naming-workflows

name	naming-workflows
description	This skill should be used when the user wants to name a workflow, write workflow descriptions, standardize workflow documentation, add a workflow to the AI Registry, or structure workflow entries. Generates consistent, outcome-focused names and descriptions for business workflows and records them in the workflow's manifest (workflow.yaml).
user-invocable	true

Naming Workflows

Generate consistent, professional names and descriptions for business workflows, then record them in the workflow's workflow.yaml manifest — the workflow's AI Registry entry.

Manifest resolution: if the workspace has registry/SCHEMA.md, the manifest is the Workflow concept node — see indexing-registry/references/manifest-resolution.md (in this plugin) and follow its bundle backend for all manifest reads/writes in this skill; otherwise use workflow.yaml as described below.

Workflow Naming Rules

Format Requirements

• Length: 2-4 words maximum
• Structure: Noun phrases (not verb phrases)
• Style: Title case
• Clarity: Self-explanatory without context

Naming Patterns by Domain

Sales workflows:

• Pattern: [Prospect Type] [Action]
• Examples: Student Enrollment, Lead Qualification, Proposal Generation

Marketing workflows:

• Pattern: [Content Type] [Action/Purpose]
• Examples: Newsletter Distribution, Social Media Scheduling, Content Repurposing

Product workflows:

• Pattern: [Deliverable] [Action]
• Examples: Lesson Content Creation, Curriculum Design, Exercise Development

Education workflows:

• Pattern: [Student/Cohort] [Activity]
• Examples: Student Onboarding, Course Access Setup, Live Session Delivery

Consulting workflows:

• Pattern: [Deliverable/Phase] [Action]
• Examples: Engagement Planning, Strategic Assessment, Implementation Support

Operations workflows:

• Pattern: [Function] [Process]
• Examples: Email Response Drafting, Calendar Management, System Maintenance

Finance workflows:

• Pattern: [Transaction Type] [Action]
• Examples: Invoice Generation, Payment Processing, Revenue Tracking

Common Patterns

| If workflow monitors/checks | Use "[Subject] Monitoring" or "[Subject] Review" | | If workflow creates output | Use "[Output] Creation" or "[Output] Generation" | | If workflow sends/distributes | Use "[Item] Distribution" or "[Item] Delivery" | | If workflow onboards/sets up | Use "[Subject] Onboarding" or "[Subject] Setup" | | If workflow recovers/follows up | Use "[Subject] Recovery" or "[Subject] Follow-up" |

Anti-Patterns (Avoid)

❌ Verb phrases: "Managing Email", "Creating Content" ❌ Too generic: "Daily Task", "Process 1" ❌ Too long: "Student Enrollment Payment Processing and Confirmation" ❌ Tool-focused: "Claude Email Tool", "Using Zapier for X" ❌ Jargon without context: "SOP-001", "Flow Alpha"

Description Writing

Format

Write 1-2 concise sentences that answer:

1. What does this workflow do?
2. What is the outcome/output?

Structure

[Action verb] [object] [context/condition]. [Outcome statement].

Examples

Good descriptions:

• "Review Gmail for emails requiring responses and draft replies. Generates draft responses ready for user review."
• "Convert course waitlist prospects into enrolled students through targeted email campaigns. Results in payment confirmations and enrollment completions."
• "Extract key insights from lesson recordings and repurpose into LinkedIn posts and Substack content. Produces 5+ social assets per lesson."

Avoid:

• Overly detailed: "This workflow checks the Gmail inbox every morning at 7:30 AM using Claude's email skill to scan for messages that..."
• Too vague: "Handles email stuff"
• Tool-focused: "Uses Claude and Gmail to do email"

Process Outcome Writing

Format

Write a short phrase (2-5 words) naming the concrete business deliverable.

Requirements

• Tangible: Something that can be reviewed, sent, or measured
• Specific: Not "completed workflow" or "done"
• Noun phrase: The thing produced, not the action

Examples

Workflow	Process Outcome
Email Response Drafting	Draft email responses
Lead Qualification	Qualified lead list
Content Repurposing	5+ social assets
Student Onboarding	Onboarded students
Newsletter Distribution	Published newsletter
Invoice Generation	Sent invoices

Anti-Patterns (Avoid)

• ❌ "Workflow completed" (not tangible)
• ❌ "Emails processed" (too vague)
• ❌ "Done" (not descriptive)
• ❌ "Successfully ran the email workflow" (action, not deliverable)

Workflow Context Properties

When naming/describing workflows, consider these registry fields:

Domain (inherited from Business Process):

• Sales, Marketing, Product, Education, Consulting, Operations, Finance

Trigger:

• Daily/Weekly/Monthly schedule
• Event-based (payment received, email arrives)
• Manual/Ad-hoc

Sequence (within Business Process):

• Use multiples of 10 (10, 20, 30...) to allow insertions without renumbering
• Parallel workflows can share the same sequence number
• Only required when workflow is part of a multi-step process
• Leave blank for standalone workflows

Examples by Domain

Sales Domain

Workflow Name	Description	Process Outcome
Lead Qualification	Identify and score prospects using research tools and qualification criteria. Produces ranked lead list with contact details.	Qualified lead list
Student Enrollment	Process active student applications through payment and confirmation. Results in enrolled students ready for onboarding.	Enrolled students
Enrollment Recovery	Re-engage prospects who abandoned the enrollment process. Generates personalized follow-up sequences.	Re-engagement emails

