memory-management

Q: How do I install memory-management?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins --skill memory-management in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/memory-management/ (personal) or .claude/skills/memory-management/ (project).

by anthropics Official

Two-tier memory system that makes Claude a true workplace collaborator. Decodes shorthand, acronyms, nicknames, and internal language so Claude understands requests like a colleague would. CLAUDE.md for working memory, memory/ directory for the full knowledge base.

Installs: 7.5K
Last 24h: +15
Trending rank: #6962
Security: Pass

Install

Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.

npx skills add https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins --skill memory-management

01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads memory-management automatically when relevant.
03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.

Security audits

Independent scans of the skill's instructions and bundled files.

Gen Agent Trust Hub PassSAFE ·This skill implements a structured tiered memory system designed to store and retrieve organizational context, shorthand terms, and project profiles. It introduces a potential security consideration regarding indirect prompt injection surfaces, as the system relies on reading local workspace files that could ingest unverified content if populated from shared or external sources. Reviewing data boundaries and verification steps is recommended.

Socket PassNo alerts

Snyk PassLOW ·Risk: LOW · No issues

Runlayer PassLOW ·1/1 file flagged

ZeroLeaks PassNONE ·Score: 93/100 · 2 sections analyzed

SKILL.md

The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.

Memory Management

Memory makes Claude your workplace collaborator - someone who speaks your internal language.

The Goal

Transform shorthand into understanding:

User: "ask todd to do the PSR for oracle"
              ↓ Claude decodes
"Ask Todd Martinez (Finance lead) to prepare the Pipeline Status Report
 for the Oracle Systems deal ($2.3M, closing Q2)"

Without memory, that request is meaningless. With memory, Claude knows:

todd → Todd Martinez, Finance lead, prefers Slack
PSR → Pipeline Status Report (weekly sales doc)
oracle → Oracle Systems deal, not the company

Architecture

CLAUDE.md          ← Hot cache (~30 people, common terms)
memory/
  glossary.md      ← Full decoder ring (everything)
  people/          ← Complete profiles
  projects/        ← Project details
  context/         ← Company, teams, tools

CLAUDE.md (Hot Cache):

Top ~30 people you interact with most
~30 most common acronyms/terms
Active projects (5-15)
Your preferences
Goal: Cover 90% of daily decoding needs

memory/glossary.md (Full Glossary):

Complete decoder ring - everyone, every term
Searched when something isn't in CLAUDE.md
Can grow indefinitely

memory/people/, projects/, context/:

Rich detail when needed for execution
Full profiles, history, context

Lookup Flow

User: "ask todd about the PSR for phoenix"

1. Check CLAUDE.md (hot cache)
   → Todd? ✓ Todd Martinez, Finance
   → PSR? ✓ Pipeline Status Report
   → Phoenix? ✓ DB migration project

2. If not found → search memory/glossary.md
   → Full glossary has everyone/everything

3. If still not found → ask user
   → "What does X mean? I'll remember it."

This tiered approach keeps CLAUDE.md lean (~100 lines) while supporting unlimited scale in memory/.

File Locations

Working memory: CLAUDE.md in current working directory
Deep memory: memory/ subdirectory

Working Memory Format (CLAUDE.md)

Use tables for compactness. Target ~50-80 lines total.

# Memory

## Me
[Name], [Role] on [Team]. [One sentence about what I do.]

## People
| Who | Role |
|-----|------|
| **Todd** | Todd Martinez, Finance lead |
| **Sarah** | Sarah Chen, Engineering (Platform) |
| **Greg** | Greg Wilson, Sales |
→ Full list: memory/glossary.md, profiles: memory/people/

## Terms
| Term | Meaning |
|------|---------|
| PSR | Pipeline Status Report |
| P0 | Drop everything priority |
| standup | Daily 9am sync |
→ Full glossary: memory/glossary.md

## Projects
| Name | What |
|------|------|
| **Phoenix** | DB migration, Q2 launch |
| **Horizon** | Mobile app redesign |
→ Details: memory/projects/

## Preferences
- 25-min meetings with buffers
- Async-first, Slack over email
- No meetings Friday afternoons

Deep Memory Format (memory/)

memory/glossary.md - The decoder ring:

# Glossary

Workplace shorthand, acronyms, and internal language.

## Acronyms
| Term | Meaning | Context |
|------|---------|---------|
| PSR | Pipeline Status Report | Weekly sales doc |
| OKR | Objectives & Key Results | Quarterly planning |
| P0/P1/P2 | Priority levels | P0 = drop everything |

## Internal Terms
| Term | Meaning |
|------|---------|
| standup | Daily 9am sync in #engineering |
| the migration | Project Phoenix database work |
| ship it | Deploy to production |
| escalate | Loop in leadership |

## Nicknames → Full Names
| Nickname | Person |
|----------|--------|
| Todd | Todd Martinez (Finance) |
| T | Also Todd Martinez |

## Project Codenames
| Codename | Project |
|----------|---------|
| Phoenix | Database migration |
| Horizon | New mobile app |

memory/people/{name}.md:

