AutoSwarm company-mode collaboration

You are running inside an AutoSwarm "company mode" run as one of several agents collaborating on a larger task. This skill gives you a local command, opc-collab, that you invoke through the shell to talk to teammates, delegate child work, and read your manager board.

The CLI is on your PATH. Every invocation reads its identity (who you are, which project/session, which task) from environment variables that AutoSwarm already set for you before launching this process — you do NOT pass those.

When to use this skill

• You need to message another role (DM, broadcast, or blocking question).
• Your own current work item is blocked on a user decision or missing input.
• You are a manager and need to delegate child work items, or inspect your kanban board.
• You are in a meeting and need to respond or finalize a decision.
• You want to propose a runtime task adjustment (replan).

Do not use this CLI for general shell work, file edits, or code changes — those go through your native tools (Bash, Edit, Read, etc.).

How to call it

General form:

opc-collab <tool> --args-json-file args.json

All arguments go in the JSON object. The CLI prints a JSON result on stdout and exits 0 on success, 1 on error (with the error message on stderr and a {"error": "..."} body on stdout).

Prefer --args-json-file or --args-stdin over inline JSON. They are unambiguous for nested objects and arrays, and they work consistently on Linux, macOS, Windows PowerShell, and Windows CMD. If OPC_COLLAB_CLI is set, use that executable path; otherwise use opc-collab from PATH. In AutoSwarm-spawned Windows runs, do not use --args-json or pipe JSON into --args-stdin; command-line and PowerShell pipeline text can corrupt non-ASCII before it reaches the CLI. Write the JSON object to a UTF-8 file and call opc-collab <tool> --args-json-file <file> instead. PowerShell-safe UTF-8 file write: $enc = New-Object System.Text.UTF8Encoding $false; [System.IO.File]::WriteAllText($path, $json, $enc).

Available tools

Not every tool is available every turn. The runtime narrows the surface based on your role and phase; if you call a tool that is not allowed, the CLI prints an error telling you which tools ARE allowed.

Messaging

• inbox — check or acknowledge your mailbox without implicitly marking messages read. Use status for counts, peek for actionable message bodies, and ack only after handling messages that do not need a reply. reply_message automatically acknowledges the original message. If a manager-board action already handled the matching approval/review request, acknowledge that inbox message with ack.

  {
    "action": "status"
  }
  

  opc-collab inbox --args-json-file args.json
  

  {
    "action": "ack",
    "message_ids": ["<msg_id>"]
  }
  

  opc-collab inbox --args-json-file args.json
  

• send_dm — async direct message.

  {
    "to_agent": "reviewer",
    "subject": "Draft ready for review",
    "body": "The v1 draft is in ./deliverables/draft.md. Please review."
  }
  

  opc-collab send_dm --args-json-file args.json
  

• ask_peer_and_wait — blocking peer question; pauses this run until the peer replies or the timeout fires.

  {
    "to_agent": "cto",
    "subject": "Which DB shall I target?",
    "body": "Postgres or SQLite for the prototype?",
    "timeout_seconds": 300,
    "on_timeout": "continue"
  }
  

  opc-collab ask_peer_and_wait --args-json-file args.json
  

• reply_message — reply to a received message. If the reply is rejected by policy or transport but the message has already been handled through the board or current task result, use inbox with action="ack" for that message.

  {
    "message_id": "<msg_id from your inbox>",
    "body": "Go with Postgres — we already have it in prod."
  }
  

  opc-collab reply_message --args-json-file args.json
  

• broadcast_issue — raise an async issue to multiple roles.

  {
    "to_agents": ["cto", "cmo"],
    "subject": "Blocked on pricing policy",
    "body": "Need a decision before I can land the checkout flow."
  }
  

  opc-collab broadcast_issue --args-json-file args.json
  

• request_user_input — pause your own current work item and ask the user for missing input. This tool is self-scoped: do not pass target_role, target_task_id, work_item_id, or any other target id. AutoSwarm reads your role, task, seat, and work item from the runtime environment. After it returns requires_user_input=true, stop the current turn and wait for the user's reply.

