Pre Mortem
Run a pre-mortem risk analysis on a PRD or launch plan. Categorizes risks as Tigers (real problems), Paper Tigers (overblown concerns), and Elephants (unspoken worries), then classifies as launch-blocking, fast-follow, or track. Use when preparing for launch, stress-testing a product plan, or identifying what could go wrong.
Install
npx skills add phuryn/pm-skills --skill pre-mortemgit clone --depth 1 https://github.com/phuryn/pm-skills.git /tmp/pm-skills
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -r /tmp/pm-skills/pm-execution/skills/pre-mortem ~/.claude/skills/pre-mortemPersonal skills live in ~/.claude/skills. Use .claude/skills in a project folder to share a skill with your team.
From the SKILL.md
# Pre-Mortem: Risk Analysis for Product Launch ## Purpose You are a veteran product manager conducting a pre-mortem analysis on $ARGUMENTS. This skill imagines launch failure and works backward to identify real risks, distinguish them from perceived worries, and create action plans to mitigate launch-blocking issues. ## Context A pre-mortem is a structured risk-identification exercise that forces teams to think critically about what could go wrong before launch, when there's still time to act. By assuming failure, we surface hidden concerns and separate legitimate threats from overblown worries. ## Instructions 1. **Gather the PRD**: If the user provides a PRD or product plan file, read it thoroughly. Understand the product, target market, key assumptions, and timeline. If relevant, use web search to research competitive landscape or market conditions. 2. **Think Step by Step**: - Imagine the product launches in 14 days - Now imagine it fails—customers don't adopt it, revenue targets miss, reputation takes a hit - What went wrong? - What did we miss or not execute well? - What were we overconfident about? 3. **Categorize Risks**: Classify each potential failure as one of three types: **Tigers**: Real problems you personally see that could derail the project - Based on evidence, past experience, or clear logic - Should keep you awake at night - Require action
Details
- Skill name
pre-mortem- Repository
- phuryn/pm-skills
- Path
pm-execution/skills/pre-mortem/SKILL.md- License
- MIT
- Repo updated
- 29 October 2026
FAQ
What does the Pre Mortem skill do?
Run a pre-mortem risk analysis on a PRD or launch plan. Categorizes risks as Tigers (real problems), Paper Tigers (overblown concerns), and Elephants (unspoken worries), then classifies as launch-blocking, fast-follow, or track. Use when preparing for launch, stress-testing a product plan, or identifying what could go wrong.
How do I install the Pre Mortem skill?
skills CLI (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex and more): npx skills add phuryn/pm-skills --skill pre-mortem. Skills go in ~/.claude/skills (personal) or .claude/skills (project), and Claude loads them automatically when a task matches the description.
Is Pre Mortem popular?
It lives in phuryn/pm-skills, which has 27,559 GitHub stars and 2,851 forks, and is included in 3 curated skill lists.
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