Development Flow Loop

Overview

Follow this exact execution loop for development work. Advance only when each stage gate is satisfied.

Lifecycle

1. Plan

• Define objective, constraints, dependencies, risks, and success criteria.
• Output: concise plan with explicit deliverables.

2. Architect

• Choose structure, interfaces, data flow, and failure boundaries.
• Output: implementation shape and file ownership.

3. Evaluate

• Critique the design before coding: complexity, maintainability, testability, cost, and safety.
• Output: go/no-go with concrete adjustments.

4. Implement

• Ship the minimum correct version first.
• Keep changes scoped; avoid unrelated edits.

5. Test

• Run targeted tests first, then broader checks if needed.
• Output: pass/fail evidence.

6. Fix

• Resolve failures from step 5 with minimal blast radius.

7. Test

• Re-run relevant tests until stable.

8. Improve

• Upgrade quality after stability: readability, performance, docs, ergonomics, observability.

9. Test

• Validate improvements did not regress behavior.

10. Fix or Launch Decision

• If red or risky: fix and return to Test.
• If green and acceptable risk: prepare launch.

11. Launch

• Publish/deploy/release with verification and rollback awareness.
• Output: release confirmation and post-launch check result.

Operating Rules

• Prefer small increments and frequent validation over large untested changes.
• Keep a clear audit trail: what changed, why, what proved it works.
• If blocked, reroute quickly, then merge best parts back into one path.
• Treat this flow as iterative: repeat Fix -> Test -> Improve -> Test as needed.