brainAlly Quick Start
- Tell me what you are launching (feature name, PRD link, or description)
- I check the PRD, past launches, and stakeholder profiles for context
- I ask about launch type: Small feature, Major launch, or Regulatory product
- I generate a prioritized checklist with owners, dependencies, and due dates
- I identify the critical path so you know what cannot slip
Example: "Create a launch checklist for the checkout redesign, targeting March 15"
Output: Saved to outputs/launches/[feature-name]-launch-checklist.md
Time: 15-20 minutes to generate, then ongoing tracking
Purpose
Generate comprehensive launch checklist ensuring nothing falls through the cracks. Covers pre-launch prep, launch execution, and post-launch monitoring.
Usage
/launch-checklist- Create checklist for a feature/product/launch-checklist [prd-name]- Create for specific PRD/launch-checklist --template small|major|regulatory- Use specific template
Context Routing
Check these files first:
outputs/prds/orbrain/knowledge/product/features/- PRD for feature detailsbrain/ingestion/adhoc/- Past launch checklists (learn from history)brain/knowledge/- GTM approach, stakeholdersbrain/stakeholders/<slug>.md- Who needs to be involvedtemplates/launch-checklist-template.md- Base template (if exists)
Workflow
Step 1: Gather Context
Read the PRD:
- Feature scope and complexity
- Success metrics (for post-launch monitoring)
- Rollout plan (A/B test, % rollout, full launch)
- Target launch date
- Stakeholders involved
Determine checklist size:
- Small feature: 20-30 items, 2 week timeline
- Major launch: 50-70 items, 4 week timeline
- Regulatory product: 70-100 items, 6+ week timeline
Step 2: Generate Checklist
Create file: outputs/launches/[feature-name]-launch-checklist.md
Template Structure:
---
feature: [Feature name]
prd: [Link to PRD]
launch_date: YYYY-MM-DD
launch_type: [A/B test / Staged rollout / Full launch]
risk_level: [Low / Medium / High]
---
# Launch Checklist: [Feature Name]
**Target Launch:** [Date]
**Rollout Strategy:** [Strategy]
**Owner:** [PM Name]
---
## Pre-Launch: T-4 Weeks
### Product & Design
- [ ] [P0] PRD reviewed by all stakeholders - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] Design finalized and approved - **Owner:** Design
- [ ] [P1] User flows documented - **Owner:** Design
- [ ] [P1] Accessibility requirements defined - **Owner:** Design
- [ ] [P1] Design QA complete - **Owner:** Design
### Engineering
- [ ] [P0] Technical design doc approved - **Owner:** Eng Lead
- [ ] [P0] Engineering estimates validated - **Owner:** Eng Lead
- [ ] [P0] Dependencies identified and scheduled - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] API contracts defined (if applicable) - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P1] Database schema reviewed - **Owner:** Eng
### Legal & Compliance
- [ ] [P0] Legal review initiated - **Owner:** Legal
- [ ] [P0] Privacy impact assessment complete - **Owner:** Legal/Privacy
- [ ] [P1] ToS/Privacy Policy updates drafted (if needed) - **Owner:** Legal
- [ ] [P1] Compliance requirements documented - **Owner:** Compliance
- [ ] [P0] Security review scheduled - **Owner:** Security
### Analytics & Data
- [ ] [P0] Success metrics defined (STEDII framework) - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] Analytics instrumentation plan - **Owner:** Data/Eng
- [ ] [P1] Dashboards mocked up - **Owner:** PM/Data
- [ ] [P0] Kill criteria established - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] Data retention policy defined - **Owner:** Legal/Data
---
## Pre-Launch: T-2 Weeks
### Quality & Testing
- [ ] [P0] QA test plan created - **Owner:** QA
- [ ] [P0] Unit tests written and passing - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] Integration tests passing - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] E2E tests passing - **Owner:** QA
- [ ] [P1] Performance testing complete - **Owner:** Eng/QA
- [ ] [P0] Security testing complete - **Owner:** Security
- [ ] [P1] Accessibility testing complete - **Owner:** QA/Design
- [ ] [P1] Cross-browser/device testing - **Owner:** QA
### Beta & Early Access
- [ ] [P1] Beta users identified (if applicable) - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] Beta cohort configured - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P1] Beta feedback mechanism set up - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P2] Early access partners notified - **Owner:** PM/Partnerships
### Documentation
- [ ] [P1] User-facing docs drafted - **Owner:** Docs/PM
- [ ] [P1] FAQ created - **Owner:** PM/Support
- [ ] [P1] Help center articles written - **Owner:** Docs
