--- name: cross-functional-stakeholder-alignment-memo-builder description: "Drafts a decision-ready alignment memo for a product initiative that translates a single decision into role-specific framing for Engineering, Finance, Legal, and Marketing — with a shared summary, per-stakeholder impact sections, an open questions log, and a decision-and-next-steps close. Use when you need to align cross-functional stakeholders on a product decision, launch, tradeoff, or scope change and each audience needs different information to say yes." argument-hint: "[initiative] [stakeholders]" allowed-tools: ["Read"] --- # Cross-Functional Stakeholder Alignment Memo Builder ## Purpose Turn one product decision into a single crisp memo that speaks to Engineering, Finance, Legal, and Marketing in the terms each cares about — so every stakeholder reads the section relevant to them, understands the ask, and can approve or object without a meeting. Solves the alignment tax where PMs repeat the same decision four different ways across four different threads. ## When to Use Invoke this skill when the user asks to: - Align Engineering, Finance, Legal, and Marketing on a product decision or launch - Write an alignment memo, decision memo, or pre-read for a cross-functional review - Communicate a scope change, timeline shift, or tradeoff to multiple teams at once - Get sign-off or surface objections from stakeholders with different priorities - Prepare a pre-read before a go/no-go or steering committee meeting - Translate a technical or product decision into finance, legal, and marketing terms ## Inputs Required Before starting, collect: - **The decision or initiative**: What is being decided or launched, in 2–3 sentences - **The ask**: What you need from stakeholders — approval, resourcing, sign-off, awareness, or a specific action - **Stakeholders involved**: Which functions and, if known, named individuals or roles (default to Engineering, Finance, Legal, Marketing if unspecified) - **Timeline**: Key dates — decision deadline, launch date, or milestones - **Known tradeoffs or risks**: What's being given up, what could go wrong, or what's contested - **Relevant numbers**: Cost, revenue impact, effort estimates, or metrics if available - **Decision owner and reviewers**: Who owns the call and who must approve vs. be informed If numbers or named stakeholders are missing, generate the memo with clearly labeled placeholders in a "confirm before sending" callout rather than inventing figures. ## Instructions ### Step 1: Write the Shared Summary (TL;DR) Open with a 4–6 line summary every stakeholder reads regardless of function: - **Decision**: One sentence stating what is being decided - **Recommendation**: The PM's recommended path, stated plainly — no hedging - **The ask**: Exactly what's needed and by when - **Why now**: One line on the driving deadline or opportunity Keep this scannable in under 15 seconds. If a stakeholder reads nothing else, this must be enough to orient them. ### Step 2: State the Decision Frame In 3–5 sentences, establish shared context before splitting by function: - What problem or opportunity prompted this - The options considered (name 2–3, including the recommended one) - The core tradeoff at the center of the decision This is the neutral ground all four functions reason from. ### Step 3: Build Per-Stakeholder Impact Sections Write one tailored section per function. Each section leads with what that audience actually cares about, not a generic summary. **Engineering** - Scope and technical implications: what gets built, changed, or deprecated - Effort and sequencing: rough size (S/M/L or sprint estimate) and dependencies - Technical risk or debt: what this creates or removes - The specific ask: architecture review, staffing, timeline confirmation **Finance** - Cost: build cost, ongoing cost, or opportunity cost — in numbers where available - Revenue or savings impact: expected upside and time to realize it - Budget implications: is this within plan, incremental, or a reallocation - The specific ask: budget approval, forecast adjustment, headcount sign-off **Legal** - Risk exposure: compliance, privacy, contractual, IP, or regulatory considerations - What's changing that touches policy or terms: data handling, user commitments, disclosures - Required reviews or approvals: what Legal must clear before launch - The specific ask: review by date, red-line on specific items, go/no-go on risk **Marketing** - Positioning and messaging impact: what the market or customers will notice - Launch and timing coordination: dependencies on campaigns, comms, or GTM - Customer or brand risk: how this could be perceived - The specific ask: launch plan alignment, messaging sign-off, comms timeline Adapt the set if the user names different functions. Keep each section to 3–5 tight bullets — no section should read like a full brief. ### Step 4: Compile the Open Questions & Decisions Log A short table of unresolved items so nothing gets lost: - **Question/Item** | **Owner** | **Needed by** | **Status** Include contested points, pending numbers, and dependencies from Step 3. This turns objections into tracked action items instead of thread noise. ### Step 5: Close with Decision & Next Steps - **Decision needed**: Restate the ask and the deadline - **Who decides / who approves**: Name the decision owner and required approvers - **Next steps**: 3–5 concrete actions with owners and dates - **What happens if we don't decide**: One line on the cost of delay ## Output Format - **Structure**: Single memo document — TL;DR, decision frame, four per-stakeholder sections, open questions table, decision & next steps - **Length**: 600–900 words - **Format**: Structured document — scannable headers, tight bullets under each stakeholder section, one markdown table for the open questions log - **Sections**: Summary (TL;DR) → Decision Frame → Engineering → Finance → Legal → Marketing → Open Questions & Decisions → Decision & Next Steps - **Tone**: Direct, decision-first, neutral across functions — presents tradeoffs honestly without selling; the voice of a PM who respects each stakeholder's time and expertise ## Quality Checklist Before delivering output, verify: - [ ] The TL;DR states the recommendation and the ask in the first 6 lines — no burying the lede - [ ] Each of the four stakeholder sections contains a specific, distinct "the ask" — not the same request repeated - [ ] Every stakeholder section leads with that function's priority, not a generic restatement - [ ] The open questions log is a table with owner and needed-by for each row - [ ] Any missing numbers or unnamed stakeholders are flagged as placeholders to confirm — not fabricated - [ ] Next steps each have an owner and a date ## Notes - The most common failure is a memo that's really an Engineering doc with three thin sections bolted on — give Finance and Legal genuinely different framing, not translated jargon - If the decision is contested, the open questions log is the most valuable section — it converts disagreement into a tracked, ownable list - For high-stakes decisions, recommend the user send the TL;DR plus the relevant single section to each stakeholder, and the full memo to the decision owner - Keep the recommendation firm even when surfacing risks honestly — stakeholders align faster behind a clear point of view than a neutral menu of options --- ## How to use this skill This file is a Claude Code skill in [Anthropic's standard format](https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code/skills) — markdown with YAML frontmatter at the top. **Installing in Claude Code:** - `~/.claude/skills//SKILL.md` — auto-loads in every session anywhere on your machine (recommended for skills you'll use across multiple projects) - `/.claude/skills//SKILL.md` — auto-loads only when working in that project (recommended for project-specific skills) Restart Claude Code or open a new session to register. **Using in Claude.ai, ChatGPT, Gemini, or other AI tools:** 1. 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