diff --git a/.github/workflows/validate-org-template.yml b/.github/workflows/validate-org-template.yml
index 7da6040..7c1e908 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/validate-org-template.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/validate-org-template.yml
@@ -1,19 +1,19 @@
 name: Validate Org Template
 on:
   workflow_call:
+
 jobs:
   validate:
     name: Org template validation
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          repository: Molecule-AI/molecule-ci
-          path: .molecule-ci
       - uses: actions/setup-python@v5
         with:
           python-version: "3.11"
+          cache: "pip"
+          cache-dependency-path: .molecule-ci/scripts/requirements.txt
       - run: pip install pyyaml -q
       - run: python3 .molecule-ci/scripts/validate-org-template.py
       - name: Check for secrets
diff --git a/.github/workflows/validate-plugin.yml b/.github/workflows/validate-plugin.yml
index 527063d..1306167 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/validate-plugin.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/validate-plugin.yml
@@ -1,19 +1,19 @@
 name: Validate Plugin
 on:
   workflow_call:
+
 jobs:
   validate:
     name: Plugin validation
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          repository: Molecule-AI/molecule-ci
-          path: .molecule-ci
       - uses: actions/setup-python@v5
         with:
           python-version: "3.11"
+          cache: "pip"
+          cache-dependency-path: .molecule-ci/scripts/requirements.txt
       - run: pip install pyyaml -q
       - run: python3 .molecule-ci/scripts/validate-plugin.py
       - name: Check for secrets
diff --git a/.github/workflows/validate-workspace-template.yml b/.github/workflows/validate-workspace-template.yml
index 1a61858..b943a8e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/validate-workspace-template.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/validate-workspace-template.yml
@@ -1,19 +1,19 @@
 name: Validate Workspace Template
 on:
   workflow_call:
+
 jobs:
   validate:
     name: Template validation
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 15
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          repository: Molecule-AI/molecule-ci
-          path: .molecule-ci
       - uses: actions/setup-python@v5
         with:
           python-version: "3.11"
+          cache: "pip"
+          cache-dependency-path: .molecule-ci/scripts/requirements.txt
       - run: pip install pyyaml -q
       - run: python3 .molecule-ci/scripts/validate-workspace-template.py
       - name: Docker build smoke test
diff --git a/scripts/requirements.txt b/scripts/requirements.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3aecde9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/requirements.txt
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+pyyaml>=6.0
diff --git a/scripts/validate-plugin.py b/scripts/validate-plugin.py
index 4ec5d43..c42e916 100644
--- a/scripts/validate-plugin.py
+++ b/scripts/validate-plugin.py
@@ -33,6 +33,13 @@ found = [p for p in content_paths if os.path.exists(p)]
 if not found:
     errors.append("Plugin must contain at least one of: SKILL.md, hooks/, skills/, rules/")
 
+# 6. SKILL.md formatting check
+if os.path.isfile("SKILL.md"):
+    with open("SKILL.md") as f:
+        first_line = f.readline().strip()
+    if first_line and not first_line.startswith("#"):
+        print("::warning::SKILL.md should start with a markdown heading (e.g., # Plugin Name)")
+
 if errors:
     for e in errors:
         print(f"::error::{e}")
diff --git a/scripts/validate-workspace-template.py b/scripts/validate-workspace-template.py
index df7aefe..5d87063 100644
--- a/scripts/validate-workspace-template.py
+++ b/scripts/validate-workspace-template.py
@@ -21,6 +21,20 @@ runtime = config.get("runtime", "")
 if runtime and runtime not in known:
     print(f"::warning::Runtime '{runtime}' is not in the known set. OK for custom runtimes.")
 
+# Check for legacy imports
+if os.path.isfile("adapter.py"):
+    with open("adapter.py") as f:
+        content = f.read()
+        if "molecule_runtime" in content:
+            print("::warning::adapter.py imports 'molecule_runtime' — legacy import, use 'molecule_ai' or platform SDK")
+
+# Check for missing molecule-ai-workspace-runtime dependency hint
+if os.path.isfile("Dockerfile"):
+    with open("Dockerfile") as f:
+        content = f.read()
+        if "molecule-ai-workspace-runtime" not in content:
+            print("::warning::Dockerfile does not reference 'molecule-ai-workspace-runtime' — may need base runtime package")
+
 sv = config.get("template_schema_version")
 if sv is None:
     errors.append("Missing template_schema_version (add: template_schema_version: 1)")