dashboard-governance is a portable Codex skill for maintaining a project Dashboard across long-running human-AI work. It helps an AI coding agent update Big Ideas, Sessions, Decisions, TSP fields, status, blockers, durable outputs, scope-aware closeout, and emergent next steps without treating the Dashboard as canonical project truth.
The skill is useful when a repository needs an execution-state layer that survives model changes, session changes, and handoff between humans and AI agents. The default template stays lightweight; v0.2.0 also adds an optional advanced governance layer for projects that need stage plans, risks, exceptions, quality metrics, automation, external artifact indexes, agent logs, or validation/closure lanes.
Use this skill when you want an AI agent to:
- keep project execution state visible across sessions
- separate stable truth from active task tracking
- maintain a Dashboard with Big Ideas, Sessions, and Decisions
- preserve Topic, Scope, and Purpose for large tracks and bounded tasks
- update task state after meaningful progress
- record unresolved choices separately from implementation tasks
- close narrowed work honestly before marking rows done
- identify concrete P0/P1 next-session candidates after work finishes
- preserve P2/P3 candidate memory only when it is specific and costly to rediscover
- use optional advanced governance files for non-trivial governed batches
- keep
todorows as visible options, not execution promises
It is not a replacement for an architecture document, issue tracker, design review, or human priority decision. It is a lightweight coordination surface for agentic work.
Big Ideas are long-lived semantic tracks. They describe important directions, themes, or implementation streams that may span many work sessions. A Big Idea should not close just because one related session finishes.
Sessions are bounded execution or exploration units. They are small enough to be selected, completed, reviewed, and handed off. Sessions carry priority, status, dependencies, deliverables, exit criteria, next steps, and notes.
Decisions capture choices that could block or distort multiple sessions if left implicit. Keeping them separate from Sessions prevents unresolved strategy from becoming hidden task churn.
TSP means Topic, Scope, and Purpose. Big Ideas and Sessions should expose all three so future agents can understand what the row is about, what is included or excluded, and why it matters.
After non-trivial work, the agent reviews whether a new bounded next step has become visible. Concrete P0/P1 candidates should be added by default. P2/P3 candidates should be added only when they are specific, low-noise, and costly to rediscover. Low-priority speculation belongs outside the active session queue.
If actual work completed only a narrowed subset of the original session, the agent should update the row text first, then mark it done, then add follow-on sessions for the remaining concrete work.
Use examples/Dashboard/ for lightweight projects. Use examples/Dashboard-advanced/ when the project needs optional files such as Stage_Plans.md, Risks.md, Exceptions.md, Quality_Metrics.md, Automation.md, External_Artifacts.md, or Agent_Logs/README.md.
- Codex-native skill layout with
SKILL.mdandagents/openai.yaml - Reference method for Dashboard row semantics, scope narrowing, candidate memory, and end-of-task review
- Optional advanced governance reference for stage plans, validation, closure, and Dashboard bloat control
- Minimal and advanced example Dashboard directories that can be copied into a repository
- No-dependency local validators for skill structure and Dashboard health
- GitHub Actions workflow for validation on push and pull request
- Portability notes for Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Continue, and other IDE agents
- Publishing checklist for public GitHub release
git clone https://github.com/buccaneermethodology/dashboard-governance-skill.git
cd dashboard-governance-skillCopy the installable skill folder into your Codex skills directory:
mkdir -p ~/.codex/skills
cp -R skill/dashboard-governance ~/.codex/skills/dashboard-governanceStart a new Codex session so the skill registry is reloaded.
From your target repository, copy the minimal example Dashboard folder:
cp -R /path/to/dashboard-governance-skill/examples/Dashboard ./DashboardFor advanced governed execution, copy the advanced template instead:
cp -R /path/to/dashboard-governance-skill/examples/Dashboard-advanced ./DashboardThen edit the rows to match your project. Keep the row semantics in Dashboard/Methodology.md and Dashboard/Rules.md visible to future agents.
Example end-of-task prompt:
Use $dashboard-governance after finishing this task. Update Big Ideas, Sessions, and Decisions, decide whether any candidate next sessions emerged, and recommend the next row with rationale.
