task-manager

Task Manager

Use this skill for task capture and task lifecycle updates.

Trigger

{
  "activation": {
    "anyPhrases": [
      "add a task",
      "create a task",
      "track this task",
      "task status",
      "mark this done",
      "block this task",
      "what tasks do we have"
    ]
  },
  "movement": {
    "target": "desk",
    "skipIfAlreadyThere": true
  }
}

Also use this skill even when those exact phrases are absent if the latest user message is an actionable work request. If the user asks the agent to do something, that request must become a task before the agent proceeds.

Storage location

The authoritative task file is:

• ${HERMES_STATE_DIR}/hermes3d/task-manager/tasks.json when HERMES_STATE_DIR is set.
• ~/.hermes/hermes3d/task-manager/tasks.json otherwise.

Always treat that file as the shared source of truth for the Kanban board.

Required workflow

1. Read the task file before handling an actionable request.
2. If the file does not exist, create it with the schema in this document.
3. If the latest user message is actionable and no matching active task exists, create one immediately.
4. Before starting execution, move the task from inbox to working.
5. If work is blocked on a human (command approval, missing input, credentials, or an error), set the task to needs_attention and record a short reason in notes.
6. When work is finished, set the task to done.
7. When a task is queued by the cron scheduler or a playbook for a later run, keep it in scheduled and set scheduledFor.
8. After every mutation, write the full updated JSON back to disk.

Matching rules

• Match first by externalThreadId when the request comes from a stable thread or conversation.
• Otherwise match by a concise normalized title that preserves user intent.
• Avoid creating duplicate active tasks for the same request.

Task fields

Each task must include:

• id
• title
• description
• status
• source
• sourceEventId
• assignedAgentId
• createdAt
• updatedAt
• playbookJobId
• runId
• channel
• externalThreadId
• lastActivityAt
• notes
• isArchived
• isInferred
• model
• skills
• subagentCount
• scheduledFor
• learnedSkill
• history