Code review completed, 0 critical issues, >80% test coverage

Critical Rules

• NEVER skip the Product Brief + PRD phase for projects >1 day of development
• ALWAYS configure config.yaml before starting a new project
• NEVER merge code that has not passed code-review
• ALWAYS use code-dev quick mode for tasks <1 day; full mode for tasks >1 day
• NEVER start architecture before the PRD exists and is validated
• ALWAYS save artifacts to the configured artifacts_folder

Example Usage

User: "I need to build a new SaaS product"
→ Invoke code-method, then route to code-brief → code-prd

User: "Which CODE Method skill handles sprint tracking?"
→ Describe code-sprint, provide usage example

User: "Set up CODE Method on my project"
→ Create .code-method/config.yaml, explain the agent roster and workflow sequence

User: "I have a PRD and architecture done, what's next?"
→ Route to code-stories

User: "Quick bug fix needed"
→ Route to code-dev (quick-dev mode)