| name | delegation-routing |
| description | Encodes the Delegation Decision Gate routing table for executive-tier agents: which specialist agent handles each task domain, and when an agent may act directly instead of delegating.
USE FOR: deciding which agent to delegate a phase to before execution begins; verifying a planned direct action is on the "act directly" list; onboarding a new executive-tier agent's delegation posture.
DO NOT USE FOR: orchestrating the per-phase checkpoint sequence (use phase-gate-sequence); authoring agent files (use agent-file-authoring); session start/close lifecycle (use session-management).
|
| argument-hint | task domain description (e.g. 'write research synthesis', 'audit agent fleet') |
| tier | Foundation |
| type | automation |
| effort | s |
| applies-to | ["Executive Orchestrator","Executive Researcher","Executive Planner"] |
| status | active |
Delegation Routing
This skill enacts the Algorithms-Before-Tokens axiom from MANIFESTO.md: a static routing table replaces per-session re-derivation of which agent handles which domain, eliminating redundant token burn and preventing scope drift into direct execution.
Beliefs & Context
- Governing axiom: Axiom 2 — Algorithms Before Tokens — deterministic lookup over interactive re-derivation
- GitHub issue: #79 — Skills as Decision Codifiers
- Agents that use this skill: Executive Orchestrator, Executive Researcher, Executive Planner
- Foundation docs:
Workflow
Step 1 — Identify the task domain from the incoming work item or phase description.
Step 2 — Consult the routing table:
| Task domain | Delegate to |
|---|
| Research, source gathering | Executive Researcher → Research Scout fleet |
| Documentation writing / editing | Executive Docs |
| Scripting, automation design | Executive Scripter, Executive Automator |
| Fleet agent authoring / audit | Executive Fleet |
| Release coordination, versioning | Release Manager |
| Issue triage, labels, milestones | Issue Triage, Executive PM |
| CI health, test coverage gaps | CI Monitor, Test Coordinator |
| Environment / dependency audit | Env Validator |
| Security threat modelling | Security Researcher |
| Docs compliance audit | Docs Linter |
| Model / cost optimisation | LLM Cost Optimizer |
| Community health, DevRel | Community Pulse, DevRel Strategist |
Step 3 — Verify it is not on the "Act directly" list. An agent may act directly only for:
- Reading files to confirm a deliverable exists
- Running
git status, git log --oneline, gh pr view, gh issue view
- Writing scratchpad entries and workplan status updates
- Orchestrator: Running
git add/commit/push after a subagent returns (terminal operations)
- Running
prune_scratchpad.py or the pre-compact sequence
If the work does not appear in the "Act directly" list, delegate it.
Step 4 — Form a narrow delegation prompt. Outbound prompts must be task-scoped, not bulk session context. Inbound returns must be ≤ 2,000 tokens (Focus-on-Descent / Compression-on-Ascent — see AGENTS.md § Agent Communication).
Completion Criteria
An agent has applied this skill correctly when:
