Creating and Editing Skills in CrunchAI

Background

Every skill in CrunchAI started as a workflow someone runs over and over — drafting an RFI, checking a change order, validating a schedule after a contract is signed. Instead of retyping the same long prompt each time, you can package that workflow into a named skill and invoke it in one step. The fastest way to create one is simply to describe it to CrunchAI in plain language: tell it what the skill should do, what output you want, and when it should run. CrunchAI writes the skill for you, you refine it until the results are right, and — if you're an org admin — you can publish it so your whole team runs the same standardized workflow. And because a skill is just saved instructions, you can open it and edit it any time it starts behaving wrong, no support ticket required. This article covers how to create a skill from scratch, how to describe it well the first time, and how to fix one that isn't behaving.

Things to Consider

• You create a skill by asking for it. There's no separate form to fill out — you describe the skill conversationally in Project Assist and CrunchAI builds it.

• Anyone can create a personal skill. It saves to your account and is available only to you.

• Only org admins can create organization skills. Org skills appear for everyone on the team and are how companies standardize a workflow. The ability to create them is tied to your account's tier and permissions. If you're not an admin, you can still build the skill personally and ask your admin to promote it.

• Skills package existing capabilities. A skill is a smarter, saved way of asking — it doesn't add a new AI engine. If Project Assist can't already do something, a skill can't either.

• The quality of a skill depends on the quality of your description. Vague instructions produce inconsistent results. Be specific about output format, structure, and when the skill should run (see the tips below).

• A skill only uses the documents selected in the chat. Narrow your selection before invoking for the most relevant results.

• Skills don't use your company templates yet. You can give detailed formatting and layout instructions, but a skill won't carry over letterhead or images from a template.

• Personal skills can't be shared directly. To share one, copy the instructions to a teammate, or ask an org admin to recreate it as an org skill.

• Edits take effect immediately. When you update a skill's instructions, the revised version is live in Project Assist right away.

Steps

Create a skill (the fast way)

1. In Project Assist, start a new chat.

2. Ask CrunchAI to create a skill and describe what it should do — for example, "Create a CrunchAI skill called Schedule & Budget Validation that reviews my project documents after contract signing and flags unrealistic budget numbers and obvious scheduling problems."

3. CrunchAI may ask a few clarifying questions — who the output is for, what format you want, how detailed it should be. Answer them.

4. CrunchAI confirms the skill was created and tells you its slug — the shortcut that appears when you type / in chat (for example, /schedule-budget-validation).

5. The new skill appears in your skills list, scoped to your personal account. To make it available to your team, see Name and publish an organization skill below.

Describe your skill well the first time

The single biggest factor in getting a skill right is how specifically you describe it up front. In testing, a strong first request that covers the six points below gets you to a usable skill in one pass, instead of many rounds of back-and-forth. Before you ask CrunchAI to build a skill, be ready to state:

1. Purpose — what the skill checks, drafts, or produces. "Validate the budget and schedule in my project documents after the contract is signed."

2. Who it's for and when it runs — the role and the moment in the workflow. "For the PX or lead PM, to run an initial validation before I accept a project to manage."

3. What to flag (and what to ignore) — be explicit about scope. "Flag unrealistic budget numbers, obvious date conflicts, sequencing issues, and unrealistic manpower. Flag Sunday work but note if we agreed to it. Skip minor issues I'll work out later."

4. Output format — the exact deliverable. "An Excel file, well-formatted and printable, with multiple tabs, that I can import into other PM apps."

5. Structure and emphasis — how the output should be organized. "Put a single suggested recommendation at the top, then the detailed issue log below. Use colored indicators (red/yellow/green) for severity."

6. When to ask for your input — whether the skill should pause for confirmation. "Ask me for input each time before producing the final output."

   Tip! Be specific about the output: which fields or columns, how tabs are organized, and the file type (Excel, Word, or in-chat table). The more precise the instructions, the more consistent the results.

Refine the skill before you rely on it

1. Run the skill once on a real project and review the output.

2. If something's off, tell CrunchAI what to change in plain language — "Remove the legal validation section," "Make the output an Excel file instead of in-chat," or "Only flag dates if there's a major issue."

3. CrunchAI updates the skill. Repeat until the output is what you want.

   Tip! Trim scope that isn't yours to own. If a check produces items you'll "have to live with" or that another team already covers, tell the skill to drop it — unless the item is extreme risk or cost. A focused skill is faster and easier to read.

Put it all together (the one command most people want)

Once the output looks right, you don't have to recreate anything by hand. A single command captures the whole conversation as a named, shareable skill:

"Generate a new prompt based on our conversation above named 'CUSTOM-xyz', then turn that into an org-level skill so I can share it with others."

That one command creates the final prompt for reference, creates the skill, names it, and shares it with your team.

Name and publish an organization skill (org admins)

1. Decide on a clear, descriptive name. Follow your organization's naming convention so team members can spot custom skills at a glance — for example, prefacing the name with CUSTOM ("CUSTOM Schedule & Budget Validation") to distinguish it from Document Crunch's premade library.

2. As an org admin, ask CrunchAI to create the skill as an organization skill, or create it through the Skills dashboard. Give it the same detailed instructions you'd use for a personal skill.

3. Confirm the skill and its slug. It now appears for everyone on the team.

   Note: If you're not an admin, build the skill personally and ask your admin to publish it team-wide.

Edit a skill that isn't behaving right

You don't need a support ticket to fix a skill — you can tune it yourself.

1. Open the Skills dashboard from Manage skills at the bottom of the skills list, or go to User Settings → Skills.

2. Click into a personal skill (or, if you're an org admin, an organization skill).

3. Review the Display Name and Instructions, and edit the instructions directly:

   a. If the output is wrong — change the format, columns, tabs, or structure instructions to match what you want.

   b. If the skill fires at the wrong times, or ignores asks it should handle — add a "when to invoke this skill" section describing the requests it should and shouldn't respond to.

   c. If it flags too much or too little — tighten or loosen the "what to flag" instructions.

4. Click Update. The revised skill is immediately available in Project Assist.

   Note: Editing a premade Document Crunch skill isn't available — those are managed centrally. If a premade skill needs tuning, let Support know. You can always create your own version instead.

Troubleshooting

• CrunchAI created a skill different from what I pictured.

  • Tell it what to change in plain language and it will revise the skill. You don't have to start over.

• My skill's results are inconsistent from run to run.

  • The instructions are probably too vague. Open the skill and add specifics — exact columns, structure, output format, and a clear statement of what to flag.

• The skill fires when I didn't want it, or misses asks it should catch.

  • Open it from Manage skills and add a "when to invoke this skill" section describing the asks it should and shouldn't respond to.

• The results feel off-target or too broad.

  • Check which documents are selected in the chat. A skill only works with what you've selected — narrowing to the governing contract and specs usually sharpens the output.

• The output doesn't match my company template.

  • Skills don't reference templates yet and won't carry over letterhead or images. Get close by giving the skill explicit formatting, sequencing, and layout instructions.

• I want my personal skill available to my team.

  • Personal skills are private. Copy the instructions to a teammate so they can recreate it, or ask an org admin to publish it as an organization skill.

• I'm not an org admin but I need an org-wide skill.

  • Build it as a personal skill, get it working, then send the instructions to your admin to create the organization version.