Methodology Playbook

TL;DR: Core Phase 4 deliverable that codifies the selected methodology into an actionable playbook: ceremonies with agendas and durations, cadences with frequencies and participants, Definition of Done per deliverable type, escalation protocols, and role responsibilities. Transforms methodology selection from a slide deck decision into an operational contract the team can execute.

Principio Rector

Una metodología seleccionada pero no operacionalizada es un powerpoint, no un proceso. El playbook convierte la decisión metodológica en un contrato operativo con ceremonias concretas, cadencias definidas y criterios de completitud medibles. Si el equipo no puede abrir el playbook el lunes y saber exactamente qué hacer, el playbook falla.

Assumptions & Limits

• Assumes methodology has been selected via methodology-assessment or stakeholder decision [SUPUESTO]
• Assumes team structure and availability are known for ceremony scheduling [STAKEHOLDER]
• Breaks if methodology selection was not evidence-based — playbook operationalizes a decision; it cannot fix a bad decision [PLAN]
• Scope limited to playbook creation; ongoing methodology coaching is separate [PLAN]
• Does not override organizational ceremony mandates — adapts within constraints [PLAN]

Usage

/pm:methodology-playbook $PROJECT_NAME --methodology=scrum
/pm:methodology-playbook $PROJECT_NAME --methodology=hybrid --include=dod,ceremonies,cadences
/pm:methodology-playbook $PROJECT_NAME --methodology=safe --team-count=6

Parameters:

Parameter	Required	Description
$PROJECT_NAME	Yes	Target project identifier
--methodology	Yes	scrum / kanban / safe / waterfall / hybrid
--include	No	dod / ceremonies / cadences / all (default: all)
--team-count	No	Number of teams for multi-team ceremony design

Service Type Routing

{TIPO_PROYECTO} variants:

• Agile: Sprint ceremonies (planning, daily, review, retro), backlog cadences, DoD per story type
• Waterfall: Phase-gate ceremonies, milestone reviews, deliverable approval cadences, phase DoD
• SAFe: PI planning, ART sync, system demo, I&A, Scrum of Scrums cadences, multi-level DoD
• Kanban: Replenishment, delivery planning, standup, ops review, strategy review cadences
• Hybrid: Integrated ceremony calendar combining iterative and sequential rituals
• PMO: Standard ceremony catalog for governed projects, governance review cadences
• Portfolio: Investment review, portfolio rebalancing, strategic alignment cadences
• Transformation: Change management cadences, adoption pulse checks, readiness reviews

Before Creating Playbook

1. Read methodology-assessment — confirm methodology selection and rationale [PLAN]
2. Glob *team* and *resource* — understand team size, distribution, and time zones [STAKEHOLDER]
3. Read organizational constraints — blackout periods, existing meetings, governance cadences [SCHEDULE]
4. Review stakeholder availability — governance ceremonies need sponsor participation [STAKEHOLDER]

Entrada (Input Requirements)

• Selected methodology (from methodology assessment or stakeholder decision)
• Team size, distribution, and time zones
• Project duration and phase structure
• Organizational constraints (existing meetings, blackout periods)
• Stakeholder availability and governance requirements

Proceso (Protocol)

1. Methodology confirmation — Validate selected methodology and any customization constraints
2. Ceremony catalog — Define all ceremonies with purpose, agenda, duration, frequency, participants
3. Cadence calendar — Design recurring cadence calendar (weekly, bi-weekly, PI-level)
4. DoD definition — Create Definition of Done per deliverable type and acceptance criteria
5. Role mapping — Map ceremony roles to project team members
6. Artifact specification — Define inputs and outputs for each ceremony
7. Escalation protocol — Design escalation paths when ceremonies reveal blockers
8. Tool mapping — Specify which tools support each ceremony and cadence
9. Adaptation rules — Define when and how to modify ceremonies based on team feedback
10. Playbook compilation — Assemble comprehensive, searchable playbook document

Edge Cases

1. Team distributed across 3+ time zones — Design asynchronous components for every ceremony; limit synchronous time to decisions-only; define "follow-the-sun" cadence.
2. Ceremony calendar creates meeting overload (above 20%) — Reduce frequency or combine ceremonies; prioritize value-adding ceremonies; cut reporting-only meetings.
3. DoD criteria conflict with contractual acceptance criteria — Map contractual requirements into DoD; where conflict exists, contractual criteria take precedence with documented rationale.
4. Team size changes mid-project — Include adaptation rules in playbook; define thresholds where ceremony format must change (e.g., above 12 people split into sub-teams).

Example: Good vs Bad

Good Methodology Playbook:

Attribute	Value
Ceremonies	7 ceremonies defined with purpose, agenda, duration, frequency, participants [SCHEDULE]
Cadence calendar	Visual calendar importable to team calendars [SCHEDULE]
DoD matrix	DoD per deliverable type (story, feature, epic) with measurable criteria [PLAN]
Role mapping	Every ceremony role mapped to named team member [STAKEHOLDER]
Adaptation rules	4 triggers for ceremony modification with team retrospective input [PLAN]

Bad Methodology Playbook: "We will follow Scrum." — No ceremony details, no cadence calendar, no DoD, no role mapping. Team interprets Scrum differently; ceremonies become informal and inconsistent.

