dispatching-parallel-agents

name	dispatching-parallel-agents
description	Use when facing 2+ independent tasks that can be worked on without shared state or sequential dependencies

Dispatching Parallel Agents

Overview

When you have multiple unrelated failures or tasks, investigating them sequentially wastes time. Each investigation is independent and can happen in parallel.

Core principle: Dispatch one agent per independent problem domain. Let them work concurrently.

When to Use

Use when:

• 3+ failures with different root causes
• Multiple subsystems broken independently
• Each problem can be understood without context from others
• No shared state between investigations

Don't use when:

• Failures are related
• Need to understand full system state
• Agents would interfere with each other

The Pattern

1. Identify Independent Domains

Group failures by what's broken.

2. Create Focused Agent Tasks

Each agent gets:

• specific scope
• clear goal
• constraints
• expected output

3. Dispatch in Parallel

Run one task per independent domain.

4. Review and Integrate

When agents return:

• read each summary
• verify fixes don't conflict
• run full verification
• integrate all changes

Common Mistakes

• Too broad task prompts
• No context in prompts
• No constraints
• Vague expected output

Verification

After agents return:

1. Review each summary
2. Check for conflicts
3. Run full suite/checks
4. Spot check