eol-readiness-advisor

# EOL Readiness Advisor

## Purpose

Decide whether a product or feature should actually be retired — and if so, how much machinery the
retirement deserves. This skill produces a go/no-go verdict with named evidence, an **intensity
level** you choose, and a short list of the obligations that will bite you if ignored.

Most EOL guidance assumes the decision is already made and jumps to the plan. This skill sits
earlier: it is the conversation where "we should probably kill this" becomes a decision someone
will defend in a room.

It is equally willing to tell you **not** to retire. A "hold" or "harvest" verdict is a real
outcome here, not a consolation prize.

## Input

**Works best with:** The product or feature under consideration and what triggered the conversation
(a declining number, a strategy shift, a support-cost complaint, an exec offhand remark).

**Also useful:** Revenue and customer counts, whether a replacement exists, contract or regulatory
commitments, and any political sensitivities you already know about.

Anything supplied with the invocation itself — text after the skill name, a pasted context dump, or
an appended `ARGUMENTS:` line — counts as answers already given. Use it and skip whatever it
covers; don't re-ask.

**Arriving empty-handed? That works too.** The skill opens by asking what's under review and why,
then walks you through blast radius, intensity, and transition path one question at a time. You do
not need the numbers in front of you — "I don't know" is a valid answer that becomes a labeled
assumption in the verdict.

**Example invocations:**
- `Should we retire our legacy reporting module? Usage is down 60% and support costs are climbing.`
- `EOL readiness check on our NFA-200 controller line — 120 installs, channel partners, UL certified.`

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## Key Concepts

### The Right-Sizing Dial

**Not all EOLs play out the same.** Some are a changelog entry and a support macro. Some consume
the whole company for three quarters. Most land in the middle. The single most common EOL failure
in either direction is a mismatch between the size of the sunset and the size of the response —
a flagship retirement run as a Jira ticket, or a feature deprecation that spawns a steering
committee.

So the intensity is a **dial you set**, not a verdict the framework hands you:

| Dimension | Level 1 — Light | Level 2 — Standard | Level 3 — Heavy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical scope | Feature, internal tool, unversioned API | Commercial product with active customers | Revenue-critical, hardware, regulated |
| Stakeholder stops | 3-4 | 7-8 | 10+ |
| Lifecycle gates used | 2-3 (NSC, EOS, EOL) | 4-5 (NSC, EOS, EOE, EOM, EOL) | All 8 (GA through EOSRV) |
| Functional areas | Product, Eng, Support, Docs | + Sales, Marketing, CS, Finance, Legal, IT, Data | + Supply Chain, Channel, Regulatory, Org |
| Enablement | Support FAQ only | + Sales talking points, objections, escalation | + Channel brief, account tiers, training |
| Customer message | Brief notice | Standard with phase table | Full with compliance section |
| Typical lead time | Weeks | 6-12 months | 12-24 months |

**Level 2 is where most sunsets belong.** Treat it as the default and argue your way up or down.

**The dial is yours to move.** Recommend a level, explain the reasoning, then let the user override
in either direction — and let them move it again later. A PM who says "give me the light version,
I know my org" is exercising judgment, not making an error. Honor it, and note in one line what the
lighter level leaves uncovered so the choice is informed rather than blind.

### Lifecycle Gates (shared vocabulary)

EOL is not one date. It is a series of gates, and most customer anger comes from collapsing them
into a single announcement:

- **GA (General Availability):** Actively sold and fully supported
- **NSC (Notice of Status Change):** The decision is communicated; planning begins
- **EOS (End of Sale):** No new customers can purchase
- **EOE (End of Expansion):** Existing customers cannot add capacity or seats
- **EOR (End of Renewal):** Existing contracts will not be renewed
- **EOM (End of Maintenance):** Bug fixes and patches stop
- **EOL (End of Life):** The product is retired
- **EOSRV (End of Service):** All support and service obligations end

Light sunsets use three of these. Heavy sunsets use all eight. Naming the gates you're *not* using
is as useful as naming the ones you are.

### The Four Retire Signals

Evidence that supports a go verdict. Two or more, strongly present, is a real case:

1. **Financial viability** — costs exceed revenue; support load drains disproportionate resources
2. **Strategic alignment** — conflicts with company direction; you are exiting this market
3. **Solution replacement** — an internal successor supersedes it; you're consolidating platforms
4. **Market irrelevance** — needs shifted, technology moved, the core problem stopped existing

### The Four Hold Signals

Evidence that argues against retiring *now*, even when the retire signals are loud:

1. **Obligation lock** — contracts, SLAs, regulatory commitments, or "lifetime" promises still run
2. **Strategic hostage** — low revenue, but it sits inside your most important accounts
3. **No landing place** — no replacement and no third-party alternative; customers would be stranded
4. **Exit costs exceed carry costs** — the sunset costs more than another year of quiet maintenance

### Anti-Patterns (what this is NOT)

- **Not a rubber stamp.** If the hold signals dominate, the verdict is hold, and the skill says so.
- **Not a portfolio screen.** This assesses one product. Screening a catalog is different work.
- **Not the plan.** The verdict and intensity level are inputs to planning, not the plan itself.
- **Not a financial model.** It reasons about revenue and cost qualitatively; it does not forecast.

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## Application

Use [`workshop-facilitation`](../workshop-facilitation/SKILL.md) as the default interaction
protocol for this