doc-brd

name	doc-brd
description	Create a Business Requirements Document (BRD) - Layer 1 of the SDD flow, defining business needs, objectives, and success criteria. Use when starting a new project or feature. Single-document authoring primitive; for end-to-end or batch generation the autopilot (`doc-brd-autopilot`) drives this skill.
metadata	{"tags":["sdd-workflow","layer-1-artifact"],"custom_fields":{"layer":1,"artifact_type":"BRD","skill_category":"core-workflow","upstream_artifacts":[],"downstream_artifacts":["PRD","EARS","BDD","ADR","SPEC","TDD","IPLAN"],"version":"0.24.0","framework_spec_version":"0.40.0","last_updated":"2026-05-23","adapts":["section_toggles","glossary","review_mode"]}}

doc-brd

Purpose

Create a Business Requirements Document (BRD) — Layer 1 of the SDD flow. A BRD captures business objectives, stakeholders, scope, and success criteria in business language, before any product or technical detail.

Layer: 1 (entry point, no upstream). Downstream: PRD → EARS → BDD → ADR → SPEC → TDD → IPLAN → Code.

One BRD = one MVP iteration (5–15 focused requirements). New features get a new BRD; link cycles with @depends: BRD-NN.

When to Use

Use doc-brd when:

• Starting a new project or feature and defining business requirements.
• Documenting strategic alignment, market context, and success criteria.
• Translating an implementation plan back into business-language requirements.

For end-to-end generation from reference docs, a prompt, or an IPLAN, use ../doc-brd-autopilot/SKILL.md. For a new project skeleton, run ../project-init/SKILL.md first.

Prerequisites

BRD is the entry point, so there are no upstream artifacts to verify. Before writing, read:

1. Template (source of truth): ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/BRD-TEMPLATE.yaml
2. Layer README: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/README.md
3. ID & tag standards: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/ID_NAMING_STANDARDS.md
4. Authoring style: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/AUTHORING_STYLE.md

Confirm no ID collision: ls docs/01_BRD/. Never invent placeholders like BRD-XXX or reference non-existent documents.

Layer Guidance

Platform vs Feature BRD (decide first)

Signal	Type
Defines infrastructure, technology stack, or cross-cutting concerns	Platform
Other BRDs will depend on its architectural choices	Platform
Describes one user-facing workflow / feature	Feature
Builds on capabilities an existing Platform BRD established	Feature

• Platform BRD — file BRD-NN_platform_{slug}; ADRs are created before the PRD to validate architectural choices; §8 (Architecture Decision Topics) is populated with the Selected categories that downstream BRDs will depend on.
• Feature BRD — file BRD-NN_{feature_slug}; standard layer flow (BRD → PRD → EARS → BDD → ADR); §8 references the Platform BRD's adopted topics rather than introducing new architectural decisions.

Required structure (16 sections)

document_control is Section 1 (project name, version, date YYYY-MM-DD, owner, prepared-by, status, revision-history table). Then:

2. Executive Summary (OPTIONAL — derived; toggled by section_toggles) ·
3. Introduction · 4. Business Objectives · 5. Project Scope · 6. Stakeholders ·
4. Functional Requirements · 8. Architecture Decision Topics (adr_topics) ·
5. Quality Expectations · 10. Constraints and Assumptions ·
6. Acceptance Criteria and Success Validation · 12. Business Risk Management ·
7. Approval · 14. Traceability · 15. Glossary ·
8. Seed Disposition (seed_disposition — OPTIONAL, _required: false; the seed→SDD absorption ledger, GD-08 / SEED_CONTRACT.md).

The template additionally defines two structural blocks alongside the numbered sections: a Diagrams Registry (diagrams:) and a Lifecycle Reference appendix (appendix:) — see those template keys for the required shape. Section numbers and section identifiers come from the template's own numbering and top-level YAML keys; the template is the source of truth, and this skill's list is a navigation aid, not a parallel definition.

