How to Define North Star and Input Metrics with Skills

The North Star Metric skill in the phuryn/pm-skills repository provides a structured framework to identify a single customer-centric KPI and 3-5 supporting input metrics through business-game classification and seven-criterion validation.

Defining a North Star Metric (NSM) and its associated input metrics is essential for aligning product teams around sustainable growth. The pm-skills open-source collection offers a codified approach to define North Star and input metrics with skills through the pm-marketing-growth toolkit. This guide explains the implementation based on the actual source files in the phuryn/pm-skills repository.

Understanding the North Star Metric Skill

The North Star Metric skill is defined in pm-marketing-growth/skills/north-star-metric/SKILL.md. Unlike generic KPI frameworks, this skill distinguishes a true NSM from concepts like multiple metrics, revenue-only indicators, or OKRs. According to lines 9-14 of the source file, an NSM must be a single, customer-focused indicator that predicts long-term business success rather than short-term revenue extraction.

The Three-Part Framework for Metric Definition

The skill implementation follows a rigorous three-part architecture to ensure strategic alignment.

Domain Context and Definition

Before selecting metrics, the skill establishes clear boundaries around what constitutes a valid North Star Metric. As implemented in SKILL.md (lines 9-14), the framework explicitly excludes compound metrics or financial-only indicators, requiring instead a singular measure of customer value delivery that correlates with sustainable growth.

Business-Game Classification

The skill requires classifying your business into one of three "games" that define how value is delivered to customers:

• Attention Game: Measures time spent using the product (e.g., Facebook, Spotify) — defined in lines 25-31 of SKILL.md
• Transaction Game: Counts the number of transactions or exchanges (e.g., Amazon, Uber) — defined in lines 29-31
• Productivity Game: Tracks efficiency of task completion (e.g., Notion, Loom) — defined in lines 30-32

This classification ensures your NSM aligns with your core value proposition rather than generic engagement metrics.

Seven-Criterion Validation and Input Metrics

After selecting a candidate NSM, the skill validates it against seven essential criteria defined in lines 44-51: understandable, customer-centric, sustainable value, vision-aligned, quantitative, actionable, and leading indicator.

Once validated, you define 3-5 input metrics (lines 53-57) that function as short-term levers. These leading indicators must be directly tied to the NSM and designed to be easier to move quickly than the long-term North Star.

How to Invoke the North Star Command

The skill is exposed through the /pm-marketing-growth:north-star command, with the command interface defined in pm-marketing-growth/commands/north-star.md and workflow integration shown in pm-product-discovery/commands/setup-metrics.md (lines 2-8).

Invoke the skill via CLI with a business context description:

# Invoke the North Star metric command with a brief business description

pm-marketing-growth:north-star "We run a SaaS platform that helps remote teams collaborate on documents and real-time brainstorming."

The output includes:

• Business-game classification (e.g., Attention Game)
• Suggested NSM (e.g., Daily Active Users)
• 3-5 input metrics (e.g., New Teams Created, Avg. Session Length, Feature Adoption Rate)

For programmatic integration, render the skill template directly:

from pm_skills import render_skill

skill_path = "pm-marketing-growth/skills/north-star-metric/SKILL.md"
business_context = "Our marketplace connects freelance designers with clients; revenue is commission-based."
result = render_skill(skill_path, arguments=business_context)
print(result)   # Structured response with classification, NSM, and input metrics

Summary

• The North Star Metric skill in pm-marketing-growth/skills/north-star-metric/SKILL.md provides a structured framework for defining customer-centric KPIs
• Classify your business into Attention, Transaction, or Productivity games before selecting your NSM
• Validate your chosen metric against seven criteria including customer-centricity and leading indicator status
• Define exactly 3-5 input metrics as short-term levers directly tied to the North Star
• Access the skill via the /pm-marketing-growth:north-star command or programmatically using the render_skill function

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a North Star Metric and input metrics?

The North Star Metric is a single, long-term KPI that predicts sustainable business success, while input metrics are 3-5 short-term levers that directly influence the NSM and are easier to move quickly. According to the source code in lines 53-57 of SKILL.md, input metrics must be explicitly designed to drive movement in the North Star.

How do I choose between Attention, Transaction, and Productivity games?

Classify based on your core value delivery mechanism: use Attention Game for engagement-time products like Spotify, Transaction Game for marketplace exchanges like Uber, and Productivity Game for efficiency tools like Notion. This classification logic in lines 25-32 of SKILL.md ensures your NSM reflects actual customer value received.

Can I use the North Star skill outside of the CLI?

Yes. While the command-line interface provides the /pm-marketing-growth:north-star command, you can import the render_skill function from the pm_skills package and call the underlying prompt template programmatically by referencing pm-marketing-growth/skills/north-star-metric/SKILL.md directly.

Where are the validation criteria defined in the source code?

The seven validation criteria—understandable, customer-centric, sustainable value, vision-aligned, quantitative, actionable, and leading indicator—are defined in pm-marketing-growth/skills/north-star-metric/SKILL.md at lines 44-51. These criteria ensure the selected metric truly serves as a reliable compass for product decisions.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "instagit@latest"]
    }
  }
}