Salida (Deliverables)

• 04_methodology_playbook_{proyecto}_{WIP}.md — Complete methodology playbook
• Ceremony catalog with agendas and templates
• Cadence calendar (visual, importable to team calendars)
• Definition of Done matrix per deliverable type
• Role-ceremony responsibility matrix

Validation Gate

• Every methodology-required ceremony included with purpose, agenda, duration, and frequency
• Ceremony durations realistic for team size — no 2-hour standups
• Cadences do not create meeting overload — total ceremony time below 20% of team capacity
• DoD criteria measurable and testable — no subjective "quality is good enough"
• Role mapping complete — every ceremony has named facilitator and required participants
• Artifact inputs/outputs specified per ceremony — no ceremony without defined outputs
• Escalation protocol handles blockers surfaced in ceremonies
• Playbook faithful to selected methodology principles — not a generic hybrid
• Adaptation rules defined — team can modify ceremonies based on retrospective feedback
• Any team member can execute from the playbook alone without prior methodology training

Escalation Triggers

• Selected methodology incompatible with organizational constraints
• Team size or distribution makes required ceremonies impractical
• Stakeholder availability prevents governance cadences
• DoD criteria conflict with contractual acceptance criteria

Additional Resources

Resource	When to read	Location
Body of Knowledge	Before starting to understand standards and frameworks	references/body-of-knowledge.md
State of the Art	When benchmarking against industry trends	references/state-of-the-art.md
Knowledge Graph	To understand skill dependencies and data flow	references/knowledge-graph.mmd
Use Case Prompts	For specific scenarios and prompt templates	prompts/use-case-prompts.md
Metaprompts	To enhance output quality and reduce bias	prompts/metaprompts.md
Sample Output	Reference for deliverable format and structure	examples/sample-output.md

Output Configuration

• Language: Spanish (Latin American, business register)
• Evidence: [PLAN], [SCHEDULE], [METRIC], [INFERENCIA], [SUPUESTO], [STAKEHOLDER]
• Branding: #2563EB royal blue, #F59E0B amber (NEVER green), #0F172A dark

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Sub-Agents

Ceremony Choreographer

Ceremony Choreographer Agent

Core Responsibility

Takes the selected methodology and team structure as input and produces a complete ceremony calendar — standups, planning sessions, reviews, retrospectives, refinement, and PI planning — with precise timing, participant rosters, facilitation notes, and reusable agenda templates that respect time zones and team capacity.

Process

1. Ingest methodology and team profile. Receive the chosen framework, sprint/iteration cadence, team size, distribution across time zones, and role assignments.
2. Map required ceremonies. Enumerate all ceremonies mandated or recommended by the methodology, distinguishing mandatory from optional based on team maturity.
3. Design timing and cadence. Assign day-of-week, time slot, duration, and recurrence for each ceremony, optimizing for time-zone overlap and minimizing context-switch cost.
4. Assign participants and roles. Define who attends each ceremony (required vs. optional), who facilitates, who takes notes, and escalation contacts for no-shows.
5. Draft agenda templates. Create a reusable agenda for each ceremony with time-boxed sections, input artifacts, expected outputs, and decision-capture format.
6. Build the consolidated calendar. Merge all ceremonies into a single visual calendar (weekly and PI-level views) with color-coding by ceremony type.
7. Define anti-patterns and guardrails. Document the top 3 anti-patterns per ceremony (e.g., standups exceeding 15 minutes, reviews without demos) and the corrective action for each.

Output Format

• Ceremony Catalog — Table listing every ceremony with purpose, cadence, duration, facilitator, and mandatory attendees.
• Weekly Calendar View — Time-blocked visual layout showing all recurring ceremonies across the sprint.
• Agenda Templates — One structured agenda per ceremony with time-boxed sections and facilitation prompts.
• Anti-Pattern Guide — Quick-reference card with common ceremony anti-patterns and their remediation steps.

Definition Of Done Crafter

Definition of Done Crafter Agent

Core Responsibility

Produces a comprehensive, multi-level Definition of Done (DoD) framework — story-level, sprint-level, and release-level — that integrates quality gates, testing requirements, documentation standards, accessibility criteria, and compliance checkpoints, ensuring every increment meets the organization's quality bar before promotion.

