Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Backlog Capture agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
Backlog Capture is an agent skill that turns rough notes from meetings, customer conversations and competitor research into standard one-line entries in your product backlog. It is written for product managers who want to record ideas quickly and keep them consistent. After this guide you will know what the skill does, how to install it, how to ask for it in plain language and what it needs to run.
Backlog Capturemvschwarz/openrig · Apache-2.0 Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the backlog-capture ZIP from the skill page on this site.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Extract it to ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or to .claude/skills/ inside a project for project-only use.
- 3Or upload it in the Claude apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the ZIP.
- 4Prepare your backlog file. Make sure you have a backlog file the agent can read and edit, with an 'Ideas Not Yet in Jira' section.
- 5Ask for a capture. Describe the idea, request or insight in plain language and include its source, such as a meeting or customer.
- 6Review the appended entries. Check the new entries in the backlog file and confirm that duplicates were merged rather than repeated.
What is an agent skill and what does Backlog Capture do?
An agent skill is a set of instructions, packaged as a folder with a SKILL.md file, that an AI agent loads so it can handle a specific kind of task. This one is named backlog-capture and is described as a way to quickly capture product ideas, feature requests or insights from meetings and conversations, with smart categorization and deduplication.
The skill takes rough input such as a meeting quote, a feature idea, a customer request or a competitive gap. It writes a one-line backlog entry, checks the existing backlog for similar items and appends the result to the backlog file.
- Turns rough text into a bold feature name, a 1-3 sentence description, a product epic or area and any dependencies
- Adds the source (meeting, customer or competitor) and the date to each entry
- Checks for duplicates and adds new evidence to an existing item instead of creating a copy
- Converts relative dates such as 'next Thursday' into absolute dates
- Appends entries to the 'Ideas Not Yet in Jira' section of your backlog file
Install the Backlog Capture skill
There are two ways to install the skill. Download the ZIP file for backlog-capture from the skill page on this site. Then choose one of the options below.
For Claude Code, unzip the download into your personal skills folder at ~/.claude/skills/ so it is available in all your projects. To limit it to one project, unzip it into the .claude/skills/ folder inside that project instead.
In the Claude apps, you can upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills instead.
- Personal install: ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: .claude/skills/ inside your project folder
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload the ZIP
Set up your backlog file before you start
The skill assumes you already have a backlog file that the agent can read and edit. It appends new entries under a section headed 'Ideas Not Yet in Jira', so that heading should exist in the file. The duplicate check also searches this file, so the skill can only spot repeats in a backlog it can open.
If your backlog lives in a tool the agent cannot read as a local file, this skill will not fit your workflow as described in the source.
- A local backlog file the agent can read and edit
- An 'Ideas Not Yet in Jira' section in that file
How do you trigger the skill with natural requests?
The source does not define a fixed command for triggering this skill, so describe what you need in plain language and let the agent apply it. The skill is meant for moments such as after a meeting where feature ideas came up, when a customer or sales rep mentions a need, when competitive research shows a gap, or when you have an idea worth recording.
Give the agent the rough text along with the context it needs, such as where the idea came from and when it came up. The skill is built to take that input and produce the entry.
- 'Log this customer request from today's call so it goes in the backlog.'
- 'Add these three ideas from the sales review to the backlog, one entry each.'
- 'I noticed a competitor offers bulk export. Capture it as a backlog item with the source.'
- 'Next Thursday we agreed to revisit the reporting request. Record it with the absolute date.'
What does a finished backlog entry look like?
Each idea becomes one entry with a fixed structure. The skill follows this pattern: a bold name, then a description that says what it is, who needs it, why it matters and where it came from, followed by the epic and any dependencies.
If a meeting produces five ideas, the skill creates five separate entries. If a new input matches something already in the backlog, the existing item is updated with the new source and date rather than duplicated.
- Format: - **[Feature Name]** — [Description. Who needs it. Why. Origin, date.] Belongs under [Epic] epic. [Dependencies if any.]
- Capture first and refine later. Polishing happens during prioritization.
- **[Feature Name]** — [Description. Who needs it. Why. Origin (meeting/customer/competitor, date).] Belongs under [Epic] epic. [Dependencies if any.]Safety notes and limits
According to the source, this skill does not run scripts and does not use the network. Its work is limited to reading and editing the backlog file that you give it access to.
The skill only captures. It does not validate or prioritize ideas. The source says that job belongs to the /office-hours step, so run that separately when you are ready to judge an idea.
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Requires an existing backlog file the agent can read and edit
- Does not prioritize or validate ideas
What people use it for
- Logging feature requests a customer raised on a call, with the customer name and date recorded
- Splitting a meeting's brainstorm into separate backlog entries, one idea per entry
- Recording a gap found in competitor research with its origin noted
- Keeping a team backlog file consistently formatted so later prioritization is easier
Frequently asked questions
Is the Backlog Capture skill free to use?
The source does not state a price or licence terms for the skill itself. It is listed under the Apache-2.0 licence for the openrig repository, which is the licence information given on this page.
What do I need to run the backlog-capture skill?
You need an agent that can load skills and an existing backlog file the agent can read and edit. The skill appends entries under an 'Ideas Not Yet in Jira' section, so that section should be present.
How do I install backlog-capture in Claude?
Download the ZIP from this site and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or .claude/skills/ inside a project. In the Claude apps, you can upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
Does the skill prioritize or validate my ideas?
No. The source says it only captures ideas and defers validation and prioritization to the /office-hours step.
Does Backlog Capture send my data over the network?
The listing states that the skill does not use the network and does not run scripts. It works on the backlog file the agent can access.
Can it work with Jira or other backlog tools?
The skill is designed around a local backlog file that the agent can read and edit. The source says it is not suited to backlogs kept in a system the agent cannot read as a local file, so it may not fit those setups.
New agent skills, repos and AI tools — every week
The best new skills and open-source projects, the fastest-growing repos, and one free prompt. Five minutes to read. Unsubscribe anytime.
Our verdict
Backlog Capture suits product managers and teams who keep a local backlog file and want ideas recorded quickly in a consistent format, with sources and duplicates handled for them. It is a poor fit if you need ideas validated or prioritized in the same step, or if your backlog lives in a system the agent cannot read and edit as a file.
Download the skill