Research · phase

Phase 3: Design

Generate and evaluate multiple solution concepts for the defined problem.

/research-design <topic>

Purpose

The Design phase diverges again — this time on solutions. It generates multiple concepts, evaluates feasibility and impact, and recommends the most promising approaches for validation.

Usage

Example:

/research-design user onboarding friction

Prerequisites

Requires .singularskills/research/<topic>/01-discover.md and 02-define.md from the Discover and Define phases. Its gate script (scripts/gate.sh) stops the skill if either is missing: you cannot design solutions without a defined problem. Use --skip-checks to bypass; the skip is logged as a skipped event in .singularskills/log.jsonl.

What It Does

  1. Reads the problem statement and HMW questions from Define
  2. Searches for existing solutions, case studies, and best practices
  3. Generates 3-5 distinct solution concepts
  4. Evaluates each on feasibility, impact, effort, and risk
  5. Recommends top concepts for validation
  6. Writes solution concepts to .singularskills/research/<topic>/03-design.md

Output

Creates .singularskills/research/<topic>/03-design.md containing:

  • Problem recap from Define
  • Solution concepts with descriptions
  • Evaluation matrix (feasibility, impact, effort, risk)
  • Prioritized recommendations
  • Validation plan for the Deliver phase

Next Phase

NextDeliver
After Design, proceed to Deliver to validate and finalize recommendations.

Phase 2: Define

Synthesize research findings into a clear problem statement and research plan.

Phase 4: Deliver

Validate the top solution and produce actionable recommendations with evidence.