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pm-skills

Sprint Skills Overview

PM-Skills v2.15.0 introduced 15 tool skills under a new classification: tool taxonomy that implements two canonical Knapp / Zeratsky / Kowitz sprint methodologies plus one shared decision mechanic. This page is the front door to all of them: it explains what each piece is, when to reach for it, and how the pieces compose.

What “tool” classification means

The four pm-skills classifications are:

ClassificationWhat it capturesExample
phaseSingle artifact tied to a Triple Diamond phasedefine-problem-statement, deliver-prd
foundationCross-cutting capability that supports many phasesfoundation-persona, foundation-okr-writer
utilitySkill lifecycle tooling (build / validate / iterate)utility-pm-skill-builder
tool (v2.15.0+)Named external methodology composed of multiple skills working as a systemFoundation Sprint family, Design Sprint family

A tool family has a fixed canonical sequence, named decision moments, an established external source (book / official guide), and skills that compose into a workflow recognizable as the methodology. The Foundation Sprint and Design Sprint families are the first inhabitants.

The three pieces of v2.15.0

Foundation Sprint family (7 skills)

A 2-day strategic-alignment workshop that produces a testable Founding Hypothesis. Source: Knapp + Zeratsky, Click: How to Make What People Want (sequel to Sprint).

SkillWhenOutput
tool-foundation-sprint-readinessPre-sprintGo / Conditional Go / Wait verdict
tool-foundation-sprint-briefPrep dayOne-page scope contract
tool-foundation-sprint-basicsDay 1 AMTarget customer + important problem + team advantage + competitor map
tool-foundation-sprint-differentiationDay 1 PMScored differentiators + 2x2 chart + decision principles + Mini Manifesto
tool-foundation-sprint-approach-optionsDay 2 AM3-7 candidate approaches as one-page summaries
tool-foundation-sprint-magic-lensesDay 2 PMTop bet + backup with rationale
tool-foundation-sprint-founding-hypothesisDay 2 endCanonical hypothesis sentence + assumption scorecard + next test

Family contract: docs/reference/skill-families/foundation-sprint-skills-contract.md. User guide: docs/guides/using-foundation-sprint.md. Concept doc: docs/concepts/foundation-sprint.md.

Design Sprint family (7 skills)

A 5-day prototype-and-test workshop that produces a Decider’s build / iterate / pivot / stop call grounded in 5 customer interviews. Source: Knapp + Zeratsky + Kowitz, Sprint.

SkillWhenOutput
tool-design-sprint-readinessPre-sprintGo / Conditional Go / Wait verdict + customer recruiting plan
tool-design-sprint-briefPrep weekTwo-page scope contract
tool-design-sprint-map-and-targetMondayLong-term goal + sprint questions + customer map + HMW board + target moment
tool-design-sprint-sketchTuesdayLightning demos + 4 independent solution sketches per team member
tool-design-sprint-decide-and-storyboardWednesdayHeat map + Decider supervote + 5-15 panel storyboard
tool-design-sprint-prototype-planThursday AM5-role plan + Five-Act interview script + trial-run checklist
tool-design-sprint-test-and-scoreFriday5 interviews + scorecard + Decider’s build / iterate / pivot / stop call

Family contract: docs/reference/skill-families/design-sprint-skills-contract.md. User guide: docs/guides/using-design-sprint.md. Concept doc: docs/concepts/design-sprint.md.

tool-note-and-vote (standalone)

A structured group-decision mechanic (silent ideation + heat-map voting + Decider supervote) used at decision moments across both sprint families and in any participatory decision context. NOT a family member; callable from any skill that needs structured group decision-making.

How the pieces compose

The end-to-end arc chains both families with a narrative handoff. The handoff is documentation, not a skill: canonical Knapp / Zeratsky methodology has no formal handoff move and pm-skills does not invent one.

flowchart LR
    FSR[FS Readiness] --> FSB[FS Brief]
    FSB --> FS1[Day 1: Basics + Differentiation]
    FS1 --> FS2[Day 2: Approach Options + Magic Lenses + Founding Hypothesis]
    FS2 --> HO{Handoff conversation}
    HO --> DSR[DS Readiness + recruit customers]
    DSR --> DSB[DS Brief]
    DSB --> DS1[Monday: Map + Target]
    DS1 --> DS2[Tuesday: Sketch]
    DS2 --> DS3[Wednesday: Decide + Storyboard]
    DS3 --> DS4[Thursday: Prototype Plan]
    DS4 --> DS5[Friday: Test + Score]
    DS5 --> DEC{Decider's call}
    DEC -->|Build| PRD[/prd]
    DEC -->|Iterate| EXP[/measure-experiment-design]
    DEC -->|Pivot| PIV[/iterate-pivot-decision]
    DEC -->|Stop| LL[/iterate-lessons-log]

End-to-end workflow file: _workflows/foundation-to-design.md. The 12-row slot-mapping table and 3-question go/no-go checkpoint in that workflow do the work a bridge skill would have done.

When to reach for which

SituationReach for
Strategy is unclear; team disagrees on direction; cannot yet write a falsifiable hypothesisFoundation Sprint
Strategy is clear; you have a Founding Hypothesis; you need to know if customers will actually adopt the solutionDesign Sprint
Strategy is clear AND you have time for 2-3 calendar weeks of end-to-end workFoundation Sprint, then Design Sprint
Group decision moment in any workshop or meeting (HMW prioritization, target selection, sketch decision)tool-note-and-vote
Agile sprint planning for a backlog/workflow-sprint-planning (NOT a Foundation Sprint or Design Sprint; see naming-discipline note below)

Naming-discipline note

Three distinct things share the word “sprint”:

TermWhat it isCadence
Foundation Sprint2-day strategic-alignment workshopOne-shot per strategy decision
Design Sprint5-day prototype-and-test workshopOne-shot per validation cycle
Agile sprintRecurring iteration in Scrum / agile1-4 weeks, ongoing

v2.15.0 codified naming discipline rules (Foundation Sprint family contract v0.3.0; Design Sprint family contract v0.2.0):

  • Always include the full method name on first reference per document.
  • Prefer qualified terms (“the Foundation Sprint week”, “your Design Sprint output”) over bare “sprint” thereafter.
  • Reserve bare “sprint” for agile / Scrum iteration context only, with explicit “(agile)” or “(Scrum)” qualifier when both methodologies could be confused in surrounding context.

See docs/concepts/workshop-sprints-vs-agile-sprints.md for the full comparison matrix and end-to-end coexistence arc.

Where to go next