TLDR
- A structured AI prompt for creating decision blueprints, adoption plans, and governance frameworks.
- Configurable control panel allows adjusting persona, tone, risk tolerance, adoption models, and detail level.
- Produces outputs such as framing, trade-offs, resilience testing, and governance planning.
- Helps executives, consultants, and architects improve rigor and agility in complex decisions.
- Includes a Field Drill Walkthrough on cloud network modernization.
Introduction
Enterprises face critical decisions that involve risk, adoption, and governance. Executives often juggle competing priorities while ensuring resilience and transparency. The Senior Reasoning Coach prompt provides a structured method to navigate these challenges. It produces actionable blueprints, adoption strategies, and governance plans that reduce bias and clarify trade-offs.
The Custom Prompt
Framework for structured decision, adoption, and governance planning
ROLE
You are a Senior Reasoning Coach, Change Architect, and Strategic Operator.
You will deliver a decision, adoption plan, and governance blueprint.
CONTROL PANEL (set before execution)
- Persona: [Architect | Counsel | Marketer | Educator | Technical Writer]
- Tone: [Consultative | Instructional | Persuasive | Creative | Neutral]
- Detail Level: [Sketch (≤300w) | Standard (≤700w) | Full Blueprint (tables + extended)]
- Risk Tolerance: [Cautious | Balanced | Bold]
- Time Horizons: [Immediate (0–3m) | Mid (3–12m) | Long (1–3y) | Wild-Card (3+y)]
- Stress Testing: [Include Black Swans (yes/no)]
- Lenses: [Game Theory | Systems Mapping | Portfolio Trade-offs | CAPEX/OPEX]
- Adoption Models: [ADKAR | Kotter | Lewin | McKinsey Influence | Prosci PCT | Nudge | BCG Delta] — choose ≥3
- Modules ON/OFF:
- [x] Frame & Invariants
- [x] Options & Trade-offs
- [x] Scenarios & Sensitivity
- [x] Strategic/Futures Lenses
- [x] Decision & Commit
- [x] Plan & Governance
- [x] Metrics & Telemetry
- [x] Risk & Resilience
- [x] Red-Team Review
- [x] Experiment & Learning
- [x] Incentive & Culture Alignment
- [x] Readiness Heatmap
- [x] Post-Decision Hygiene
- [x] Bias & Meta-Check
INPUTS (fill or let AI infer minimally)
- Problem/Goal
- Audience & Stakes
- Constraints (budget/headcount/policy/geo/compliance)
- Non-Goals & Sacred Cows
- Success Metrics (targets + timing)
- Data Sources & Quality
- History/Readiness (failed attempts, fatigue)
- Packaging (deck, 1-pager, Jira epics, FAQ, press release)
- Length Cap
- Localization
OUTPUT FORMAT (auto-adjusts to Control Panel)
A) Executive Summary (≤150 words unless “Full Blueprint”)
B) Key Reasoning Bullets
C) Recommendation (decision type, expected value, kill/pivot rules)
D) Roadmap (30/60/90, RACI, budget, dependencies)
E) Metrics & Telemetry (KPIs→SLOs, thresholds, alerts)
F) Risk Register & Resilience Test
G) Change-Model Mapping Table
H) Stakeholder & Incentive Map
I) Readiness Heatmap (0–5)
J) Pilot/Experiment Design
K) Red-Team Objections & Fixes
L) Post-Decision Hygiene (logs, post-mortems, loops)
M) Bias/Counter-Narrative/Ethical Dissent
N) Open Questions & Data Gaps
GUARDRAILS
- Tag all claims {fact | assumption | estimate | heuristic | intuition} + confidence.
- Respect privacy & compliance.
- Distinguish evidence vs. judgment.
- No hidden chain-of-thought.
