mk:workflow-orchestrator

What This Skill Does

The central workflow coordinator. Auto-invoked when a session starts with complex-feature intent. Routes through the seven phases, managing gate enforcement, token budgets, agent team composition, and state persistence. Defers to mk:cook for single-task invocations.

When to Use

• Auto-invoked on session start with complex-feature intent (multi-file, multi-step tasks)
• NOT invoked when mk:cook is explicitly called (cook owns the full pipeline for single tasks)
• Never run both in the same session — if cook is active, orchestrator skips

Core Capabilities

• Phase routing: each phase dispatched to its owning skill — agent-detector and scale-routing at Orient, plan-creator at Plan, testing at Test, developer plus the mandatory simplify and verify stages at Build, review, ship, and memory after. The phase sequence itself is on Workflow Phases.
• Gate enforcement: Gate 1 after Phase 1 (plan approval), Gate 2 after Phase 4 (review verdict)
• Token budget: warns at 75%, handoff at 85%, forces context reset at 90%. Target ≤30K per workflow.
• State persistence: workflow:handoff / workflow:resume / workflow:status commands for cross-session continuity
• Agent Teams: parallel agent execution per phase with file ownership boundaries and task claim pattern
• Fast-track mode: skips phases for pre-approved specs with automated testing. Auto-stops on: tests pass in RED, 3 failed builds, critical security findings, coverage <80%

Arguments

Workflow

1. Pre-execution checklist — run agent-detector, load memory, show agent banner, verify complexity, challenge requirements
2. Phase 0: Orient — detect task agent, complexity tier, model selection
3. Phase 1: Plan — route to plan-creator, enforce Gate 1
4. Phase 2: Test — if TDD active, write failing tests
5. Phase 3: Build — developer implements, plan-first gate enforced
6. Phase 3.5: Simplify — mandatory simplification pass before review
7. Phase 4: Review — reviewer verdict, enforce Gate 2
8. Phase 5: Ship — shipper creates PR, pushes branch
9. Phase 6: Reflect — memory captures learnings

Usage

# Auto-invoked — no explicit command needed
# Fast-track mode:
/mk:cook --fasttrack "add rate limiting middleware to the API"

Example Prompt

Build a user dashboard with real-time metrics, role-based access control, and export to CSV. Use the existing auth system and PostgreSQL.

This triggers auto-invocation of the orchestrator with complex-feature intent.

Common Use Cases

• Greenfield feature builds with multiple files
• Cross-cutting concerns (auth, logging, monitoring)
• Multi-phase features requiring plan → implement → review → ship
• Parallel agent execution for independent subtasks

Pro Tips

• Explicit /mk:cook overrides the orchestrator. Use cook when you know exactly what you want to build and don't need the full phase orchestration.
• Phase 3.5 (Simplify) is mandatory. Code must be simplified before review — the orchestrator enforces this.
• Invalid transitions are blocked: you cannot skip Phase 1, ship with failing tests (Phase 5), or build without tests when TDD is active (Phase 3).

Canonical source: .claude/skills/workflow-orchestrator/SKILL.md