Presentation Builder

Use this skill when the deliverable is a deck artifact people will review, present, or hand off as slides, not just an outline or narrative document.

presentation-builder is the documentation/publishing-cluster anchor for:

investor, fundraising, board, and executive decks
roadmap, QBR, status, and decision-review decks
launch, GTM, and sales-enablement decks
architecture walkthroughs, demo decks, and technical presentations
workshop, training, and keynote decks
game pitch, publisher, and milestone-update decks

Read these support docs before choosing the workflow:

When to use this skill

The user needs an actual slide deck, not just bullets or a memo.
The workflow needs slide planning, visual iteration, and deck-specific evidence.
The work must survive browser review before export or downstream office/design-tool cleanup.
The output needs an editable or shareable slide surface such as HTML viewer, PPTX, PDF, Google Slides, or Figma Slides.
The request names a deck artifact directly or clearly implies a presentation deliverable for review, pitching, enablement, or decision-making.

When not to use this skill

The main job is a technical spec, ADR, runbook, migration guide, or internal implementation document → use technical-writing
The main job is an end-user tutorial, onboarding guide, FAQ, or screenshot-heavy help-center flow → use user-guide-writing
The main job is a research paper, rebuttal, or academic manuscript → use research-paper-writing
The main job is broad launch planning, campaign strategy, positioning, or messaging without a concrete deck artifact → use marketing-automation
The main job is only an outline, memo, or planning artifact and no deck file is actually needed → use the relevant planning or writing skill first

Instructions

Step 1: Classify one deck mode, one artifact packet, and one handoff surface

Normalize the request before drafting.

presentation_builder_mode:
  deck_mode: investor | roadmap-review | launch-gtm | architecture-demo | workshop-training | game-pitch | other
  audience: executives | investors | customers | internal-team | mixed | unknown
  source_material: brief | doc | spreadsheet | screenshots | charts | prototype | mixed | unknown
  review_need: outline-approval | visual-approval | export-ready | mixed
  artifact_packet: outline-brief | storyboard | review-ready-html | export-handoff | sync-packet | unknown
  handoff_surface: html-viewer | pptx | pdf | google-slides | figma-slides | mixed | unknown

Choose exactly one primary deck_mode for the run:

investor → fundraising, board, strategic pitch, or executive narrative deck
roadmap-review → roadmap, QBR, planning, KPI, status, or decision-review deck
launch-gtm → launch briefing, sales-enablement, product narrative, or GTM deck
architecture-demo → technical walkthrough, architecture review, developer talk, or demo deck
workshop-training → workshop, training, keynote, or enablement deck
game-pitch → publisher pitch, game concept, milestone update, or studio BD deck

Use references/artifact-packets-and-last-mile-handoffs.md to pick the smallest useful packet and the real last-mile surface early.

Step 2: Lock the promise, evidence, and downstream editor

Before generating slides, answer these three questions:

What should the audience understand, approve, or decide by the end?
What evidence must appear on the slides? Screenshots, charts, metrics, citations, links, footage, or product visuals.
Where will the final cleanup happen? Browser-only viewer, PPTX, PDF, Google Slides, or Figma Slides.

Do not pretend the handoff surface is irrelevant. Real deck workflows often start in HTML or Markdown but still end with office/design-tool cleanup.

Step 3: Route out non-deck work early

Use the smallest honest boundary:

If the request is mainly about...	Use
technical specs, rollout docs, ADRs, migration details	`technical-writing`
tutorials, help docs, onboarding, screenshot walkthroughs	`user-guide-writing`
academic papers, rebuttals, manuscript sections	`research-paper-writing`
messaging, launch strategy, campaigns, content calendars	`marketing-automation`
a reviewable or handoff-ready deck artifact	`presentation-builder`

Many “make slides” requests are really document or messaging requests. Confirm the artifact before building slides.

