Issue Decomposition

Issue Decomposition Skill

Transform high-level project descriptions into well-structured GitHub issues. Each issue includes a user story, acceptance criteria, dependencies, labels, and effort estimates.

When to Use

Activate this skill when:

• User describes a feature or project to break down
• User says "create issues for...", "break this into tasks", "decompose this feature"
• During project planning to generate actionable work items
• When converting requirements into GitHub issues

Available Tools

Issue Template

Each generated issue follows this structure:

# [Concise, Action-Oriented Title]

## User Story
As a [persona/role], I want [goal/action] so that [benefit/value].

## Description
[2-4 sentences explaining the context and what needs to be done]

## Acceptance Criteria
- [ ] Criterion 1: Specific, testable requirement
- [ ] Criterion 2: Another measurable outcome
- [ ] Criterion 3: Edge case or validation requirement

## Dependencies
- Blocked by: #[number] - [brief reason]
- Blocks: #[number] - [what depends on this]

## Labels
`[type]`, `[area]`, `[priority]`

## Estimate
[T-shirt size: Small/Medium/Large/XL with rough duration]

Decomposition Process

Step 1: Understand the Scope

Ask clarifying questions if needed:

• What is the core goal of this project/feature?
• Who are the primary users?
• Are there any technical constraints or preferences?
• What's the target timeline?

Step 2: Identify Major Components

Break the project into 3-7 major areas:

• Foundation/Setup tasks
• Core functionality
• Supporting features
• Integration points
• Testing/Validation

Step 3: Generate Issues

For each component, create issues that are:

• Independent: Minimal dependencies on other issues
• Negotiable: Clear what, flexible how
• Valuable: Delivers user or technical value
• Estimable: Can be sized with reasonable confidence
• Small: Completable in 1-5 days
• Testable: Has clear acceptance criteria

Step 4: Map Dependencies

Identify blocking relationships:

• Sequential dependencies (A must finish before B)
• Parallel opportunities (can be done simultaneously)
• Critical path (longest chain of dependent issues)

Step 5: Preview Before Creating

Always show the user a summary before creating issues:

## Proposed Issues (N total)

| # | Title | Estimate | Dependencies |
|---|-------|----------|--------------|
| 1 | Setup project structure | Small | None |
| 2 | Implement core feature X | Medium | Blocked by #1 |
...

Proceed with creation? (y/n)

Label Taxonomy

Type Labels

• feature - New functionality
• enhancement - Improvement to existing feature
• bug - Defect fix
• chore - Maintenance, dependencies, cleanup
• docs - Documentation only
• test - Test coverage

Area Labels

• frontend - UI/UX changes
• backend - Server/API changes
• database - Schema/data changes
• infrastructure - DevOps/deployment
• security - Security-related

Priority Labels

• priority:high - Critical path, do first
• priority:medium - Important, schedule soon
• priority:low - Nice to have, backlog

Estimation Guidelines

Best Practices

1. Start with the foundation - Setup and infrastructure issues first
2. One concern per issue - Each issue does one thing well
3. Clear acceptance criteria - Know when it's done
4. Explicit dependencies - Note what blocks what
5. Realistic estimates - Include buffer for unknowns
6. Consistent labels - Use established taxonomy
7. Link related issues - Cross-reference for context

Example Decomposition

User Request: "Build a user authentication system"

Generated Issues:

1. Set up auth module structure (Small)

   • Create directory structure
   • Add base dependencies
   • No blockers

2. Implement user registration endpoint (Medium)

   • POST /auth/register
   • Email/password validation
   • Blocked by: #1

3. Implement login endpoint with JWT (Medium)

   • POST /auth/login
   • JWT generation
   • Blocked by: #1

4. Add password reset flow (Medium)

   • Email token generation
   • Reset endpoint
   • Blocked by: #2

5. Implement logout and token invalidation (Small)

   • Token blacklist
   • Blocked by: #3

6. Add authentication middleware (Small)

   • Protect routes
   • Blocked by: #3

7. Write integration tests (Medium)

   • Test all auth endpoints
   • Blocked by: #2, #3, #4, #5

After Decomposition

Once issues are created:

• Suggest running dependency-mapping skill to visualize relationships
• Suggest running timeline-planning skill to create a Gantt chart
• Offer to save the decomposition summary to project notes

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