How to Automatically Generate Release Notes from Tickets Using the release-notes Skill

Yes, you can automatically generate release notes from tickets by feeding Jira, Linear, or changelog exports to the release-notes skill, which produces categorized, user-facing markdown in seconds without requiring custom code.

The release-notes skill is a ready-to-use component in the phuryn/pm-skills repository that transforms raw technical artifacts into polished release communications. Located within the pm-execution plugin, this skill processes input streams from various ticket systems and outputs structured release notes tailored for different audiences.

How the release-notes Skill Works

The skill executes a four-step workflow defined in pm-execution/skills/release-notes/SKILL.md to convert technical inputs into publishable content.

Step 1: Gather Raw Material

The skill reads supplied tickets, changelogs, PRDs, or Git logs and extracts three key elements: the change type, the affected user segment, and the benefit to the user. This extraction logic is defined in lines 18-22 of the skill definition.

Step 2: Categorize Changes

Each item is automatically sorted into one of five categories:

• New Features
• Improvements
• Bug Fixes
• Breaking Changes
• Deprecations

This categorization logic appears in lines 23-28 of SKILL.md.

Step 3: Write User-Facing Entries

The skill rewrites technical descriptions into concise, benefit-focused sentences of 1-3 lines using plain language. This transformation ensures that end users understand the value of each change rather than its implementation details. The phrasing rules are specified in lines 30-34.

Step 4: Structure the Output

Finally, the skill emits a markdown document with a formatted header, grouped sections by category, and optional tone adjustment for different audiences (B2B, consumer, or API). The output formatting rules are documented in lines 43-59.

Invoking the Release-Notes Skill

You can trigger the skill through two distinct invocation methods, both of which accept the same ticket payloads.

Direct Skill Call

Invoke the skill by name followed by your ticket data:

release-notes
---paste Jira CSV or markdown export---

This method runs the skill immediately using the workflow described above.

Via the Sprint Command

Alternatively, use the integrated sprint workflow:

/sprint release-notes
---paste your Linear tickets or changelog here---

The /sprint command routes input to the release-notes skill as part of its "Release Notes Mode" workflow. According to the command definition in pm-execution/commands/sprint.md (lines 42-66), this mode specifically calls the skill at step 2 of the execution flow.

Input Formats and Code Examples

The skill accepts unstructured text from any ticket system. Consider this sample input containing Jira ticket snippets:

PROJ-123: Add dashboard filters (new feature)
PROJ-124: Speed up dashboard loading (performance improvement)
PROJ-125: Fix crash when exporting CSV (bug fix)

When processed, the skill generates structured markdown output:

# Dashboard – v2.3.0 (2025‑06‑27)

## New Features

- **Dashboard filters** – Users can now narrow the view to specific data sets, making analysis faster and more targeted.

## Improvements

- **Dashboard performance** – Loading times are up to 3× faster, letting users get insights quicker.

## Bug Fixes

- **CSV export crash** – Resolved an issue that caused the export to fail for large data sets.

You can also pipe the output of ticket-export scripts directly into the skill to generate changelogs in automated pipelines without manual intervention.

Summary

• The release-notes skill lives in pm-execution/skills/release-notes/SKILL.md and requires no custom code to operate.
• It processes raw inputs from Jira, Linear, PRDs, or Git logs and categorizes them into five standard change types.
• You can invoke it directly via release-notes or through the /sprint release-notes command defined in pm-execution/commands/sprint.md.
• Output is generated as markdown with optional tone adjustments for B2B, consumer, or API audiences.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the release-notes skill handle Linear tickets?

Yes, the skill accepts ticket data from any source, including Linear, Jira, or plain text changelogs. As long as the input contains descriptions of changes, the skill in phuryn/pm-skills processes and categorizes them regardless of the original format.

Does generating release notes require writing custom code?

No, the release-notes skill is a ready-to-use component. According to the source code in pm-execution/skills/release-notes/SKILL.md, the system automatically loads the skill definition and executes the workflow when invoked. You only need to provide the raw ticket data.

What output formats does the skill support?

By default, the skill emits markdown documents with grouped sections and headers. However, the skill definition in lines 43-59 of SKILL.md supports optional format adjustments, allowing you to request HTML or other formats if your publishing pipeline requires them.

Where is the release-notes skill defined in the repository?

The primary definition resides at pm-execution/skills/release-notes/SKILL.md. Additionally, the integration with the sprint workflow is configured in pm-execution/commands/sprint.md, and the skill is cataloged in the top-level README.md as a user-facing feature of the phuryn/pm-skills marketplace.

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