sprint-planning

anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins

Plan sprints by scoping work, estimating team capacity, and setting clear goals.

What is sprint-planning?

Sprint-planning helps you kick off a sprint by defining goals, calculating available capacity (accounting for PTO and meetings), prioritizing backlog items, and identifying risks. Use it when starting a new sprint, sizing work against team availability, or handling carryover from the previous sprint.

Define sprint goals and success criteria
Estimate team capacity accounting for PTO, meetings, and other commitments
Scope and prioritize backlog items into P0, P1, and stretch categories
Identify dependencies and risks that could block progress
Generate a structured sprint plan document with capacity tables, backlog, and definition of done

How to install sprint-planning

npx skills add https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins --skill sprint-planning

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How to use sprint-planning

1.Gather team information: who's on the team and their availability for the sprint
2.Specify the sprint length (number of days or weeks)
3.Provide the prioritized backlog (pull from a tracker, paste items, or describe them)
4.Note any carryover items from the previous sprint and why they didn't ship
5.List any dependencies or blockers from other teams
6.Run the skill and review the generated sprint plan document
7.Adjust allocations and priorities based on the capacity analysis
8.Share the final plan with the team

Use cases

Good for

Kicking off a new sprint with clear goals and realistic capacity planning
Sizing a backlog against team availability when some members have PTO or other commitments
Deciding what's P0 (must ship) versus P1 (should ship) versus stretch work
Handling carryover items from the previous sprint and understanding why they didn't ship
Identifying dependencies and risks before sprint execution to prevent surprises

Who it's for

Engineering managers and tech leads planning sprints
Scrum masters or agile coaches facilitating sprint planning
Product managers working with engineering teams on prioritization
Individual contributors helping estimate team capacity and scope

sprint-planning FAQ

What if I don't have a project tracker connected?

The skill works standalone. You can paste your backlog, describe items, or manually list priorities. When you connect a project tracker later, it can pull backlog and create sprints automatically.

How should I account for interrupts and unplanned work?

Plan to 70-80% of theoretical capacity. This buffer absorbs interrupts, meetings, and unexpected issues. The skill helps you calculate available days after accounting for PTO and known meetings.

What makes a good sprint goal?

A sprint goal should be one clear sentence describing what success looks like. If you can't state it in one sentence, the sprint is likely unfocused and needs re-scoping.

How do I handle items that didn't ship last sprint?

Carry them over honestly. Understand why they didn't ship (estimate was wrong, blocked, deprioritized) before re-committing them to the new sprint.

Can this integrate with my calendar and chat tools?

Yes. When you connect your calendar, it automatically accounts for PTO and meetings in capacity calculations. When you connect chat, it can share the sprint plan with your team.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins.

name: sprint-planning description: Plan a sprint — scope work, estimate capacity, set goals, and draft a sprint plan. Use when kicking off a new sprint, sizing a backlog against team availability (accounting for PTO and meetings), deciding what's P0 vs. stretch, or handling carryover from the last sprint. argument-hint: "[sprint name or date range]"

/sprint-planning

If you see unfamiliar placeholders or need to check which tools are connected, see CONNECTORS.md.

Plan a sprint by scoping work, estimating capacity, and setting clear goals.

Usage

/sprint-planning $ARGUMENTS

How It Works

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    SPRINT PLANNING                                 │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  STANDALONE (always works)                                       │
│  ✓ Define sprint goals and success criteria                     │
│  ✓ Estimate team capacity (accounting for PTO, meetings)        │
│  ✓ Scope and prioritize backlog items                           │
│  ✓ Identify dependencies and risks                              │
│  ✓ Generate sprint plan document                                │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  SUPERCHARGED (when you connect your tools)                      │
│  + Project tracker: Pull backlog, create sprint, assign items   │
│  + Calendar: Account for PTO and meetings in capacity           │
│  + Chat: Share sprint plan with the team                        │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

What I Need From You

Team: Who's on the team and their availability this sprint?
Sprint length: How many days/weeks?
Backlog: What's prioritized? (Pull from tracker, paste, or describe)
Carryover: Anything unfinished from last sprint?
Dependencies: Anything blocked on other teams?

Output

## Sprint Plan: [Sprint Name]
**Dates:** [Start] — [End] | **Team:** [X] engineers
**Sprint Goal:** [One clear sentence about what success looks like]

### Capacity
| Person | Available Days | Allocation | Notes |
|--------|---------------|------------|-------|
| [Name] | [X] of [Y] | [X] points/hours | [PTO, on-call, etc.] |
| **Total** | **[X]** | **[X] points** | |

### Sprint Backlog
| Priority | Item | Estimate | Owner | Dependencies |
|----------|------|----------|-------|--------------|
| P0 | [Must ship] | [X] pts | [Person] | [None / Blocked by X] |
| P1 | [Should ship] | [X] pts | [Person] | [None] |
| P2 | [Stretch] | [X] pts | [Person] | [None] |

### Planned Capacity: [X] points | Sprint Load: [X] points ([X]% of capacity)

### Risks
| Risk | Impact | Mitigation |
|------|--------|------------|
| [Risk] | [What happens] | [What to do] |

### Definition of Done
- [ ] Code reviewed and merged
- [ ] Tests passing
- [ ] Documentation updated (if applicable)
- [ ] Product sign-off

### Key Dates
| Date | Event |
|------|-------|
| [Date] | Sprint start |
| [Date] | Mid-sprint check-in |
| [Date] | Sprint end / Demo |
| [Date] | Retro |

Tips

Leave buffer — Plan to 70-80% capacity. You will get interrupts.
One clear sprint goal — If you can't state it in one sentence, the sprint is unfocused.
Identify stretch items — Know what to cut if things take longer than expected.
Carry over honestly — If something didn't ship, understand why before re-committing.