  {
    "reason": "Blocked on a deployment choice that only the user can make.",
    "questions": [
      {
        "id": "deployment_region",
        "header": "Deployment region",
        "question": "Which deployment region should I target?",
        "options": [
          {"label": "US East", "description": "Use us-east-1"},
          {"label": "EU West", "description": "Use eu-west-1"},
          {"label": "Asia", "description": "Use ap-east-1"}
        ],
        "allow_freeform": true,
        "required": true
      }
    ],
    "context_note": "I can continue once the region is selected."
  }
  

  opc-collab request_user_input --args-json-file args.json
  

  Each question can have up to three selectable options. Option ids default to a, b, and c; the UI also offers Other/freeform unless allow_freeform=false. Legacy "questions": ["..."] remains valid and produces a freeform-only review card.

Manager / delegation

Leader Delegation Planning Overlay

Before delegate_work, managers should convert the upstream assignment into self-contained child work packets. This overlay does not replace your role prompt; it only governs delegation quality.

Use this checklist before dispatching:

• Preserve upstream intent.

• Determine local leadership scope.

• Map deliverables to owners.

• Decompose into work items.

• Distinguish hard dependencies from can-start-now prework.

• Split one role into multiple phase items when that unlocks progress; do not split mechanically.

• Add dependencies / non-overlap boundaries.

• Fill planning_context.

• Fill per-item brief, outputs / deliverables, done_when / acceptance_criteria, delegation_rationale, and non_overlap_guard.

• delegate_work — as a manager, create child work items for your direct reports. Every item needs role_id, title, and a complete brief (legacy summary is accepted). scope_key is optional; the runtime can generate one. depends_on can name a sibling role, scope key, work item ref, or work item id. The same role_id may appear in multiple items when each item has a distinct deliverable, phase, dependency shape, or handoff.

  {
    "planning_context": "Leader planning summary: upstream goal, local scope, deliverable map, can-start-now work, hard dependencies, sequencing, assumptions.",
    "items": [
      {
        "role_id": "target_role",
        "title": "Startable preparation slice",
        "brief": "Context: This phase can start before upstream dependencies finish. Mission: Produce preparation artifacts that unblock later finalization. Required outputs: Leave the concrete artifact or handoff named in outputs. Location / handoff: Use the agreed output path or report channel. Quality expectations: Meet the done_when criteria below. Boundaries: Stay inside this phase. Insufficient work: Do not submit only vague notes. Completion report: List artifacts, verification, assumptions, and blockers.",
        "scope_key": "target-role-prep",
        "work_kind": "execute",
        "outputs": ["Concrete preparation artifact or handoff"],
        "done_when": ["Preparation output is useful for dependent finalization"],
        "delegation_rationale": "Why this direct report owns this slice.",
        "non_overlap_guard": "This item owns preparation; a sibling item owns finalization.",
        "coordination_notes": "Record assumptions that finalization must revisit.",
        "depends_on": []
      },
      {
        "role_id": "target_role",
        "title": "Dependency-bound finalization slice",
        "brief": "Context: This sibling item finalizes the same role's output after dependencies land. Mission: Integrate dependency evidence into the final production deliverable. Required outputs: Leave the final artifact named in outputs. Location / handoff: Use the agreed output path or report channel. Quality expectations: Verify against prep and dependency inputs. Boundaries: Do not redo prep unless quality requires it. Insufficient work: Do not finish before dependencies are incorporated. Completion report: List final artifacts, verification, assumptions, and blockers.",
        "scope_key": "target-role-finalize",
        "work_kind": "execute",
        "outputs": ["Final dependency-aware artifact"],
        "done_when": ["Final output incorporates dependencies and is ready to integrate"],
        "delegation_rationale": "Same role owns final quality for this slice.",
        "non_overlap_guard": "This item owns finalization; sibling prep owns early scaffolding.",
        "coordination_notes": "Use precise scope_key dependencies when a role owns multiple items.",
        "depends_on": ["target-role-prep"]
      }
    ]
  }
  

  opc-collab delegate_work --args-json-file args.json
  

  brief is the child work item's full assignment packet, not a short summary. Do not use description. Recommended brief shape: Context, Mission, Required outputs, Location / handoff, Quality expectations, Boundaries, Insufficient work, Completion report. When the same role gets multiple sibling items, set stable scope_key values and reference those keys in depends_on; broad role references may become ambiguous.

