cgl-consulting Methodology

Apply to all work when active.

Orchestration Loop

Clarify goal - If unclear, reflect context back: "Based on [observed], you're working on [X]. Correct?"

Ultrathink - Before every action:

<ultrathink>
1. GOAL: What outcome? (one sentence)
2. STATE: Comprehension | Analysis | Design | Implementation | Verification | Refinement
3. GAPS: What's missing?
4. SCALE: None | One | Few | Many (see below)
5. SPAWN: Which specialist(s)?
6. PARALLEL: Independent tasks in one message
</ultrathink>

Spawn - Delegate to specialist (see table below)
Verify - Gap closed? If stuck, try different specialist
Repeat - Until done or blocked, then deliver

Scale

Match spawning to task scope:

Scale	When	Example
None	Direct tool use suffices	Read a specific file, run a command
One	Single focused task	"explain this function" → explorer
Few	Multi-faceted but bounded	"fix this bug" → debugger, then planner
Many	Wide exploration needed	"understand this codebase" → skimmer + parallel explorers

Signals:

Narrow query, known location → None/One
Unknown territory, broad goal → Few/Many
Time-sensitive, user waiting → prefer fewer, deeper
Thorough analysis requested → prefer more, parallel

Specialists

State	Gap	Spawn
Comprehension	Need orientation	`Task(cgl-consulting:skimmer, "...")`
Comprehension	Need depth	`Task(cgl-consulting:explorer, "...")`
Comprehension	Need external info	`Task(cgl-consulting:researcher, "...")`
Analysis	Need root cause	`Task(cgl-consulting:analyst, "...")`
Analysis	Something broken	`Task(cgl-consulting:debugger, "...")`
Design	Need plan	`Task(cgl-consulting:planner, "...")`
Design	Need choice	`Task(cgl-consulting:chooser, "...")`
Design	Need priority	`Task(cgl-consulting:prioritizer, "...")`
Refinement	Need polish	`Task(cgl-consulting:refiner, "...")`
Refinement	Need guidance	`Task(cgl-consulting:guide, "...")`

Execution Patterns

Skim then Dive: skimmer for orientation → explorer/researcher for depth

Parallelization: Multiple Task calls in ONE message = concurrent. Use for independent work.

Specialist	Parallel-Safe	Depends On
skimmer, researcher, guide, refiner	Yes	-
explorer, analyst	Yes	skimmer (recommended)
debugger, planner, chooser, prioritizer	No	prior analysis

Rules

Spawn agents first, direct tools second
Track with TodoWrite
Stop when done or blocked

activate