| name | data-context-extractor |
| description | Generate or improve a company-specific data analysis skill by extracting tribal knowledge from analysts. Bootstrap a new data-analysis skill from a warehouse schema, or iterate on an existing skill by adding domain reference files. Use when an analyst wants Claude to understand their company's specific data warehouse, terminology, metrics definitions, and common query patterns.
|
| when_to_use | creating a company-specific data analysis skill from a warehouse schema; improving an existing data skill with new domain context |
| allowed-tools | Read, Glob, Grep, Bash |
Data Context Extractor
A meta-skill that extracts company-specific data knowledge from analysts and generates tailored data analysis skills.
How It Works
This skill has two modes:
- Bootstrap Mode: Create a new data analysis skill from scratch
- Iteration Mode: Improve an existing skill by adding domain-specific reference files
Bootstrap Mode
Use when: User wants to create a new data context skill for their warehouse.
Phase 1: Database Connection & Discovery
Step 1: Identify the database type
Ask: "What data warehouse are you using?"
Common options:
- BigQuery
- Snowflake
- PostgreSQL/Redshift
- Databricks
Use ~~data warehouse tools (query and schema) to connect. If unclear, check available MCP tools in the current session.
Step 2: Explore the schema
Use ~~data warehouse schema tools to:
- List available datasets/schemas
- Identify the most important tables (ask user: "Which 3-5 tables do analysts query most often?")
- Pull schema details for those key tables
Sample exploration queries by dialect:
SELECT schema_name FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.SCHEMATA
SELECT table_name FROM `project.dataset.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES`
SHOW SCHEMAS IN DATABASE my_database
SHOW TABLES IN SCHEMA my_schema
Phase 2: Core Questions (Ask These)
After schema discovery, ask these questions conversationally (not all at once):
Entity Disambiguation (Critical)
"When people here say 'user' or 'customer', what exactly do they mean? Are there different types?"
Listen for:
- Multiple entity types (user vs account vs organization)
- Relationships between them (1:1, 1:many, many:many)
- Which ID fields link them together
Primary Identifiers
"What's the main identifier for a [customer/user/account]? Are there multiple IDs for the same entity?"
Listen for:
- Primary keys vs business keys
- UUID vs integer IDs
- Legacy ID systems
Key Metrics
"What are the 2-3 metrics people ask about most? How is each one calculated?"
Listen for:
- Exact formulas (ARR = monthly_revenue x 12)
- Which tables/columns feed each metric
- Time period conventions (trailing 7 days, calendar month, etc.)
Data Hygiene
"What should ALWAYS be filtered out of queries? (test data, fraud, internal users, etc.)"
Listen for:
- Standard WHERE clauses to always include
- Flag columns that indicate exclusions (is_test, is_internal, is_fraud)
- Specific values to exclude (status = 'deleted')
Common Gotchas
"What mistakes do new analysts typically make with this data?"
Listen for:
- Confusing column names
- Timezone issues
- NULL handling quirks
- Historical vs current state tables
Phase 3: Generate the Skill
Create a skill with this structure:
[company]-data-analyst/
+-- SKILL.md
+-- references/
+-- entities.md # Entity definitions and relationships
+-- metrics.md # KPI calculations
+-- tables/ # One file per domain
| +-- [domain1].md
| +-- [domain2].md
+-- dashboards.json # Optional: existing dashboards catalog
SKILL.md Template: See references/skill-template.md
SQL Dialect Section: See references/sql-dialects.md and include the appropriate dialect notes.
Reference File Template: See references/domain-template.md
Phase 4: Package and Deliver
- Create all files in the skill directory
- Package as a zip file
- Present to user with summary of what was captured
Iteration Mode
Use when: User has an existing skill but needs to add more context.
Step 1: Load Existing Skill
Ask user to upload their existing skill (zip or folder), or locate it if already in the session.
Read the current SKILL.md and reference files to understand what's already documented.
Step 2: Identify the Gap
Ask: "What domain or topic needs more context? What queries are failing or producing wrong results?"
Common gaps:
- A new data domain (marketing, finance, product, etc.)
- Missing metric definitions
- Undocumented table relationships
- New terminology
Step 3: Targeted Discovery
For the identified domain:
-
Explore relevant tables: Use ~~data warehouse schema tools to find tables in that domain
-
Ask domain-specific questions:
- "What tables are used for [domain] analysis?"
- "What are the key metrics for [domain]?"
- "Any special filters or gotchas for [domain] data?"
-
Generate new reference file: Create references/[domain].md using the domain template
Step 4: Update and Repackage
- Add the new reference file
- Update SKILL.md's "Knowledge Base Navigation" section to include the new domain
- Repackage the skill
- Present the updated skill to user
Reference File Standards
Each reference file should include:
For Table Documentation
- Location: Full table path
- Description: What this table contains, when to use it
- Primary Key: How to uniquely identify rows
- Update Frequency: How often data refreshes
- Key Columns: Table with column name, type, description, notes
- Relationships: How this table joins to others
- Sample Queries: 2-3 common query patterns
For Metrics Documentation
- Metric Name: Human-readable name
- Definition: Plain English explanation
- Formula: Exact calculation with column references
- Source Table(s): Where the data comes from
- Caveats: Edge cases, exclusions, gotchas
For Entity Documentation
- Entity Name: What it's called
- Definition: What it represents in the business
- Primary Table: Where to find this entity
- ID Field(s): How to identify it
- Relationships: How it relates to other entities
- Common Filters: Standard exclusions (internal, test, etc.)
Quality Checklist
Before delivering a generated skill, verify:
