constitution-creation
Scannednpx machina-cli add skill a5c-ai/babysitter/constitution-creation --openclawConstitution Creation
Overview
Establish the project constitution -- the governing document that defines development principles, quality standards, and constraints for all subsequent specification and implementation work.
When to Use
- Starting a new project that needs governance foundations
- Formalizing existing project standards into a constitution
- Updating governance principles for an evolving project
- Before writing specifications for a new feature area
Distinction from Specification
- Constitution: Defines project-wide governance (HOW the project operates)
- Specification: Defines feature-level requirements (WHAT to build)
Process
- Gather context - Assess project type, audience, compliance needs, existing standards
- Define dev guidelines - Coding standards, branching strategy, review process
- Set code quality standards - Linting, formatting, complexity limits, naming conventions
- Establish testing policies - Coverage thresholds, test types, CI requirements
- Specify UX requirements - Accessibility, responsiveness, performance budgets
- Define performance benchmarks - Load times, throughput, memory limits
- Establish security constraints - Auth, data handling, vulnerability policies
- Document architecture principles - Modularity, dependencies, extensibility
- Human review - Approve constitution before proceeding
Tool Use
Invoke via babysitter process: methodologies/spec-kit/spec-kit-specification (constitution phase)
Full pipeline: methodologies/spec-kit/spec-kit-orchestrator
Source
git clone https://github.com/a5c-ai/babysitter/blob/main/plugins/babysitter/skills/babysit/process/methodologies/spec-kit/skills/constitution-creation/SKILL.mdView on GitHub Overview
Constitution-creation establishes the governing document for a project, outlining development principles, quality standards, and constraints. It harmonizes dev guidelines, code quality, testing, UX, performance budgets, and security requirements into a single governance artifact. This is distinct from feature-specific specifications and informs all future work.
How This Skill Works
Begin by gathering context (project type, audience, compliance needs). Then define and codify guidelines across dev practices, code quality, testing, UX, performance, and security, and document architecture principles. Finalize with a human review before use.
When to Use It
- Starting a new project that needs governance foundations
- Formalizing existing project standards into a constitution
- Updating governance principles for an evolving project
- Before writing specifications for a new feature area
- During project audits or governance reviews
Quick Start
- Step 1: Gather context – audience, compliance needs, and existing standards
- Step 2: Define guidelines and standards – coding, reviews, testing, UX, performance, security
- Step 3: Document architecture principles and obtain human approval
Best Practices
- Gather context and stakeholder input up front to shape the constitution
- Codify clear dev guidelines, branching strategy, and code review processes
- Set measurable code quality, testing, and CI requirements (coverage, types, thresholds)
- Define UX requirements including accessibility, responsiveness, and performance budgets
- Document architecture principles and security constraints, then obtain human approval
Example Use Cases
- Constitution for a fintech platform detailing security constraints and data handling
- Governance document establishing coding standards and review workflows for a SaaS product
- Constitution outlining performance budgets and accessibility requirements for a mobile app
- Architecture principles section formalizing modularity, dependencies, and extensibility
- Updated constitution used prior to drafting major feature specifications