- [ ] [P1] API documentation updated (if applicable) - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P2] Internal knowledge base updated - **Owner:** PM
### Support & Success
- [ ] [P0] Support team briefed - **Owner:** PM/Support
- [ ] [P1] Support playbook created - **Owner:** Support
- [ ] [P1] CS team enablement session - **Owner:** PM/CS
- [ ] [P0] Escalation path defined - **Owner:** Support
### Sales & Marketing
- [ ] [P1] Sales enablement materials prepared - **Owner:** PM/Sales
- [ ] [P1] One-pager/pitch deck created - **Owner:** PM/Marketing
- [ ] [P1] Demo environment ready - **Owner:** Eng/Solutions
- [ ] [P0] Pricing finalized (if new SKU) - **Owner:** PM/Finance
- [ ] [P1] Marketing assets created - **Owner:** Marketing
### Rollout Plan
- [ ] [P0] Rollout strategy finalized - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] Feature flags configured - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] % rollout schedule defined - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] Rollback plan documented - **Owner:** Eng/PM
- [ ] [P0] Rollback criteria established - **Owner:** PM
---
## Launch Week: T-0
### Final Checks
- [ ] [P0] All stakeholders signed off - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] Code freeze (if applicable) - **Owner:** Eng Lead
- [ ] [P0] Final regression testing - **Owner:** QA
- [ ] [P1] Load testing complete - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] Launch checklist reviewed with team - **Owner:** PM
### Monitoring & Operations
- [ ] [P0] Dashboards live and tested - **Owner:** Data/Eng
- [ ] [P0] Alerts configured - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] On-call rotation set - **Owner:** Eng Lead
- [ ] [P0] Incident response plan ready - **Owner:** Eng/PM
- [ ] [P0] Rollback runbook accessible - **Owner:** Eng
### Communications
- [ ] [P1] Internal announcement drafted - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] Customer communication drafted - **Owner:** PM/Marketing
- [ ] [P1] Email/in-app message scheduled - **Owner:** Marketing/PM
- [ ] [P2] Blog post ready (if applicable) - **Owner:** Marketing
- [ ] [P2] Social media posts queued - **Owner:** Marketing
- [ ] [P2] Press release (if major launch) - **Owner:** Comms
### Launch Day
- [ ] [P0] Feature flag enabled (or % rollout started) - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] Metrics monitored in real-time - **Owner:** PM/Data
- [ ] [P0] Support monitoring Zendesk/Intercom - **Owner:** Support
- [ ] [P0] Team available for issues - **Owner:** All
- [ ] [P1] Launch comms sent - **Owner:** Marketing/PM
---
## Post-Launch: T+1 Week
### Monitoring & Triage
- [ ] [P0] Metrics reviewed daily - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] User feedback collected - **Owner:** PM/Support
- [ ] [P0] Bug triage process active - **Owner:** Eng/PM
- [ ] [P0] Performance monitoring - **Owner:** Eng
- [ ] [P0] No critical bugs blocking users - **Owner:** Eng/QA
### Communication
- [ ] [P1] Stakeholder update sent (early results) - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] Support team debrief - **Owner:** PM/Support
- [ ] [P1] Sales/CS team update - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P2] Early wins documented and shared - **Owner:** PM
### Iteration
- [ ] [P1] User feedback synthesized - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P0] High-priority bugs prioritized - **Owner:** PM/Eng
- [ ] [P1] Quick wins identified - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P2] V1.1 backlog created - **Owner:** PM
---
## Post-Launch: T+4 Weeks
### Impact Review
- [ ] [P0] Metrics vs targets analyzed - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] A/B test results (if applicable) - **Owner:** PM/Data
- [ ] [P0] User adoption measured - **Owner:** PM/Data
- [ ] [P0] Success criteria met/missed - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] Run `/feature-results` for deep analysis - **Owner:** PM
### Documentation
- [ ] [P1] Lessons learned captured - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] What went well / what didn't - **Owner:** Team
- [ ] [P2] Process improvements identified - **Owner:** PM/Eng Lead
- [ ] [P0] Post-mortem (if issues) - **Owner:** PM/Eng
### Next Steps
- [ ] [P1] Iteration roadmap defined - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P2] V2 scoped (if applicable) - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P1] Success communicated broadly - **Owner:** PM
- [ ] [P2] Wins celebrated with team - **Owner:** PM/Lead
---
## Risk Mitigation
**High-risk items flagged:**
[Automatically flag based on PRD complexity, regulatory requirements, etc.]