Marketing Domain

Workflow Name	Description	Process Outcome
Content Repurposing	Transform lesson recordings into multi-platform social content. Creates LinkedIn posts, X threads, and Substack excerpts.	5+ social assets
Newsletter Distribution	Publish newsletter content and distribute across platforms. Delivers newsletter to subscribers and social channels.	Published newsletter
Social Media Scheduling	Plan and schedule weekly LinkedIn and X content. Produces content calendar with scheduled posts.	Weekly content calendar

Product Domain

Workflow Name	Description	Process Outcome
Lesson Content Creation	Design and write online course lesson materials. Produces slide decks, exercises, and student resources.	Complete lesson package
Curriculum Design	Structure course outline aligned with learning objectives. Creates module sequence with Bloom's taxonomy alignment.	Course curriculum
Exercise Development	Create hands-on activities for course participants. Generates practical exercises with solutions and rubrics.	Student exercises

Education Domain

Workflow Name	Description	Process Outcome
Student Onboarding	Grant course access and prepare students for Day 1. Delivers welcome materials, Slack access, and technical setup.	Onboarded students
Live Session Delivery	Teach scheduled scheduled cohort sessions. Facilitates learning, Q&A, and student engagement.	Completed session
Assessment & Feedback	Review student work and provide constructive feedback. Generates graded assignments with improvement guidance.	Graded assignments

Operations Domain

Workflow Name	Description	Process Outcome
Email Response Drafting	Review inbox for urgent messages and create draft replies. Produces professionally written responses ready for review.	Draft email responses
Calendar Management	Coordinate scheduling across meetings and cohort sessions. Maintains organized calendar with buffer time.	Updated calendar
Slack Response Drafting	Monitor Slack channels and create appropriate replies. Generates context-aware draft responses.	Draft Slack messages

Usage Workflow

When user provides a workflow description:

1. Identify domain (based on business function)
2. Determine pattern (creation, monitoring, distribution, etc.)
3. Generate 2-3 name options using relevant pattern
4. Write description (action + outcome)
5. Suggest Process Outcome (concrete deliverable)
6. Present options for user selection
7. Identify the Business Process — scan process-guides/*.md frontmatter titles and the business_process values in existing outputs/*/workflow.yaml manifests; present matches and let the user confirm or name a new process
8. Determine Sequence if part of a multi-step process:
   • Check existing manifests with the same business_process for their sequence values
   • Assign next available multiple of 10 (or ask user for placement)
   • Use same sequence number for parallel workflows
9. Record in the manifest after user confirms selections (see below)

Recording the Workflow (AI Registry entry)

The workflow's registry entry is its manifest: outputs/<workflow-id>/workflow.yaml, where the ID is the kebab-case form of the confirmed name ("Lead Qualification" → lead-qualification). The full schema lives in the indexing-registry skill's references/manifest-schema.md.

After the user confirms name, description, and process outcome:

1. If a manifest already exists for this workflow (the user is renaming or enriching), update only the fields below — preserve everything else.
2. If none exists (naming before running deconstruct), create the folder and a stub manifest with current_step: 0 (meaning "named only" — deconstruct will merge into it later, never overwrite it):

workflow: lead-qualification
display_name: Lead Qualification
description: >-
  Identify and score prospects using research tools and qualification
  criteria. Produces ranked lead list with contact details.
process_outcome: Qualified lead list
business_process: Sales Pipeline
sequence: 10                # omit for standalone workflows
status: under-development   # backlog | under-development | in-production
type: augmented             # augmented | automated | manual
trigger: "Weekly (Sunday)"
current_step: 0             # named only — deconstruct takes it from here
last_updated: YYYY-MM-DD

Default values:

• Status: under-development (use backlog if the user is only cataloging ideas)
• Type: augmented (human-in-the-loop) unless fully automated
• Sequence: next available multiple of 10 within the Business Process; omit for standalone workflows

3. Create or update REGISTRY.md at the workspace root — this is part of the step, not optional. Follow the procedure in the indexing-registry skill if available; otherwise write the file directly from the manifest data you have (Workflows / Skills / Agents tables, — for unknowns). Skip only if the environment can't write to the workspace root — and tell the user you skipped it, never silently.

Optional Notion mirror: if the user keeps the Notion AI Registry template and has the Notion MCP connected, offer to mirror the entry to their Workflows database afterward (see the indexing-registry skill's references/notion-mirror.md for the field mapping). If the manifest already has a notion_url, update its Notion row without asking (best-effort). The manifest remains the source of truth.

Quick Reference

Name formula: [Subject] [Action/Purpose] (2-4 words, noun phrase) Description formula: [Action verb] [object] [condition]. [Outcome]. (1-2 sentences) Process Outcome: Concrete deliverable (not "completed workflow") Sequence: Multiples of 10 within Business Process (10, 20, 30...)

Sequence Example

Business Process: ⚡ Lightning Lesson Launch

Sequence	Workflow	Trigger
10	Lightning Lesson Design	Ad-hoc (new lesson idea)
20	Lightning Lesson Content Creation	2-3 weeks before event
30	Lightning Lesson Promotion	2-3 weeks before event
40	Lightning Lesson Conversion	Post-event (within 48 hours)

Note: Content Creation (20) and Promotion (30) could share sequence "20" if they run in parallel.