Workflow Enforcement

Workflow Enforcement Skill

Purpose

Guides Claude to complete all workflow steps by:

1. Reminding about step completion tracking (use TodoWrite or ~/.amplihack/.claude/runtime/workflow_state.yaml)
2. Emphasizing mandatory steps (0, 10, 16-17) that must not be skipped
3. Providing visual progress indicator format
4. Defining expected blocking behavior at checkpoints

Implementation Status: This skill is currently a SPECIFICATION that guides Claude behavior. Actual blocking enforcement requires either:

• Claude self-compliance (current state)
• Future: Pre-commit hooks or CI checks (not yet implemented)

The Problem (Issue #1607)

Agents routinely skip mandatory workflow steps, especially:

• Step 0: Workflow Preparation - Create todos for ALL steps (MANDATORY)
• Step 10: Pre-commit code review (MANDATORY)
• Step 16: PR review (MANDATORY)
• Step 17: Review feedback implementation (MANDATORY)

Root causes:

• Completion Bias: Agent considers "PR created" as completion instead of "PR merged after review"
• Context Decay: After heavy implementation, agent loses sight of remaining steps
• Autonomy Misapplication: Confuses "autonomous implementation" with "skip mandatory process"

Philosophy Alignment and Honest Limitations

The Irony

This skill was created because an agent skipped workflow steps while building a feature. The same cognitive patterns that cause step-skipping can also cause this skill to be ignored. We acknowledge this limitation directly.

What This Skill CAN Do

• Provide clear guidance patterns for Claude to follow
• Define standard formats for progress tracking
• Establish checkpoints where Claude SHOULD pause and validate
• Integrate with power_steering for session-end verification
• Document the expected behavior for future agents

What This Skill CANNOT Do

• Force Claude to read this skill (relies on auto-activation triggers)
• Prevent Claude from skipping steps if it "decides" to be autonomous
• Hard-block operations (no pre-commit hooks implemented yet)
• Catch workflow violations in real-time (only session-end checks exist)

Philosophy Alignment

Self-Aware Note: This skill is itself a brick that could be regenerated from its specification. It does not contain executable code - it is documentation that guides Claude's behavior through loaded context.

How to Use This Skill

Step-by-Step Instructions

At Workflow Start (Step 0)

1. Initialize state tracking (choose one):

   Option A - TodoWrite (Recommended):

   Create TodoWrite entries for ALL 22 steps (0-21):
   - "Step 0: Workflow Preparation - Create todos for ALL steps"
   - "Step 1: Prepare the Workspace"
   - ...
   - "Step 21: Ensure PR is Mergeable - TASK COMPLETION"
   

   Option B - YAML state file:

   cp .claude/templates/workflow_state.yaml.template \
      .claude/runtime/workflow_state.yaml
   # Edit workflow_id, task_description, started_at
   

2. Display initial progress:

   WORKFLOW PROGRESS [0/22] [.......................] Step 0: Workflow Preparation
   Mandatory gates: Step 0 (Prep), Step 10 (Review), Step 16 (PR Review), Step 17 (Feedback)
   

3. Verify initialization: Confirm 22 todo items exist before proceeding.

At Each Step Completion

1. Mark step as completed in TodoWrite or YAML
2. Update current_step to next step number
3. Display progress indicator
4. If approaching mandatory step (10, 16, 17), display reminder

At Mandatory Checkpoints

Before Step 15 (Open PR as Draft):

+------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  CHECKPOINT: Pre-PR Validation                                   |
+------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  [ ] Step 10: Pre-commit code review                            |
|      Status: ??? (check your TodoWrite/YAML state)              |
|                                                                  |
|  If Step 10 is NOT completed:                                    |
|  - STOP: Do not proceed to Step 15                              |
|  - ACTION: Invoke reviewer agent for code review                |
|  - ACTION: Invoke security agent for security review            |
|  - Then return here and verify completion                       |
+------------------------------------------------------------------+

Before Step 21 (Ensure Mergeable):

