Using Proprietary Frameworks Safely

Reference documentation for Using Proprietary Frameworks Safely in Adaptive Skills.

Goal

Explain how a skill can use a proprietary framework — strategic, design, or analytical — without copying it into the skill and without exposing it inappropriately at runtime.

The mechanism is: capsule + manifest + dependency declaration, governed by AletheIA’s Knowledge Governance Layer.

The three artifacts

Knowledge pack manifest — declares ownership, version, sensitivity, authority, scope, retrieval mode, and usage policy. Lives in the project / org, not in the skill. See knowledge-pack-manifest.
Framework capsule — operational summary of the framework. The default surface a skill consumes. See framework-capsules.
Skill knowledge dependency — the skill says “I need a strategic framework”, not “I need framework X”. The resolver decides which pack satisfies the slot.

Authoring path

Identify the framework you intend to use.
Confirm its owner. If you are not the owner, get authorization to capsule it.
Write a capsule that is operational, not narrative. Use the framework-capsule-template.
Write the manifest with sensitivity, authority, retrieval mode, and exposure rules.
In the skill, declare a knowledge dependency on the type (proprietary_framework, product_strategy, etc.), not on the pack id.
Choose a preferred_retrieval_mode of capsule_first unless there is a strong reason to consult the full source.
Ensure the skill operates in generic mode when no authorized pack is available.

Capsule discipline

A capsule is small and operational. It does not include:

the framework’s full narrative
proprietary diagrams that encode the framework’s value
examples drawn from real, identifiable engagements
carve-outs that belong to one organization

If you find yourself paraphrasing the framework into the capsule, stop. The capsule is how to use the framework, not what it is in detail.

Runtime posture

When a knowledge-aware skill runs:

the resolver picks a pack that fills the slot
the resolver returns the capsule first by default
the skill reasons from the capsule
the skill cites the pack id@version in its output
the skill marks any restrictions active (no verbatim, no export, etc.)
the skill writes audit entries per knowledge-audit-log-spec

If the framework is confidential or higher, the skill must:

not reproduce verbatim text
not include the framework body in handoffs, logs, or traces
escalate to human review if the deliverable is external

What to do when there is no capsule

If a framework you want to use does not yet have a capsule:

Do not inline its content into the skill.
Do not paste it into a system prompt.
Either operate in generic mode with a clear marker, or pause and ask the framework owner to produce a capsule.

Skills must refuse to absorb un-encapsulated content as a shortcut.