Step 4: Choose the smallest artifact packet

Default to the smallest output that makes progress:

outline-brief → slide-by-slide outline with takeaway + evidence + risk notes
storyboard → stronger slide sequence and rough content plan before visual polish
review-ready-html → browser-reviewable deck source with visual iteration still open
export-handoff → approved deck plus explicit PPTX/PDF/Slides handoff status
sync-packet → deck plus short list of downstream artifacts or cleanup follow-ups

Do not jump straight to exported binaries when an outline or storyboard is the real next step.

Step 5: Build the deck from a stable source workspace

Default to a dedicated workspace such as:

decks/<deck-name>/
  slide-outline.md
  slide-01-cover.html
  slide-02-...
  assets/

Source rules:

keep the editable source in the deck workspace
keep raw evidence/assets close to the deck
revise the source slides, not the exported PPTX/PDF
keep spreadsheet/chart dependencies explicit if numbers may refresh later
treat PowerPoint / Google Slides / Figma as last-mile surfaces, not the hidden source of truth

Use references/source-and-handoff-patterns.md for source-lifecycle rules.

Step 6: Use the mode packet, then review visually

Use references/presentation-modes-and-routing.md for mode-specific slide patterns.

After creating or editing slides:

slides-grab build-viewer --slides-dir decks/<deck-name>
slides-grab validate --slides-dir decks/<deck-name>

For visual iteration:

slides-grab edit --slides-dir decks/<deck-name>

Review rules:

every slide should have one clear takeaway
screenshots, charts, and footage must remain legible
unsupported claims or placeholder visuals must be called out
if async review matters, plan for PDF readability, not only live presentation flow
if the deck will be edited outside the browser workflow, note the likely cleanup surface explicitly

Use references/review-and-export-checklist.md before export.

Step 7: Export or hand off honestly

Only export after the chosen packet is ready.

slides-grab convert --slides-dir decks/<deck-name> --output decks/<deck-name>.pptx
slides-grab pdf --slides-dir decks/<deck-name> --output decks/<deck-name>.pdf

Report all of these:

source workspace path
artifact packet selected
validation status
review status (outline approved / visually approved / export-ready)
handoff surface and likely cleanup location
output file paths
remaining manual-polish risks such as fonts, layout drift, chart refresh, or office-tool cleanup

Step 8: Return the deck status in the right shape

Preferred response structure:

deck mode + audience
artifact packet selected
source workspace path
evidence used and review findings
export / handoff status and remaining risks

Core commands

slides-grab edit
slides-grab build-viewer
slides-grab validate
slides-grab convert
slides-grab pdf
slides-grab list-templates
slides-grab list-themes

All commands support --slides-dir <path>.

Examples

Example 1: Investor deck with explicit PPTX handoff

Turn this product brief into a 10-slide investor deck. Show me the outline first, then generate the deck in decks/series-a and hand off an editable PPTX after visual review.

Example 2: Architecture review deck for async review

Build an 8-slide architecture review deck for our browser automation service. Use screenshots, flow diagrams, and one slide on failure handling. I need a reviewable HTML deck first and a PDF for async review.

Example 3: Launch planning that should route out

Help me figure out the launch messaging, channel plan, and owners for next month's release.

Good direction: route to marketing-automation unless the user also needs a concrete deck artifact.

Best practices

Treat deck work as a narrative + evidence + handoff problem, not just a styling task.
Pick one deck mode, one packet, and one last-mile surface first.
Prefer a stable HTML source and regenerate exports instead of editing binaries directly.
Keep docs, spreadsheets, screenshots, and other upstream evidence explicit.
Call out where manual cleanup is likely instead of hiding fidelity limits.
Use the smallest packet that keeps progress honest.
Keep route-outs sharp: many “slides” requests are really docs, research, or marketing work.

References

Upstream tool: https://github.com/vkehfdl1/slides-grab
Figma Slides: https://www.figma.com/slides/
Marp: https://marp.app/
Slidev: https://sli.dev/
Google Slides: https://workspace.google.com/products/slides/
Microsoft PowerPoint: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/powerpoint