communication-profiles

name	communication-profiles
description	Build and maintain communication profiles for key stakeholders on any project. Use when drafting emails, follow-ups, or any outbound communication to ensure tone matching. Also use when onboarding a new project to capture stakeholder communication styles from existing email chains. Trigger when the user mentions "communication profile," "tone profile," "how does [person] communicate," "draft an email to [person]," "match their tone," or "build a profile for."
model	sonnet
user-invokable	true

Communication Profiles

Build structured profiles of how key stakeholders communicate so that every outbound message matches their expected tone and style.

Intent

1. Tone mismatch kills trust -- Sending a formal email to someone who writes casual two-liners signals you're not paying attention. Matching someone's communication style is the fastest way to build rapport.
2. Profiles are evidence-based -- Never guess at someone's style. Build profiles from real emails, messages, and meeting notes. Minimum 2-3 samples before creating a profile.
3. One profile per person -- Each stakeholder gets their own file. Profiles are referenced by any skill that drafts outbound communication (client-follow-up, cover-letter-writer, etc.).
4. Profiles evolve -- Update profiles as you accumulate more communication samples. People's tone may shift as relationships deepen.
5. Include anti-patterns -- Knowing what NOT to do is as valuable as knowing what to do. Every profile should list things that would land wrong.

When to Use

• Onboarding a new project with existing email chains
• Before drafting any email, message, or follow-up to a profiled stakeholder
• When the user says "draft an email to [person]" -- check for their profile first
• When new communication samples arrive (emails, meeting transcripts)
• When a tone mismatch is flagged ("that doesn't sound like something Jackie would appreciate")

Process

Step 1: Gather Samples

Collect 2-3+ real communication samples from the person. Sources:

• Email chains in communications/
• Meeting notes or transcripts
• Slack/Teams messages
• LinkedIn messages

Read each sample carefully. Do NOT proceed to profile creation with fewer than 2 samples.

Step 2: Analyze Patterns

For each sample, note:

Dimension	What to Look For
Greeting	"Hi Jimmy" vs "Hey!" vs jumping straight in
Length	Word count, sentence count. Do they write 2 lines or 2 paragraphs?
Structure	Paragraphs vs bullets vs stream-of-consciousness
Formality	Full name sign-off vs first name vs no sign-off
Punctuation	Exclamation marks, ellipses, emojis, ALL CAPS
Warmth	Personal touches, humor, compliments, small talk
Directness	Do they get to the point or build up to it?
Delegation	Do they hand off to others? Who?
Response time	Fast responder? Batches replies?
Signature	Full block, first name only, none

Step 3: Create the Profile

Use the template at references/profile-template.md. Store profiles in the project's communications/profiles/ directory:

project/
  communications/
    profiles/
      firstname-lastname.md    # One file per person

Step 4: Extract Good/Bad Examples

From the real samples, create:

• Mirror examples -- "If they write X, respond with Y"
• Anti-patterns -- "Never do Z with this person"

These go in the ## Tone Examples section of each profile.

Step 5: Cross-Reference

After creating profiles, check for relationship dynamics:

• Who defers to whom?
• Who should be CC'd vs TO?
• Who is the decision maker vs the operator?
• What is the communication chain? (e.g., "Always email Erin directly, CC Jackie")

Document these in a _dynamics.md file in the profiles directory.

Integration with Other Skills

Communication profiles are consumed by:

• client-follow-up -- Reads profile before drafting any follow-up
• cover-letter-writer -- Adapts tone for the target reader
• Any skill that drafts outbound communication -- Should check communications/profiles/ first

When drafting a message to a profiled person:

1. Read their profile
2. Match greeting, length, formality, and structure
3. Check anti-patterns before sending
4. If the profile doesn't exist yet, flag it: "No profile found for [person]. Want me to build one from available communications?"

Rules

• Never create a profile from fewer than 2 real samples
• Never guess at communication style -- always base on evidence
• Update profiles when new samples contradict existing patterns
• Profiles contain NO confidential content -- only style observations
• Always get user approval before using a profile to draft communication
• Store profiles in the project, not in the DSF framework (they're project-specific data)