Guide · Agent skill
How to use the North Star Metric Advisor agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The North Star Metric Advisor is an agent skill, a packaged set of instructions that an AI agent such as Claude loads when your request matches its purpose. This one turns the agent into a metrics strategist that helps you choose a single North Star Metric and the 3-5 input metrics that drive it. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it, how to trigger it with plain requests, and how to get useful output.
North Star Metric Advisorphuryn/pm-skills · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the north-star-metric ZIP from this page.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Extract it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into your project's .claude/skills/ folder.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill.
- 4Describe your business. Explain your product, customers, revenue model and current metrics in plain language.
- 5Make a natural request. Ask for help choosing a North Star metric or setting up a metrics framework.
- 6Review the classification and candidate. Check the business game, the North Star against the seven criteria, and the input metrics.
- 7Compare and test. Ask for scores on several candidates and validate the chosen input metrics with your team.
What the skill makes the agent do
The skill follows three steps. First, it classifies your business into one of three business games: Attention (how much time customers spend with your product), Transaction (how many transactions occur between customers and your platform), or Productivity (how efficiently someone can complete their work or reach their goals).
Second, it proposes a single North Star Metric, a customer-centric number that reflects the value customers get and serves as a leading indicator of long-term success. It checks the candidate against seven criteria: easy to understand, customer-centric, sustainable value, vision alignment, quantitative, actionable, and leading indicator.
Third, it lists 3-5 input metrics that most directly drive the North Star and are easier to move in the short term. The skill is text-only guidance: it reasons from the context you type and does not connect to your data.
Install the skill from the ZIP
Download the ZIP for this skill from this page and unzip it. The skill is delivered as a folder containing SKILL.md. Put that folder in one of two places:
Personal use across projects: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/. Project-only use: unzip into the .claude/skills/ folder inside your project.
If you use the Claude apps instead, upload the skill under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Requirements listed for this skill: none beyond an agent that supports skills.
- The skill folder should contain SKILL.md at its top level after unzipping.
~/.claude/skills/north-star-metric/SKILL.mdTrigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need a special command. The skill's description tells the agent when to use it, so describe your situation in plain words. Requests that match its triggers include asking about a North Star metric, what to measure, a metrics framework, or the North Star Framework itself.
Give context. The skill's own tips ask for your business model and revenue model, your company's vision or long-term goals, the metrics you already track, your key customer segments and use cases, and the primary value you deliver.
- "Help me choose a North Star metric for our note-taking app. We sell a monthly subscription and want teams to collaborate more."
- "We are debating between weekly active users and paid conversions. Which fits our marketplace better, and why?"
- "Set up a metrics framework for our onboarding team. Our vision is to help small clinics run their own scheduling."
- "Explain the North Star Framework and classify our business game."
Read the output
Expect three parts: the game classification, a single candidate North Star checked against the seven criteria, and 3-5 input metrics. If you give several candidates, ask the agent to score each one against the criteria so you can compare them side by side.
The skill is designed to push back on revenue or LTV as the main goal, because a North Star should be customer-centric. If you want a financial target, ask the agent how it would be expressed, for example as a supporting input or as an OKR Key Result that expresses expected change in the North Star.
Safety notes: scripts and network
This skill does not run scripts and does not use the network, according to its listing. Its only file is SKILL.md. Because it reads only the context you provide, avoid pasting confidential figures you would not share with your AI tool in general, and check any numbers the agent produces against your own data before acting on them.
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Files included: SKILL.md
Tips for better results
Specific context produces a sharper North Star. Name your customers, the job they hire your product for, and the metrics you already track. Ask for trade-offs between candidates rather than a single answer, and bring the input metrics back to your team to confirm they can be influenced in the short term.
- Describe your revenue model so the input metrics connect to it.
- Name the segment you care about most; the North Star may differ by segment.
- Ask the agent to explain why each of the seven criteria passes or fails for your candidate.
What people use it for
- Founders choosing the one number the company should optimize for.
- Product managers building an OKR or metrics framework with a structured starting point.
- Teams debating between several candidate metrics and wanting them judged against the same criteria.
- Learning the North Star Framework and mapping a business to Attention, Transaction or Productivity.
Frequently asked questions
What is the north-star-metric skill?
It is an agent skill that makes an AI agent act as a metrics strategist. It classifies your business into one of three games, proposes one customer-centric North Star Metric, checks it against seven criteria, and lists 3-5 input metrics.
What do I need to install it?
The listing states no requirements beyond an agent that supports skills. Download the ZIP, unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ or a project's .claude/skills/ folder, or upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills in the Claude apps.
Is the north-star-metric skill free?
The skill is published under the MIT licence, as listed on this page. The page does not list a price, so check the licence text in the source repository for terms.
Does the skill connect to my analytics tools?
No. The skill is text-only guidance and does not connect to your data. It reasons only from the context you type into the conversation.
Why does the skill reject revenue as my North Star?
The skill's guidance says a North Star should be customer-centric, reflecting value delivered to customers rather than just revenue or activity. It will push back on a pure revenue or LTV goal and can help you express financial targets as inputs or OKR Key Results instead.
How is a North Star Metric different from an OKR?
According to the skill, a North Star is a single customer-centric KPI, while an OKR is a goal-setting technique. The skill notes that you can use Key Results to express expected change in the North Star.
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Our verdict
Use this skill if you are a founder, product lead or PM who needs a structured way to choose one customer-centric metric and its drivers, or to compare candidates against clear criteria. Pick something else if you need a finished dashboard, live data analysis, or a revenue or LTV number as your main goal, since the skill only reasons from the context you type.
Download the skill