Package a workflow as a skill

A skill packages a workflow your team repeats, such as your release-notes procedure, your API-reference checklist, or the steps you follow to turn a support thread into a troubleshooting doc, so anyone can run it in a session by typing a slash command.

Each skill has three parts: a name, a description of when to use it, and the instructions the agent follows. You write it once for your organization, and both agents, the Docs Agent and the Marketing Agent, can use it in every new session. You run it on demand by typing its command, and the agent also reaches for it on its own when a task matches the skill’s description.

Before you begin

You need:

• An EkLine account with Docs Agent enabled
• At least one repository connected to EkLine

Any member of your organization can create and edit skills.

Create a skill

1. Log in to your EkLine dashboard.

2. Go to Settings > Docs Agent > Skills.

3. Click Add skill.

4. In the Name field, enter a short name for the workflow, such as Release notes checklist. As you type, the hint under the field shows the slash command you use to run the skill, for example /release-notes-checklist. You can enter up to 100 characters.

5. In the When to use it field, describe the situations the skill applies to, such as Use when preparing release notes for a new product version. The agent reads this to decide when to reach for the skill on its own, so be specific. You can enter up to 1,000 characters.

6. In the Instructions field, write the steps the agent should follow, in order. You can enter up to 50,000 characters.

7. Click Save skill. EkLine adds the skill to your list, where its command appears next to its name.

The skill applies to every new session your organization starts after you save it. A session that is already open doesn’t pick up a skill you create or change. You can start a session in the editor or trigger the skill from a GitHub pull request, GitLab merge request, or Slack.

How the command is named

The agent runs your skill when you type its slash command. EkLine builds the command from the skill’s name: it lowercases the name, turns accented letters into plain ones, replaces spaces and punctuation with hyphens, and keeps the first 60 characters. There is no prefix. Release notes checklist becomes /release-notes-checklist.

EkLine rejects two kinds of name, because a built-in skill would take the command instead of yours:

• A name whose command starts with /ekline-. That prefix is reserved for EkLine’s built-in skills.
• A name whose command matches one of EkLine’s built-in commands.

Because the command follows the name, renaming a skill changes its command. Tell your team when you rename one they use.

Note

Two skills can’t share a command. If you name a skill so that it reduces to a command another skill already uses, EkLine rejects the second one. For example, Release Notes Checklist and release-notes checklist! both become /release-notes-checklist. Give it a distinct name.

Write effective instructions

Write instructions the way you’d hand a runbook to a teammate doing the task for the first time. The agent has your repositories, your custom instructions, and its connected integrations available while it works. Your skill supplies the procedure to follow.

• Number the steps. Order the work so the agent moves from gathering sources to drafting to review.
• Name your sources. Point the agent at the files, integrations, or pages each step draws on.
• State the output. Describe the document to produce, where it belongs, and the format it follows.
• Set the guardrails. Call out what to include, what to leave out, and when to stop and ask.

Release notes

Draft release notes for the version the user names.

1. Read the merged pull requests since the last release tag.
2. Group the changes into Added, Changed, Fixed, and Removed.
3. Write one user-facing sentence per change in our house style.
4. Open the release notes page and add the new version at the top.
5. Leave internal refactors and dependency bumps out.

API reference check

Check that our API reference matches the code.

1. Read the endpoint definitions in the api-gateway repository.
2. Compare each one against its entry in docs/reference/api.
3. Flag endpoints that are missing, renamed, or have changed
   parameters.
4. Draft the updates and list every change you made.

Run a skill

1. Open the editor and start a new session.

2. Type the skill’s command, for example /release-notes-checklist, and add any detail the workflow needs, such as the version to document.

3. The agent follows your instructions and reports what it did.

You don’t have to type the command every time. The agent reads each skill’s When to use it description and can choose a skill when your request matches. Ask for release notes in plain language, and the agent applies your release-notes skill.

Check it worked

• The Skills tab lists the skill with its command next to its name, and its toggle is on.
• In a new session, typing the command makes the agent follow your steps.

Manage your skills

The Skills tab lists every skill your organization has, with its name, its command, and its When to use it description. To see a skill’s instructions, click its edit icon. This tab is the only place to see what a skill contains: the editor has no list of skills, and EkLine’s built-in skills are not listed anywhere in the app.

For each skill, you can:

• Edit: Click the edit icon to change the name, description, or instructions, then click Save skill.
• Enable or disable: Use the toggle to enable or disable a skill. A disabled skill stays in your list but doesn’t reach new sessions, so its command doesn’t run. Disable a skill while you’re revising it, or to retire it without losing the instructions.
• Delete: Click the delete icon to remove a skill. It disappears from your next session.

How skills relate to custom instructions

Skills and custom instructions solve different problems, and most organizations use both:

• Custom instructions shape how the agent writes (spelling, terminology, repository context) and apply to every session automatically.
• Skills package a workflow you repeat: a named procedure you run on demand with a command, or that the agent runs when the task matches.

Put a convention that should hold across all writing in custom instructions. Put a multi-step task you run again and again into a skill.

Troubleshooting

The Skills tab isn’t available

If you don’t see Settings > Docs Agent > Skills, contact support@ekline.io with your organization name.

The agent doesn’t run the skill

• Confirm the skill is enabled. A disabled skill doesn’t reach new sessions.
• Start a new session. Skills apply only to sessions started after you save.
• Check the command. Type it exactly as it appears next to the skill’s name.

The agent runs the wrong skill, or none, from a plain-language request

The agent chooses a skill by matching your request against each skill’s When to use it description. Make the description more specific about when the skill applies, or type the command directly to run the skill you want.

Next steps

• Custom instructions: Add custom instructions that apply to every session.
• Automations: Run documentation tasks on a recurring schedule.
• Docs Agent reference: Supported file types, limits, and FAQ.