refactor: make RECOMMENDATIONS.md forward-looking only

- Add Philosophy blockquote: recommendations only, not changelog
- Replace "Open Questions" with "Recommended Improvements" (delete completed, don't strikethrough)
- Replace "Change Log" with "Deployment Notes"
- Add RECOMMENDATIONS.md Cleanup Rules to status-update-checklist
- Add docs/phases-plan.md to phase transition checklist
- Add strikethrough grep check to verification commands

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

RECOMMENDATIONS.md

@@ -1,69 +1,90 @@
 # Project-Specific Recommendations & Overrides
 
-This file is the project-specific layer on top of the generic template.  
+This file is the project-specific layer on top of the generic template.
 Humans and AI agents should treat it as the **single place to record locked decisions, non‑negotiable constraints, and intentional deviations** from `docs/` guidance.
 
 Update this file whenever you make a decision that changes the stack, scope, constraints, or any recommendation in `docs/`.
 
+> **Philosophy:** This file contains **recommendations** (what to do next) and **locked decisions** (what was agreed upon). It is NOT a changelog or accomplishments log. Keep completed work in git history, `docs/phases/`, and `docs/improvements/`.
+
 ---
 
 ## 1. Project Context (fill in)
-- **Domain / product type:** _[e.g., customer support AI, compliance assistant, content classifier]_  
-- **Chosen archetype:** _[A–E from `/docs/archetypes.md`]_  
-- **Modules in scope:** _[core AI, integrations, pipeline, human feedback, reporting, billing, tenancy, events, queues]_  
-- **Primary users:** _[roles/personas]_  
-- **Key success metrics:** _[latency, accuracy, cost, adoption, etc.]_  
-- **Current phase:** _Phase 0 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4_  
+
+- **Domain / product type:** _[e.g., customer support AI, compliance assistant, content classifier]_
+- **Chosen archetype:** _[A–E from `/docs/archetypes.md`]_
+- **Modules in scope:** _[core AI, integrations, pipeline, human feedback, reporting, billing, tenancy, events, queues]_
+- **Primary users:** _[roles/personas]_
+- **Key success metrics:** _[latency, accuracy, cost, adoption, etc.]_
+- **Current phase:** _Phase 0 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4_
 - **Repos/services in scope:** _[monorepo, separate FE/BE, workers, etc.]_
 
 ## 2. Locked Stack Decisions (override template here)
+
 If a choice is not listed here, the default recommendations in `docs/` apply.
 
 **Frontend**
-- **Framework:** _Next.js (App Router)_ / _other_  
-- **Language:** _TypeScript_ / _other_  
-- **Styling:** _Tailwind CSS_ / _other_  
-- **Server/Client data layer:** _React Query / SWR / other_  
-- **Forms & validation:** _React Hook Form + Zod_ / _other_  
+
+- **Framework:** _Next.js (App Router)_ / _other_
+- **Language:** _TypeScript_ / _other_
+- **Styling:** _Tailwind CSS_ / _other_
+- **Server/Client data layer:** _React Query / SWR / other_
+- **Forms & validation:** _React Hook Form + Zod_ / _other_
 - **Auth client:** _Clerk / Auth.js / other_
 
 **Backend**
-- **Runtime/language:** _Node.js (LTS) + TypeScript_ / _other_  
-- **Framework:** _Express / Fastify / other_  
-- **Database:** _Postgres_ / _other_ (vector search: _pgvector_ / _other_)  
-- **Queues/workers:** _BullMQ (Redis)_ / _other_  
-- **LLM provider & helper:** _Single abstraction (e.g., `callLLM()`)_, provider _[fill in]_  
+
+- **Runtime/language:** _Node.js (LTS) + TypeScript_ / _other_
+- **Framework:** _Express / Fastify / other_
+- **Database:** _Postgres_ / _other_ (vector search: _pgvector_ / _other_)
+- **Queues/workers:** _BullMQ (Redis)_ / _other_
+- **LLM provider & helper:** _Single abstraction (e.g., `callLLM()`)_, provider _[fill in]_
 - **File/storage:** _S3/Supabase Storage/local_ / _other_
 
 **Infra / DevOps**
-- **Hosting/deploy:** _[Vercel/Fly/K8s/etc.]_  
-- **CI/CD:** _[GitHub Actions/GitLab/etc.]_  
-- **Observability:** _[Sentry/OTel/Prometheus/etc.]_  
+
+- **Hosting/deploy:** _[Vercel/Fly/K8s/etc.]_
+- **CI/CD:** _[GitHub Actions/GitLab/etc.]_
+- **Observability:** _[Sentry/OTel/Prometheus/etc.]_
 - **Environments:** _dev/stage/prod_ (or specify)
 
 ## 3. Non‑Negotiable Constraints (add to RULES scope)
-- **Compliance/regulation:** _[PII/PHI/PCI, SOC2, GDPR, etc.]_  
-- **Data residency/retention:** _[regions, retention window]_  
-- **Performance/SLOs:** _[e.g., p95 < X ms, batch window]_  
-- **Cost limits:** _[monthly LLM budget, infra cap]_  
-- **Target platforms:** _[browsers/devices, locales]_  
+
+- **Compliance/regulation:** _[PII/PHI/PCI, SOC2, GDPR, etc.]_
+- **Data residency/retention:** _[regions, retention window]_
+- **Performance/SLOs:** _[e.g., p95 < X ms, batch window]_
+- **Cost limits:** _[monthly LLM budget, infra cap]_
+- **Target platforms:** _[browsers/devices, locales]_
 - **Repository constraints:** _[additional forbidden commands, branching rules, etc.]_
 
 ## 4. Deviations From Template (explicit trade-offs)
+
 List any intentional departures from `docs/` recommendations and why.
 
 - _[Decision]_ → _[Why]_ → _[Migration/rollback plan if relevant]_
 
-## 5. Open Questions / To Confirm
-- _[Unresolved item]_ → _[owner]_ → _[ETA]_
+## 5. Recommended Improvements
 
-## 6. Change Log (optional)
-- _YYYY‑MM‑DD_: _[decision summary]_  
+<!--
+  This section is for ACTIONABLE recommendations — things to do next.
+  When an item is completed, REMOVE it from here (don't strikethrough).
+  Record completed work in git commits and docs/phases/ instead.
+-->
+
+_[Add audit findings, improvement suggestions, and next steps here. Group by category if needed.]_
+
+## 6. Deployment Notes
+
+<!-- Active deployment concerns only. Remove items once deployed and verified. -->
+
+_[Pre-deploy checklist items, migration scripts, environment changes needed]_
 
 ## 7. Architecture Decision Records (ADRs)
+
 Record major decisions and their rationale in `docs/adr/`.
 
 Example ADRs you may need:
+
 - _ADR: modular monolith vs microservices_
 - _ADR: vector storage choice (pgvector vs external)_
 - _ADR: billing model/provider_
@@ -71,4 +92,5 @@ Example ADRs you may need:
 - _ADR: auth/tenancy model_
 
 Once accepted, link ADRs here:
+
 - `docs/adr/0001-<title>.md` — _accepted_