Purpose
Turn an unstructured list of integration activities into a defensible, wave-sequenced roadmap — scored by value-at-stake and execution complexity, loaded against available resources, and flagged for the dependencies that most often derail integrations. Solves the IMO's core problem: too many activities, finite bandwidth, and no objective basis for what goes first.
When to Use
Invoke this skill when the user asks to:
- Prioritize or sequence a list of integration workstreams or activities
- Build an IMO roadmap or integration wave plan
- Decide what to do in Day 1, the first 100 days, and later phases
- Resolve competing priorities between functional integration teams
- Identify integration dependencies and critical-path bottlenecks
- Assess whether the integration plan is over-loading a specific function or quarter
Inputs Required
Before starting, collect:
- Activity list: The integration activities to prioritize (any format — raw list, function-grouped, or export)
- Deal thesis / value drivers: Where the deal value comes from (cost synergies, revenue synergies, capability acquisition, market access)
- Synergy targets: Dollar value and timing of expected synergies, if quantified
- Resource capacity: Available integration team size, key functional leads, and any capacity constraints
- Hard deadlines / constraints: TSA expiration dates, regulatory milestones, Day 1 requirements, board commitments
- Risk tolerance: Speed-first (accept disruption) vs. stability-first (protect the base business)
- Known blockers: Systems, contracts, approvals, or people dependencies already surfaced
If synergy values are unquantified, score value-at-stake qualitatively (High/Medium/Low) and note the assumption. If resource capacity is unknown, assume 3 concurrent major workstreams per wave and flag it.
Instructions
Step 1: Normalize and Cluster Activities
Group the raw activities into standard integration workstreams so scoring is comparable:
- Standard workstreams: Legal/Entity, Finance & Controlling, HR/Org & Talent, IT/Systems & Data, Operations/Supply Chain, Commercial/GTM & Customers, Facilities/Real Estate, Governance/PMO
- Split any bundled activity into discrete, ownable units of work (each with one clear outcome)
- Flag activities that are actually Day 1 legal/regulatory must-dos — these bypass scoring and are sequenced first by obligation
Step 2: Score Value-at-Stake (1–5)
Rate each activity on the value it protects or creates:
- 5 — Deal-critical: Directly enables the core value thesis or synergy target; without it, the deal underperforms
- 4 — High: Meaningful synergy capture or major risk mitigation
- 3 — Moderate: Contributes to synergy or stability but not thesis-defining
- 2 — Low: Nice-to-have efficiency or tidiness
- 1 — Minimal: Housekeeping with negligible value impact
Anchor each score to the stated value drivers and synergy timing. Where a dollar figure exists, note it (e.g., "protects ~$4M annual procurement synergy").
Step 3: Score Complexity (1–5)
Rate execution difficulty across four factors, then take the highest-weight signal:
- Cross-functional dependency: How many teams/systems must coordinate
- Change/people impact: Org changes, culture friction, retention risk
- Technical/data difficulty: System migrations, data cleansing, integration debt
- External dependency: Regulators, customers, vendors, TSA providers Score 1 (contained, single-team, low risk) to 5 (multi-team, high people impact, external gating). Note the dominant complexity driver.
Step 4: Plot the Priority Matrix
Place every activity on a value × complexity grid and assign a priority band:
- Quick Wins (High value, Low complexity): Do first — build momentum and early proof
- Strategic Bets (High value, High complexity): Sequence carefully, staff heavily, start dependency work early
- Fill-Ins (Low value, Low complexity): Batch or delegate; do only with spare capacity
- Money Pits (Low value, High complexity): Defer, descope, or kill — challenge whether they belong at all Day 1 legal must-dos sit above the matrix as non-negotiable.
Step 5: Map Interdependencies
For each Strategic Bet and high-value activity, identify:
- Predecessors: What must complete first (flag with →)
- Successors: What is blocked until this finishes
- Critical path: The longest chain of dependent activities that gates synergy realization Explicitly flag any high-value activity buried behind a low-priority predecessor — these are hidden bottlenecks.
Step 6: Sequence into Waves
Assign activities to waves against resource capacity:
- Day 1: Legal/regulatory must-dos and business-continuity essentials only
- Wave 1 (0–30 days): Quick Wins + first predecessors on the critical path
- Wave 2 (30–100 days): Highest-value Strategic Bets whose predecessors clear in Wave 1
- Wave 3 (100+ days): Remaining Strategic Bets, sequenced Fill-Ins, and deferred items Cap concurrent major workstreams per wave to the available capacity. If a wave is overloaded, push the lowest value-at-stake items and note the trade-off.
Step 7: Resource Loading Check
For each wave, state:
- Which functions are most heavily loaded and where a single lead is a bottleneck
- Where capacity is exceeded and which activity slips as a result
- One resourcing recommendation per over-loaded wave (add capacity, reprioritize, or extend timeline)
Output Format
- Structure: Scoring table → priority matrix → interdependency map → wave roadmap → resource loading → first-90-day focus list
- Length: 1,000–1,400 words
- Format: Structured document with a scored table, a text-rendered 2×2 matrix, and wave-organized lists
- Sections: (1) Scored Activity Table — activity, workstream, value-at-stake, complexity, priority band; (2) Priority Matrix; (3) Interdependency & Critical-Path Flags; (4) Wave Roadmap (Day 1 / Wave 1 / Wave 2 / Wave 3); (5) Resource Loading by Wave; (6) First 90-Day Focus List (top 5–7 activities); (7) Key Risks & Recommendations
- Tone: IMO director — decisive, trade-off-explicit, oriented to sequencing calls rather than restating the activity list
Quality Checklist
Before delivering output, verify:
- [ ] Every input activity appears in the scored table with both a value-at-stake and complexity rating
- [ ] Value scores are anchored to the stated deal thesis or synergy targets — not scored in a vacuum
- [ ] At least one hidden bottleneck (high-value activity behind a low-priority predecessor) is checked for and flagged
- [ ] Each wave respects the resource capacity cap, with any overload and its trade-off named explicitly
- [ ] Day 1 legal/regulatory must-dos are sequenced first regardless of their matrix position
- [ ] The First 90-Day Focus List contains 5–7 specific activities, not workstream categories
Notes
- Money Pits are the highest-leverage conversation in most integrations — surfacing "high complexity, low value" work that teams pursue out of habit saves more capacity than any resequencing
- Critical-path dependency work should almost always start earlier than its value score alone would suggest — a Strategic Bet with a 60-day predecessor cannot wait for Wave 2 to begin the predecessor
- When synergy timing is aggressive, bias the matrix toward Quick Wins in Wave 1 to fund credibility with the board before tackling Strategic Bets
- If the activity list is very long (40+ items), prioritize the scoring table for the top-two priority bands and summarize Fill-Ins/Money Pits in aggregate
How to use this skill
This file is a Claude Code skill in Anthropic's standard format — markdown with YAML frontmatter at the top.
Installing in Claude Code:
~/.claude/skills/<folder-name>/SKILL.md— auto-loads in every session anywhere on your machine (recommended for skills you'll use across multiple projects)<your-project>/.claude/skills/<folder-name>/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:
- Drag this file into a new chat, or copy and paste its contents
- Send your task or request as your next message — the AI will apply the skill where it fits
For Claude Code skill details: https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code/skills