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Context Loading Order

Different kinds of work call for different reading sequences. Load only what the task actually needs — see context-efficiency.md — but load the right things, in the right order, before making changes.

(a) Company policy / governance work

  1. Root AGENTS.md
  2. docs/ai/repository-context.md
  3. docs/governance/authority-and-inheritance.md
  4. The relevant company document(s) being changed or referenced (docs/company/, docs/governance/)
  5. Relevant ADRs (docs/decisions/)
  6. Relevant standards (docs/governance/, docs/standards/)

(b) Venture work (general)

  1. Root AGENTS.md
  2. The applicable venture's AGENTS.md (e.g. ventures/shelfery/AGENTS.md)
  3. Applicable company policies (docs/governance/, docs/company/)
  4. Applicable venture AI context (venture-level docs/ai/ equivalent, if present)
  5. Applicable venture standards
  6. Applicable venture ADRs
  7. Applicable product specifications, if relevant to the task

(c) Shelfery work

In addition to the general venture sequence in (b), Shelfery work requires loading:

  • Shelfery product context (ventures/shelfery/docs/product/ — path illustrative; follow the venture's own index).
  • Shelfery domain glossary (ventures/shelfery/docs/...glossary...).
  • Shelfery trust and food-claims guidance (ventures/shelfery/docs/...trust... / ...food-claims...) — required before making or reviewing any food-safety or shelf-life related claim.
  • Shelfery brand direction (ventures/shelfery/docs/...brand...).
  • The applicable product specification for the feature/area in scope.
  • Applicable architecture decisions for Shelfery (ventures/shelfery/docs/decisions/).

Food-safety and nutrition claims are high risk (see task-classification-and-routing.md) — do not skip the trust/food-claims guidance step.

(d) Digital Products work

In addition to the general venture sequence in (b), Digital Products work requires loading:

  • Digital Products product philosophy (ventures/digital-products/docs/...philosophy...).
  • Digital Products workbook standards (ventures/digital-products/docs/...workbook-standards...).
  • The component catalog (ventures/digital-products/docs/...component-catalog...) — check before creating a new component (see prohibited-behaviors.md on duplicating components).
  • The applicable product specification.
  • The applicable data dictionary.
  • The applicable calculation specification.
  • The applicable test plan.
  • Applicable financial guardrails (ventures/digital-products/docs/...financial-guardrails...).

Calculation and financial-model work is high risk — do not implement or change a calculation without the calculation specification and test plan in view.

(e) Commercialization work

Before drafting or reviewing any commercialization, marketing, or public-facing claim:

  • Verified implemented product capabilities (what actually exists and works, not what is planned).
  • Target customer definition.
  • Approved positioning.
  • The commercial claims standard.
  • The marketplace standard (if publishing to a marketplace/app store/listing).
  • Known limitations.
  • Support commitments.

An agent must not claim a feature that exists only in a roadmap or a draft specification. Claims are limited to what is verified as actually implemented and working. See evidence-and-citation-requirements.md and prohibited-behaviors.md.

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