+------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  CHECKPOINT: Final Validation                                    |
+------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  [ ] Step 10: Pre-commit code review                            |
|  [ ] Step 16: PR review                                         |
|  [ ] Step 17: Review feedback implementation                    |
|                                                                  |
|  ALL mandatory steps must be completed before Step 21.          |
|  Check your TodoWrite/YAML state for status.                    |
+------------------------------------------------------------------+

At Workflow End

1. Verify all steps completed (or explicitly skipped with documented reason)
2. Final progress: [######################] 22/22 Steps Complete
3. Delete ~/.amplihack/.claude/runtime/workflow_state.yaml if used

Visual Progress Formats

Standard Progress Bar

WORKFLOW: DEFAULT_WORKFLOW v1.1.0
PROGRESS: [##########............] 10/22 (45%)

Current: Step 10 - Pre-commit code review (MANDATORY)
Next: Step 11 - Incorporate Review Feedback

Detailed Status Display

+======================================================================+
|                    DEFAULT WORKFLOW - Progress                        |
+======================================================================+
| Task: Add authentication feature                                     |
| Session: session_20251125_143022                                     |
| Started: 2025-11-25T14:30:22                                         |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Progress: 10/22 steps (45%)                                         |
|  [##########............] 10/22                                       |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  COMPLETED (10):                                                     |
|    0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9                                      |
|                                                                      |
|  CURRENT:                                                            |
|    >> Step 10: Pre-commit code review (MANDATORY) <<                 |
|                                                                      |
|  REMAINING (12):                                                     |
|    11, 12, 13, 14, 15, *16*, *17*, 18, 19, 20, 21                   |
|    (* = mandatory)                                                   |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  MANDATORY GATES:                                                    |
|    [X] Step 0  - Workflow Preparation      COMPLETED                 |
|    [ ] Step 10 - Pre-commit Review         IN PROGRESS               |
|    [ ] Step 16 - PR Review                 PENDING                   |
|    [ ] Step 17 - Feedback Implementation   PENDING                   |
+======================================================================+

Compact Status (For Updates)

[10/22] Step 10 (MANDATORY) | Gates: 0[X] 10[>] 16[ ] 17[ ]

State File Format

Template Location: ~/.amplihack/.claude/templates/workflow_state.yaml.template Active State Location: ~/.amplihack/.claude/runtime/workflow_state.yaml

workflow_id: "session_20251125_143022"
workflow_name: DEFAULT
task_description: "Add authentication feature"
started_at: "2025-11-25T14:30:22"
current_step: 10

steps:
  0: { status: completed, timestamp: "2025-11-25T14:30:22", mandatory: true }
  1: { status: completed, timestamp: "2025-11-25T14:31:05" }
  # ... steps 2-9 ...
  10: { status: in_progress, mandatory: true }
  # ... steps 11-15 ...
  16: { status: pending, mandatory: true }
  17: { status: pending, mandatory: true }
  # ... steps 18-21 ...

mandatory_steps: [0, 10, 16, 17]

checkpoints:
  before_step_15:
    required_steps: [10]
    error_message: "Cannot open PR without completing Step 10"
  before_step_21:
    required_steps: [10, 16, 17]
    error_message: "Cannot mark mergeable without all mandatory reviews"

Integration with Power Steering

Power steering provides session-end verification through the dev_workflow_complete consideration in considerations.yaml.

How It Works

1. During Session: This skill provides guidance; Claude should track steps in TodoWrite
2. At Session End: Power steering's _check_dev_workflow_complete analyzes the transcript
3. Heuristics Used:
   • Were architect, builder, reviewer agents invoked?
   • Were tests executed (Bash tool usage)?
   • Were git operations performed?
4. Result: Blocks session completion if workflow evidence is missing

Integration Points

considerations.yaml
==================
- id: dev_workflow_complete
  category: Workflow Process Adherence
  question: Was full DEFAULT_WORKFLOW followed?
  severity: blocker
  checker: _check_dev_workflow_complete
  applicable_session_types: ["DEVELOPMENT"]

Current Limitation: Power steering checks for evidence of workflow (agent usage, test runs) but does NOT read workflow_state.yaml. This is a future enhancement opportunity.

