Give an agent a clear role
Give software agents a clear job and a clear limit on what they can do.
Assistant
An agent is software that follows instructions using tools it has permission to access. An assistant responds to a request, such as preparing an invoice draft, and waits for approval before the next action.
Watcher
A watcher checks for changes and reports them. For example, it can flag a failed server check. Permission to read and report does not need to include permission to fix.
Worker
A worker follows a configured routine, such as reading receipts and recording their amounts. It can run on a schedule, but sends unclear amounts or failed payments to a person. Choose the role before granting access. Writing a description does not create a working agent; each role needs tools, instructions and limits.
How we use it at Pitch
At Pitch, the board is our shared work log. An assistant is software that follows our instructions with access to agreed tools. A watcher checks for changes and reports them; a worker runs a configured routine. Those roles need explicit instructions, access and permissions. Assistant Works for one person, does what they ask. Good at the jobs that need a person's say-so at one point: drafting an invoice , filing new files into the wiki , preparing a report. It works when we ask, shows us the whole draft, and waits for a yes before anything leaves the studio. It is never given the price, the send button, or a fact it cannot cite. Watcher Keeps an eye on something and tells you when it matters. Good at noticing: a new file in the shared folder, a failed check on the server, a failed build, a failed card. It turns what it sees into a line in the morning briefing or a "needs you" item, and otherwise stays quiet. It is never given the means to fix what it finds; it reports, and we decide. Worker Runs a whole workflow end to end without being asked. Good at running a whole routine end to end without being asked: the morning briefing, the day's receipts . It starts on a schedule, writes everything it does as rows on the board, and hands anything that needs a judgement to us. It is never given a decision that belongs to a person: what to pay, what to send, what to change.