janellecipriano Decision Log
Record decisions (and why) so the team has a single source of truth and stops relitigating settled questions.
When to use
- A meaningful decision was made (technical, product, process, scope, prioritization).
- Writing or maintaining a decision log / ADR (Architecture/Any Decision Record) set.
Inputs to gather
- The decision itself, in one sentence.
- The context/problem that forced a choice.
- Options considered and why the chosen one won (and others lost).
- Who decided, who was consulted, and the date.
Process
- State the decision as a clear, active sentence ("We will ...").
- Capture context — what made this necessary, constraints, deadline.
- List options considered with the key trade-off of each, and mark the chosen one.
- Give the rationale — why this option, including what you're explicitly accepting as a downside.
- Note status (Proposed / Accepted / Superseded), decider, stakeholders consulted, and date.
- Record consequences / follow-ups and link any decision this supersedes.
Output format — one record per decision
### {{ID}}: {{Decision title}}
- **Status:** Accepted · **Date:** {{date}} · **Decider:** {{name}} · **Consulted:** {{names}}
- **Context:** {{why a decision was needed}}
- **Decision:** We will {{decision}}.
- **Options considered:**
- {{Option A}} — {{trade-off}} ✅ chosen
- {{Option B}} — {{trade-off}}
- **Rationale:** {{why, including accepted downsides}}
- **Consequences / follow-ups:** {{what changes; tasks created}}
Keep records append-only: supersede rather than edit history.