How to use the Branch Standup Facilitator agent skill

What the standup skill makes the agent do

When you have several branches, worktrees, or open PRs with overlapping work, the skill has the agent act as a facilitator. Each branch is represented by its own agent. All of them join a shared markdown file that works as a chat room, read what the others have said, report the real state of their branch, and argue for how it should be combined.

The facilitator runs the discussion in rounds. It first asks each agent to introduce its branch, then lists the open items such as overlaps, conflicts, or an undecided target and merge order, and runs follow-up rounds on those items. When the room settles, the facilitator writes a summary with a target worktree and a merge order, and asks you to decide the open questions.

What the skill does not do

The room is read-only. Agents decide how a merge should go, but nobody commits or merges inside the room. The actual merges are left to a separate /do step, which the skill hands the finished plan to once you have settled the open calls.

Install the standup skill

The skill is distributed as a ZIP file from the directory page. You can install it in either of two ways. For a personal install, download the ZIP and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/. To limit it to one project, unzip it into that project's .claude/skills/ folder instead.

If you use the Claude apps rather than Claude Code, you can upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.

• Personal install: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/
• Project install: unzip into the project's .claude/skills/
• Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload the ZIP

Check the requirements first

The skill needs git with worktrees configured and Node.js 20 or newer. The GitHub CLI (gh) is optional and is used only to list open PRs; without it the skill falls back to worktrees only. The CLI path also requires Claude Code with the claude-mem plugin, and the Task tool is needed to spawn the branch agents. The skill runs scripts and uses the network.

• Git with worktrees configured (required)
• Node.js 20 or newer (required)
• GitHub CLI (gh) for PR listing (optional)
• Claude Code with the claude-mem plugin for the CLI path, plus the Task tool for spawning agents

Trigger the skill with a natural request

You do not need a special command to start. Ask the agent in plain language to compare or consolidate your branches, and the skill should match. The skill first asks which worktrees are active and over what window, if you do not say. The window options are 1h, 4h, 24h, 7d, or all.

The skill builds one numbered list of worktrees and PRs and asks you to pick the ones to include. If you name none, it uses recent activity. If there are fewer than two candidates, it stops and offers to widen the search.

• Compare the branches I worked on in the last 24 hours and tell me how to combine them.
• Run a standup on the open PRs for this repo and produce one consolidation plan.
• Facilitate a standup across my worktrees and pick a merge order.

What a run produces

The room is one shared file, by default ~/.claude-mem/STANDUP.md. Its front matter holds the goal and prompt, and the body is the transcript. Each agent speaks once per round, and the facilitator reads between rounds. Resolution rounds are capped at about four.

At the close, the facilitator writes the summary in plain prose: which worktree is the target and why, the merge order, and the decisions left for you. It then translates this into a short brief covering what it found, the plan, and your calls, and can ask you clear-cut questions directly.

Safety notes: scripts and network

The skill runs a Node.js script (standup.mjs) and spawns multiple agents that read your local git history and run shell commands in your worktrees. It also uses the network, for example through gh to list PRs. Only use it in repositories where you are comfortable with AI agents running shell commands and reading local git history. The skill's own room is read-only, but it does not replace your review of anything /do will merge.

• Runs scripts: yes (standup.mjs)
• Spawns multiple agents via the Task tool
• Uses the network (gh for PR listing)
• Reads local git history and runs shell commands in each worktree

Tips for a useful standup

Use a narrow time window so the candidate list stays manageable. Make sure the worktrees you want considered have real commits or uncommitted edits, because the skill treats a worktree as active only if it has a commit or an edit in the window. Read the roster the skill shows you before it starts, and answer the open questions it raises rather than letting the room run unchecked.

• Pick a narrow window such as 4h or 24h to keep the list short.
• Confirm the roster before the room opens.
• Answer the facilitator's questions; undecided items can stall the room.