Chief Feature Workflow

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name: chief-feature description: > Create and implement new features in Chief-managed projects using the Chief CLI. Use when asked to create a new PRD, implement a feature with Chief, set up a worktree and branch for a new feature, or open a PR for a Chief-implemented feature. Triggers on phrases like "create a new PRD", "implement this feature with Chief", "run Chief for a feature", "new feature request", or any workflow involving Chief's interactive PRD creation and AI-driven implementation loop.

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Chief Feature Workflow

Chief is an AI-driven development loop: reads a prd.json, implements user stories one by one via Claude Code, commits each, and tracks progress.

Full Workflow

1. Clone / verify repo

Confirm the project is cloned locally.

2. Create a new PRD

Run interactively in the project root:

cd 
chief new 

Chief launches Claude Code in PRD-writer mode. It will ask clarifying questions with lettered options. Provide:

The full feature description / spec

Answers to clarifying questions (e.g. "1A, 2C, 3D")

When Chief asks "Do you want to create prd.md?" — approve (option 1 or 2).

Chief converts prd.md → prd.json on /exit. Watch for:

✓ PRD converted successfully

Files land at: .chief/prds//prd.md and prd.json

3. Create a worktree + branch

git worktree add ../- -b feat/
mkdir -p ../-/.chief/prds/
cp .chief/prds//prd.{md,json} ../-/.chief/prds//

4. Commit the PRD

cd ../-
git add .chief/prds//prd.md
git commit -m "docs: add  PRD"

Only commit prd.md — prd.json is typically gitignored.

5. Delegate to a subagent (recommended for long runs)

Instead of running Chief manually and polling, spawn a subagent to handle the full implementation autonomously:

Spawn a subagent with this task:
Working directory: ~/-
Run chief  with pty:true
Press s to start the loop
Approve bash prompts with 1 + Enter (or 2 to always allow)
If stuck on a prompt, send hex 0d (Enter)
Poll until all stories show ✓ (100%)
Commit progress.md, push, open PR
Announce the PR URL when done

The subagent runs fully isolated and auto-announces on completion. You can spawn multiple subagents in parallel — one per PRD/worktree — for concurrent feature development.

Parallel runs: 2–3 concurrent subagents is the practical sweet spot. Each Chief run is API-heavy (runs Claude Code under the hood), so more than 3 parallel runs risks rate limits and high cost.

5b. Run Chief manually (alternative)

If you prefer to supervise directly:

chief 

Press s in the TUI to start. Chief works through stories in priority order, runs verification (make test, pnpm typecheck, etc.), commits each passing story, and updates progress.md.

Monitor via process(action=poll) on the PTY session. Watch for US-00X is complete.

6. Commit progress + push

git add .chief/prds//progress.md
git commit -m "docs: add  progress"
git push -u origin feat/

7. Open a PR

gh pr create \
  --title "feat: " \
  --body "Implements the  PRD. See .chief/prds//prd.md for spec." \
  --base main

8. Clean up the worktree

After the PR is merged:

cd 
git worktree remove ../-
git branch -d feat/

> Use git worktree remove --force if the directory has uncommitted changes.

Tips

TUI bash prompts: use 1 (Yes) or 2 (Yes, always allow)

If stuck on a permission prompt, send hex: ["0d"] via process(send-keys)

If a story fails, Chief retries or logs the failure in progress.md

prd.json is typically gitignored — only commit prd.md and progress.md

Chief resumes automatically from the last completed story if restarted

Reference

See references/chief-commands.md for CLI commands, TUI keyboard shortcuts, and official links.

About Chief

Chief is an open-source AI-driven development loop built by minicodemonkey.

Website: https://chiefloop.com/

GitHub: https://github.com/minicodemonkey/chief

TUI bash prompts: use 1 (Yes) or 2 (Yes, always allow)

If stuck on a permission prompt, send hex: ["0d"] via process(send-keys)

If a story fails, Chief retries or logs the failure in progress.md

prd.json is typically gitignored — only commit prd.md and progress.md

Chief resumes automatically from the last completed story if restarted