Database schema design patterns and optimization strategies for relational and NoSQL databases. Use when designing database schemas, optimizing query performance, or implementing data persistence layers at scale.

Use this skill when designing a data dashboard—choosing KPIs, structuring layout, applying visual hierarchy, or deciding which BI tool to use. Trigger phrases: 'design a dashboard', 'build a KPI dashboard', 'what should my dashboard show', 'help me layout a dashboard', 'dashboard for monitoring'. Not for building chart code from scratch (use chart-builder), writing SQL queries (use sql-analyst), or designing marketing landing pages.

CQRS and Event Sourcing patterns for scalable, auditable systems with separated read/write models. Use when building audit-required systems, implementing temporal queries, or designing high-scale applications with complex domain logic.

Drives the cortex skills recommend-feedback-rate loop. Use when a context change occurs (new file types, domain shift, task pivot) or when a task completes and skill effectiveness should be recorded.

Use this skill when writing persuasive, conversion-focused copy—landing pages, product descriptions, ads, sales emails, or any content designed to move someone to action. Trigger phrases: 'write copy for my landing page', 'describe this product', 'write an ad for'. Do NOT use for informational content, technical documentation, or long-form editorial writing.

Structured disagreement protocols that expose weaknesses, test assumptions, and generate alternatives. Use when stress-testing proposals, playing devil's advocate, challenging architectural decisions, or auditing assumptions before finalizing plans.

Use when tests have race conditions, timing dependencies, or inconsistent pass/fail behavior - replaces arbitrary timeouts with condition polling to wait for actual state changes, eliminating flaky tests from timing guesses

Regulatory compliance auditing across GDPR, HIPAA, PCI DSS, SOC 2, and ISO frameworks with automated evidence collection and gap analysis. Use when conducting compliance assessments, preparing for certifications, or implementing regulatory controls.

Use this skill when analyzing competitors, building competitive positioning, creating feature comparison matrices, or applying strategic frameworks like SWOT or Porter's Five Forces. Trigger phrases: 'analyze our competitors', 'competitive analysis for', 'how do we compare to', 'create a feature matrix', 'SWOT analysis of'. Not for sizing the total market (use market-researcher), writing pitch decks (use pitch-deck-writer), or pricing strategy modeling.

Brief description of what this skill does and provides. Use when [clear trigger condition that indicates this skill should activate]. Keep under 200 words.

Use this skill when creating, evaluating, or documenting color palettes for brands, products, or design systems. Trigger phrases: 'create a color palette', 'what colors should I use', 'brand colors for', 'accessible color scheme'. Do NOT use for image editing, photo color correction, or print production color matching.

Structured plan-writing skill adapted from obra/superpowers. Produces actionable plans that map directly to cortex workflows and tasks.

Imagine failure first to surface guardrails and feature mitigations.

Force-fit patterns from other domains to spark novel concepts.

Timeboxed divergent ideation that outputs ranked options plus day-one experiments.

Execution discipline that translates plans into tracked tasks with orchestration and verification loops. Use when driving a plan through cortex’s task system, coordinating workstreams across agents, or ensuring every plan item is tracked, executed, and verified.

Score concepts on impact/delight/effort and pick a 1-day spike.

Rapid ideation skill adapted from obra/superpowers to kick off cortex sessions. Use when defining scope, aligning on goals, or exploring solution space before coding.

Flip, remove, or exaggerate assumptions to unlock new solution angles.

Automate code review remediation loops with the codex CLI. Requests reviews from codex, classifies findings by severity (P0-P4), fixes critical issues (P0/P1) through iterative cycles, defers quality improvements to backlog, and escalates after 3 review cycles. Use when working with code that needs structured remediation: 'codex review' in a request triggers this workflow.

Use when assessing or improving code quality, maintainability, performance, or security hygiene - provides workflows for analysis, code review, and systematic improvements with validation steps.

Use when explaining code, concepts, or system behavior to a specific audience level - provides a structured explanation workflow with depth control and validation steps.

Use codanna MCP tools for semantic code search, call graphs, and impact analysis before grep/find.

Use this skill when creating data visualizations, selecting the right chart type, or generating chart code. Trigger phrases: 'build a chart', 'visualize this data', 'create a graph', 'plot these numbers', 'which chart should I use for'. Not for building interactive dashboards, designing UI components, or creating infographics with design tools like Figma.