See BRD-TEMPLATE.yaml for per-section content and cross_section_rules.

Section 8 — Architecture Decision Topics (mandatory)

Identify architectural topics needing decisions, with cost-focused, alternatives-based analysis, across the 7 categories. Do not reference ADR numbers — ADRs do not exist yet.

#	Category	When N/A
1	Infrastructure	Pure data/analytics project
2	Data Architecture	No persistent data
3	Integration	Standalone system
4	Security	Internal tool, no sensitive data
5	Observability	MVP/prototype only
6	AI/ML	No AI/ML components
7	Technology Selection	Using an existing stack

Each Selected topic carries a BRD.NN.08.xxxx element ID and includes a status, business driver, business constraints, an Alternatives Overview table (with cost estimates), a Cloud Provider Comparison (GCP/Azure/AWS), a recommended selection, and the PRD requirements it implies. Layer separation: BRD §8 = what & why & how much; PRD = how to evaluate; ADR = the decision.

Element IDs and tags

• Element IDs: BRD.{doc_id}.{section_id}.{hash}. Do not compute the hash in this prompt — call the generator: python -m sdd_doc_lint.rehash --compute --doc-id NN --section-id SS --title T --description D (--length 8 on collision). Authority: framework/governance/ID_NAMING_STANDARDS.md; never restate the algorithm here.
• Layer 1 carries no @ upstream tags; downstream tags it (@brd: BRD.01.06.a7f3).
• Removed patterns: AC-XXX, FR-XXX, BO-XXX, BC-XXX, legacy 3-segment BRD.NN.xxxx.

Upstream source configuration

Most BRDs are authored from stakeholder input — keep the default upstream_mode: "none". Only when content derives from docs/00_REF/ docs set upstream_mode: "ref" and list upstream_ref_path (relative to the BRD file).

Creation Process

1. Determine type — Platform vs Feature (table above).
2. Reserve ID — next free BRD-NN (two digits, no leading zero beyond two: BRD-01, BRD-99, BRD-102). Per-layer independence (CLEANUP-PR-F item 18): pick the next-free number in YOUR layer's index — the upstream's number is NOT your number (doc numbers are per-layer sequential and independent; see framework/governance/ID_NAMING_STANDARDS.md §Cross-layer cardinality).
3. Create the nested folder — every BRD lives in docs/01_BRD/BRD-NN_{slug}/ regardless of size. Monolithic: BRD-NN_{slug}.md inside it; section-based (>25 KB): BRD-NN.S_{section}.md + index from ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/BRD-00_index.TEMPLATE.md.
4. Document Control (Section 1) first, then complete the 14 remaining required sections + the diagrams registry + appendix per template; toggle §2 (Executive Summary) per section_toggles.
5. Fill §8 (Architecture Decision Topics) across the 7 categories.
6. Configure upstream mode (none default; ref if from docs/00_REF/).
7. Update the BRD index docs/01_BRD/BRD-00_index.md in the same change.
8. Validate (below) and commit the BRD and index together.

Draft mode (saga-driven)

When invoked via the saga-driven autopilot subprocess pattern (per ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/REVIEW_SAGA.md and the saga loop in ../doc-brd-autopilot/SKILL.md), this skill is the entry point for the draft phase of the create→review→revise loop. The invocation looks like:

claude --plugin-dir "$PLUGIN_DIR" -p \
  "/aidoc-flow:doc-brd Draft BRD-<id> at <path>; use BRD-TEMPLATE.yaml + the source input at <seed-path>. Write to docs/01_BRD/BRD-<id>_<slug>/."

