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Feature Request: Release Candidate Readiness Gap Analysis

Type: Feature Request (FR)
Submitted: 2026-01-16
Submitted By: AI Agent (ai-dev-kit)
Priority: HIGH
Status: ACCEPTED
GitHub Issue: [TBD]
Version: v0.9.1.0+0 (Story created via UKW v0.6.6.8+21)

Implementing Task: E5:S01:T32

Summary​

Investigate the gap between current project state (RC=0, no M/S priority tasks) and a true Release Candidate (RC=1) state to identify missing critical work, mis-prioritized tasks, and create a roadmap to release readiness.

Description​

What Functionality is Desired?​

Investigation Scope:

  1. Current State Analysis: Document current project state, active epics, task priorities, and completion status
  2. RC State Definition: Define what constitutes a true RC=1 state (criteria, requirements, readiness checklist)
  3. Gap Analysis: Identify the difference between current state and RC=1 requirements
  4. Task Prioritization Review: Analyze all active tasks to identify which should be M/S priority but aren't
  5. Missing Work Identification: Discover critical work that should exist but doesn't have tasks yet
  6. Roadmap Creation: Develop a clear path from current state to RC=1

Key Research Questions:

  • What are the criteria for RC=1 (Release Candidate) state?
  • Why are there no M (Must Have) or S (Should Have) priority tasks?
  • What critical work is missing or mis-prioritized?
  • What tasks should be elevated to M/S priority?
  • What new tasks need to be created for RC readiness?
  • What's the minimum viable RC=1 release scope?

What Problem Does This Solve?​

Current Problem:

  • False Readiness Signal: No M/S tasks suggests project is ready for RC, but we're at RC=0 (development)
  • Unclear Path to Release: No clear understanding of what's needed to reach RC=1
  • Potential Mis-Prioritization: Critical work may be incorrectly classified as C (Could Have) or W (Won't Have)
  • Missing Work: Important tasks may not exist yet
  • Strategic Planning Gap: No roadmap from development (RC=0) to release candidate (RC=1)

Solution:

  • Clear State Assessment: Understand exactly where we are vs where we need to be
  • Proper Prioritization: Identify and elevate critical work to M/S priority
  • Gap Identification: Discover missing work required for RC readiness
  • Strategic Roadmap: Create actionable plan to reach RC=1 state
  • Decision Support: Provide data-driven insights for release planning

What is the Use Case?​

Use Case A: Strategic Planning Project leadership needs to understand what's required to move from development (RC=0) to release candidate (RC=1) state, with clear priorities and roadmap.

Use Case B: Task Prioritization Identify tasks that are currently C (Could Have) or W (Won't Have) but should actually be M (Must Have) or S (Should Have) for RC readiness.

Use Case C: Missing Work Discovery Discover critical work that doesn't have tasks yet but is required for RC=1 state.

Use Case D: Release Readiness Assessment Evaluate current project state against RC=1 criteria to determine readiness and identify blockers.

Use Case E: Roadmap Creation Create a clear, prioritized roadmap showing the path from current state to RC=1, with milestones and dependencies.

Who Would Benefit from This Feature?​

Primary Beneficiaries:

  • Project leadership making release decisions
  • Product managers planning release timelines
  • Development teams understanding priorities
  • Stakeholders evaluating project readiness
  • Framework users waiting for stable releases

Requirements​

Functional Requirements​

  • FR-032.1: Document current project state (epics, stories, tasks, priorities, completion status)
  • FR-032.2: Define RC=1 criteria and requirements (what constitutes release candidate state)
  • FR-032.3: Perform gap analysis (current state vs RC=1 requirements)
  • FR-032.4: Review all active tasks for proper prioritization (identify mis-prioritized M/S work)
  • FR-032.5: Identify missing critical work (tasks that should exist but don't)
  • FR-032.6: Create RC readiness checklist (comprehensive criteria for RC=1)
  • FR-032.7: Develop roadmap to RC=1 (prioritized path with milestones and dependencies)
  • FR-032.8: Create gap analysis document with recommendations

