# ADR-0009: Replace `researching` with `creating` as the fourth function-mode

- **Date:** 2026-05-04
- **Status:** accepted
- **Reversibility:** medium (the mode-set is referenced from BOOTSTRAP-BRIEF Section II, TERMS.md Category 1, the deploy and architect-discovery skills, the four layer templates, and the microsite; reverting requires the same surfaces)
- **Deciders:** alexander.phi@airtable.com (operator)
- **Scope:** kit (V1.1 supersession of ADR-0006's mode-set)

## Context

ADR-0006 set four function modes — `building` / `operating` / `deciding` / `researching` (plus `mixed`) — based on the principle "the kit serves any function with structure worth governing, not just builders." That framing held; `researching` did not.

In rendering the kit for the AirLoop Builder Prize submission (cross-functional Airtable audience), `researching` landed as the least relatable mode. The likely population of cross-functional deployers tilts heavily toward content people: writers, designers, marketers, content producers, campaign owners. They have structure worth governing (editorial standards, brand voice, asset rights, draft-to-publish handoffs, channel-specific cuts). They are not researchers and do not see themselves in `researching`.

Operator framing 2026-05-04:

> "Also include a 'create' lens. Content people probably have the most relatable lens. Replace research with it."

ADR-0006's principle is preserved (the kit serves any function with structure worth governing). ADR-0006's instantiation of that principle is revised: the fourth mode shifts from an aspirational research framing to a creating framing that lands for a much larger user population.

## Decision

Replace `researching` with `creating` as the fourth function-mode. New mode set:

- `building` - actively constructing new capability; eval baselines and reproducibility gates load-bearing
- `operating` - running an existing process; not building; L0 + L7 + inbox-outbox load-bearing
- `deciding` - decision-rich function; ADR practice load-bearing; lighter on platform-kit work
- `creating` - content-driven; producing a series, a campaign, or pieces moving from draft to publish; brand-voice + review/approval + rights-handling load-bearing
- `mixed` - name dominant + secondary

ADR-0006 stays on record with `Status: superseded by ADR-0009`. Its function-adaptation framework, organizationally-aware skill population, and existing-process integration remain in force; only the fourth-mode label and content change.

## Options considered

### Option A: Replace `researching` with `creating` [CHOSEN]

- **Pros:** Lands for content people (the largest cross-functional audience). Concrete examples translate cleanly across L3-L7 (DAM, brand kit, content templates, draft-to-publish handoffs, channel-specific cuts). Preserves the four-mode shape ADR-0006 established.
- **Cons:** ADR-0006 is superseded after only three days. Researching-flavored deployments lose first-class slot; researchers fold into `mixed` or use `creating` with research-adjacent translation.

### Option B: Add `creating` as a fifth mode (researching stays)

- **Pros:** Doesn't lose the researching vocabulary. Supports both audiences.
- **Cons:** Five modes is more cognitive load. Templates would need to weight five different ways. The function-mode toggle / legend gets noisier. ADR-0006's four-mode shape was deliberate; expanding to five erodes it.

### Option C: Keep researching and frame creating as a sub-mode

- **Pros:** Minimum changes.
- **Cons:** Forces operators to translate creating-work as research, which is the opposite of the operator's stated intent. Misleads content-flavored deployers about where they belong.

## Rationale

ADR-0006's stated principle was function-agnostic. The mode set was a concrete instantiation of that principle, calibrated to the populations the operator expected at landing time. Three days of post-V1 use named a population the kit was undershooting (content people) and an aspirational mode the kit was overshooting (researchers). Re-instantiating the mode set to match the actual population is the least-cost correction that preserves ADR-0006's framework.

Option A is the only option that preserves four modes and lands the right population. Option B's five-mode approach would re-open shape decisions ADR-0006 closed; Option C would require operators to misclassify their work to fit the kit. Both fail the "the kit lands naturally for any function-mode" test from ADR-0006.

## Consequences

### Positive

- More relatable mode set for cross-functional Airtable audiences (the immediate AirLoop submission context and likely future deployers)
- Per-mode examples in L3-L7 read cleanly for content people: DAM as shared memory, brand kit as L4 toolkit, draft-to-publish as L5 instance, voice consistency as L6 refinement, rights-and-approval as L7 consent flow
- The four-mode shape from ADR-0006 is preserved; only the fourth label/content changes

### Negative

- Researching-flavored deployments lose first-class slot. Researchers should fold into `mixed` mode (e.g., `mixed: deciding + creating with research orientation`) or self-translate `creating` to research-adjacent vocabulary at deploy time.
- ADR-0006 is superseded after three days. The kit's audit trail records the rapid revision; future operators see the cycle.
- Existing kit-canonical references to "researcher" in older artifacts (PHILOSOPHY.md cross-functions paragraph, OPERATING-MODEL.md vocabulary key) are updated; ADR-0006 itself stays at original text per ADR immutability.

### Followups

- BOOTSTRAP-BRIEF.md Section II layer table: replace Research column with Create column in L3-L7
- BOOTSTRAP-BRIEF.md function-mode awareness paragraph: update mode list
- TERMS.md function-mode awareness paragraph: update mode list
- L3, L4, L5, L7 template frontmatter notes: replace "operator / decider / researcher" with "operator / decider / creator"
- QUESTIONS.md Q1: replace `researching` with `creating`
- PHILOSOPHY.md "Why the kit adapts to the user's function, not just builders": update mode list
- skills/deploy/SKILL.md: replace `researching` with `creating` in the function-mode dispatch
- skills/architect-discovery/SKILL.md: replace `researching` with `creating` in Q1 capture
- OPERATING-MODEL.md vocabulary key: update function-mode entry
- Microsite §⑨: replace Research toggle pill with Create pill; replace per-mode descriptions across L3-L7
- Microsite §②: replace "researchers" with "creators" in cross-function callout
- Microsite §⑥: replace "researcher's" with "creator's" in worked-example function-mode note
- Microsite V1.1 behavior list: update mode list

## Reproducibility note

Not applicable. This is a decision-level revision affecting kit vocabulary, not an AI-output revision.

## Cross-references

- ADR-0006 (function-adaptation; superseded for the mode-set revision; framework otherwise intact)
- BOOTSTRAP-BRIEF Section II (layer table; renders the mode set in function-mode-tagged examples)
- TERMS.md Category 1 (function-mode awareness paragraph)
- QUESTIONS.md Q1 (function-mode capture)
- PHILOSOPHY.md (function-adaptation rationale)
- skills/deploy/SKILL.md (function-mode dispatch)
- skills/architect-discovery/SKILL.md (Q1 capture)
