> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.unityplatform.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Lifecycle & status

> Draft → Discovery → Piloting → Scaling → Production, and the three ways a strategy stops.

Every strategy has a **status**. It tells the team where the work is, and it drives what you see on Home and in Portfolio.

## The states

| Status            | Meaning                                              |
| ----------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- |
| **Draft**         | Being shaped. Not yet committed to.                  |
| **In discovery**  | Researching and validating the problem.              |
| **Piloting**      | Testing with a small group or market.                |
| **Scaling**       | Rolling out more widely.                             |
| **In production** | Live and running.                                    |
| **Paused**        | Stopped for now, may resume.                         |
| **Killed**        | Stopped for good.                                    |
| **Archived**      | Finished or no longer relevant. Kept for the record. |

## Changing status

Open the strategy and change status from its header. Moving out of **Draft** for the first time records the strategy's publish date.

## What status affects

* **Home** shows Draft through Paused by default, and hides Killed and Archived. Use the status filter to change that.
* **Portfolio** uses the same default, and colours every strategy by its status.
* **Archived** strategies leave the folders but stay searchable.

<Tip>
  Be honest with Paused and Killed. A portfolio full of strategies that are "in discovery" forever tells nobody anything.
</Tip>