| name | Product Lifecycle |
| description | Track and manage products through lifecycle stages - IDEA → DRAFT → ACTIVE → INACTIVE → ARCHIVED |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| dependencies | none |
Product Lifecycle Management
Skill for tracking CircleTel products through their lifecycle stages, generating transition checklists, and managing sunset plans.
When This Skill Activates
This skill automatically activates when you:
- Want to see product lifecycle status
- Need to move a product between stages
- Plan a product sunset or retirement
- Say
/product-lifecycle or ask about product status
Keywords: product lifecycle, lifecycle status, product stage, sunset product, retire product, activate product, archive product
Lifecycle Stages
┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ IDEA │ ──▶ │ DRAFT │ ──▶ │ ACTIVE │ ──▶ │ INACTIVE │ ──▶ │ ARCHIVED │
└─────────┘ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘
│ │ │ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼
Concept In Admin Live in Paused/ End of
stage only Products catalogue Hidden life
Stage Definitions
| Stage | Status Code | Description | Visibility |
|---|
| IDEA | — | Concept only, not in system | Internal only |
| DRAFT | draft | In admin products, not live | Admin only |
| ACTIVE | active | Live in product catalogue | Public |
| INACTIVE | inactive | Temporarily paused | Admin only |
| ARCHIVED | archived | End of life, retained for history | Admin only |
Integration with Admin Products
Viewing Lifecycle Status
Portfolio Dashboard: /admin/products → Portfolio tab → Lifecycle
The existing portfolio dashboard shows:
- Products by status (draft, active, inactive, archived)
- Low margin products requiring attention
- Duplicate products to clean up
Lifecycle Stepper Component
components/admin/products/ProductLifecycleStepper.tsx displays visual lifecycle progress on product detail pages.
Status Management
Change status via Admin:
- Go to
/admin/products/[id]/edit
- Update status field
- Save changes
Change status via API:
PATCH /api/admin/products/[id]
Content-Type: application/json
{ "status": "active" }
Transition Checklists
IDEA → DRAFT
Prerequisites:
Actions:
DRAFT → ACTIVE
Prerequisites:
Actions:
ACTIVE → INACTIVE
Reasons for Inactivation:
- Temporary stock outage
- Pricing review required
- Competitive repositioning
- Seasonal pause
Prerequisites:
Actions:
INACTIVE → ACTIVE
Prerequisites:
Actions:
ACTIVE/INACTIVE → ARCHIVED
This is a sunset decision. Use sunset planning workflow.
Sunset Planning
When to Sunset
Consider archiving when:
- Product has zero active customers
- Technology is end-of-life
- Margin is unsustainable (<15%)
- Better alternative exists
- Regulatory/compliance issue
Sunset Checklist
## Product Sunset Plan: [Product Name]
**Date**: [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Reason**: [Why sunsetting]
**Target Archive Date**: [YYYY-MM-DD]
### Customer Impact
- Current active customers: [X]
- MRR at risk: R[Y]
- Recommended migration path: [Product Z]
### Migration Plan
- [ ] Identify all affected customers
- [ ] Draft migration communication
- [ ] Set migration incentive (if applicable)
- [ ] Establish migration deadline
### Execution Timeline
| Date | Action | Owner |
|------|--------|-------|
| [D-60] | Notify customers of sunset | Support |
| [D-30] | Follow-up migration offer | Sales |
| [D-7] | Final reminder | Support |
| [D-0] | Archive product | Product |
### Post-Sunset
- [ ] Change status to `archived`
- [ ] Update documentation (mark superseded)
- [ ] Remove from marketing materials
- [ ] Brief support team on legacy inquiries
Dashboard View
Lifecycle Status Summary
## Product Lifecycle Dashboard
**As of**: [YYYY-MM-DD]
| Stage | Count | Products |
|-------|-------|----------|
| Draft | [X] | [List or "None"] |
| Active | [X] | [Summary] |
| Inactive | [X] | [List with reasons] |
| Archived | [X] | [Summary] |
### Attention Required
**Low Margin (<25%)**: [X] products
**Duplicates**: [X] products
**Inactive >30 days**: [X] products
**Draft >90 days**: [X] products
### Recent Transitions
| Date | Product | From | To | By |
|------|---------|------|----|----|
| ... | ... | ... | ... | ... |
Reporting Queries
Products by Status
SELECT status, COUNT(*) as count
FROM products
GROUP BY status
ORDER BY
CASE status
WHEN 'active' THEN 1
WHEN 'draft' THEN 2
WHEN 'inactive' THEN 3
WHEN 'archived' THEN 4
END;
Stale Drafts (>90 days)
SELECT id, name, created_at
FROM products
WHERE status = 'draft'
AND created_at < NOW() - INTERVAL '90 days';
Inactive Products Needing Review
SELECT id, name, updated_at
FROM products
WHERE status = 'inactive'
AND updated_at < NOW() - INTERVAL '30 days';
Related Skills
/product-browse — Find new product candidates/product-analyze — Market-fit before adding to draft/product-docs — Documentation for draft → active transition
Admin Pages Reference
| Page | URL | Purpose |
|---|
| Products List | /admin/products | View all products with status filters |
| Portfolio Dashboard | /admin/products → Portfolio tab | Lifecycle overview, margin health |
| Product Detail | /admin/products/[id] | View single product with lifecycle stepper |
| Edit Product | /admin/products/[id]/edit | Change status, update details |
| New Product | /admin/products/new | Create draft product |
| Approvals | /admin/products/approvals | Pending approval queue |
Version: 1.0.0
Last Updated: 2026-03-08
Maintained By: CircleTel Product Strategy