Example bootstrap prompt:
Use $dashboard-governance to create a Dashboard for this repository and seed initial Big Ideas, Sessions, and Decisions.
A human finishes a project task and asks the agent to update the Dashboard. The agent should read repository rules, inspect the current Dashboard, and make bounded updates.
Task completed: added the first provider-neutral runner skeleton and fake-provider tests.
Use $dashboard-governance to update the Dashboard, identify candidate next sessions, and recommend the next row with rationale.
Expected Dashboard effects:
| Area | Expected update |
|---|---|
| Sessions | Mark the active runner session done if exit criteria are met. |
| Big Ideas | Update the parent track's next step without closing it prematurely. |
| Decisions | Add or resolve provider, dependency, or rollout choices if they affect later sessions. |
| Emergent sessions | Add concrete P0/P1 candidates, and P2/P3 only when they preserve specific high-cost memory. |
| Scope narrowing | If the task completed only a subset, narrow the row before marking it done and add follow-on sessions. |
| Final response | State whether Dashboard and stable project truth needed updates, then recommend the next row with why-now and why-this detail. |
A minimal Session row looks like this:
| ID | Topic | Scope | Purpose | Track | Priority | Status | Depends On | Deliverable | Exit Criteria | Next Step | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| S-001 | Bootstrap Dashboard | Create initial Dashboard files and rules. | Give the project an execution-state layer. | BI-001 | P1 | `todo` | none | Initial Dashboard files | Files exist and row semantics are documented. | Start when approved. | Replace with project-specific work. |skill/dashboard-governance/
SKILL.md
agents/openai.yaml
references/dashboard-method.md
references/advanced-governance.md
examples/Dashboard/
README.md
Methodology.md
Rules.md
Big_Ideas.md
Sessions.md
Decisions.md
examples/Dashboard-advanced/
README.md
Methodology.md
Rules.md
Big_Ideas.md
Sessions.md
Decisions.md
Stage_Plans.md
Risks.md
Exceptions.md
Quality_Metrics.md
Automation.md
External_Artifacts.md
Agent_Logs/README.md
docs/
PORTABILITY.md
PUBLISHING.md
scripts/
validate_skill.py
validate_dashboard.py
.github/
workflows/validate.yml
ISSUE_TEMPLATE/
pull_request_template.md
Run the bundled no-dependency validator:
python3 scripts/validate_skill.py skill/dashboard-governance
python3 scripts/validate_dashboard.py examples/Dashboard
python3 scripts/validate_dashboard.py examples/Dashboard-advancedIf you have the official Codex skill validator available, run it too:
python3 ~/.codex/skills/.system/skill-creator/scripts/quick_validate.py skill/dashboard-governanceThe method is portable because it is stored as plain Markdown plus durable repository files. Codex can use the installable skill folder directly. Other IDE agents can use the same content as workspace rules, project memory, or a reusable prompt.
See docs/PORTABILITY.md for adaptation notes.
This repository focuses on governance after a Dashboard exists: maintaining status, decisions, next steps, and end-of-task review discipline during ongoing work.
For a complementary skill that synthesizes an initial Exploration Dashboard from unstructured material, see Exploration Dashboard Synthesizer.
- Exploration Dashboard Synthesizer
- BM Dashboard：一种用于管理高度探索性认知过程的结构化框架
- Codex skill folder
- Dashboard method reference
- Advanced governance reference
- Minimal Dashboard example template
- Advanced Dashboard example template
See docs/PUBLISHING.md for the release checklist.
Issues and pull requests are welcome. Useful contributions include:
- clearer Dashboard row semantics
- additional example Dashboard templates
- portability notes for more IDE agents
- validator improvements
- examples of end-of-task review prompts
Please keep the installable skill concise. Human-facing repository docs belong outside skill/dashboard-governance/.
MIT. See LICENSE.
Maintainer: Tai Xiaomei buccaneermethodology@gmail.com GitHub: @buccaneermethodology
For maintainer release steps, see docs/PUBLISHING.md.