Proposed Enhancement (Not Yet Implemented)

# In power_steering_checker.py (future)
def _check_dev_workflow_complete(self, transcript, session_id):
    # Check for workflow_state.yaml
    state_file = Path(".claude/runtime/workflow_state.yaml")
    if state_file.exists():
        state = yaml.safe_load(state_file.read_text())
        mandatory = state.get("mandatory_steps", [0, 10, 16, 17])
        steps = state.get("steps", {})

        for step_num in mandatory:
            step = steps.get(step_num, {})
            if step.get("status") != "completed":
                return False  # Mandatory step incomplete

        return True  # All mandatory steps completed

    # Fall back to heuristic analysis
    return self._check_workflow_heuristics(transcript)

Integration with TodoWrite

When using TodoWrite, ensure step numbers match workflow tracking:

TodoWrite(todos=[
    {"content": "Step 0: Workflow Preparation - Create todos for ALL steps", "status": "completed", "activeForm": "Creating step todos"},
    {"content": "Step 10: Pre-commit code review - MANDATORY", "status": "in_progress", "activeForm": "Reviewing code"},
    {"content": "Step 16: PR review - MANDATORY", "status": "pending", "activeForm": "Reviewing PR"},
    {"content": "Step 17: Implement review feedback - MANDATORY", "status": "pending", "activeForm": "Implementing feedback"},
])

Key Point: TodoWrite is the primary tracking mechanism. YAML state file is optional for additional persistence and structured validation.

Blocking Behavior (Self-Compliance Pattern)

When mandatory steps are skipped, Claude SHOULD display and follow this pattern:

+======================================================================+
|                    WORKFLOW ENFORCEMENT: BLOCKED                      |
+======================================================================+
|                                                                      |
|  Cannot proceed to Step 15 (Open PR as Draft).                       |
|                                                                      |
|  MISSING MANDATORY STEP:                                             |
|    Step 10: Pre-commit code review                                   |
|                                                                      |
|  WHY THIS MATTERS:                                                   |
|    - Code review catches bugs before they reach CI                   |
|    - Philosophy compliance ensures quality                           |
|    - Issue #1607 identified this as a recurring problem              |
|                                                                      |
|  ACTION REQUIRED:                                                    |
|    1. Invoke reviewer agent for comprehensive code review            |
|    2. Invoke security agent for security review                      |
|    3. Mark Step 10 as completed in TodoWrite                         |
|    4. Then proceed to Step 15                                        |
|                                                                      |
+======================================================================+

Error Recovery

If state file is missing or corrupt:

1. Check TodoWrite for current step information
2. Reconstruct state from conversation context
3. If unrecoverable, prompt user to confirm current step
4. Always fail-open: continue with warning rather than blocking

Future Work: Path to Hard Enforcement

Phase 1: Current State (Guidance Only)

• Skill provides documentation and patterns
• Claude self-compliance determines effectiveness
• Power steering provides session-end warnings

Phase 2: Enhanced Power Steering (Planned)

• Power steering reads workflow_state.yaml
• Real-time validation at checkpoint steps
• More granular dev_workflow_complete checks

Phase 3: Pre-Commit Integration (Future)

# .pre-commit-config.yaml (future)
- repo: local
  hooks:
    - id: workflow-validation
      name: Validate workflow completion
      entry: amplihack workflow validate
      language: system
      pass_filenames: false

Phase 4: CI Gate (Future)

# .github/workflows/ci.yml (future)
- name: Validate Workflow Compliance
  run: amplihack workflow validate

Related Components

• default-workflow skill/recipe: Canonical workflow definition with Step 0 guidance
• templates/workflow_state.yaml.template: Template for structured state tracking
• amplihack-hooks stop: Session-end enforcement (transcript-based)
• considerations.yaml: dev_workflow_complete consideration definition