Use Org-Design Theory to Structure Files and Roles for Reliable Agents
KarlMuth · x · 2026-09-03
A professor of organizational behavior shares his agent design playbook: don't feed agents "a pile of PDFs" — use triage agents to convert documents into structured files with fields plus annotation/categorization (demonstrated on a NYT article). Then define agent roles using classic role theory (Rizzo/House/Lirtzman 1970): a good role has both a center of emphasis and boundaries. He also suggests mapping agents on Ng's autonomy spectrum and using Morrison's (1994) OCB model to anticipate where agents might over-help or freelance.
Related event: OB Professor KarlMuth Publishes Guide for Building Research Agents(10 posts)→
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