task-planner

name	task-planner
license	MIT
description	Guide for decomposing large tasks into a structured plan with dependency chains, managing priorities, and distributing work across agents. Outputs plan cards or delegation messages as the team contract; TodoList for personal micro-steps.

Task Planner

This skill helps you turn ambiguous or large requests into a clear, sequenced plan with ownership and verification.

Outputs To Produce

• A short problem statement
• Assumptions and open questions
• A step-by-step plan with measurable outcomes
• Risks and rollback/containment options
• Test and verification steps

Decomposition Technique

Split work into thin vertical slices:

• One slice should be mergeable on its own
• Each slice should include tests or validation
• Prefer smallest unit that reduces uncertainty

Common slice types:

• Spec tests (lock requirements, CLI flags, edge cases)
• Implementation changes (small, isolated)
• Documentation updates
• Observability and traceability improvements

Dependency And Priority Rules

• Identify blockers first (missing API, failing tests, permissions).
• Order by "unblocks others" and "reduces uncertainty".
• For multi-agent work, keep interfaces stable and define contracts (inputs/outputs) per slice.

Multi-Agent Assignment

When delegating:

• Specify the exact deliverable (files, tests, output format)
• Specify constraints (no commits, branch constraints, time limits)
• Specify the acceptance test (what must pass)

Example delegation message:

Please write tests for <feature>.
Constraints:
- Do not change implementation yet
- Use pytest
Acceptance:
- Tests fail before implementation
- Tests cover edge cases: <...>

Plan Output

Plan Card Output (Canvas)

For visual plans with Mermaid DAG visualization and step-level status tracking, post a plan card to Canvas:

# Post plan card with Mermaid DAG and step list
synapse canvas plan '{"plan_id":"plan-auth","status":"proposed","mermaid":"graph TD; A[Tests]-->B[Impl]-->C[Review]","steps":[{"id":"s1","subject":"Write auth tests","agent":"Tester","status":"pending"},{"id":"s2","subject":"Implement auth","agent":"Impl","status":"pending","blocked_by":["s1"]},{"id":"s3","subject":"Review","agent":"Tester","status":"pending","blocked_by":["s2"]}]}' --title "Auth Plan"

Plan cards are useful when the decomposition should be visible to the team in the Canvas dashboard. Use plan cards for plans with 3+ steps or complex dependency chains that benefit from DAG visualization.

TodoList for Personal Micro-Steps

Use a TodoList for your own micro-step tracking within a single task. TodoList items are fine-grained (one per coding step):

• Add failing tests for
• Implement behind tests
• Run targeted tests
• Update docs
• Run full test suite

Progress Reporting

Include clear status updates in all communications:

• Done: "Write auth tests complete — 4 tests passing"
• Next: "Starting Implement auth module; tests are confirmed"
• Blocked: "Integration test waiting — implementation not yet complete"