Task Validation Loop Skill

Autonomous verification loop that runs 3 specialized agents to validate task list completeness and alignment before implementation begins.

Prerequisites

Before invoking this skill, ensure:

• Task list is complete (specs/tasks.md exists)
• PRD exists (specs/product_specs.md)
• Architecture exists (specs/architecture.md)
• User has approved the task breakdown

Workflow

1. Gather Context

Collect inputs for the agents:

task_list     ← Read specs/tasks.md (or specs/tasks/ directory)
product_specs ← Read specs/product_specs.md (or specs/product_specs/ directory)
architecture  ← Read specs/architecture.md (or specs/architecture/ directory)
design_system ← Read specs/design_system.md (if exists, optional)

Detection: Check for file first (takes precedence), then directory. When reading a directory, aggregate all .md files recursively.

2. Launch Validation Agents

Use Task tool to launch all 3 agents in parallel:

Agent (subagent_type)	Context to Provide
groundwork:prd-task-alignment-checker:prd-task-alignment-checker	task_list, product_specs
groundwork:architecture-task-alignment-checker:architecture-task-alignment-checker	task_list, architecture
groundwork:design-task-alignment-checker:design-task-alignment-checker	task_list, design_system

Each returns JSON:

{
  "summary": "One-sentence assessment",
  "score": 0-100,
  "findings": [{"severity": "critical|major|minor", "category": "...", "task_reference": "TASK-NNN", "finding": "...", "recommendation": "..."}],
  "verdict": "approve|request-changes"
}

3. Aggregate Results

Present results in table format:

## Task List Validation Report

| Agent | Score | Verdict | Critical | Major | Minor |
|-------|-------|---------|----------|-------|-------|
| PRD Alignment | 92 | approve | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Architecture Alignment | 88 | approve | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Design Alignment | 85 | approve | 0 | 2 | 1 |

**Overall:** PASS / NEEDS FIXES

4. Autonomous Fix-and-Retry Loop

Rule: Continue this loop until ALL agents return approve.

On any request-changes verdict:

1. Log Iteration

   ## Validation Iteration [N]
   | Agent | Verdict | Findings |
   |-------|---------|----------|
   | ... | ... | ... |
   Fixing [X] issues...
   

2. Fix Each Finding - Apply each critical/major recommendation

   • Modify specs/tasks.md with required changes
   • Track what was changed
   • Note which finding each fix addresses

   Fix types:

   • requirement-not-tasked: Add new task for the requirement
   • component-mismatch: Update task's Component field
   • accessibility-missing: Add acceptance criteria to task
   • over-tasked: Remove task or add requirement to PRD (user decision)

3. Re-run Agent Validation - Launch all 3 agents again with updated task list

4. Check Results

   • ALL approve → PASS, return success
   • Any request-changes → Return to step 1

5. Stuck Detection

Track findings by key: [Agent]-[Category]-[TaskRef]

If same finding appears 3 times:

## Stuck - Need User Input

Issue persists after 3 attempts:

**[Agent] Finding description**
- Task: TASK-NNN
- Category: [category]
- Attempts:
  1. [what was tried]
  2. [what was tried]
  3. [what was tried]

I need clarification: [specific question]

• Use AskUserQuestion for guidance
• Apply fix based on user input
• Continue loop

Also escalate when:

• Conflicting requirements between PRD and architecture
• Missing information to create required task
• Scope decisions needed (add to PRD vs. remove task)

6. Return Result

On PASS:

## Task List Validation PASSED

All 3 agents approved after [N] iteration(s).

| Agent | Score | Verdict | Summary |
|-------|-------|---------|---------|
| PRD Alignment | 95 | APPROVE | All requirements covered |
| Architecture Alignment | 92 | APPROVE | Tasks follow architecture |
| Design Alignment | 90 | APPROVE | UI tasks include a11y |

Issues fixed:
- [Iteration N] Agent: Description

Coverage Summary:
- PRD Requirements: [X]% covered
- Architecture Components: All referenced
- Design System: [Applied/N/A]

Minor suggestions (optional):
- ...

Return control to calling skill (tasks skill).

Severity Reference

Level	Action
critical	Must fix, loop continues
major	Must fix, loop continues
minor	Optional, does not block

Edge Cases

No design system:

• Design agent still runs (checks accessibility)
• Note in summary: "Design system not found"

Agent returns error:

• Log the error
• Retry once
• If still fails, escalate to user

All agents approve immediately:

• Log success
• Return without iteration