| name | parallel-plan-execution |
| description | Create decomposed, parallelizable execution plans with copy-pasta prompts for multi-agent workflows. Use when planning large migrations, refactoring tasks, or any work that can benefit from parallel execution across multiple agents. |
Parallel Plan Execution Strategy
This skill guides you through creating execution plans that can be efficiently parallelized across
multiple Cursor agents, maximizing throughput while minimizing user effort.
When to Use This Skill
Use this approach when:
- Working on tasks affecting 10+ files
- Multiple independent changes can be made simultaneously
- User wants to leverage parallel agent execution
- Task can be broken into logical, independent units of work
Core Principles
AGENT BEHAVIOR: When a copy-pasta prompt is pasted, execute it immediately. The act of pasting
IS the instruction to execute. See "Executing Copy-Pasta Prompts" below.
1. Dependency Analysis
Before creating plans, identify:
- Sequential dependencies: Task B requires Task A completion (phases must run in order)
- Parallel opportunities: Tasks can execute simultaneously (agents within a phase)
- Shared resources: Files modified by multiple tasks (requires coordination)
Critical distinction:
- Phases: Run sequentially (Phase 1 completes → Phase 2 starts → Phase 3 starts).
- Within a phase, order matters. If the "How to use" says "run A, then B, then C and D in
parallel", that means: run A → wait for A to finish → run B → wait for B to finish →
then run C and D in parallel; wait for all agents in the parallel group before the next phase.
- Agents marked "in parallel" in the same step run simultaneously; do not start them until any
"then" steps before them in that phase are done.
2. Plan Hierarchy
Create a clear hierarchy:
feature-00-EXECUTION-ORDER.md # Master orchestration guide
feature-00-SUMMARY.md # Complete scope and file inventory
feature-01-area-1.md # Focused execution plan
feature-02-area-2.md # Focused execution plan
...
feature-COPY-PASTA.md # Ready-to-paste agent prompts
Plans live under .llm/plans/active/[plan-set-name]/. See plan-files-convention.
3. DRY Principle for Plans
Detailed plans: Keep full instructions, file lists, and code examples in numbered plan files.
Copy-pasta file: Should reference plan files, not duplicate their content.
Example copy-pasta prompt:
Read and execute .llm/plans/active/feature/08-dashboard-pages.md
Follow all instructions to update 5 dashboard-related files.
Core rule: [One-line reminder of key principle]
Step-by-Step Workflow
Step 1: Analyze Scope
- Count affected files
- Group by feature area, directory, or logical domain
- Map dependencies
- Estimate complexity
Step 2: Create Master Summary
File: 00-SUMMARY.md — total file count, breakdown, strategy overview.
Step 3: Create Execution Order
File: 00-EXECUTION-ORDER.md — phases (critical path sequential, feature groups parallel).
Step 4: Create Focused Execution Plans
One file per parallelizable group with scope, per-file instructions, and verification commands.
Step 5: Create Copy-Pasta File
File: COPY-PASTA.md
CRITICAL: Make execution rules clear at the top:
- Phases are SEQUENTIAL (must wait for each to complete)
- Agents WITHIN phases run in PARALLEL when marked
Naming Conventions
00- prefix: Meta files (summary, execution order)01-99: Execution plans (numbered by phase/group)- Descriptive names:
08-dashboard-pages.md not 08.md
Anti-Patterns to Avoid
- Do not copy all details into copy-pasta prompts — reference plan files
- Do not create artificial parallelization (files that could conflict)
- Do not make phases too granular (1 file per plan); group related files (3–7 per plan)
- Do not skip verification steps
Executing Copy-Pasta Prompts
When a copy-pasta prompt from COPY-PASTA.md is pasted:
- Execute immediately — do not ask for confirmation
- Prompt is self-contained — read the referenced plan file and implement
- Recognition: message references
.llm/plans/active/... with no extra user instructions
Final COPY-PASTA step
When the pasted prompt is the last step in the plan set:
- Assume the operator ran all prior COPY-PASTA prompts without running tests.
- After implementation and plan archiving, end the response with all cumulative verification
commands for the entire set in one fenced
bash block (see response-ending-make-verify and
plan-completion skills).
Related Skills
- plan-files-convention — directory layout and when to stop at plan creation
- plan-completion — move finished plans to
completed/
- plan-execution-completion-tracking rule — mark COPY-PASTA progress during execution
- response-ending-make-verify — operator verification commands
