---
rdr: RDR-001
title: "RDR Process Validation"
closed_date: 2026-03-04
close_reason: implemented
---

# Post-Mortem: RDR-001 — RDR Process Validation

## RDR Summary

Evaluated the RDR process across three pilot RDRs, identified seven improvements (P1–P7), and proposed specific fixes for enforcement gaps, template gaps, and status model ambiguity.

## Implementation Status

All seven improvements (P1–P7) implemented across the plugin and documentation layers.

## Implementation vs. Plan

| Item | Planned | Delivered | Drift |
|------|---------|-----------|-------|
| P1: Hard-block close without accepted/final | `rdr-close` checks status, blocks non-accepted | ✓ Implemented with `--force` override | None |
| P2: Research findings discoverability | `rdr-gate` prints prompt if no T2 research findings | ✓ Layer 1 check added to gate output | None |
| P3: Test Plan section in template | Add `## Test Plan` to `TEMPLATE.md` | ✓ Added to `resources/rdr/TEMPLATE.md` | None |
| P4: `reviewed-by` field + YAML frontmatter | Standardize on YAML frontmatter | ✓ `reviewed-by` in all new RDRs | None |
| P5: Define status model | BLOCKED/PASSED outcomes; Draft/Accepted/Implemented terminal states | ✓ Documented in `rdr-workflow.md` | None |
| P6: Gate findings to Revision History | Move findings to `## Revision History` appendix | ✓ Convention established | None |
| P7: Cross-RDR consistency check | Layer 3 checks `related_issues` for contradictions | ✓ Implemented in `rdr-gate` prompt | None |

## Drift Classification

No significant drift. All items implemented as designed.

## RDR Quality Assessment

- Gate caught: multiple critical issues including layer attribution errors, plan/design contradictions, inaccurate evidence tables
- All critical issues resolved before acceptance
- The process worked exactly as the RDR itself hypothesized it would

## Key Takeaways

- The RDR process is self-validating: writing an RDR about the RDR process and running it through the gate caught real issues
- P2 (research discoverability) was the highest-leverage fix: the gate now surfaces a reminder when no research findings exist
- The T2-primary architecture (gate results in T2, file as secondary) proved valuable during implementation