# Todd Martinez

**Also known as:** Todd, T
**Role:** Finance Lead
**Team:** Finance
**Reports to:** CFO (Michael Chen)

## Communication
- Prefers Slack DM
- Quick responses, very direct
- Best time: mornings

## Context
- Handles all PSRs and financial reporting
- Key contact for deal approvals over $500k
- Works closely with Sales on forecasting

## Notes
- Cubs fan, likes talking baseball

memory/projects/{name}.md:

# Project Phoenix

**Codename:** Phoenix
**Also called:** "the migration"
**Status:** Active, launching Q2

## What It Is
Database migration from legacy Oracle to PostgreSQL.

## Key People
- Sarah - tech lead
- Todd - budget owner
- Greg - stakeholder (sales impact)

## Context
$1.2M budget, 6-month timeline. Critical path for Horizon project.

memory/context/company.md:

# Company Context

## Tools & Systems
| Tool | Used for | Internal name |
|------|----------|---------------|
| Slack | Communication | - |
| Asana | Engineering tasks | - |
| Salesforce | CRM | "SF" or "the CRM" |
| Notion | Docs/wiki | - |

## Teams
| Team | What they do | Key people |
|------|--------------|------------|
| Platform | Infrastructure | Sarah (lead) |
| Finance | Money stuff | Todd (lead) |
| Sales | Revenue | Greg |

## Processes
| Process | What it means |
|---------|---------------|
| Weekly sync | Monday 10am all-hands |
| Ship review | Thursday deploy approval |

How to Interact

Decoding User Input (Tiered Lookup)

Always decode shorthand before acting on requests:

1. CLAUDE.md (hot cache)     → Check first, covers 90% of cases
2. memory/glossary.md        → Full glossary if not in hot cache
3. memory/people/, projects/ → Rich detail when needed
4. Ask user                  → Unknown term? Learn it.

Example:

User: "ask todd to do the PSR for oracle"

CLAUDE.md lookup:
  "todd" → Todd Martinez, Finance ✓
  "PSR" → Pipeline Status Report ✓
  "oracle" → (not in hot cache)

memory/glossary.md lookup:
  "oracle" → Oracle Systems deal ($2.3M) ✓

Now Claude can act with full context.

Adding Memory

When user says "remember this" or "X means Y":

Glossary items (acronyms, terms, shorthand):
- Add to memory/glossary.md
- If frequently used, add to CLAUDE.md Quick Glossary
People:
- Create/update memory/people/{name}.md
- Add to CLAUDE.md Key People if important
- Capture nicknames - critical for decoding
Projects:
- Create/update memory/projects/{name}.md
- Add to CLAUDE.md Active Projects if current
- Capture codenames - "Phoenix", "the migration", etc.
Preferences: Add to CLAUDE.md Preferences section

Recalling Memory

When user asks "who is X" or "what does X mean":

Check CLAUDE.md first
Check memory/ for full detail
If not found: "I don't know what X means yet. Can you tell me?"

Progressive Disclosure

Load CLAUDE.md for quick parsing of any request
Dive into memory/ when you need full context for execution
Example: drafting an email to todd about the PSR
- CLAUDE.md tells you Todd = Todd Martinez, PSR = Pipeline Status Report
- memory/people/todd-martinez.md tells you he prefers Slack, is direct

Bootstrapping

Use /productivity:start to initialize by scanning your chat, calendar, email, and documents. Extracts people, projects, and starts building the glossary.

Conventions

Bold terms in CLAUDE.md for scannability
Keep CLAUDE.md under ~100 lines (the "hot 30" rule)
Filenames: lowercase, hyphens (todd-martinez.md, project-phoenix.md)
Always capture nicknames and alternate names
Glossary tables for easy lookup
When something's used frequently, promote it to CLAUDE.md
When something goes stale, demote it to memory/ only

What Goes Where

Type	CLAUDE.md (Hot Cache)	memory/ (Full Storage)
Person	Top ~30 frequent contacts	glossary.md + people/{name}.md
Acronym/term	~30 most common	glossary.md (complete list)
Project	Active projects only	glossary.md + projects/{name}.md
Nickname	In Key People if top 30	glossary.md (all nicknames)
Company context	Quick reference only	context/company.md
Preferences	All preferences	-
Historical/stale	✗ Remove	✓ Keep in memory/

Promotion / Demotion

Promote to CLAUDE.md when:

You use a term/person frequently
It's part of active work

Demote to memory/ only when:

Project completed
Person no longer frequent contact
Term rarely used

This keeps CLAUDE.md fresh and relevant.

FAQ

What does the memory-management skill do?

How do I install memory-management?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins --skill memory-management in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/memory-management/ (personal) or .claude/skills/memory-management/ (project).

Which AI agents can use memory-management?

Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.

Is memory-management safe to install?

Security partners have reviewed it: Gen Agent Trust Hub passed; Socket passed; Snyk passed; Runlayer passed; ZeroLeaks passed. As with any skill, read the SKILL.md and bundled scripts before installing.

Who maintains memory-management?

It is published by anthropics in anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins, and it is an official skill from the maker of the technology it covers. It has 7,454 recorded installs.