Non-Functional Requirements​

  • Completeness: Analysis must cover all active epics and stories
  • Accuracy: Prioritization recommendations must be evidence-based
  • Actionability: Roadmap must be specific and implementable
  • Clarity: Gap analysis must be clear and understandable
  • Traceability: Recommendations must link to specific tasks/epics/stories

Scope Analysis​

Problem Domain: Strategic Planning, Release Management, Project Readiness
Affected Areas:

  • All active Epics (Epic 5, 6, 7, 8, 24, etc.)
  • Kanban board prioritization (MoSCOW classification)
  • Release planning and roadmap
  • Task prioritization logic
  • Documentation
  • Strategic planning processes

Estimated Complexity:

  • Simple (1-3 days)
  • Medium (1 week)
  • Complex (2+ weeks)
  • Very Complex (1+ month)

Use Cases​

Primary Use Case: Investigate and document the gap between current project state (RC=0, no M/S tasks) and true Release Candidate (RC=1) state, identifying mis-prioritized work, missing tasks, and creating a roadmap to release readiness.

Additional Use Cases:

  • Use Case 1: Strategic planning for release timeline
  • Use Case 2: Task prioritization review and correction
  • Use Case 3: Missing work discovery and task creation
  • Use Case 4: Release readiness assessment
  • Use Case 5: Stakeholder communication about project status

Acceptance Criteria​

  • Criterion 1: Current state comprehensively documented (all epics, stories, tasks, priorities)
  • Criterion 2: RC=1 criteria clearly defined with measurable requirements
  • Criterion 3: Gap analysis completed showing specific differences between current and RC=1 state
  • Criterion 4: All active tasks reviewed and re-prioritization recommendations provided
  • Criterion 5: Missing critical work identified with task creation recommendations
  • Criterion 6: RC readiness checklist created with all criteria
  • Criterion 7: Roadmap to RC=1 created with milestones, dependencies, and timeline estimates
  • Criterion 8: Gap analysis document completed with actionable recommendations

Dependencies​

Blocks:

  • Strategic release planning decisions
  • Task prioritization corrections
  • Missing task creation
  • RC readiness assessment

Blocked By:

  • None (investigation phase)

Related Work:

  • Versioning Policy: docs/architecture/standards-and-adrs/dev-kit-versioning-policy.md - RC definition
  • Kanban Board: docs/project-management/kanban/kboard.md - Current task priorities
  • All Active Epics: Epic 5, 6, 7, 8, 24, etc. - Current work status

Key Research Areas​

1. RC=1 State Definition​

Research Questions:

  • What are the criteria for moving from RC=0 to RC=1?
  • What constitutes "release candidate" readiness?
  • What quality gates must be passed?
  • What documentation must be complete?
  • What testing/validation is required?
  • What framework completeness is needed?

Key Considerations:

  • Framework stability and maturity
  • Documentation completeness
  • Test coverage and validation
  • User-facing feature completeness
  • Breaking change status
  • Backward compatibility requirements

2. Current State Analysis​

Research Questions:

  • What epics are active and what's their status?
  • What stories are in progress and what's their completion status?
  • What tasks exist and how are they prioritized?
  • What work is complete vs incomplete?
  • What's the overall project maturity level?

Analysis Areas:

  • Epic completion status (COMPLETE vs IN PROGRESS vs TODO)
  • Story completion status
  • Task distribution by priority (M/S/C/O/W)
  • Task distribution by status (COMPLETE vs IN PROGRESS vs TODO)
  • Framework completeness assessment

3. Task Prioritization Review​

Research Questions:

  • Why are there no M (Must Have) tasks?
  • Why are there no S (Should Have) tasks?
  • What tasks should be M/S but are currently C/W?
  • What's the rationale for current prioritization?
  • What dependencies exist that affect prioritization?

Review Process:

  • Analyze each active task for RC readiness impact
  • Identify tasks critical for RC=1 that are mis-prioritized
  • Evaluate task dependencies and blockers
  • Assess task completion impact on RC readiness

4. Missing Work Identification​

Research Questions:

  • What critical work is missing for RC=1?
  • What tasks should exist but don't?
  • What epics/stories need to be created?
  • What framework gaps exist?
  • What documentation gaps exist?

