orca-approval-gate

name	orca-approval-gate
description	Decide when risky work must pause for approval and record the approval request clearly.

ORCA Framework Approval Gate

What This Skill Is

A policy workflow for deciding whether work can proceed automatically or needs approval first.

Trigger

Use before destructive actions, broad refactors, installer changes, dependency upgrades, release-risk decisions, or scope expansion.

Do Not Trigger

Do not use for low-risk discovery, documentation, or already approved narrow work.

Required Inputs

• Proposed action
• Risk and scope summary

Optional Inputs

• Related spec or plan
• Verification plan
• Rollback plan

Exact Workflow

1. Classify the proposed action and blast radius.
2. Decide whether the action is safe to proceed, needs approval, or should stop.
3. If approval is needed, write a request using templates/approval-request.md.
4. Record the decision in the durable work record.
5. If approval is denied or delayed, propose the safest next move.

Expected Outputs

• Filled templates/approval-request.md when approval is needed

Quality Bar

A maintainer should understand the risk, decision, and next step quickly.

Common Failure Modes

• Treating low confidence as permission to proceed.
• Requesting approval without stating the blast radius.
• Expanding scope while waiting for approval.

Relationship To Other ORCA Framework Skills And Commands

Supports orca-plan, orca-build, orca-approve, orca-security-check, and orca-ship.