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A skill is reusable guidance an agent can invoke for a defined task. Skills are broader than helpdesk runbooks: they can support Chat, projects, Custom Agents, and other enabled workflows. Forge can distinguish:
  • Custom Skills maintained by your organization;
  • Runbooks for organization- or account-specific helpdesk procedures;
  • System Skills supplied for platform capabilities.

Build a custom skill

1

Define when to use it

Describe the trigger, intended user or agent, and out-of-scope cases.
2

Write the contract

State required inputs, ordered approach, allowed sources, expected output, and failure behavior.
3

Add references and files

Include stable source material that improves execution. Avoid attaching customer-specific data to an organization-wide skill.
4

Create tests

Test a normal case, an edge case, missing information, and a case that should cause a stop or escalation.
5

Review the version

Compare changes and ensure the active version is the one you tested.
6

Activate deliberately

Keep changes in draft until the owner accepts the results.

Skill writing principles

  • Prefer observable steps over vague expertise.
  • State source precedence when records can conflict.
  • Require evidence for material claims.
  • Make account and organization scope explicit.
  • Include stop conditions, not only the happy path.
  • Keep one primary job per skill.

Choose a skill or runbook

Use a runbook when the procedure governs a ticket lifecycle and may determine AI Engineer eligibility. Use a skill for reusable reasoning, analysis, drafting, or operational work across surfaces.
When a skill fails repeatedly for the same missing context, fix the input contract or connected-system setup before adding more prose.