npbuilds Initiative Tracker — The Living Ledger
Tracks every product initiative through its organic lifecycle. Not a project management tool — a cultivation journal that remembers what was planted, what grew, what was composted, and what the soil learned from each.
Initiative Lifecycle
seed → An idea planted. A thesis exists but nothing else.
germinating → Conditions designed. Feedback loops specified. Prototype growing.
emerging → Something is working. Unexpected behaviors appearing. Signal detected.
surfaced → Capability exposed to the world. Humans/agents can interact with it.
evolving → Growing from use. Adapting. Developing new behaviors.
mature → Stable, self-sustaining. The system knows how to do this well.
composted → Retired. Learnings extracted and fed back into Sense.
Transition Rules
| From → To | Graduation Criteria | Who Decides |
|---|---|---|
| seed → germinating | Thesis crystallized (via thesis-forge). Initial conditions designed. At least one feedback loop specified. | The Loom |
| germinating → emerging | Prototype exists (via prototype-grower). At least one unexpected behavior observed. Signal strength above noise. | Sense (emergence-detector) |
| emerging → surfaced | Behavior is stable enough for external interaction. Interface form chosen (via interface-philosopher). Exposure strategy defined. | Surface (exposure-strategist) |
| surfaced → evolving | Real usage generating real feedback. Adaptation signals detected. The system is changing from use. | Evolve (adaptation-observer) |
| evolving → mature | Growth rate stabilizing. Self-sustaining feedback loops. Minimal manual intervention needed. | Evolve (learning-loops) |
| Any → composted | Decision to retire. Learnings documented. Reusable capabilities preserved. | The Loom (with pruning-engine) |
Backward Transitions
Initiatives can move backward:
| Backward Move | When |
|---|---|
| surfaced → germinating | The surface form is wrong. Need to redesign conditions. |
| emerging → seed | What emerged isn't what we wanted. Rethink the thesis. |
| evolving → surfaced | Growth stalled. May need to re-expose differently. |
Skip Transitions
Initiatives can skip states:
| Skip | When |
|---|---|
| seed → emerging | The capability already exists and is already showing emergent behavior. Just needs recognition. |
| seed → surfaced | Mature capability from another domain. Just needs a surface. |
Initiative Record Format
Each initiative in loom-briefings/initiative-log.md:
## {Initiative Name}
**Thesis:** {One-sentence falsifiable thesis}
**State:** {current lifecycle state}
**Domains involved:** {list of domain orchestrators engaged}
**Seeded:** {date}
**Last transition:** {state} → {state} on {date}
### Transitions
- {date}: seed → germinating — {reason}
- {date}: germinating → emerging — {reason}
### Key Learnings
- {learning from this initiative}
### Kill Criteria
- {what would falsify the thesis}
### Open Questions
- {thing we still need to learn}
Portfolio Views
When asked for portfolio status, produce:
=== INITIATIVE PORTFOLIO ===
Date: {today}
Seeded: {count} — {names}
Germinating: {count} — {names}
Emerging: {count} — {names}
Surfaced: {count} — {names}
Evolving: {count} — {names}
Mature: {count} — {names}
Composted: {count} (last 90 days)
--- Attention Needed ---
{initiatives stuck in one state too long}
{initiatives with unresolved kill criteria}
{initiatives missing key learnings documentation}
--- Pipeline Health ---
Throughput: {initiatives that transitioned this week}
Oldest seed: {name, days since seeded}
Most active: {name, transitions this month}
Operating Rules
- Every transition gets a reason. No silent state changes. The reason is the learning.
- Composted initiatives get a full retrospective. What was the thesis? Was it validated or invalidated? What capabilities survived? What did the soil learn?
- Stuck is a signal. If an initiative hasn't transitioned in 3+ weeks, flag it. Either it needs energy or it needs composting.
- Kill criteria are sacred. If an initiative's kill criteria are met, it gets composted. No exceptions, no "one more week."
- The log is append-only. Never delete history. The record of what was tried and what was learned is the most valuable artifact.