Identification Areas:

  • Framework feature completeness
  • Documentation gaps
  • Testing/validation gaps
  • Quality assurance gaps
  • User experience gaps
  • Integration gaps

5. Gap Analysis​

Research Questions:

  • What's the difference between current state and RC=1?
  • What work is missing?
  • What work is mis-prioritized?
  • What work is incomplete?
  • What blockers exist?

Gap Categories:

  • Missing Work: Tasks/epics/stories that should exist
  • Mis-Prioritized Work: Tasks that should be M/S but are C/W
  • Incomplete Work: Tasks that are started but not finished
  • Blocking Work: Tasks that block RC readiness
  • Quality Gaps: Missing quality gates or validation

6. Roadmap Creation​

Research Questions:

  • What's the path from current state to RC=1?
  • What are the milestones?
  • What are the dependencies?
  • What's the estimated timeline?
  • What are the risks and blockers?

Roadmap Components:

  • Phases: Logical groupings of work
  • Milestones: Key checkpoints toward RC=1
  • Dependencies: Task/epic dependencies
  • Timeline: Estimated completion dates
  • Risks: Potential blockers and mitigation strategies

Intake Decision​

Intake Status: ACCEPTED
Intake Date: 2026-01-16
Intake By: AI Agent (ai-dev-kit)

Decision Flow Results:

  • Story Match Found: [Epic X, Story Y] → Task [T]
  • New Story Created: [Epic 9, Story 1] → Task 1
  • New Epic Created: [Epic 9, Story 1, Task 1]

Assigned To:

  • Epic: Epic 9: Release Candidate Readiness
  • Story: Story 1: RC Readiness Gap Analysis
  • Task: Task 1: Current State Inventory
  • Version: v0.9.1.0+0 (Story created, tasks pending)

Kanban Links:

Notes​

Investigation Approach:

  1. Current State Inventory: Catalog all epics, stories, tasks, priorities, and statuses
  2. RC Criteria Definition: Research and define what RC=1 means for this project
  3. Gap Identification: Compare current state to RC=1 requirements
  4. Prioritization Review: Analyze task priorities and identify mis-classifications
  5. Missing Work Discovery: Identify gaps in task coverage
  6. Roadmap Development: Create actionable path to RC=1

Success Metrics:

  • Comprehensive understanding of current state
  • Clear definition of RC=1 criteria
  • Specific gap identification with actionable items
  • Prioritization corrections identified
  • Missing work documented
  • Clear roadmap to RC=1

Key Principles:

  • Evidence-Based: All recommendations must be supported by analysis
  • Actionable: Gap analysis must lead to specific tasks/actions
  • Comprehensive: Must cover all active work, not just selected areas
  • Realistic: Roadmap must be achievable, not aspirational
  • Prioritized: Recommendations must be prioritized (M/S/C/W)

Expected Outcomes:

  • Clear understanding of why there are no M/S tasks
  • Identification of tasks that should be M/S
  • Discovery of missing critical work
  • Roadmap showing path to RC=1
  • Prioritization corrections to apply
  • Strategic planning foundation

References​

  • Versioning Policy: docs/architecture/standards-and-adrs/dev-kit-versioning-policy.md - RC definition and schema
  • Kanban Board: docs/project-management/kanban/kboard.md - Current task priorities and status
  • Epic 5: docs/project-management/kanban/epics/Epic-5/Epic-5.md - Documentation Management
  • Epic 6: docs/project-management/kanban/epics/Epic-6/Epic-6.md - Framework Management
  • Epic 7: docs/project-management/kanban/epics/Epic-7/Epic-7.md - Examples & Adoption
  • Epic 8: docs/project-management/kanban/epics/Epic-8/Epic-8.md - Quality & Validation
  • Epic 24: docs/project-management/kanban/epics/Epic-24/Epic-24.md - Book Related Work

Template Usage:

  • This FR follows the standard Feature Request template
  • Investigation phase focuses on gap analysis and roadmap creation
  • Implementation will be tracked in separate tasks/epics based on findings

This Feature Request is part of the Kanban Framework. See packages/frameworks/kanban/ for complete framework documentation.