Mattgierhart Prd Driven Context Engineering Prd Driven Context Engineering

Technical Stack Selection

Make technology decisions for every capability your product needs — starting with what you already have, then evaluating what fits, then deciding what to build.

Position in workflow: v0.5 Risk Discovery Interview → v0.5 Technical Stack Selection → v0.6 Architecture Design

Workflow Overview

1. Discover Existing Assets → Read SOT or interview user for current tech stack
2. Categorize Layers → Reuse / Extend / New / Replace for each capability
3. Evaluate Vendor Fit → Check preferred vendor catalog for New/Replace layers
4. Evaluate Alternatives → Research non-vendor options where vendor has gaps
5. Check Product Family → Shared infrastructure, component reuse, cross-product UX
6. Create TECH- Entries → Write entries using standard or reuse template
7. Map to Risks → Cross-reference every TECH- entry with RISK- constraints

Decision Categories

Evaluation order: Reuse → Vendor-fit → Non-vendor alternatives → Build custom. Default to Buy for everything that isn't a core differentiator.

Decision Framework

Strong Reuse signals:

• "We already run this for [sibling product]"
• "The team already operates and understands this"
• "Switching would cost more than keeping"

Strong Build signals:

• "This is why users choose us over competitors"
• "No existing solution fits our specific need"
• "We need to change this weekly based on learning"

Strong Buy signals:

• "Every product needs this"
• "Multiple proven solutions exist"
• "We'd just be recreating what vendors already built"

Example Vendor Catalog (IBM Default)

Load references/ibm-products.md for the full catalog. Brief overview:

When evaluating vendor products, check compliance certifications (HIPAA, SOC2, FedRAMP) against RISK- constraints before proceeding.

Step 1: Discover Existing Assets

Adaptive approach: Check SOT first, then fill gaps with user interview.

If TECH- entries exist in SoT.TECHNICAL_DECISIONS.md: Read existing entries. Present a summary to the user: "I found these existing technology decisions: [list]. Are these still current? Any changes since these were documented?"

If SOT is empty (first time running this skill): Interview the user with these discovery questions:

1. "Does an existing product family exist with established technology choices?"

   • If YES → Load references/brownfield.md for asset discovery workflow
   • If NO → Proceed to Step 2 with all layers marked as "New"

2. "What is the current tech stack?" (ask per area)

   • Frontend framework and hosting
   • Backend language/framework
   • Authentication system
   • Database(s)
   • Cloud provider and infrastructure
   • CI/CD pipeline
   • Observability/monitoring tools

3. "Are there vendor constraints (e.g., IBM-first, AWS-only, Azure-only)?"

   • If YES → Load the relevant vendor reference (e.g., references/ibm-products.md)
   • If NO → Proceed with open evaluation

4. "Is this a regulated industry (healthcare, finance, government)?"

   • If YES → Note compliance requirements as constraints on all technology choices

Discovery Output

Create a summary table:

Step 2: Categorize Layers

For each capability required by FEA- and RISK- entries, categorize:

Derive capability areas from upstream IDs, not a fixed list. Read FEA- entries and ask: "What technical capability does this feature require?" Read RISK- entries and ask: "Does this risk constrain or require a specific technology?"

Do not walk a generic layer checklist. Every capability area should trace to at least one FEA- or RISK- entry.

Step 3: Evaluate Vendor Fit

For each "New" or "Replace" layer from Step 2:

1. Check if the preferred vendor has a product for this capability
2. Evaluate fit, compliance status, and cost
3. If vendor product fits → create TECH- entry with Category: Buy
4. If vendor product has poor fit or gaps → proceed to Step 4

Evaluation criteria for vendor products:

Use assets/evaluation-scorecard.md for structured comparison when multiple options exist.

Step 4: Evaluate Alternatives

For layers where the vendor has gaps or poor fit:

1. Research 2-3 non-vendor alternatives
2. Score against the same criteria from Step 3
3. If a clear winner exists → create TECH- entry with decision
4. If high uncertainty → create TECH- entry with Category: Research, including evaluation criteria and deadline

For Research items, define:

• What must be learned before deciding
• How to evaluate (specific metrics, benchmarks, POC scope)
• Decision deadline (tied to a WAVE or milestone)

Step 5: Check Product Family

Only if sibling products were discovered in Step 1. Skip for solo/greenfield products.

Lightweight checklist:

• Shared infrastructure? Will this product share clusters, databases, or services with siblings?
• Component reuse? Can UI components, API patterns, or operational tooling be shared?
• Cross-product UX? Should customers using multiple products have SSO or unified experience?
• Shared vs. separate instances? For each reused service, should it be the same deployment (separate namespace/realm) or a dedicated instance?

Document answers in relevant TECH- entries under "Product Family Notes."

Step 6: Create TECH- Entries

For each technology decision, create a TECH- entry using the appropriate template:

• Reuse/Extend: Use assets/tech-reuse.md (lighter template)
• Replace/Build/Buy/Integrate/Research: Use assets/tech.md (standard template)

Mandatory fields for every TECH- entry:

• Features Served (FEA-XXX references)
• Risk Constraints (RISK-XXX references)
• Rationale (why this choice, not just what)
• Cost (at current AND 10x scale for Buy decisions)

All TECH- entries are written to SoT.TECHNICAL_DECISIONS.md. The skill produces entries; the SoT stores them.

See references/examples.md for 3 filled examples (Reuse, Buy, Research).

Step 7: Map to Risks

Cross-reference every TECH- entry with RISK- constraints:

1. For each RISK- entry, verify at least one TECH- entry addresses it
2. For each TECH- entry, verify it doesn't introduce new unmitigated risks
3. Document the mapping in a summary table:

If a RISK- entry has no corresponding TECH- response, flag it as an unmitigated risk requiring attention before proceeding to v0.6.

Quality Gates

Before proceeding to v0.6 Architecture Design:

• All capability areas addressed (or explicitly N/A with rationale)
• Every TECH- entry cross-references FEA- and RISK- IDs it serves
• Build decisions justified as core differentiators
• Buy decisions have cost estimates at current AND 10x scale
• Research items have clear evaluation criteria and deadlines
• RISK- constraints from v0.5 Risk Discovery reflected in choices
• No vendor lock-in without explicit acknowledgment
• All TECH- entries written to SoT.TECHNICAL_DECISIONS.md
• Existing assets cataloged before new evaluations (brownfield check)

Anti-Patterns

Bundled Resources

• references/ibm-products.md — IBM product catalog mapped to technology capabilities. Load when evaluating Buy options for teams with IBM-first or vendor constraints.

• references/brownfield.md — Existing product family discovery workflow. Load when user confirms existing products share infrastructure.

• references/examples.md — Completed TECH- entry examples (Reuse, Buy, Research). Load when producing TECH- entries to match format and depth.

• assets/tech.md — Standard TECH- entry template for Replace/Build/Buy/Integrate/Research.

• assets/tech-reuse.md — Lighter TECH- entry template for Reuse/Extend decisions.

• assets/evaluation-scorecard.md — Weighted scorecard for comparing Buy/Integrate options.

Downstream Connections

Handoff

TECH- entries are complete when all quality gates pass. Next stage: v0.6 Architecture Design (APOLLO ownership). APOLLO should be able to start architecture work using only TECH- entries + upstream SoT files — no re-research needed.

Source: mattgierhart/PRD-driven-context-engineering — distributed by TomeVault.