⚠️ **Risks:**
- [Risk 1] - Mitigation: [Action]
- [Risk 2] - Mitigation: [Action]
**Rollback criteria:**
- [Metric] drops below [threshold]
- [X] critical bugs reported
- [Stakeholder] requests pause
---
*Generated: [Timestamp]*
*Launch date: [Date] ([X] weeks away)*
*Items: [Y] total, [Z] critical path*
Step 2b: Add Prioritization and Dependencies
Organize checklist items with explicit priorities and dependency chains. Use this format for every item:
- [ ] **[P0] Item name** (Blocks: items X, Y) -- @Owner -- Due: Date
- [ ] **[P1] Item name** (Blocked by: item Z) -- @Owner -- Due: Date
- [ ] **[P2] Item name** (No dependencies) -- @Owner -- Due: Date
Priority definitions:
- P0 = Must complete or launch does not happen. Zero flexibility. Examples: security review, legal sign-off, feature flags configured, rollback plan documented.
- P1 = Should complete. Launch can proceed without it, but with documented risk. Examples: help center articles, sales enablement, non-critical QA edge cases.
- P2 = Nice to have for launch. Can follow up post-launch without impact. Examples: social media posts, internal wiki updates, demo environment polish.
Dependency format examples:
- [ ] **[P0] Database schema reviewed** (Blocks: API implementation, integration tests) -- @Eng Lead -- Due: T-4 weeks
- [ ] **[P0] API endpoints implemented** (Blocked by: DB schema; Blocks: Frontend integration) -- @Backend Eng -- Due: T-3 weeks
- [ ] **[P0] Frontend integration complete** (Blocked by: API endpoints, Design finalized) -- @Frontend Eng -- Due: T-2 weeks
Step 2c: Identify Critical Path
After generating the full checklist, identify the critical path: the longest chain of dependent items that determines the earliest possible launch date.
Critical path format:
CRITICAL PATH (longest dependency chain):
[DB Schema Review] --> [API Implementation] --> [Frontend Integration] --> [E2E Tests] --> [Final Regression] --> [Launch]
Total duration: [X] weeks
Slack: [Y] days (buffer before launch date)
WARNING: Any delay in this chain delays launch by the same amount.
How to identify it:
- List all P0 items with their dependencies
- Trace the longest chain from first prerequisite to launch day
- Sum up the durations of each item in the chain
- Compare to available time before launch date
- If critical path exceeds available time, flag immediately: "Launch date at risk. Critical path requires [X] weeks but only [Y] weeks available."
Also flag:
- Items on the critical path that have no owner assigned
- Items on the critical path with estimated duration > 1 week (candidates for parallelization)
- External dependencies on the critical path (legal review, partner sign-off) that the team cannot control
Step 3: Customize Based on Feature Type
Small Feature (< 2 week build):
- Remove beta section
- Simplify compliance section
- Lighter communications
Major Launch (new product/major feature):
- Add press/media section
- Add investor/board communication
- Add partner enablement
- Expand marketing activities
Regulatory Product (healthcare, finance, etc.):
- Expand legal/compliance section
- Add audit trail requirements
- Add certification process
- Add regulatory submission items
Step 4: Integrate with Tools
If Linear/Jira MCP available:
- Offer to create tasks for each checklist item
- Assign owners automatically
- Set due dates based on launch date
- Link to PRD
If Calendar MCP available:
- Schedule key milestones (T-4 weeks, T-2 weeks, Launch Day, T+1 week)
- Block time for critical activities
Integration with Other Skills
Before /launch-checklist:
/prd-draft- Define what's launching/prd-review-panel- Ensure PRD is solid- Build a prototype or low-fi mockup to validate the solution before building
After /launch-checklist:
/create-tickets- Convert to Linear/Jira tasks/daily-plan- Surface checklist items in daily planning/feature-results- Analyze post-launch impact
During launch:
/weekly-review- Track checklist progress each week/status-update- Share launch status with stakeholders
Related Skills
Before this:
/prd-draft- Create PRD/prd-review-panel- Validate approach/impact-sizing- Estimate value
After this:
/create-tickets- Track in Linear/Jira/feature-results- Post-launch analysis/weekly-review- Monitor progress weekly
Output Quality Self-Check
Before delivering the launch checklist, verify:
- Every item has an owner -- No orphan tasks with "TBD" or missing owner assignments
- Every item has a priority -- P0, P1, or P2 assigned to each item
- Dependencies are explicit -- "Blocked by" and "Blocks" noted where they exist
- Critical path identified -- Longest dependency chain is highlighted with total duration
- Launch date feasibility checked -- Critical path duration compared to available time; risk flagged if tight
- Rollback plan included -- Clear criteria for when to roll back and how to do it
- Kill criteria defined -- Specific metric thresholds that would stop the launch
- All stakeholder groups covered -- Engineering, design, legal, support, sales, marketing, and comms are represented
- Post-launch monitoring planned -- Dashboards, alerts, and review cadence are specified
- Customized to launch type -- Small features have a streamlined checklist; major launches have expanded sections
If any check fails, fix it before delivering. A launch checklist with missing owners or unclear dependencies creates false confidence.