• manager_board_read — READ-ONLY view of your direct reports' child items. For your current manager board, omit parent_work_item_id; the runtime uses $OPC_WORK_ITEM_ID automatically. Pass an explicit id only when it is a FULL WorkItem id returned by a prior tool call (no truncation). Never pass $OPC_TASK_ID or $OPC_RUNTIME_TASK_ID; those are runtime Task ids, not WorkItem ids. After you approve, reject, or otherwise handle a child through the board review flow, acknowledge any matching approval/review inbox message unless reply_message already did it.

  {
    "include_children": true
  }
  

  opc-collab manager_board_read --args-json-file args.json
  

  Do NOT use legacy aliases like parent_id, include_outputs, scope, reason, note — the tool rejects them.

• modify_work_item — revise an existing child WorkItem on your current manager board when the owner is still correct but the title, brief, deliverables, acceptance criteria, dependencies, or coordination fields are wrong. Read the board first, then pass the exact full work_item_id. Prefer this over creating a duplicate replacement item.

  {
    "work_item_id": "work-item-id-from-manager_board_read",
    "task_brief": "Revised concrete assignment for the same owner.",
    "deliverables": ["Updated artifact or handoff"],
    "acceptance_criteria": ["Updated acceptance condition"],
    "depends_on": ["sibling-scope-key-or-full-work-item-id"],
    "reason": "Why the existing card needed revision.",
    "reset_to_ready": true
  }
  

  opc-collab modify_work_item --args-json-file args.json
  

• delete_work_item — cancel or hide an obsolete/wrong child WorkItem on your current manager board so it no longer blocks parent synthesis. Read the board first, then pass the exact full work_item_id.

  {
    "work_item_id": "work-item-id-from-manager_board_read",
    "reason": "Why this child card is obsolete or wrong.",
    "replacement_dependency_work_item_ids": []
  }
  

  opc-collab delete_work_item --args-json-file args.json
  

• close_human_review — close the owner-facing delivery review when you decide the user's latest directive means the delivery is accepted and no further internal work is needed. Do not call this for requested changes; use board tools or reply directly instead.

  {
    "summary": "The user accepted the delivery; no further work is required.",
    "user_message": "Acknowledged. I am closing the human review for this delivery."
  }
  

  opc-collab close_human_review --args-json-file args.json
  

Meetings

• start_meeting — open a meeting and wait for the outcome.

  {
    "topic": "Prioritization for Q2",
    "participants": ["cto", "cmo", "cfo"],
    "agenda": ["Goals", "Trade-offs", "Decision"]
  }
  

  opc-collab start_meeting --args-json-file args.json
  

• respond_meeting — respond to a live meeting, optionally finalize it if you are the decision owner.

Other

• propose_task_adjustment — propose a runtime replan (summary + changeset).
• route_work — coordinator tool; send_followup / spawn_task / escalate.
• read_inbox / read_meeting / list_colleagues — debug/admin reads that may not be available outside of debug mode.

Argument contract rules

1. Use the exact argument names shown above. brief/summary, outputs/deliverables, and done_when/acceptance_criteria are the supported aliases; do not invent others.
2. Work-item IDs are verbatim. When a prior response hands you a work_item_id, copy the full string unmodified into the next call. Never truncate.
3. delegate_work items use brief or legacy summary, not description.
4. manager_board_read takes only parent_work_item_id and optional include_children. No other args are accepted. For your current manager board, omit parent_work_item_id; never use $OPC_TASK_ID.

Error handling

• Exit code 0 + JSON on stdout: success, use the payload.
• Exit code 1 + {"error": "..."} on stdout, message on stderr: the call failed. Read the error and decide whether to retry with corrected args, escalate, or continue with what you have.
• An error containing "not available for this run" means the runtime did not grant this tool for your current role/phase. The error message lists the tools you CAN call — pick one of those instead.

Only transport

opc-collab is the supported way to reach your teammates. If the CLI returns an error, inspect the error message and retry or adapt.