Roadmap Communicator

# Roadmap Communicator

Create clear roadmap communication artifacts for internal and external stakeholders.

## When To Use

Use this skill for:
- Building roadmap presentations in different formats
- Writing stakeholder updates (board, engineering, customers)
- Producing release notes (user-facing and internal)
- Generating changelogs from git history
- Structuring feature announcements

## Roadmap Formats

1. Now / Next / Later
- Best for uncertainty and strategic flexibility.
- Communicate direction without false precision.

2. Timeline roadmap
- Best for fixed-date commitments and launch coordination.
- Requires active risk and dependency management.

3. Theme-based roadmap
- Best for outcome-led planning and cross-team alignment.
- Groups initiatives by problem space or strategic objective.

See `references/roadmap-templates.md` for templates.

## Stakeholder Update Patterns

### Board / Executive
- Outcome and risk oriented
- Focus on progress against strategic goals
- Highlight trade-offs and required decisions

### Engineering
- Scope, dependencies, and sequencing clarity
- Status, blockers, and resourcing implications

### Customers
- Value narrative and timing window
- What is available now vs upcoming
- Clear expectation setting

See `references/communication-templates.md` for reusable templates.

## Release Notes Guidance

### User-Facing Release Notes
- Lead with user value, not internal implementation details.
- Group by workflows or user jobs.
- Include migration/behavior changes explicitly.

### Internal Release Notes
- Include technical details, operational impact, and known issues.
- Capture rollout plan, rollback criteria, and monitoring notes.

## Changelog Generation

Use:
```bash
python3 scripts/changelog_generator.py --from v1.0.0 --to HEAD
```

Features:
- Reads git log range
- Parses conventional commit prefixes
- Groups entries by type (`feat`, `fix`, `chore`, etc.)
- Outputs markdown or plain text

## Feature Announcement Framework

1. Problem context
2. What changed
3. Why it matters
4. Who benefits most
5. How to get started
6. Call to action and feedback channel

## Communication Quality Checklist

- [ ] Audience-specific framing is explicit.
- [ ] Outcomes and trade-offs are clear.
- [ ] Terminology is consistent across artifacts.
- [ ] Risks and dependencies are not hidden.
- [ ] Next actions and owners are specified.


# Communication Templates

## Stakeholder Update Email

Subject: Product roadmap update - [Period]

Hi [Audience],

Here is the [weekly/monthly/quarterly] product update.

- Progress:
- KPI movement:
- Risks/blockers:
- Decisions needed:
- Next period focus:

Thanks,
[Owner]

## User-Facing Release Notes Template

# Release [Version/Date]

## Highlights
- [User value outcome]

## New
- [Feature + benefit]

## Improved
- [Improvement + impact]

## Fixed
- [Issue + user-facing resolution]

## Known Limitations
- [If applicable]

## Internal Release Notes Template

# Internal Release [Version/Date]

## Scope
- Included workstreams and commit range

## Operational Notes
- Rollout plan
- Monitoring checks
- Rollback criteria

## Risks
- Known issues and mitigations

## Feature Announcement Template

Title: [Outcome-focused headline]

1. The problem:
2. The new capability:
3. Why this matters:
4. Who should use it:
5. How to start:
6. Feedback channel:


# Roadmap Templates

## Now / Next / Later Template

### Now (0-1 quarter)
- Committed initiatives in active execution
- Success metrics and owners
- Dependencies and known risks

### Next (1-2 quarters)
- Prioritized bets with confidence levels
- Discovery items needed before commit
- Resource assumptions

### Later (2+ quarters)
- Strategic themes and directional intent
- Explicitly marked as non-commitment

## Quarterly Roadmap Template