Atlas Meta

Workflow Tiers

Default: When in doubt, use atlas-standard - it's right for 80% of tasks.

Invocation Patterns

Automatic Routing

User: "Fix the bug where sync fails with empty data"
→ You analyze: 2-5 files, needs research, bug fix
→ You invoke: atlas-standard skill
→ You execute: 5-phase Standard workflow

Explicit Routing

User: "Fix typo in login button. Use Atlas Quick workflow."
→ You invoke: atlas-quick skill
→ You execute: 2-phase Quick workflow

Project Conventions (Customize for Your Project)

Atlas works with any codebase. To customize for your project:

Option 1: Create .atlas/conventions.md

Create a file at .atlas/conventions.md in your project root with:

# Project Atlas Conventions

## Code Standards
- Field naming: [Your conventions]
- State management: [Your patterns]
- Error handling: [Your approach]

## Platform-Specific Rules
- iOS: [Platform gotchas]
- Android: [Platform gotchas]
- Web: [Platform gotchas]

## Deployment Process
- Pre-deployment: [Your checklist]
- Deployment command: [Your command]
- Post-deployment: [Your verification]

## Quality Gates
- Linting: [Your command]
- Type checking: [Your command]
- Testing: [Your command]
- Coverage requirements: [Your threshold]

## Design Standards
- Accessibility: [Your rules]
- Color scheme: [Your palette]
- Typography: [Your fonts]

## Critical Patterns
- Authentication: [Your approach]
- Data persistence: [Your strategy]
- API integration: [Your patterns]

Option 2: Reference Existing Documentation

If your project already has conventions documented:

# Project Atlas Conventions

See project documentation:
- Code standards: `/docs/coding-standards.md`
- Architecture: `/docs/architecture.md`
- Deployment: `/docs/deployment.md`
- Testing: `/docs/testing.md`

Default: General Best Practices

If .atlas/conventions.md doesn't exist, Atlas will apply general software development best practices:

• Clean code principles
• SOLID principles
• DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself)
• Industry-standard patterns
• Platform-appropriate idioms

Integration with Workflows

Before ANY deployment or code change, check:

1. If .atlas/conventions.md exists: Follow project-specific rules
2. If not: Use general best practices and ask for clarification on project-specific patterns

Escalation Rules

Escalate to Higher Tier If:

• Quick → Iterative: Simple change but want validation
• Quick/Iterative → Standard: Multiple files affected, tests fail, edge cases emerge
• Standard → Full: 6+ files, security concerns, formal requirements needed

How to Escalate:

"Escalating to [TIER] workflow. [REASON: scope expanded, security implications, etc.]"

Then restart from Phase 1 of new tier.

Anti-Patterns (Never Do This)

❌ Use Quick workflow for new authentication system (use Full) ❌ Use Full workflow for fixing a typo (use Quick) ❌ Skip deployment phase to save time (tests are mandatory) ❌ Ignore project conventions in .atlas/conventions.md ❌ Make assumptions about project patterns (verify first) ❌ Manual git commits without following project process

Success Indicators by Tier

Quick Success:

• ✅ Change deployed in < 15 minutes
• ✅ Tests pass
• ✅ No rollbacks

Iterative Success:

• ✅ Change validated in < 30 minutes
• ✅ Peer review approved
• ✅ Tests pass

Standard Success:

• ✅ Feature complete in < 2 hours
• ✅ All edge cases covered
• ✅ Tests pass
• ✅ Peer review approved

Full Success:

• ✅ Epic complete with full documentation
• ✅ 100% acceptance criteria met
• ✅ Zero defects in production
• ✅ Full evidence trail

Resources

• Full decision matrix: See resources/tier-selector.md
• Project conventions: See .atlas/conventions.md (if exists)
• Platform-specific rules: Check project documentation

Example Orchestration

Example 1: Automatic Routing

User: "The sync system loses data during conflict resolution"

Your analysis:
- Scope: Affects sync service, maybe conflict logic (2-5 files)
- Complexity: Needs research to understand conflict handling
- Risk: Medium (data integrity issue)
- Validation: Needs peer review
→ Decision: atlas-standard

Your response:
"I'll use the Atlas Standard workflow for this bug fix."
[Invoke atlas-standard skill]
[Execute 5-phase workflow]

Example 2: Explicit Routing

User: "Change primary button color to #007AFF. Use Atlas Quick."

Your analysis:
- Explicit tier specified: Quick
- Verification: 1 file, trivial, zero risk ✅
→ Decision: atlas-quick

Your response:
"Using Atlas Quick workflow for this trivial change."
[Invoke atlas-quick skill]
[Execute 2-phase workflow]

Example 3: Escalation

User: "Fix the modal padding issue"

Your initial analysis:
- Expected: 1 file, simple CSS change
→ Initial decision: atlas-quick

During implementation:
- Found: Affects 4 modal components + platform-specific styles
- Complexity: Different platforms use different flex rules
- Risk: Could break modal layouts across platforms
→ Escalation: atlas-standard

Your response:
"Escalating to Standard workflow. Found 4 files affected with platform-specific considerations."
[Invoke atlas-standard skill]
[Restart from Phase 1: Research]

Example 4: Project Conventions Check

User: "Update user profile state management"

Your first action:
1. Check if `.atlas/conventions.md` exists
2. If yes: Read state management conventions
3. If no: Ask user about state management approach

Your response:
"I'll update the user profile state. First, let me check your project's state management conventions..."
[Check for .atlas/conventions.md]
[Apply project-specific patterns]

Integration with Agent Skills

Atlas includes specialized agent skills for specific phases:

• atlas-agent-developer: Implementation and planning (Sonnet)
• atlas-agent-peer-reviewer: Deep reviews, edge cases (Opus)
• atlas-agent-product-manager: Story creation, validation (Sonnet)
• atlas-agent-devops: Deployment, infrastructure (Sonnet)
• atlas-agent-security: Security audits (Sonnet)

These agents are invoked automatically during appropriate workflow phases.

Quick Start

As a User:

"[Describe your task]"
→ Orchestrator selects tier and executes workflow

OR

"[Task description]. Use Atlas [Quick|Iterative|Standard|Full] workflow."
→ Orchestrator uses specified tier

As the Orchestrator:

1. Read task description
2. Check for .atlas/conventions.md
3. Apply decision tree
4. Invoke appropriate skill
5. Execute workflow phases
6. Apply project-specific rules throughout
7. Ensure quality gates pass before deployment

Remember: When in doubt, choose atlas-standard. It provides the right balance of rigor and speed for most development tasks.