/pair-next — Project Navigator

Analyze project state and recommend the single most relevant next skill to invoke. Covers the full 30-skill catalog across all lifecycle phases.

Skill Catalog (30 skills)

Process Skills (11)

Skill	Lifecycle Phase	Description
/pair-process-specify-prd	Induction	Create or update Product Requirements Document
/pair-process-bootstrap	Induction	Orchestrate full project setup
/pair-process-plan-initiatives	Strategic	Create strategic initiatives from PRD
/pair-process-plan-epics	Strategic	Break initiatives into epics
/pair-process-plan-stories	Sprint Planning	Break epics into user stories
/pair-process-refine-story	Sprint Planning	Refine story with AC and technical analysis
/pair-process-plan-tasks	Sprint Planning	Break story into implementation tasks
/pair-process-implement	Sprint Execution	Implement story tasks with TDD
/pair-process-review	Sprint Execution	Review PR through structured phases

Capability Skills (19)

Skill	Category	Description
/pair-capability-record-decision	Decision	Record ADR or ADL with adoption update
/pair-capability-write-issue	PM Tool	Create/update issues in adopted PM tool
/pair-capability-setup-pm	PM Tool	Configure project management tool
/pair-capability-verify-quality	Quality	Check quality gates against codebase
/pair-capability-verify-done	Quality	Check Definition of Done criteria
/pair-capability-verify-adoption	Quality	Check code against adoption files per scope
/pair-capability-assess-stack	Assessment	Assess tech stack (lifecycle-spanning)
/pair-capability-assess-architecture	Assessment	Assess architecture pattern
/pair-capability-assess-testing	Assessment	Assess testing strategy
/pair-capability-assess-ai	Assessment	Assess AI development tools
/pair-capability-assess-methodology	Assessment	Assess development methodology
/pair-capability-assess-pm	Assessment	Assess project management tool
/pair-capability-assess-infrastructure	Assessment	Assess infrastructure strategy
/pair-capability-assess-observability	Assessment	Assess observability strategy
/pair-capability-assess-debt	Assessment	Assess technical debt with prioritization
/pair-capability-assess-code-quality	Assessment	Assess code quality with metrics
/pair-capability-estimate	Planning	Estimate story using adopted methodology
/pair-capability-setup-gates	Configuration	Configure CI/CD quality gates
/pair-capability-manage-flags	Configuration	Manage feature flag lifecycle

Algorithm

Execute these checks in order. Stop at the first match.

Step 1: Read Adoption Files

Read the following files and classify each as populated or template:

File	Template indicator
.pair/adoption/product/PRD.md	Contains [Product/feature name] or [Creation date]
.pair/adoption/tech/architecture.md	Contains only placeholder headings with no real content
.pair/adoption/tech/tech-stack.md	Contains only placeholder headings with no real content
.pair/adoption/tech/way-of-working.md	No PM tool specified or only template text

Template detection rule: A file is a template if it contains square-bracket placeholders (e.g., [Product/feature name]) or if its substantive sections contain no project-specific content.

Step 2: Cascade — Fresh Project Detection

#	Condition	Suggestion	Rationale
1	PRD.md is template	/pair-process-specify-prd	Product vision must come first
2	PRD.md populated AND 3+ tech adoption files are templates	/pair-process-bootstrap	Project needs foundational setup

If any of the above matched, output the suggestion and stop.

Step 3: Cascade — Established Project Detection

All adoption files are populated. Query the PM tool to determine backlog state.

PM tool discovery: Read .pair/adoption/tech/way-of-working.md to identify the PM tool (GitHub Projects, Jira, Linear, etc.) and access method.

#	Condition	Suggestion	Rationale
5	No initiatives or epics exist in PM tool	/pair-process-plan-initiatives	Strategic planning needed
6	Initiatives exist but no epics	/pair-process-plan-epics	Epic decomposition needed
7	Epics exist but no user stories	/pair-process-plan-stories	Story breakdown needed
8	Stories exist without acceptance criteria or with status:draft	/pair-process-refine-story	Stories need refinement before work
9	Refined stories exist but have no task breakdown	/pair-process-plan-tasks	Tasks must be created before implementation
10	Tasks in "ready" or "todo" state exist	/pair-process-implement	Work is ready to start
11	Open pull requests or tasks in "review" state	/pair-process-review	Code review pending

Step 4: Capability Skill Suggestions

If no process skill matched in Steps 2-3, check for capability skill opportunities:

#	Condition	Suggestion	Rationale
12	Quality gate not configured (no Quality Gates section in way-of-working)	/pair-capability-setup-gates	Quality gates should be established
13	Tech stack has unlisted dependencies detected	/pair-capability-assess-stack	Stack registry needs updating
14	Technical debt flags present (TODO/FIXME/HACK comments detected)	/pair-capability-assess-debt	Debt should be cataloged and prioritized
15	No estimation methodology adopted in way-of-working	/pair-capability-estimate	Estimation process should be established

Step 5: Fallback

If no condition matched in Steps 2-4:

All adoption files are populated and no actionable backlog items detected. Consider: starting a new iteration with /pair-process-plan-stories, or running /pair-process-review to check for open items.

Output Format

Present results as:

PROJECT STATE:
├── PRD: [populated | template]
├── Bootstrap: [complete | incomplete — N/M adoption files populated]
├── PM Tool: [tool name | not configured]
└── Backlog: [summary of current items]

RECOMMENDATION: /skill-name
REASON: [one-line explanation]

Then ask: "Shall I run /skill-name?"

Graceful Degradation

• If a suggested skill is not installed, tell the user which skill is needed and where to find it.
• If the PM tool is not accessible (no MCP connection, no credentials), skip Step 3 and report: "PM tool not accessible — recommendation based on adoption files only."
• If adoption files cannot be read (not installed yet), suggest /pair-process-bootstrap as the entry point.

Notes

• This skill is read-only: it inspects state but never modifies files or PM tool data.
• When multiple items are actionable (e.g., tasks to implement AND PRs to review), prefer the item closest to delivery (/pair-process-review > /pair-process-implement > /pair-process-plan-tasks).
• Re-run /pair-next after completing any skill to get an updated recommendation.
• Full catalog coverage: this navigator can suggest any of the 30 skills based on project state. Process skills are suggested through the cascading checks (Steps 2-3). Capability skills are suggested through targeted checks (Step 4) or as part of process skill composition.