SDLC blueprint

Handbook

Forge — ceremonies & events (prescriptive)

Each Forge ceremony below lists **inputs**, **outputs**, **participants**, **timebox**, **agenda**, and **Forge-specific mechanics**. Forge keeps standard ceremony names and adds precision inside them

Forge — ceremonies & events (prescriptive)

Each Forge ceremony below lists inputs, outputs, participants, timebox, agenda, and Forge-specific mechanics. Forge keeps standard ceremony names and adds precision inside them.

Default iteration length: 1 week (configurable to 2 weeks for exploratory work).

0. Ongoing — Ore intake

Intent: Capture new ideas, requests, issues, and opportunities as Ore before they enter the commitment pipeline.
Inputs External requests, feedback, defect reports, hypotheses, stakeholder conversations
Outputs Ore items in the backlog with source, problem/opportunity, urgency, expected value
Participants Anyone (primarily Product hat)
Cadence Continuous

Prescriptive rule: Do not refine or commit Ore during intake. Capture enough for triage; avoid detailed commitments.

1. Refinement (Ore → Ingot)

Intent: C1 (Align) + C2 (Plan the slice) — shape selected Ore into Ingots.
Inputs Ore backlog, product context, known constraints, discipline knowledge bases
Outputs Ingots with: problem statement, value proposition, acceptance route, key constraints, evidence-of-done criteria
Participants Product hat (R), Engineering hat (R), Challenge hat (O — Versonas at decision points)
Timebox ≤ 1 hour per session; ~10–15% of iteration capacity on refinement
Cadence 1–2× per week

Agenda:

  1. Product hat presents top Ore items (5–10 min).
  2. Clarify problem, value, and constraints; Engineering hat assesses feasibility (15–20 min).
  3. Invoke Versonas on high-risk or high-value items — time-boxed challenge (10–15 min).
  4. Decide: promote to Ingot, merge, Bank, or reject. Document decisions in Ember Log (5–10 min).

Definition of Ready (Ingot):

  • Problem and value statement clear.
  • Acceptance criteria testable.
  • Key constraints and dependencies identified.
  • Estimated effort range (fits iteration horizon).
  • Phase affinity identified (discover/specify/design/build/verify/release).

2. Planning (Ingot → Sparks)

Intent: C1 + C2 — decompose Ingots into Sparks and scope the iteration.
Inputs Ingot backlog (ordered), team capacity, past iteration metrics, Definition of Done
Outputs Sparks with: intent, expected outcome, acceptance route, phase prefix; iteration scope
Participants Product hat (R), Engineering hat (R), Governance hat (O)
Timebox ≤ 2 hours per 1-week iteration

Agenda:

  1. Product hat proposes iteration focus and highest-value Ingots (10 min).
  2. Engineering hat decomposes Ingots into Sparks (30–45 min).
  3. Sequence Sparks by risk reduction and learning value (15 min).
  4. Confirm scope fits capacity; intentionally leave margin for interruption (10 min).
  5. Identify Versona challenges needed before key Sparks begin (5 min).

Spark quality check:

  • One clear intent.
  • One primary expected outcome.
  • One practical acceptance route.
  • Limited dependency surface.
  • Completable in one focused session (~1–4 hours).
  • Phase prefix assigned.

3. Daily sync (Charge confirmation)

Intent: C3 — execute and unblock; confirm today's Charge.
Inputs Current Charge, iteration Sparks, known blockers, Ember Log
Outputs Updated Charge for the day; surfaced blockers; Banking or unbanking decisions
Participants Engineering hat (R); Product hat (O); others as needed
Timebox 15 minutes

Agenda:

  1. Review yesterday's Charge: what completed, what carries forward (3 min).
  2. Confirm today's Charge: which Sparks are active (3 min).
  3. Surface blockers and Banking decisions (3 min).
  4. Declare hat for the day's primary focus (1 min).
  5. Identify any Versona challenges needed (2 min).

Prescriptive rule: The Charge should be intentionally smaller than theoretical capacity, leaving room for interruption, rework, and learning.

4. Review (evidence assessment)

Intent: C4 (Inspect) + C6 (Assure) — inspect what was achieved and assess evidence quality.
Inputs Completed Sparks, increment, Assay Gate criteria, Ember Log
Outputs Evidence assessment, stakeholder feedback, backlog updates, Assay Gate readiness determination
Participants Product hat (R), Engineering hat (R), Challenge hat (R — Versonas), Governance hat (R), stakeholders (O)
Timebox ≤ 1.5 hours per 1-week iteration

Agenda:

  1. Engineering hat demonstrates working increment (30 min).
  2. Product hat assesses against Ingot acceptance criteria (15 min).
  3. Versona challenge: discipline-specific review of increment quality (15 min).
  4. Governance hat reviews evidence against Assay Gate criteria (10 min).
  5. Decide: ready for Assay Gate, needs more evidence, or scope adjustment (10 min).

5. Assay Gate (release readiness)

Intent: C6 — evidence-based release decision. Separate from Review to keep the question strict: is this releasable?
Inputs Evidence package: tests, acceptance confirmations, risk checks, performance data, Ember Log
Outputs Release decision (pass / fail with specific gaps); release notes draft
Participants Governance hat (R), Product hat (R), Engineering hat (R)
Timebox ≤ 30 minutes

Evidence types (configured per work type):

  • Tests passed (unit, integration, E2E as applicable).
  • Acceptance criteria met and documented.
  • Risk checks completed (security, compliance Versona if applicable).
  • Performance / quality thresholds met.
  • Stakeholder validation completed (for user-facing changes).
  • Rollback or support readiness confirmed.

Prescriptive rule: Work that fails the Assay Gate is not failure — it is simply not yet releasable. Adjust scope or gather more evidence; do not lower evidence standards under schedule pressure.

6. Retro (learning → new Ore)

Intent: C5 — reflect and improve the system of work.
Inputs Iteration metrics (Spark throughput, Ore→Ingot conversion, Assay Gate pass rate), Ember Log, Versona challenge trends, team experience
Outputs 1–3 improvement experiments with owners; new Ore from learnings; Versona configuration adjustments
Participants All hats (R)
Timebox ≤ 1 hour per 1-week iteration

Agenda:

  1. Review metrics: Spark throughput, Charge completion rate, Assay Gate results (10 min).
  2. Ember Log review: which decisions worked, which assumptions were wrong (10 min).
  3. Versona effectiveness: which challenges added value, which created noise (10 min).
  4. Generate insights: patterns, systemic issues, process friction (15 min).
  5. Commit to 1–3 experiments with owners and due dates (10 min).
  6. Feed learnings back as new Ore where applicable (5 min).

7. Quick reference — I/O summary

Ceremony Primary inputs Primary outputs
Ore intake External requests, feedback Ore items in backlog
Refinement Ore backlog, constraints Ingots (ready for planning)
Planning Ingots, capacity, DoD Sparks, iteration scope
Daily sync Charge, blockers Updated Charge, unblocked work
Review Increment, evidence Assessment, feedback, Assay readiness
Assay Gate Evidence package Release decision
Retro Metrics, Ember Log Improvement experiments, new Ore

Canonical source

Edit https://github.com/autowww/blueprints/blob/main/sdlc/methodologies/forge/ceremonies-prescriptive.md first; regenerate with docs/build-handbook.py.