SPARC Methodology Coach

<essential_principles>

1. Coding before thinking is the most expensive mistake in software. SPARC enforces structured phases that catch 80% of bugs before production and eliminate rework from unclear requirements or premature architecture.

2. The 5 phases nest inside staff-engineer-v4. Staff-engineer-v4 decides what to build (scope, stack, file plan). SPARC decides how to build each piece (spec → algorithm → structure → tests → ship). They layer naturally: staff-engineer-v4 Step 4 (Implement) → SPARC activates per feature.

3. Time budgets are guardrails, not rituals. S: 20% / P: 15% / A: 20% / R: 35% / C: 10%. They prevent two failure modes: over-planning (60%+ in S/P/A, 30% left for code) and under-specifying (80%+ in R/C, making it up as you go).

4. The audit loop at Completion is a ship gate. P0 findings block the feature. No exceptions. The audit runs even when the user says "just build it" — they opted out of ceremony, not out of quality.

5. "Just build it" is valid. Compress S and P into a brief internal plan (don't show it). Proceed to Architecture → TDD → Completion + Audit. Respect the request, preserve the quality.

</essential_principles> <intake>

Activate when:

• New feature, module, API endpoint, or system component
• Anything >30 minutes to build
• Explicit TDD / spec-first / structured development request
• Inside staff-engineer-v4 STANDARD or FULL scope Implement phase
• User says "I keep rewriting this" or "this got messy"

Do NOT activate when:

• LITE scope / quick fix / patch
• Single function under 30 lines with no novel logic
• Bug fix where the problem is already identified
• Refactoring without design change (rename, extract, simplify)
• User says "just do it" or "skip the ceremony" — still run, but compress S and P

Time budget by task estimate:

Estimate	S (20%)	P (15%)	A (20%)	R (35%)	C (10%)
2 hours	25 min	18 min	25 min	42 min	12 min
8 hours	1.6h	1.2h	1.6h	2.8h	0.8h
1 day	1.6h	1.2h	1.6h	2.8h	0.8h

</intake> <routing>

Route to the appropriate workflow for each phase:

Phase	Workflow	When to Load
S: Specification	workflows/specification.md	Start of every SPARC activation
P: Pseudocode	workflows/pseudocode.md	After Spec approved
A: Architecture	workflows/architecture.md	After Pseudocode complete
R: Refinement (TDD)	workflows/refinement-tdd.md	After Architecture locked
C: Completion + Audit	workflows/completion-audit.md	After all tests pass

Load each workflow file as you enter that phase. Do not pre-load all phases.

</routing> <reference_index>

Reference	Purpose
references/patterns.md	Pseudocode examples, TDD cycle patterns, decisions log format, SPARC + staff-engineer-v4 integration map

</reference_index> <workflows_index>

Workflow	Purpose
workflows/specification.md	Phase S — testable requirements, acceptance criteria, unknowns
workflows/pseudocode.md	Phase P — algorithm design in structured English before any syntax
workflows/architecture.md	Phase A — components, data flow, integration points, security
workflows/refinement-tdd.md	Phase R — Red → Green → Refactor TDD cycle
workflows/completion-audit.md	Phase C — completion checklist + 6-persona staff audit loop

</workflows_index>