# Epic 1 Retrospective - Project Foundation & Developer Experience

**Date:** 2026-01-11
**Epic:** 1 - Project Foundation & Developer Experience
**Facilitator:** Bob (Scrum Master)
**Status:** Complete

## Epic Summary

**Goal:** A working CLI tool with help, error handling, and configuration infrastructure

**FRs Covered:** FR28, FR29, FR30, FR34, FR35, FR36, FR37, FR38

**Delivery Metrics:**
- Stories Completed: 5/5 (100%)
- Total Tests: 213 (all passing)
- Code Quality: mypy --strict, ruff check/format passing
- Model Used: Claude Opus 4.5 (claude-opus-4-5-20251101)

## Stories Delivered

| Story | Title | Status | Key Deliverable |
|-------|-------|--------|-----------------|
| 1-1 | Project Scaffolding & CLI Skeleton | done | pyproject.toml, CLI entry point, src/ layout |
| 1-2 | Rich Console & Output Formatting | done | Rich console, JSON mode, --verbose/--quiet |
| 1-3 | Configuration Hierarchy | done | 5-level config precedence, resume config command |
| 1-4 | Error Handling & Exit Codes | done | Exception hierarchy, semantic exit codes 0-5 |
| 1-5 | AI Agent Context Documentation | done | CLAUDE.md CLI reference section |

## What Went Well

### 1. Clean Foundation Established
The src/ layout with proper packaging, Click CLI group pattern, and editable install via uv works smoothly. All subsequent work built on this foundation without issues.

### 2. Configuration System Design
The 5-level precedence (CLI > env > project > user > defaults) with source tracking provides excellent debugging capability via `resume config` command.

### 3. Error Handling Pattern
The `@handle_errors` decorator and exception hierarchy with semantic exit codes enables consistent error handling across all commands. The `recoverable` flag and `suggestion` field support AI agent automation.

### 4. Code Review Process
Adversarial code reviews found 20+ issues across 5 stories before they reached production. This process should continue.

### 5. AI Agent Compatibility
stdout/stderr separation, JSON output mode with format versioning, and CLAUDE.md documentation make the CLI friendly for AI coding assistants.

## Challenges & Lessons Learned

### 1. Missing Module Exports (3/5 stories)
**Pattern:** Stories 1-2, 1-3, and 1-4 all had code review findings about missing exports in `__init__.py` files.

**Lesson:** Always add exports to `__init__.py` when creating new modules. Make this part of the standard checklist.

### 2. Circular Import Issue (Story 1-4)
**Pattern:** The `Context` class in cli.py created a circular import when utils/errors.py needed to import it.

**Lesson:** Keep shared classes like `Context` in their own modules. Extracted to `context.py` to resolve.

### 3. Output Mode Edge Cases (Stories 1-2, 1-4)
**Pattern:** --quiet/--json precedence and flag conflict warnings were caught late in code review.

**Lesson:** Add output mode tests as standard practice for any new command.

### 4. Documentation Gaps (Story 1-5)
**Pattern:** CLAUDE.md was missing test-errors, test-output commands and retry pattern section.

**Lesson:** Keep documentation in sync with implementation. The template helped but wasn't followed exactly.

## Code Review Statistics

| Story | Issues Found | HIGH | MEDIUM | LOW | Fixed |
|-------|--------------|------|--------|-----|-------|
| 1-1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 1-2 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 1-3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 1-4 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 7 |
| 1-5 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 (4 accepted) |

**Total:** 31 issues found, 27 fixed, 4 accepted with justification

## Technical Debt

### Known Debt Items
1. **Exit Code 2 Conflict**: Click's UsageError also uses exit code 2. Documented in code and CLAUDE.md. Not fixable without major changes to Click behavior.

### Debt Status
- No critical debt items requiring immediate action
- Codebase is clean and maintainable

## Action Items for Future Epics

| ID | Action | Owner | Status |
|----|--------|-------|--------|
| 1 | Always add exports to `__init__.py` when creating new modules | All Devs | Ongoing |
| 2 | Add output mode tests as standard practice | All Devs | Ongoing |
| 3 | Continue adversarial code reviews for each story | SM | Ongoing |
| 4 | Keep shared classes in their own modules to avoid circular imports | All Devs | Ongoing |

## Next Epic Preparation

### Epic 2: Work Unit Creation & Capture
- **Goal**: Users can capture Work Units right after accomplishments happen
- **Stories**: 5 (2-1 through 2-5)
- **FRs Covered**: FR1, FR2, FR3, FR4, FR5, FR9, FR10, FR11

### Dependencies on Epic 1
- Configuration system for `work_units_dir` setting
- Rich console output for user feedback
- Error handling for validation errors
- JSON output mode for scripting support

### Readiness Assessment
- **Foundation**: Complete and stable
- **Dependencies**: All satisfied
- **Blockers**: None identified
- **Ready to Start**: Yes

## Team Acknowledgments

Epic 1 delivered a solid foundation for the resume-as-code CLI. All 5 stories completed with 100% test coverage and clean code quality metrics. The adversarial code review process proved valuable, catching 31 issues before they became problems.

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*Retrospective conducted by Bob (Scrum Master) with Joshua Magady (Project Lead)*
