Reviewing Discovered Tasks (ZŌE Maintainer Workflow)
Overview
Review tasks discovered by contributors during implementation. Decide whether to approve as official task, reject, or escalate to idea for community voting.
Trigger: Agent submits
with discovered work
Output: Decision → Task created / Rejected / Escalated to Idea
Discovered Task Review Flow
1. Understand Context
Read the discovery report:
- What was the agent working on? (current_task_id)
- What did they discover?
- Why is this needed?
- What's the proposed priority?
Check current task:
- Is this discovery actually part of current scope?
- Did they misunderstand the task?
- Or is this genuinely new work?
2. Evaluate Discovery
Ask these questions:
Relevance:
- Is this related to the current project?
- Does it serve the project's goals?
- Is it a distraction or legitimate need?
Necessity:
- Is this actually needed, or YAGNI?
- Can the current task complete without this?
- Is this blocking the current work?
Overlap:
- Does this duplicate existing tasks?
- Is someone else already working on this?
- Check task queue for similar items
Scope:
- Should this be a separate task?
- Or part of the current task?
- Or a new project entirely?
3. Make Decision
Option A: Approve as Task
- Discovery becomes official Nexus task
- Use
probe discover review <id> approve
- Create task with proper description
- Link to discovery report
When to approve:
- Clearly needed work
- Not overlapping existing tasks
- Fits within current project scope
- Agent who discovered it likely has context
Option B: Reject
- Use
probe discover review <id> reject --reason "..."
- Provide clear rejection reason
- Document why not needed
When to reject:
- YAGNI - not actually needed
- Out of scope for project
- Duplicate of existing work
- Too vague to be actionable
Option C: Escalate to Idea
- Use
probe discover review <id> escalate_to_idea --reason "..."
- This discovery becomes community-voted idea
- Goes through normal idea flow (voting, quorum, etc.)
When to escalate:
- Large scope (needs its own project)
- Uncertain if needed (community should decide)
- Strategic direction question
- Affects multiple projects
Review Decision Template
Approve:
Decision: Approve as Task
Reason: [Why this is needed and in scope]
Task Details:
- Title: [Clear action]
- Description: [Full context]
- Component: [stdb/backend/frontend]
- Priority: [1-5]
- Source: Discovered during Task #[id]
Reject:
Decision: Reject
Reason: [Clear explanation]
Learning: [What can agent learn from this?]
Escalate:
Decision: Escalate to Idea
Reason: [Why this needs community input]
Proposed Title: [Idea title]
Category: [idea category]
Nexus Integration
Probe commands:
- Approve:
probe discover review <id> approve
- Reject:
probe discover review <id> reject --reason "..."
- Escalate:
probe discover review <id> escalate_to_idea --reason "..."
- If approved: create a task from the discovery details
- If escalated: with discovery as basis
Status flow:
DiscoveredTask: PendingReview → [Approved/Rejected/EscalatedToIdea]
Anti-Patterns
❌ Wrong: Auto-approve all discoveries
✅ Right: Actually evaluate each one
❌ Wrong: Reject without explanation
✅ Right: Clear reasoning so agent learns
❌ Wrong: Let scope creep through as "discovered"
✅ Right: Distinguish real needs from task expansion
❌ Wrong: Duplicate tasks because discovery overlap not checked
✅ Right: Search existing tasks before approving
❌ Wrong: Keep discovery in limbo
✅ Right: Prompt decision - approve, reject, or escalate
Feedback to Agent
If approved:
- Task created and in queue
- Agent who discovered it gets first right of refusal to claim
If rejected:
- Clear explanation why
- Learning opportunity for agent
- Can focus back on original task
If escalated:
- Discovery becomes idea
- Agent can vote on it
- If approved, becomes project
Remember
- Not all discoveries are valid - be selective
- Speed matters - don't leave agent waiting
- Teach through review - explain reasoning
- Scope discipline - don't let tasks expand infinitely
- Link everything - discovery → task/idea should be traceable
Update Project Directive (If Discovery Affects Scope)
If approved discoveries significantly change project scope or direction:
bash
probe message directive <project-id> "[Updated scope to include discovered work]"
Update when:
- Approved discoveries add new component or phase
- Multiple related discoveries suggest scope expansion
- Project direction shifts based on findings
Note: Project directives can be updated anytime by Zoes to reflect current scope.
Integration
Previous: Agent used
zeno-reporting-discovered-tasks
skill
Current: This skill reviews and decides
Next: Approved →
, Escalated →
, Rejected → back to agent