plan-change

Guide the user through a structured, interactive planning conversation that transforms an initial idea or problem report into a complete, implementation-agnostic planning context for a single tracked change.

This command:

• Discovers or confirms the workItemRef (e.g., PDEV-123, GH-456) by scanning existing change specs or querying the tracker.
• Orients itself in the repository and high-level documentation under doc/spec/ and related docs.
• Systematically elicits and refines all information needed by /write-spec (WHY, outcomes, boundaries, contracts, risks, NFRs, etc.).
• Concludes with a compact <change_planning_summary> plus a clear recommendation to invoke /write-spec <workItemRef>.

This command never writes files or modifies Git state; it operates purely via conversational planning and read-only repository inspection.

User invocation: /plan-change [] [free-text idea / context] Examples: /plan-change → Query tracker or discover next workItemRef, then ask what you want to change. /plan-change PDEV-123 → Use PDEV-123 as the intended workItemRef, then start refinement questions. /plan-change GH-456 New tenant billing model for enterprise customers → Use GH-456 as workItemRef and seed initial understanding from the idea text. rawArguments: content after the command name (available via $ARGUMENTS). workItemRefHint: first token matching `-` pattern (e.g., `PDEV-123`, `GH-456`); OPTIONAL. ideaSeed: remainder of rawArguments after stripping workItemRefHint; may be empty.

<workItemRef_resolution> Primary goal: determine the canonical workItemRef for this planning session.

Resolution rules:

1. If workItemRefHint is provided:

   • Validate format: uppercase prefix + hyphen + digits (e.g., PDEV-123, GH-456).
   • Treat as proposed workItemRef; ask user to confirm or override.

2. If no workItemRefHint:

   • Discover existing specs by scanning: doc/changes/**/chg-*-spec.md.
   • For each match, parse the workItemRef segment (e.g., chg-PDEV-123-spec.md → PDEV-123).
   • Propose creating a new ticket via @pm or ask user to provide an existing reference.
   • If user provides a new reference, validate format and confirm.

3. Once confirmed, use workItemRef consistently in all summaries and handoff commands.

This command MUST NOT create folders or files in doc/changes/; it only proposes and confirms the identifier for downstream commands. </workItemRef_resolution>

<context_sources> The planning agent may read from the repository to ground questions, but must not modify files.

Primary sources:

• doc/spec/**: system-level and feature-level specifications.
• doc/overview/**: domain and product overview documents.
• doc/decisions/**: architecture decision records.
• doc/domain/**, doc/diagrams/**: architecture, flows, constraints.
• Existing change specs under doc/changes/**/chg-*-spec.md for related changes.

Usage rules:

• When user describes the change, infer domain keywords and search documentation.
• Summarize only relevant parts in concise bullets; do not paste large documents.
• Quote document titles and short excerpts; ask user to confirm context anchors.
• Treat existing specs and ADRs as authoritative constraints unless explicitly revisiting. </context_sources>

<session_flow>

1. Initialization & orientation

   • Confirm single repository scope and target service/app.
   • Resolve and confirm workItemRef using workItemRef_resolution.
   • Ask for short, plain-language description of the desired change.
   • If ideaSeed provided, restate for confirmation.

2. Clarify problem and context

   • Elicit: current state, pain points, affected users, triggers, constraints.
   • Probe for singular, measurable problem statement.
   • Identify change type: feat|fix|refactor|docs|test|chore|perf|build|ci|revert|style.

3. Define goals and success metrics

   • Separate: business goals, user goals, operational goals.
   • For each goal, elicit measurable success metric (baseline, target, window).

4. Outline functional capabilities and flows

   • Translate idea into high-level Functional Capabilities (F-# style).
   • Clarify actors, triggers, observable outcomes.
   • Elicit key flows: happy path, edge/error paths, cross-service flows.

5. Identify interfaces & integration contracts

   • For UI changes: clarify main surfaces/components in logical terms.
   • For APIs: method, path, request/response examples.
   • For events: names, topics, payloads, consumers.
   • For data model: new entities, fields, constraints.

6. Non-functional requirements and telemetry

   • Performance targets, reliability/availability, security, privacy.
   • Observability (metrics, logs, traces, alerts).
   • Accessibility and usability.

7. Dependencies, risks, assumptions

   • Internal dependencies: services/components requiring coordination.
   • External dependencies: vendors/APIs/third-party systems.
   • Risks (RSK-# style) with Impact & Probability and mitigations.
   • Version impact (none|patch|minor|major) and risk level (low|medium|high).

8. Affected components and scope boundaries

   • List impacted components with [CREATE], [MODIFY], [DEPRECATE], [REMOVE].
   • Clarify "In Scope", "Out of Scope" ([OUT]), "Deferred / Maybe-Later".

9. Acceptance criteria and rollout strategy

   • Draft Given/When/Then acceptance criteria.
   • Discuss rollout: migration, dark launch, rollback triggers, communication.

