PM Release Conductor (Dispatch Skill)

pm-release-conductor

subagents/pm-release-conductor.md

Status summary (v2.16.0): PRODUCTION on Claude Code (native sub-agent path). DRY-RUN VALIDATED on Codex CLI 2026-05-17 per

gate-test-results_2026-05-17_codex.md

; LIVE release on Codex CLI is NOT independently exercised, so use with caution and run

--dry-run

first as a rehearsal. EXPERIMENTAL on Cursor / Windsurf / Copilot CLI / Gemini CLI (UNTESTED at v2.16.0 ship).

See Sub-Agent Compatibility Matrix for the canonical safe-usage matrix + what-was-validated detail + v2.17 expansion plan. For live release on a non-Claude client, ideally re-run the harness at

maintainer-gate-testing-codex.md

on that specific client first.

When to Use

• You are running a pm-skills release on a non-Claude client (Codex CLI, Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot, Gemini CLI)
• You want the same 6-gate discipline that pm-release-conductor enforces on Claude Code, with auditor + curator behaviors inlined at the relevant gates
• You explicitly want skill-invocation semantics over sub-agent semantics on Claude Code (rare; the native sub-agent is preferred on Claude Code)

When NOT to Use

• You only need to review a PM artifact -> use

  utility-pm-critic

• You only need a governance audit (not a release) -> use

  utility-pm-skill-auditor

• You only need a CHANGELOG draft (not a release) -> use

  utility-pm-changelog-curator

• You want to perform release operations WITHOUT explicit gate confirmation -> the conductor refuses bypass; manual release outside the conductor is the right path

Instructions

If you are running in Claude Code with the pm-skills plugin installed

@agent-pm-release-conductor

$ARGUMENTS

pm-skill-auditor

pm-changelog-curator

If you are running in any other AI client

1. Read the canonical sub-agent definition at

   subagents/pm-release-conductor.md

2. Read the canonical runbook at

   docs/contributing/release-runbook.md

   (the conductor's referential source for gate definitions)
3. Execute the system prompt body as your operating instructions
4. Walk the 6 gates inline. At gates that require chain composition:
   • G0 (Pre-tag readiness): instead of chaining to pm-skill-auditor, read

     subagents/pm-skill-auditor.md

     and execute the auditor's 4-step audit flow inline. Capture the layered output (full findings + Status Summary + Status YAML). Treat the Status YAML as your G0 sub-check 5 input.
   • G2 (Version bump + CHANGELOG prep): instead of chaining to pm-changelog-curator, read

     subagents/pm-changelog-curator.md

     and execute the curator's 8-step drafting flow inline. Capture the layered output. Treat the Status YAML as your G2 sub-check 3 input.
   • G2.5 (Re-verify): re-execute the inlined auditor at sub-check 5 against the new HEAD.
5. Pause at each gate boundary for explicit maintainer confirmation
6. Refuse bypass attempts; respect refusal protocols
7. Tag only the G2.5-captured SHA at G3 per D22
8. Return gate-by-gate output throughout the flow

Critical Caveats for Non-Claude Inline Execution

1. Context budget. The combined token budget (conductor + inlined auditor + inlined curator + their child reads) may approach context limits on long releases. Plan accordingly.
2. Tool authorization. The conductor's tool list includes Bash, Read, Edit, Grep, Glob, Agent. The auditor needs Bash + Read + Grep + Glob. The curator needs Bash + Read + Grep. Inline execution on non-Claude clients should have access to ALL of these (i.e., not be running in a Read-only mode).
3. Refusal cascade. If the inlined auditor refuses (e.g., validators not invocable), the conductor's G0 sub-check 5 fails and the gate pauses. Same for the curator at G2.

Reference Files

• Canonical sub-agent definition:

  subagents/pm-release-conductor.md

• Canonical runbook:

  docs/contributing/release-runbook.md

• Behavioral spec:

  docs/internal/release-plans/v2.16.0/spec_pm-release-conductor.md

• Chain child (inlined at G0 + G2.5):

  subagents/pm-skill-auditor.md

• Chain child (inlined at G2):

  subagents/pm-changelog-curator.md

• Pre-tag validator bundle:

  scripts/pre-tag-validate.{sh,ps1}

• Runtime components catalog:

  docs/reference/runtime-components.md

• Output template:

  references/TEMPLATE.md

• Worked example:

  references/EXAMPLE.md