Seriousness tiers¶
Apothem scales governance overhead to the engagement level. A quick exploration does not need signed commits; a production launch does.
The four tiers¶
| Tier | When to use | Governance floor |
|---|---|---|
| EXPLORING | Prototypes, throwaway experiments | Lint + tests + CM-1/5/10 |
| PERSONAL_USE | Personal tools, local scripts | + Type-check + per-phase commits + PROGRESS.md |
| SHARED | Team projects, open-source | + FAIL blocks execution + per-task commits + full docs + agent teams |
| PUBLIC_LAUNCH | Production services, published packages | + Security scans + signed commits + semver + mandatory re-review |
Ad-hoc default¶
When no seriousness tier is specified, apothem defaults to PERSONAL_USE.
Minimum viable governance¶
At EXPLORING, three cross-cutting mandates always apply regardless of tier: - CM-1 (Critical Evaluation) - CM-5 (Best Solution) - CM-10 (Brutal Honesty)
Tier escalation¶
The seriousness tier can be escalated mid-project. When a PERSONAL_USE project graduates to SHARED, run the full Phase 07 local green-card sweep to catch any governance gaps that accumulated at the lower tier.