Skills and agents · Decision tool

Agent or workflow: make the simpler choice first

Beginner · Published 2026-10-13 · Reviewed 2026-10-05

Tools: Multi-tool
Audience: People getting started with AI
Topic: Skills and agents

Sticky notes arranged across a whiteboard workflow

You’ll finish with: a justified choice between a workflow and an agent.

Use a fixed workflow when you know the steps. Consider an agent when the next action genuinely depends on what it finds. Neither is improved by adding autonomy purely because it sounds more advanced.

Set up

Allow 15 minutes. Describe one task and its exceptions on paper or in a chat. You do not need to build or connect anything to make this decision.

Download this guide’s practice sheet ↓

Try this example

FICTIONAL PRACTICE MATERIAL
Task A: copy a validated total into a weekly report. Task B: investigate why three totals disagree across differently structured documents. Both outputs need review before sharing.

Do the task

Write the normal steps and likely exceptions for each task.
Ask which decisions are fixed and which require judgement or investigation.
Choose a manual test before implementing the recommended approach.

Your reusable prompt

Compare a fixed workflow and an agent for tasks A and B. State required inputs, branching decisions, review effort and failure recovery. Include the option of a simple script without AI.

PRACTICE INPUT
Task A: copy a validated total into a weekly report. Task B: investigate why three totals disagree across differently structured documents. Both outputs need review before sharing.

Refine your result

Prefer the least complex option that satisfies the task. Identify what evidence would justify upgrading task A to an agent.

Check the result

A fixed transfer can suit task A; B may benefit from tool-assisted investigation. An agent is still constrained by available tools and evidence, and does not remove the final review.

Save and reuse

Save the decision with the exception that would trigger a rethink. Build only the chosen small test.

Sources and notes

Model Context Protocol overview Checked 2026-10-05

The practice input and teaching prompt are original 5HO material. Examples are fictional; they are not screenshots or claims of a completed real-world task.
Official documentation supports the relevant product concepts. Setup availability depends on your account; where a guide offers a fallback, it does not prove the connected capability worked.