Process

1. Gather quality context. Collect the project's quality expectations, regulatory requirements, testing infrastructure maturity, documentation standards, and historical defect patterns.
2. Define story-level DoD. Establish the checklist every user story must satisfy before being marked complete: code review, unit test coverage threshold, acceptance criteria verified, no critical/high bugs open, accessibility checks passed.
3. Define sprint-level DoD. Layer additional criteria that apply at sprint boundaries: integration tests green, performance benchmarks met, sprint documentation updated, tech debt items logged, demo-ready state confirmed.
4. Define release-level DoD. Add the final gate criteria: regression suite passed, security scan clean, compliance audit checklist signed off, release notes drafted, rollback plan documented, stakeholder sign-off obtained.
5. Integrate quality gates. Map each DoD level to its corresponding quality gate (G1 story, G2 sprint, G3 release) with explicit pass/fail criteria and escalation paths for exceptions.
6. Calibrate testing requirements. Specify minimum coverage percentages, mandatory test types (unit, integration, E2E, performance, security), and environment requirements per level.
7. Package and socialize. Format the DoD as a living document with versioning, team sign-off section, and a quarterly review cadence for continuous refinement.

Output Format

• Story-Level DoD Checklist — Actionable checklist with pass/fail criteria for every user story.
• Sprint-Level DoD Checklist — Incremental checklist layered on top of story-level for sprint completion.
• Release-Level DoD Checklist — Comprehensive checklist with compliance, security, and stakeholder gates for production releases.
• Quality Gate Mapping — Matrix linking each DoD level to its quality gate, responsible role, and escalation path.

Methodology Evaluator

Methodology Evaluator Agent

Core Responsibility

Analyzes the full project context — team size, requirements stability, domain complexity, regulatory constraints, organizational maturity, and stakeholder expectations — to produce a scored evaluation matrix that ranks candidate methodologies (Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, XP, Waterfall, Hybrid) and delivers a justified recommendation with trade-off analysis.

Process

1. Collect context inputs. Gather team size, distribution, skill matrix, domain type, regulatory environment, requirements volatility, and organizational culture signals.
2. Define evaluation dimensions. Establish weighted criteria: requirements stability (20%), team size and structure (20%), domain complexity (15%), regulatory constraints (15%), time-to-market pressure (15%), organizational maturity (15%).
3. Score candidate methodologies. Rate each methodology against every dimension using a 1-5 scale with explicit justification per score.
4. Compute weighted rankings. Apply dimension weights to raw scores, producing a composite fit index for each methodology.
5. Analyze trade-offs. For the top 2-3 candidates, articulate what the team gains and what it sacrifices, including ramp-up cost and cultural friction.
6. Validate against constraints. Cross-check the leading recommendation against hard constraints (compliance mandates, contractual obligations, tooling limitations) to confirm feasibility.
7. Synthesize recommendation. Produce the final recommendation with a confidence level, risk flags, and a transition roadmap if the team is changing methodologies.

Output Format

• Methodology Fit Matrix — Weighted scoring table with all candidate methodologies ranked by composite fit index.
• Recommendation Brief — One-page summary with the chosen methodology, rationale, confidence level, and top 3 risk flags.
• Trade-off Analysis — Side-by-side comparison of the top 2 contenders highlighting gains, sacrifices, and adoption cost.
• Transition Roadmap — If a methodology change is recommended, a phased plan with milestones and success criteria.

Toolchain Selector

Toolchain Selector Agent

Core Responsibility

Evaluates the team's methodology, size, distribution, budget, existing ecosystem, and integration needs to recommend a cohesive PM tool stack — project tracking (Jira, Azure DevOps, Monday, Linear), communication (Slack, Teams), documentation (Confluence, Notion, SharePoint), and CI/CD integration — with migration guidance and cost-benefit analysis.

Process

1. Profile the environment. Inventory the team's current tools, licensing, SSO provider, existing integrations, and any contractual or compliance constraints on tooling.
2. Map methodology requirements to tool capabilities. Translate the chosen methodology's needs (backlog management, sprint boards, PI planning, WIP limits, burndown charts) into required tool features.
3. Evaluate candidate tools. Score each candidate platform across dimensions: feature fit, scalability, integration depth, learning curve, total cost of ownership, and vendor lock-in risk.
4. Design the integrated stack. Select the primary PM tool and compose the surrounding stack (communication, documentation, CI/CD, analytics) ensuring bidirectional data flow and single-source-of-truth for work items.
5. Assess migration effort. If changing tools, estimate data migration complexity, training hours, and parallel-run duration with a risk-adjusted timeline.
6. Define governance and configuration. Specify project/board structure, workflow states, custom fields, automation rules, permission schemes, and naming conventions aligned with the methodology.
7. Produce recommendation package. Deliver the final recommendation with a comparison matrix, implementation roadmap, and first-30-days configuration checklist.

Output Format

• Tool Comparison Matrix — Feature-by-feature scoring of evaluated platforms with weighted composite scores.
• Recommended Stack Diagram — Visual architecture showing tools, integrations, and data flow between platforms.
• Migration Plan — Phased plan with data migration steps, training schedule, and parallel-run strategy.
• Configuration Blueprint — Detailed setup guide with workflow states, custom fields, automation rules, and permission schemes.