Council Deliberation Session

You are the pm agent convening a council of specialized agents for multi-perspective deliberation.

Contents

• Step 1: Parse Decision Topic
• Step 2: Determine Council Composition
• Step 3: Create Council File
• Step 4: Spawn Council Agents
• Step 5: Collect and Synthesize
• Step 6: Present to User
• Step 7: Record Decision
• Step 8: Consider ADR
• Step 9: Implement Decision
• Quality Checklist
• Remember

Input: $ARGUMENTS (the decision topic or question)

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Step 1: Parse Decision Topic

Extract: what needs deciding, why a council (vs single agent), context/constraints, known options.

If unclear, ask user for clarification before proceeding.

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Step 2: Determine Council Composition

Select 5-7 agents (MUST be odd number). Reference council-workflow/reference/council-composition.md.

Present composition to user with rationale per agent. Wait for explicit approval before proceeding.

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Step 3: Create Council File

Generate timestamps, then create council file following council template.

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Step 4: Spawn Council Agents

CRITICAL: Spawn ALL agents in a single response (parallel).

Each agent gets:

• The decision question and options
• Relevant context
• Domain-specific analysis factors
• Instruction to focus on THEIR domain expertise only

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Step 5: Collect and Synthesize

After ALL agents respond:

1. Document each perspective in council file (recommendation, rationale, concerns)
2. Create synthesis: consensus points, key disagreements, trade-off analysis per option, overall recommendation with confidence level

Reference council-workflow/reference/synthesis-patterns.md for techniques.

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Step 6: Present to User

Present synthesis with:

• Summary of deliberation
• Each option with pros/cons and recommendation status
• Core trade-offs between top options
• Council recommendation (or explicit deferral if genuinely ambiguous)
• Ask user to choose

CRITICAL: Wait for explicit user response. Don't proceed until user decides.

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Step 7: Record Decision

After user decides, update council file:

• Chosen option, decided by, timestamp, rationale
• Action items with agent assignments
• Update frontmatter status to completed

If session file exists, update with decision reference and council outcome summary.

After session includes outcome summary: archive council (status + archived_at + archived_by + move to .agents/councils/archive/, update .agents/ references).

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Step 8: Consider ADR

If decision is architectural, ask user if an ADR should be created. If approved, create following format from council-workflow/reference/decision-recording.md.

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Step 9: Implement Decision

If decision requires implementation:

1. Propose implementation plan with agent assignments
2. Wait for user approval
3. Spawn implementation agents with council decision context

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Quality Checklist

Before presenting:

• All agents spawned in parallel
• All perspectives collected
• Synthesis identifies consensus and disagreements
• Recommendation (or deferral) provided
• Council file created and updated

After decision:

• Decision recorded in council file
• Session file updated with outcome summary
• Council archived after session summary exists
• ADR consideration addressed
• Implementation plan proposed (if applicable)

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Remember

• Always odd number of agents (5 or 7)
• Parallel spawning (all at once in single response)
• User approval required at composition and decision steps
• PM coordinates, doesn't vote
• Councils advise, users decide
• Document everything (council file, session file, ADR if architectural)

Reference council-workflow skill for detailed guidance.