idea-explore

name	idea-explore
description	Deep multi-framework analysis of a problem or product concept, broader than the proposal pipeline.
when_to_use	Use for deep multi-lens analysis of a problem or product idea — broader than `/product-explore`'s proposal pipeline. Also when user says "explore this idea", "multiple frameworks", "different lenses", "is this idea good", "stress-test this concept", "should I pursue this", or "deep idea analysis".
user-invocable	true
allowed-tools	Agent AskUserQuestion Read Write Edit Glob Grep Bash

Idea Explore Pipeline

Spawns 8 expert framework analyst agents in parallel, then a team-lead synthesizer that produces the final markdown report.

Frameworks (8 agents across 4 categories)

Category	Framework	Agent
1. Reframing / problem definition	Jobs-to-be-Done	ie-jtbd
1. Reframing / problem definition	Opportunity Solution Tree	ie-ost
2. Idea expansion / divergent thinking	Morphological Analysis	ie-morphological
2. Idea expansion / divergent thinking	Assumption Reversal	ie-assumption-reversal
3. Strategic positioning	Blue Ocean (Strategy Canvas + ERRC)	ie-blue-ocean
3. Strategic positioning	Wardley Mapping	ie-wardley
4. Defensibility & Validation	7 Powers (Helmer)	ie-seven-powers
4. Defensibility & Validation	Mom Test / Customer Discovery	ie-mom-test

Synthesizer: ie-team-lead.

Inputs

The skill takes free-form input and extracts:

• problem (required) — description of the problem / opportunity space
• product (optional) — proposed solution, product idea, or hypothesis

If the user invoked /idea-explore with no arguments, ask once: "Describe the problem you want analyzed. Optionally, also describe the product idea you have in mind." Then proceed — do not ask further clarifying questions about scope or framework methodology.

Pipeline

Step 1 — Parse input

From the user message, extract problem and product. product may be empty (analysis still works on problem-space alone).

Step 2 — Generate output slug

Derive a kebab-case slug: 3–5 meaningful words from the problem, prefixed with the date.

Format: YYYY-MM-DD-<3-5-word-slug> Example: 2026-05-06-async-mahjong-onboarding

Step 3 — Spawn 8 framework agents IN PARALLEL

This is critical: send a single message with 8 Agent tool calls. Sequential invocation is wrong, defeats the parallel design, and triples wall-clock time.

Each agent receives the same input contract:

PROBLEM: <problem>
PRODUCT: <product or "(not specified)">

Apply your framework lens. Follow your output spec exactly.

Agents to spawn (all eight, in one message):

1. ie-jtbd
2. ie-ost
3. ie-morphological
4. ie-assumption-reversal
5. ie-blue-ocean
6. ie-wardley
7. ie-seven-powers
8. ie-mom-test

Use subagent_type matching each agent's name. Models are pinned in each agent's frontmatter — do not override.

Step 4 — Spawn team-lead synthesizer

After all 8 framework agents return, spawn ie-team-lead with:

PROBLEM: <problem>
PRODUCT: <product or "(not specified)">
SLUG: <slug from Step 2>
OUTPUT_PATH: docs/idea-explorations/<slug>.md

=== FRAMEWORK OUTPUTS ===

[1/8] JTBD:
<full output from ie-jtbd>

[2/8] Opportunity Solution Tree:
<full output from ie-ost>

[3/8] Morphological Analysis:
<full output from ie-morphological>

[4/8] Assumption Reversal:
<full output from ie-assumption-reversal>

[5/8] Blue Ocean:
<full output from ie-blue-ocean>

[6/8] Wardley Mapping:
<full output from ie-wardley>

[7/8] 7 Powers:
<full output from ie-seven-powers>

[8/8] Mom Test:
<full output from ie-mom-test>

Team lead writes the synthesized markdown to OUTPUT_PATH. Create the parent directory if missing.

Step 5 — Report to user

After team lead completes, give a short summary:

• Path to the report
• 2–3 sentence headline finding (convergence point)
• One pointed question or recommended next step

Rules

• Always parallel. The 8 framework agents MUST be invoked in a single message with 8 Agent tool calls. Never sequential.
• No clarifying questions about framework methodology — each agent owns its own approach.
• Output location: docs/idea-explorations/<slug>.md. Create the directory if it doesn't exist.
• Don't run framework agents inside the team lead. Team lead is a synthesizer, not an orchestrator.
• Models are agent-pinned. Framework agents = sonnet/high. Team lead = opus/xhigh.
• If the user gave only a problem (no product), all 8 agents still apply — they shift to opportunity-space analysis instead of product-space analysis.

Failure modes to avoid

• Asking a stack of clarifying questions before spawning agents — the agents themselves will name the questions worth asking
• Summarizing framework outputs yourself before passing them to team lead — pass the raw outputs verbatim
• Skipping a framework because "it doesn't apply" — let the agent itself say so in its output
• Writing the markdown doc yourself — that's the team lead's job