Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Hard Call Decision Framework agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
hard-call is an agent skill from the alirezarezvani/claude-skills collection, part of the executive-mentor set in the c-level-advisor folder. It gives your AI agent a fixed set of steps for decisions where every option is painful, such as choosing between a layoff and a down round or killing a beloved product line. After this guide you will know what the skill does, how to install it, how to trigger it with a plain request, and what to expect from its output.
Hard Call Decision Frameworkalirezarezvani/claude-skills · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Download the hard-call ZIP from this page and unzip it on your computer.
- 2Pick an install location. Place the hard-call folder in ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or in a project's .claude/skills/ folder to limit it to that project.
- 3Or upload it in the Claude apps. If you use the Claude apps, open Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill there.
- 4Describe the decision. Write the decision in plain words, including the options, the stakes and what you have already tried.
- 5Trigger the skill. Use /em:hard-call followed by the decision, or describe a painful choice in ordinary language.
- 6Work through the steps. Answer the reversibility, 10/10/10, Andy Grove and stakeholder questions in writing.
- 7Draft the announcement. Write the message you would send to the team or customer before making the final call.
What is an agent skill?
An agent skill is a folder containing a SKILL.md file that tells an AI agent how to handle a certain kind of task. When the skill is installed and you make a matching request, the agent follows the instructions in that file. The hard-call skill is a single SKILL.md file with no other files listed.
What does the hard-call skill make the agent do?
When you ask the agent to work through a painful decision, it follows six steps. First it runs a reversibility test to ask whether the choice can be undone. Then it runs a 10-minute, 10-month and 10-year comparison for each option. It applies Andy Grove's test, asking what a new CEO brought in from outside would do. It maps the stakeholders affected by each option, and it asks you to write the announcement before deciding. The last step plans communication: who hears first, how they are told, and what comes next.
The skill also includes short question lists for four common cases: co-founder conflicts, layoffs, pivots and killing a product line. It is a thinking guide, not a data tool, so it structures your reasoning but does not know your company's numbers.
- Reversibility test: reversible, partially reversible or irreversible
- 10/10/10 comparison: 10 minutes, 10 months and 10 years out
- Andy Grove test: what would a replacement CEO do?
- Stakeholder impact map across employees, team, customers, investors and you
- Pre-announcement test: write the email or message first
- Communication plan: who hears first, how, what they can ask
Install the hard-call skill
Download the ZIP for hard-call from this page and unzip it. For a personal install that applies to all your projects, place the hard-call folder in ~/.claude/skills/. To limit it to one project, place it in that project's .claude/skills/ folder instead.
If you use the Claude apps rather than a local setup, you can upload the skill under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal install: ~/.claude/skills/hard-call/
- Project install: .claude/skills/hard-call/ inside your project
How do you trigger the skill with a natural request?
The skill's description names the command /em:hard-call followed by the decision, so you can use that form directly. You can also describe a painful decision in ordinary words, since the skill is meant for cases where every option is painful and a structured pass is needed.
Give the agent the real situation: the options you are weighing, the stakes, and what you have already tried. The more concrete the description, the more specific the questions will be.
- Command form: /em:hard-call should we lay off 20% of the team or take a down round?
- Plain form: I need to decide whether to shut down the legacy product line that a few large customers still use.
- Plain form: my co-founder is not working out and I have been putting off the conversation for months.
/em:hard-call <decision>Example: working through a layoff decision
Suppose you are choosing between a layoff and a down round. The agent will first ask whether the layoff could be reversed, which it notes is not easy for a person. It will then compare how each option feels in 10 minutes, how it looks in 10 months and whether it will seem right in 10 years.
Next it applies the Andy Grove test and maps who is affected in each option. Before you decide, it asks you to draft the announcement to the team. If you cannot write that message honestly, the skill treats that as a sign you are not ready yet.
The layoffs checklist adds specific questions, such as whether this is a one-time reset, whether the cut is deep enough, and who owns the announcement.
What does the skill need and what are the safety notes?
The source lists no requirements. The skill does not run scripts and does not use the network, so it only changes how the agent reasons. Because it is a thinking guide, it does not check your company's finances, contracts or legal position.
Its guidance on legal and financial points is limited to prompting you to ask about severance and cap table implications. Employment, legal and tax decisions need a qualified lawyer or accountant.
- Requires: nothing listed
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Licence: MIT
Tips for getting useful output
Use the skill for decisions that are high-stakes and hard to undo. For routine choices that are easy to reverse, the framework can feel heavy-handed.
Bring facts with you. The skill does not know your company's numbers, so state the runway, headcount, customer data and the options as you understand them.
Answer the questions in writing. The announcement test works best when you actually draft the message rather than only thinking about it.
- Save the framework for calls that are high-stakes and irreversible
- Include numbers and constraints in your request
- Treat the output as a structured checklist, not a verdict
What people use it for
- Deciding between a layoff and a down round when every option is painful
- Choosing whether to fire a co-founder or move them into a different role
- Weighing a pivot against optimizing the current direction
- Planning whether to kill, sell or spin out a product line that customers still use
- Structuring a long-delayed people decision so you can finally answer it
Frequently asked questions
Is the hard-call skill free?
The source lists the skill under the MIT licence. The licence governs use of the skill itself, so check the repository's licence file for the full terms.
What does hard-call need to run?
The source lists no requirements. It does not run scripts and does not use the network, so it only guides the agent's reasoning.
Where do I install the hard-call skill?
Unzip the downloaded ZIP into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. You can also upload it in the Claude apps under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
Can hard-call give me legal or tax advice?
No. It only prompts you to ask about severance and cap table implications. Legal, employment and tax decisions need a qualified lawyer or accountant.
When should I not use hard-call?
Skip it for routine business choices that are easy to reverse. The framework is built for high-stakes, irreversible calls and may feel heavy for smaller decisions.
Does hard-call know my company's data?
No. It is a thinking guide, not a data tool. It structures your reasoning from the facts you give it and does not know your company's facts on its own.
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Our verdict
hard-call suits founders, executives and managers who are weighing a layoff, co-founder exit, pivot or shutdown and want a structured set of questions. It is less useful for easy, reversible choices, and it does not replace legal, financial or employment advice or the judgment of the people affected. Anyone who needs data analysis or legal guidance should look elsewhere.
Download the skill