Go nogo memo

Go / No-Go Memo

Part of the discovery-phase skill pack · deliverables group · reads discovery-context.md (run profile-builder first if missing).

The terminal decision document. Everything before this fed into it; everything after follows from it. In outsourcing, the agency recommends, the client decides — the memo must support both perspectives.

When to run

• End of any discovery cycle
• Standalone if BA brings in evidence from elsewhere and just needs to write the memo
• Re-run after major new evidence (re-versioned)

Differs from proposal: proposal is commercial (here's what we'd do, please sign); memo is decisional (here's what we believe, please decide). They can co-exist.

Step 1 — Read context + scan evidence

Read discovery-context.md (section 5. Expected deliverable). Then scan ./discovery/ for available artifacts — even partial discovery can produce a memo, but flag the gaps explicitly in the memo's "Evidence" section.

If discovery-context.md is missing, ask the BA inline: "who's the decision-owner (client / agency / both) and what decision are we framing (proceed / pivot / kill)?" — tag the output [ASSUMED FRAMING]. Never block; recommend profile-builder for high-stakes work.

Step 2 — Force the decision first

Before writing anything, ask the BA:

"Based on what we have, what's the recommendation: GO / PIVOT / KILL? One word. We'll justify on paper next."

If they hesitate, probe:

• "What's the one finding that would flip this to the opposite answer?"
• "If you had to bet 10% of the agency's quarterly capacity (or your own time) on this, would you?"
• "Imagine this memo arrived from another team. Would you approve their recommendation?"

The memo serves the recommendation. No defensive prose.

Step 3 — Clarify the decision split (outsourcing)

Two roles must be explicit:

• Recommendation owner — the agency BA / lead. Owns the recommendation in the memo.
• Decision owner — typically the client (per discovery-context.md engagement). The memo gives them what they need to decide.

State both at the top of the memo: "We (agency) recommend X. Decision rests with <named client decision-maker>."

Step 4 — Fill the template

Fill ./template.md. It owns the structure (recommendation line 1, TL;DR, rationale, evidence chain, key findings, risks-remaining, decision-specific GO/PIVOT/KILL section, signatures). This skill's job is the content — the template is the shape.

Key rules while filling:

• Line 1 is the recommendation. Not buried, not in paragraph 3.
• Evidence chain links every artifact in ./discovery/. A reader who disagrees can audit in 20 minutes. Mark missing artifacts explicitly (e.g., ~~Tech Spike Report~~ — not run).
• Key findings = one-sentence claim + one quote / data point each. Quotable in future planning docs.
• Risks-remain comes from risk-assumption-map.md rows NOT retired during discovery, with owner per row. Distinguish client-owned (post-decision) vs agency-owned (if engagement converts).
• Decision-specific section — fill ONE (GO / PIVOT / KILL), delete the others.
• Client decision signature — leave blank until the client decides.

Step 5 — Output + index update

./discovery/go-no-go-memo.md per ./template.md. Update DISCOVERY.md (or _log.md) index entry to: "Cycle complete — recommendation: <X>; decision: pending/<Y>".

Append to _log.md: [go-nogo-memo | YYYY-MM-DD] recommendation: <GO/PIVOT/KILL>; decision_owner: <client/agency>; commercial_path: <proposal/sow/handoff/none>.

Anti-patterns

• "Needs more research." Almost always KILL or PIVOT in disguise. Name it. If you genuinely need another cycle, name the specific question, the specific test, and the cost — otherwise "more research" is a graveyard.
• GO by default. Teams hate killing projects they researched. Apply the third-party test: "would you approve this if it came from another team?"
• Buried recommendation. Line 1, no exceptions.
• Memo without evidence links. Claims rot; linked claims survive.
• Conflating recommendation and decision. In outsourcing, agency recommends, client decides. Be explicit.
• No risks-remain section. This is where the engagement quietly fails post-launch. Capture them with owners.