discovery-process
Run a full discovery cycle from problem hypothesis to validated solution. Use when a team needs a structured path through framing, interviews, synthesis, and experiments.
npx skills add deanpeters/Product-Manager-Skills --skill discovery-process --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
What it does
Guides product managers through a full discovery cycle from initial problem hypothesis to a validated solution, orchestrating problem framing, customer interviews, synthesis, and experimentation into a structured process. It supports continuous discovery and is designed to be used when a team needs a disciplined path through framing, interviews, synthesis, and experiments.
How it works
The skill prescribes a 6-phase workflow:
- Frame the Problem: run problem-framing activities, create a formal problem statement, optionally define proto-personas or JTBD.
- Research Planning: prepare discovery interviews, recruit 5-10 participants, schedule and record interviews.
- Conduct Research: perform 5-10 interviews over 1-2 weeks, take structured notes, review support tickets and analytics.
- Synthesize Insights: perform affinity mapping, optionally create a customer journey map, prioritize pain points by frequency, intensity, and strategic fit, update the problem statement.
- Generate & Validate Solutions: build an Opportunity Solution Tree (or Lean UX Canvas), design and run 1-2 week experiments per solution (concierge, prototype, landing page, or A/B tests), gather validation data.
- Decide & Document: make a go/pivot/kill decision, define epic hypotheses and PRD if GO, communicate findings in a 30-minute readout.
Outputs include problem statements, interview guides, synthesis plans, affinity maps, prioritized pain points, validated decisions, epic hypotheses, PRD, and stakeholder alignment.
When to use it
Use this workflow when exploring new product areas, investigating retention or churn problems, validating strategic initiatives before roadmap commitment, or establishing continuous discovery practices.
What it can touch
The workflow references and integrates multiple components and interactive skills, such as problem-framing-canvas, problem-statement, discovery-interview-prep, customer-journey-mapping-workshop, problem framing and synthesis artifacts, opportunity-solution-tree, lean-ux-canvas, epic-hypothesis, and prd-development. It coordinates with these tools via specified file paths and interaction protocols.
Caveats
The description implies a structured, multi-week process requiring participant recruitment, interviews, and cross-functional collaboration; success depends on access to customers and stakeholder buy-in. No licensing or risk claims beyond standard project planning considerations are stated.
## Purpose Guide product managers through a complete discovery cycle—from initial problem hypothesis to validated solution—by orchestrating problem framing, customer interviews, synthesis, and experimentation skills into a structured process. Use this to systematically explore problem spaces, validate assumptions, and build confidence before committing to full development—avoiding "build it and they will come" syndrome and ensuring you're solving real customer problems. This is not a one-time research project—it's a continuous discovery practice that runs in parallel with delivery, typically 1-2 discovery cycles per quarter. ## Input **Works best with:** Your starting problem hypothesis — even a rough one. **Also useful:** Prior research, customer access, timeline, and what decision the discovery must inform. Anything supplied with the invocation itself — text after the skill name, a pasted context dump, or an appended `ARGUMENTS:` line — counts as answers already given. Use it and skip whatever it covers; don't re-ask. **Arriving empty-handed? That works too.** The workflow starts at problem framing and helps you construct the hypothesis first. **Example invocation:** `Run discove
- Purpose
- Input
- Key Concepts
- What is the Discovery Process?
- Why This Works
- Anti-Patterns (What This Is NOT)
- When to Use This
- When NOT to Use This
- Facilitation Source of Truth
- Application
- Phase 1: Frame the Problem (Day 1-2)
- Activities
- Outputs from Phase 1
- Decision Point 1: Do we have enough context to start research?
What does the discovery-process skill do?
Run a full discovery cycle from problem hypothesis to validated solution. Use when a team needs a structured path through framing, interviews, synthesis, and experiments.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add deanpeters/Product-Manager-Skills --skill discovery-process --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From deanpeters/Product-Manager-Skills, a repository with 6,255 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.