amazon-working-backwards — Claude Code skill
This skill guides an idea through Amazon’s five questions to a PR-FAQ, with review and challenge steps along the way.
npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a claude-codeWhat amazon-working-backwards does
The skill follows a two-stage process. It first helps answer Amazon’s five questions about the customer, the problem, the main benefit, the evidence behind the need, and the customer experience. If the idea is vague, it asks for clarification one question at a time.
Once the answers are ready, it builds a PR-FAQ with a press release, external customer questions, and internal stakeholder questions. Drafts go into YYYY-MM-DD - [Product Name] 5Q.md or YYYY-MM-DD - [Product Name] PR-FAQ.md; existing documents can be checked for structure and consistency. The skill keeps the 5Q stage before PR-FAQ work.
It runs with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, and OpenCode. Claude Code installation uses npx and the robdefeo/agent-skills repository.
What it helps with
- shape an idea with Amazon’s five questions
- challenge weak or vague 5Q answers
- turn 5Q answers into a PR-FAQ
- review an existing PR-FAQ for gaps
- prepare customer and stakeholder FAQs
Example prompts for the agent
- Work through this idea with Amazon’s five questions and save the answers to a file.
- Review these 5Q answers, identify weak points, and ask your follow-up questions one at a time.
- Create a PR-FAQ from these answers with external customer questions and internal stakeholder questions.
How to install amazon-working-backwards
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a claude-code2Manually: put the files in place
~/.claude/skills/amazon-working-backwards/SKILL.mdCopy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/amazon-working-backwards/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a codex2Manually: put the files in place
.agents/skills/amazon-working-backwards/SKILL.mdFor all projects use ~/.agents/skills/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a cursor2Manually: put the files in place
.cursor/skills/amazon-working-backwards/SKILL.mdCursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/
1GitHub CLI
gh skill install robdefeo/agent-skills amazon-working-backwards2Manually: put the files in place
.github/skills/amazon-working-backwards/SKILL.md1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a gemini-cli2Platform CLI
gemini skills install https://github.com/robdefeo/agent-skills --path skills/amazon-working-backwardsManually: put the files in place
.devin/skills/amazon-working-backwards/SKILL.mdThe legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works
Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a opencodeClaude.ai
Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Step by step, with commands for each platform: How to install skills in Claude Code: five ways
Questions about amazon-working-backwards
How do I install amazon-working-backwards in Claude Code?
Run npx skills add robdefeo/agent-skills --skill amazon-working-backwards -a claude-code, then check ~/.claude/skills/amazon-working-backwards/SKILL.md.
What does amazon-working-backwards do?
It guides five-question Amazon-style product thinking, challenges the answers, and creates or reviews a PR-FAQ. It asks for clarification when the proposal is too vague.
Which platforms support amazon-working-backwards?
The skill supports Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, and OpenCode.
