Agent skill

cycle-plan

Plan Linear cycles using velocity analytics. Suggests scope based on historical capacity, identifies dependency risks, balances workload.

View SKILL.md on GitHub Repository
Stars 163
Forks 31

Install this agent skill to your Project

npx add-skill https://github.com/majiayu000/claude-skill-registry/tree/main/skills/data/cycle-plan

SKILL.md

Cycle Plan Skill - Sprint Planning

You are an expert at planning software development cycles based on team velocity.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

  • Planning the next sprint/cycle
  • Deciding what to include in a cycle
  • Balancing workload across team members

Process

CRITICAL: Setup First

ALWAYS check if .linear.yaml exists. If not, run:

bash
linear init  # Select default team - REQUIRED for cycle operations

  1. Analyze Historical Velocity

    bash
    linear cycles analyze --team ENG --count 10 --format full

    Parse the JSON to extract velocity metrics, completion rates, and recommendations.

  2. Review Available Capacity

    • Check team size
    • Account for PTO/holidays
    • Consider focus time needs
    • Use P20/P50/P80 recommendations from analyze command

  3. Get Issues for Planning

    bash
    # Get backlog issues (returns ALL issues, not just assigned)
linear issues list --state Backlog --format full --limit 100

# Get current cycle issues
linear issues list --cycle current --format full

# Get next cycle issues (if already planned)
linear issues list --cycle next --format full

  4. Select Issues for Cycle

    • Start with P1/P2 issues (--priority 1 or --priority 2)
    • Respect dependencies (use linear deps --team ENG)
    • Balance across team members
    • Stay within recommended capacity

  5. Validate Plan

    • Total estimates <= capacity
    • No cross-cycle blockers
    • Even distribution

Velocity Analysis

The linear cycles analyze command provides:

VELOCITY ANALYSIS: Team ENG (5 cycles)
════════════════════════════════════════
Average Velocity: 34 points/cycle
Completion Rate: 85%
Scope Creep: 12%

CYCLE HISTORY
────────────────────────────────────────
Cycle 23: 38 pts (92% complete)
Cycle 22: 32 pts (88% complete)
Cycle 21: 35 pts (82% complete)
Cycle 20: 28 pts (78% complete)
Cycle 19: 37 pts (90% complete)

RECOMMENDATION
────────────────────────────────────────
Target: 32-36 points for next cycle
Buffer: Reserve 10% for unplanned work

Planning Output

CYCLE PLAN: Sprint 24
════════════════════════════════════════
Capacity: 40 points (4 engineers)
Target: 36 points (90% capacity)
Buffer: 4 points for unplanned work

PLANNED ISSUES
────────────────────────────────────────
ENG-201 [P1] Auth refactor      8pts @alice
ENG-202 [P1] Payment fix        5pts @bob
ENG-203 [P2] Dashboard update   8pts @carol
ENG-204 [P2] API optimization   5pts @dave
ENG-205 [P3] Docs update        3pts @alice
ENG-206 [P3] Test coverage      5pts @bob
────────────────────────────────────────
Total: 34 points

WORKLOAD BALANCE
────────────────────────────────────────
@alice: 11 pts (28%)
@bob:   10 pts (25%)
@carol: 8 pts (20%)
@dave:  5 pts (13%)
Unassigned: 0 pts

DEPENDENCY RISKS
────────────────────────────────────────
ENG-203 blocked by ENG-201 (same cycle - OK)

Commands Used

bash
# FIRST: Ensure team context is set
linear init  # If .linear.yaml doesn't exist

# Analyze velocity (ALWAYS do this first)
linear cycles analyze --team ENG --count 10 --format full

# Get backlog issues for planning (returns ALL issues, not just assigned)
linear issues list --state Backlog --format full --limit 100

# Get high priority issues
linear issues list --priority 1 --format full

# Get issues by cycle
linear issues list --cycle current --format full
linear issues list --cycle next --format full
linear issues list --cycle 65 --format full  # Specific cycle number

# Filter by multiple criteria
linear issues list --state Backlog --priority 1 --labels customer --format full

# Check dependencies
linear deps --team ENG

# Assign to cycle
linear issues update ENG-201 --cycle current
linear issues update ENG-202 --cycle next
linear issues update ENG-203 --cycle 65  # Specific cycle number

Key Learnings

  • linear issues list returns ALL issues (not just assigned to you)
  • Use --format full for parsing output in scripts
  • Cycle numbers require team context from linear init
  • Always run linear cycles analyze before planning to understand capacity
  • Use filters to narrow results: --state, --priority, --labels, --cycle, --assignee

Best Practices

  1. Leave buffer - Plan to 80-90% capacity
  2. Front-load blockers - Schedule blocking issues early
  3. Balance workload - Distribute evenly across team
  4. Avoid cross-cycle deps - Don't plan work blocked by next cycle

Didn't find tool you were looking for?

Be as detailed as possible for better results