interview-guide

Purpose

A discovery interview is most valuable when the interviewer walks in knowing what the graph currently doesn't know. This skill reads the graph and produces a guide pointed at the gaps that would change the most if filled — not a generic discovery questionnaire that any PM could have written.

Each question is tied to a named gap in the graph, so the PM understands why it's on the list. The questions follow interview-craft rules: they ask about past behaviour, not hypothetical futures; they are open-ended and non-leading; they avoid pitching the product.

It does NOT script a sales conversation, prepare answers, or anticipate what the interviewee "should" say. The interviewer enters open; the guide just makes sure they enter pointed at the right gaps.

Procedure

1. Read graph/graph.json. If it does not exist, tell the PM to run graphify first and stop.
2. Read meta.health. Cold-start branch: if health === "thin", state that on a thin corpus the gaps are everywhere — the guide should focus on the highest-leverage first gap (usually: which segment has the most weight on the team's current direction?). One well-targeted interview against a thin corpus is more valuable than a long guide chasing every gap.
3. Identify the load-bearing gaps in the graph. Sources of gaps: a. Segments named in the corpus but represented by ≤1 source. b. Assumption nodes adjacent to a major decision (i.e. the PRD intent doc or memo references them). c. Pains or Needs supported by only one source — single-source pains pointing at scope are high-leverage to triangulate. d. contradicts edges — the graph itself records that two sources disagree; resolving the contradiction often unlocks the decision.
4. If the PM has named a specific segment or persona to interview, filter the gaps to those that segment alone can fill. If not, pick the top 3 load-bearing gaps in the graph regardless of segment.
5. For each chosen gap, write 1–3 interview questions. Rules:
   • Behavioural, not hypothetical. Ask about what happened, not what would you do if. Bad: "Would you use feature X?" Good: "Walk me through the last time you tried to do X — what did you actually do?"
   • Open, not leading. Bad: "Don't you find the import frustrating?" Good: "Tell me about importing your previous data — what was the experience like?"
   • JTBD-anchored. Frame around the user's job, not the product. "When you were trying to set up the team, what did you need to figure out?" over "What do you think of our onboarding?"
   • One question at a time. No compound questions.
6. Add a short warm-up section (2–3 questions to set context and relax the interviewee) and a short close section (a single "is there anything I didn't ask that I should have?" closer).
7. Emit the output contract.