Workplace Memory

Last verified: 13 February 2026 | Applies to: Pro, Max, Team, Enterprise

In 30 seconds

Every Claude conversation starts fresh. You explain your business, your team, your terminology — again and again. The Productivity plugin creates persistent memory that survives between sessions. Set it up once (about fifteen minutes), and Claude remembers your context going forward. This is the first workflow most operators should complete.

Prerequisites

• Claude Desktop installed (download)
• A paid plan (Pro or above)
• The Productivity plugin installed (see Step 1 below)

Step by step

1. Install the Productivity plugin

   Open Claude Desktop → Cowork tab → Plugins (in the left sidebar) → search “Productivity” → Install.

   You can also install from claude.com/plugins.

2. Initialise your workspace

   Open a new Cowork session and type:

   /start

   Claude creates four things in your working folder:

   • TASKS.md — a task list Claude can read and update
   • CLAUDE.md — working memory for your current context
   • memory/ — a directory for longer-term knowledge
   • dashboard.html — a visual overview that opens in your browser

3. Seed your context

   Claude will ask about your role, team, and current priorities. Be specific — the more you give, the less you’ll have to repeat later. Here’s an example:

   I'm COO at a 15-person ecommerce company. My direct reports are Sarah (ops), Marcus (finance), and Priya (marketing). We're mid-way through migrating from Shopify to a headless setup. Key acronyms: PSR = product status report, WBR = weekly business review, Q1 close = our fiscal year ends in March.

   This gets stored in the memory files. Next session, Claude already knows.

   What to include:

   • Your role and company (size, industry, stage)
   • Direct reports and key stakeholders (names, roles)
   • Current projects and priorities
   • Acronyms and shorthand your team uses
   • Preferences (report format, communication style, tools you use)

4. Test the memory with shorthand

   Once your context is seeded, test it:

   Draft a message to Marcus asking him to prep the PSR for tomorrow's WBR

   Claude should know that Marcus is your finance lead, what a PSR is, and that WBR means your weekly business review. No clarifying questions needed.

   Try a few more:

   • “What are my current priorities?”
   • “Create a task: review Q1 close timeline with Marcus by Friday”
   • “Open my dashboard”

5. Keep it current

   Run /update weekly to triage stale tasks and flag memory gaps. This takes about two minutes.

   Use /update --comprehensive monthly for a deeper scan — Claude reviews all stored context and suggests what’s outdated.

   The rhythm: Seed once, use /update weekly, /update --comprehensive monthly. Total maintenance: five minutes a week.

How operators actually use it

What operators say

“I seeded my context last week. Now when I open Claude, it already knows my team structure, our key projects, and the shorthand we use internally. No more ‘as I mentioned before’ — it just knows.”

Before workplace memory: Every session starts with 5-10 minutes of context-setting. Multiply that by 3-4 sessions a day, 5 days a week — that’s 2-3 hours weekly spent re-explaining yourself.

After workplace memory: You open Cowork and start working. Claude knows your team, your projects, your terminology. Twenty minutes of initial setup saves hours per week.

Folder instructions (the lightweight alternative)

If you don’t want the full Productivity plugin, you can get basic persistent context by creating a CLAUDE.md file in any folder where you work with Cowork.

# Company Context

## Team
- CEO: Alex
- COO: You
- CFO: Marcus
- Head of Marketing: Priya

## Current Priorities
1. Website redesign (launch: 15 March)
2. Q1 financial close
3. New hire onboarding (2 positions)

## Terminology
- PSR = Product Status Report
- WBR = Weekly Business Review
- P0 = Critical priority

Cowork reads this file automatically when working in that directory. It’s less powerful than the Productivity plugin (no task management, no dashboard, no /update command), but it’s a good starting point if you want something simpler.

You can set global instructions (apply to all Cowork sessions) or folder-specific instructions (apply only in that directory). Folder instructions override global ones when they conflict.

What to watch out for

• Memory is folder-scoped. The Productivity plugin’s memory lives in the folder you selected. If you start Cowork in a different folder, Claude won’t see the memory from the first one.
• Cowork usage is higher than chat. Setting up memory uses Cowork, which consumes more of your plan’s usage than standard chat. The initial setup is worth it — just be aware.
• Keep context concise. Claude works better with structured, bullet-point context than with long paragraphs. Be specific, not verbose.
• Review stored context periodically. Team members leave, projects end, priorities shift. The /update --comprehensive command helps, but a manual review every quarter is worthwhile.

Related

• Plugins Overview — understand what plugins are and how they work
• Your First 30 Minutes — this workflow is part of the setup guide
• Cowork — understanding the environment where plugins run
• Skills — how Claude’s knowledge layer works

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