Because claude -p has no subagent_type CLI parameter, the persona binding (business_analyst lens → requirements-analyst agent per ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/REVIEW_CREWS.yaml plus the lens-to-agent table in ../review-team/SKILL.md) moves INTO this SKILL's prompt. When the invocation brief contains the word Draft (case-insensitive) — indicating a saga-driven draft phase — dispatch the author this way:

1. Dispatch ONE Task subagent with subagent_type=requirements-analyst, acting as the business_analyst lens (BRD author per REVIEW_CREWS.yaml's BRD crew).
2. Brief: the BRD-TEMPLATE.yaml + the source input (REF / prompt / IPLAN seed file at the path passed in) + this SKILL's ## Creation Process (above) as authoring rules.
3. The subagent writes the BRD to the nested folder docs/01_BRD/BRD-<id>_<slug>/ per the standard layout.
4. After the subagent returns, write the saga.json transition recording the draft completion: append {"ts": "<now>", "from": "FANOUT_STARTED", "to": "BRANCH_COMPLETED", "scope": "branch:business_analyst"} to transitions[] if a saga.json exists at .aidoc/review/01_BRD/<BRD-id>/saga.json. (If no saga.json exists, this is a standalone invocation — skip the saga write per REVIEW_SAGA.md §"FRAMEWORK_SPEC_VERSION semantics" declaration-vs-implementation rule.)

When invoked outside the saga loop (a user runs /aidoc-flow:doc-brd directly to author a BRD), follow the ## Creation Process above without dispatching the Task subagent (the user is the author in that case). The two modes coexist; the trigger is the presence of Draft in the brief AND an existing <path> argument.

Validation

Validator framing (review_mode-aware). The structural checks below are the deterministic floor and run in every mode. In team mode the content-quality review is performed by ../doc-brd-audit/SKILL.md fanning out the BRD crew (architect/business_analyst/auditor/chaos_engineer/security_engineer); in single_pass mode the audit applies every lens in one pass. Either way this skill (the author) does not score the artifact — it produces it.

This skill is the validator (no runtime code). Apply against ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/README.md and ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/ID_NAMING_STANDARDS.md.

• Document Control (Section 1) is the first section.
• All required template sections present and non-empty: §1, §3–§15, plus the diagrams registry and appendix; §2 Executive Summary only when section_toggles includes it. Enumerate by reading BRD-TEMPLATE.yaml.
• §8 covers all 7 ADR-topic categories; no ADR numbers referenced.
• Element IDs match BRD.NN.SS.xxxx; no removed patterns.
• Traceability matrix / index created or updated; no broken links.
• Diagram contract: @diagram: c4-l1 and @diagram: dfd-l1 present (use ../charts-flow/SKILL.md); add a sequence tag if a sequence diagram exists.

Error codes (all severity error): XDOC-006 tag format invalid · XDOC-008 broken internal link · XDOC-009 missing traceability section.

Quality gate (blocking): PRD-Ready score ≥ 90/100 before moving on.

BRD-REF documents (via ../doc-ref/SKILL.md) are free-format references — exempt from ready-scores, cumulative tags, and quality gates.

Next Skill

../doc-prd/SKILL.md — the PRD references this BRD (@brd: BRD.NN.SS.xxxx), defines product features and KPIs, and inherits the §8 architecture topics.

Adaptation

Read .aidoc/profile.yaml; honor only this skill's knobs (section_toggles, glossary). Ignore unknown keys; absent a profile, use framework defaults. Authority: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/ADAPTATION.md.

Related Resources

• Template / authoring rules: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/BRD-TEMPLATE.yaml
• Layer README: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/README.md
• Index template: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/layers/01_BRD/BRD-00_index.TEMPLATE.md
• ID & tag standards: ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/framework/governance/ID_NAMING_STANDARDS.md
• Quality gate: ../doc-brd-audit/SKILL.md · Fixes: ../doc-brd-fixer/SKILL.md
• Generation pipeline: ../doc-brd-autopilot/SKILL.md

Quick Reference

Purpose	Define business needs and objectives
Layer	1 (entry point)
Upstream tags	None
Key decision	Platform vs Feature
Must include	§1 Document Control, §3–§15 required sections, §8 (7 categories), diagrams registry, appendix
Next	doc-prd