vault-driven-research

name	vault-driven-research
description	Vault-structured research methodology: identifies all relevant pillars, researches each in parallel, writes each pillar to disk, then synthesizes into a final summary document. Use when researching a topic, technology, market, or system before making decisions.

STARTER_CHARACTER = 🔬

Research [TOPIC] using the Vault methodology: structure first, research in parallel, write each pillar to disk, then synthesize into a final document.

Vault Directory Structure

All output is written to disk under vault/[topic-slug]/:

vault/[topic-slug]/
  summary.md              ← final synthesis (written last)
  pillars/
    [pillar-name].md      ← one file per pillar (written after research)

Use a kebab-case slug for the topic (e.g., balder-forsikring, react-query, norwegian-insurance-market).

Step 1: Identify Pillars

Determine every dimension of the topic that matters. Adapt to the subject — common pillars include:

• Users and stakeholders
• Market and competitors
• Technology and constraints
• Risks and unknowns
• Economics and trade-offs
• Legal/regulatory (if relevant)

Write a prioritized pillar list. Drop pillars that don't apply.

Step 2: Research Each Pillar in Parallel

For each pillar, gather:

• Sources and links
• Raw notes and extracts
• What each source supports or contradicts

Run across all pillars concurrently, not sequentially.

Step 3: Write Each Pillar to Disk

After research, write one file per pillar to vault/[topic-slug]/pillars/[pillar-name].md.

Each pillar file must contain:

# Pillar: [Name]

## What matters
[Key facts and signals — bullets only]

## What's uncertain
[Gaps, conflicting sources, unknowns]

## Sources
[URLs with brief labels]

Write all pillar files before proceeding to synthesis.

Step 4: Cross-Synthesize

Do one pass across all pillar files:

• Resolve conflicts between pillars
• Identify cross-cutting themes
• Surface the open questions that most affect the decision

Step 5: Write the Summary to Disk

Write vault/[topic-slug]/summary.md. Target: 2 pages. Hard limit: 5 pages.

Structure:

# [Topic] — Research Summary

_Researched: [date]_

## Executive Summary
[One paragraph — the essential conclusion]

## Key Findings
[Per pillar, bullets only, no padding]

## Cross-Cutting Insights
[What emerged from connecting the pillars — numbered list]

## Open Questions
[Uncertainties that still matter — bullets]

## Conclusion
[What to do or decide, grounded in the findings]

## Pillar Files
[Links to each pillar file]

Anti-patterns

• Writing the summary before finishing synthesis
• Exceeding 5 pages (more text is not more insight — cut ruthlessly)
• Listing per-pillar findings without the cross-synthesis step
• Treating source volume as a proxy for confidence
• Leaving output only in the chat — always write to disk