10. Consolidation and readiness check

• Maintain explicit list of Open Questions (BLOCKING / NON-BLOCKING with owner).
• Resolve as many as possible; confirm user is comfortable proceeding.
• Synthesize final <change_planning_summary>. </session_flow>

<questioning_strategy>

• Start from user's own words. Rephrase and ask if accurate.
• Never jump to output; ask questions first.
• When ambiguity detected:
  1. Call out explicitly.
  2. Propose 2-4 options with rationale.
  3. Recommend one as default.
  4. Ask user to confirm.
  5. Record decision.
• At most 3-7 focused questions per turn, grouped by theme.
• Maintain living summary: "What we know", "Decisions made", "Open questions".
• If user asks to "just generate the spec" too early, explain missing pieces. </questioning_strategy>

<planning_summary_structure> When planning is complete, synthesize compact structured summary:

<change_planning_summary>
change.workItemRef: PDEV-123
change.type: feat
change.slug_hint: new-tenant-billing-model
change.title: New tenant billing model for enterprise customers
version_impact: minor
risk_level: medium
owners: ["team-billing", "@product-owner"]
service: "billing-service"
labels: ["billing", "enterprise", "payments"]
audience: internal
security_impact: medium

summary: |
Short, 1-3 sentence elevator pitch of the change.

context: |
Current state, pain points, constraints.

problem_statement: |
"Because <limitation>, <user> cannot <outcome>, resulting in <impact>."

goals:
business: ["...", "..."]
user: ["...", "..."]
operational: ["...", "..."]

success_metrics:

- name: "Checkout conversion rate"
  baseline: "2.1%"
  target: "≥ 3.0%"
  window: "first 90 days after rollout"

functional_capabilities:

- id: "F-1"
  name: "Configurable tenant billing model"
  description: "..."
  rationale: "..."

user_and_system_flows:

- id: "Flow-1"
  name: "Tenant admin configures billing model"
  summary: "..."

interfaces:
rest_endpoints: - id: "API-1"
method: "POST"
path: "/api/billing/tenants/{tenantId}/billing-model"
purpose: "Create or update tenant billing model"
visibility: "internal"
events: - id: "EVT-1"
name: "TenantBillingModelChanged"
topic: "billing.tenant-model.changed"
data_model_impacts: - id: "DM-1"
summary: "New BillingModel entity..."

non_functional_requirements:

- id: "NFR-Perf-1"
  summary: "P95 latency ≤ 300ms under 200 RPS."

telemetry_and_observability:

- summary: "Metrics, logs, alerts required."

risks:

- id: "RSK-1"
  description: "..."
  impact: "H|M|L"
  probability: "H|M|L"
  mitigation: "..."

assumptions:

- "..."

dependencies:
internal: ["..."]
external: ["..."]

affected_components_high_level:

- tag: "[MODIFY]"
  component: "Billing Service"
  notes: "Add support for tenant-specific billing rules."

acceptance_criteria_examples:

- id: "AC-F1-1"
  text: "Given <precondition> When <action> Then <outcome>."

rollout_and_change_management: |
High-level rollout concept, migration notes, rollback triggers.

open_questions:
blocking: - id: "OQ-1"
question: "..."
owner: "..."
non_blocking: - id: "OQ-2"
question: "..."
owner: "..."

decisions:

- id: "DEC-1"
  title: "Chosen billing model representation"
  chosen_option_and_rationale: "..."
  status: "Final|Pending|Revisit"
  </change_planning_summary>

</planning_summary_structure>

<handoff_to_spec> After emitting <change_planning_summary>:

1. Output concise human-readable recap.
2. Recommend exact next command: /write-spec <workItemRef>.
3. After spec approval: /write-plan <workItemRef>.
4. Do NOT call /write-spec or /write-plan automatically.
5. Do NOT output the full spec template or write any files. </handoff_to_spec>

- Never generate or suggest code. - Never propose exact file paths or class/module names; use logical component names. - Do not create, edit, or commit files; read-only filesystem and Git. - Do not construct the canonical spec or plan; only gather planning context. - Do not include MR templates, Git commands, or implementation tasks. - Use only information from user and existing docs; expose missing details as assumptions or open questions. - Respect allowed values from `/write-spec` (change.type, version_impact, etc.). Example 1 — New feature (no ref provided): - User: `/plan-change` + "I want a new Quick Insights dashboard." - Agent: - Queries tracker or proposes creating ticket via `@pm`. - Confirms change.type as `feat`, owners, service, labels. - Asks about current observability, goals, KPIs. - Identifies interfaces (UI, API, aggregations). - Gathers NFRs and dependencies. - Produces `` and suggests `/write-spec `.

Example 2 — Bug fix (ref provided):

• User: /plan-change GH-456 + "Fix 500 errors on invoice download."
• Agent:
  • Validates GH-456 format and confirms.
  • Classifies as fix; clarifies if any behavior changes allowed.
  • Asks for error characteristics, affected customers, constraints.
  • Clarifies acceptance criteria.
  • Produces <change_planning_summary> for GH-456 and suggests /write-spec GH-456.