memola-governance_skill

Overview

This skill verifies decision authority, establishes engagement boundaries, assigns ownership, and defines exit conditions before an engagement begins. It enforces four mandatory governance requirements—clear decision authority, defined scope, explicit ownership, and exit conditions—so you only proceed when governance is sound. Use it to decide whether to accept, conditionally accept, or decline an engagement.

How this skill works

The skill runs a short governance assessment: it verifies who can approve strategic decisions, documents what is in and out of scope, builds an ownership (RACI) matrix, and codifies exit triggers and processes. It produces a standardized governance check report with a ruling of CLEARED, CONDITIONAL, or NOT CLEARED and specifies required fixes or reasons to decline. The process includes scripted verification questions, a scope template, ownership confirmations, and exit documentation.

When to use it

• Before starting any paid engagement or project kickoff
• When decision-making authority is unclear or contested
• When scope or deliverables are poorly defined
• When multiple stakeholders or committees are involved
• When ethical concerns or frequent reversals have occurred

Best practices

• Verify authority with direct, concrete questions and a small decision test
• Document scope inclusions and exclusions and obtain written sign-off
• Create a RACI for each major deliverable and confirm acceptance in writing
• Define measurable exit triggers across performance, governance, ethical, and strategic categories
• Enforce a change-request process and treat scope additions as new work

Example use cases

• Pre-sale or pre-engagement check to decide whether to bid or proceed
• Project intake where sponsor or budget holder is unclear
• Client relationships prone to scope creep or shifting mandates
• Situations with potential ethical conflicts requiring immediate stop conditions
• Turning a tentative opportunity into a conditional engagement with remediation steps