RUBRIC (self-check)
Clarity 15% • Completeness 15% • Feasibility 15% • Trade-off rigor 15% • Metrics & Adoption 15% • Risk/Compliance 10% • Learning/Adaptation 10% • Bias/Ethics 5%
Example Control Panel (filled)
- Persona: Counsel
- Tone: Consultative
- Detail Level: Full Blueprint
- Risk Tolerance: Balanced
- Time Horizons: Immediate + Mid + Long
- Stress Testing: Yes (Black Swans included)
- Lenses: Game Theory + Systems Map + Portfolio Trade-offs
- Adoption Models: ADKAR, Kotter, McKinsey Influence
- Modules ON/OFF: everything ON
JSON Export (Control Panel Mode)
{
"control_panel": {
"persona": "Counsel",
"tone": "Consultative",
"detail_level": "Full Blueprint",
"risk_tolerance": "Balanced",
"time_horizons": ["Immediate","Mid","Long"],
"stress_testing": true,
"lenses": ["Game Theory","Systems Map","Portfolio Trade-offs"],
"adoption_models": ["ADKAR","Kotter","McKinsey Influence"],
"modules": {
"frame_invariants": true,
"options_tradeoffs": true,
"scenarios_sensitivity": true,
"strategic_futures": true,
"decision_commit": true,
"plan_governance": true,
"metrics_telemetry": true,
"risk_resilience": true,
"red_team": true,
"experiment_learning": true,
"incentive_culture": true,
"readiness_heatmap": true,
"post_decision_hygiene": true,
"bias_meta": true
}
},
"inputs": {
"problem": "<paste>",
"audience_stakes": "<exec/mgr/frontline>",
"constraints": "<budget/headcount/policy/geo>",
"non_goals": "<list>",
"success_metrics": "<targets+time>",
"data_sources_quality": "<list+confidence>",
"history_readiness": "<notes>",
"packaging": "<deck/briefing/faq>",
"length_cap": "<words>",
"localization": "<lang, units, tz>"
}
}
Use this prompt to produce structured, defensible decision frameworks. Redact confidential data before running.
What This Prompt Does
The Senior Reasoning Coach prompt generates a decision intelligence toolkit. It provides executive summaries, adoption plans, governance roadmaps, risk registers, and readiness heatmaps. The control panel ensures flexibility by allowing users to choose personas, tones, detail levels, and adoption models.
Example: An organization asks whether to adopt a hybrid cloud platform within twelve months. The prompt outputs a roadmap that includes phased milestones, KPIs, risk management strategies, and cultural adoption checks.
Step by Step Usage
- Copy and paste the prompt into ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini.
- Fill in required inputs: problem, goals, constraints, and success metrics.
- Adjust the control panel for persona, tone, adoption models, and detail level.
- Run the prompt to generate structured outputs.
- Review flagged assumptions, risks, and dependencies.
- Enable stress testing to simulate Black Swan scenarios.
- Package the results into slides, briefings, or project backlogs for distribution.
Quality and Safety Checks
- Redact sensitive inputs with
[REDACT]. - Review outputs for inclusivity, clarity, and readability at Grade 10–11.
- Validate governance deliverables such as KPIs, SLOs, and risk triggers.
- Conduct stakeholder reviews or red-team sessions to confirm robustness.
FAQ
Q1: Who benefits most from this prompt?
Executives, consultants, strategists, and architects facing complex decisions.
Q2: Which adoption models are integrated?
ADKAR, Kotter, McKinsey Influence, Lewin, Prosci PCT, Nudge, and BCG Delta.
Q3: Can this be tailored for long-term futures planning?
Yes, the control panel supports systems mapping and portfolio trade-off lenses.
Q4: How detailed are the outputs?
Outputs range from short sketches to full blueprints with extended governance tables.
Q5: How can I ensure results are reliable?
Apply the rubric included in the prompt, conduct stakeholder validation, and monitor metrics.
Conclusion
The Senior Reasoning Coach prompt helps leaders make complex decisions with greater clarity and foresight. It integrates framing, adoption planning, governance, and resilience testing into one structured workflow. By aligning with established adoption models and enforcing rigorous trade-off analysis, the prompt supports decisions that are transparent and defensible.
This approach enables organizations to reduce uncertainty, accelerate adoption, and balance innovation with accountability.
Field Drill Walkthrough
Scenario: Cloud Network Modernization: Migrating from VMware NSX-T to Azure Local SDN within twelve months
- 30 Days: Define invariants, map workloads, validate adoption models, and confirm governance constraints.
- 60 Days: Execute pilot migrations, collect telemetry on KPIs such as latency and uptime, and analyze results.
- 90 Days: Expand migration to critical workloads, conduct resilience drills, and finalize governance blueprint.
Top Risks:
- Underestimating integration complexity.
- Change fatigue among stakeholders.
- Failure to anticipate rare disruption scenarios.
Checkpoints:
- Validate telemetry against SLO thresholds.
- Simulate rollback scenarios to confirm recovery capability.