- GoalWhat should be different when the work is done?
- InformationWhat does the worker need to begin, and which results must arrive first?
- ReviewWhat result will you inspect, and which choice needs a person?
- Hand-offWho continues, and where can they find the decision and the session?
These questions apply across several ways of working. Use a conversation to find the goal, concurrent workers for independent tasks, shared instructions for a repeated method and scheduled checks for recurring work.
Take the Live Reports launch. Priya, the marketing lead, sets the request. Sam, the product marketer, takes it forward. They are people on the same team; Researcher, Planner, Writer and Reviewer are AI roles.
01 When the goal needs shaping
Use a conversation when a request still leaves important choices open. Work through examples of a useful result and write down what makes them useful.
You cannot learn a workflow from its documentation. Ask the person who owns it where the choices happen and what they look for in the result.
02 When tasks can start together
Use concurrent workers when each task has enough information to begin. A task that needs another result waits for it.
Priya's request becomes fifteen tickets, and fourteen start together. MKT-114, “Write the announcement and the sales one-pager”, waits for the competitor research (MKT-112) and the customer proof (MKT-113). Then it runs through the Launch team: Planner outlines from both findings, Writer drafts, and Reviewer checks every claim against the evidence.
03 When someone else continues
Use a recorded decision and a clear next owner when work changes hands. The next person needs the reason for the choice as well as the current draft.
Home asks Priya: “Which customer quote leads the announcement?” Both are approved: Acme's is a story most teams will recognise, and Northwind's has the bigger number. She picks Acme. That morning, Sam imports Priya's session, continues on his Mac and exports it again. Leo, the sales lead, asks for a line about moving from the old reports, and Sam adds it.
04 When the method is worth keeping
Use a shared skill when a useful instruction should travel beyond one session. Make the revision specific enough for the next person to use.
AI scales whatever you point it at, including mess. A faster run of a vague instruction repeats the same uncertainty.
Version 2
Draft the announcement from the brief.
Version 3
Ask which customer quote leads before drafting. Use quotes customers have approved, and check every claim against the research and the customer proof.
05 When the check repeats
Use a sentry, a scheduled check for new work, when the same question comes back regularly. Give the finding a next step.
The next Monday at 9:00, Competitor watch finds that a competitor now leads with real-time reports, and suggests checking the one-pager's opening line against the competitor's new message. Sentries run while the app is running on the Mac.