Define the job AI is being asked to do
Describe the business task in terms a process owner can validate. List the inputs, expected output and the actions that may follow. Distinguish between an assistant that proposes an answer and an agent that changes a system. This distinction helps determine the level of authorization, testing and human participation needed.
Know the context and its limits
Document the systems and information used to complete the task. Define who may access the data and how the workflow should respond when information is missing, outdated or contradictory. A confident response is not evidence of a correct one. The design should make it possible to identify the basis of a recommendation and route uncertain cases for review.
Set action boundaries before connecting tools
List the permitted actions and the authority required for each. Use narrow permissions aligned to the task. Define which actions need approval and how the workflow will stop when a request falls outside its remit. Include recovery and escalation for partially completed work. These are operating requirements, not details to add after a demonstration.
Evaluate realistic failure cases
A test set should include incomplete requests, conflicting instructions, unavailable systems and outputs that look plausible but are wrong. Ask whether the workflow recognizes its limits, preserves the user’s authority and recovers in a way the team can understand. Evaluate business usefulness alongside technical behavior.
Keep an accountable human owner
Assign a process owner for the workflow and technical owners for its dependencies. Agree how changes to models, prompts, tools or data will be reviewed. Define the evidence needed to investigate a problem and the conditions under which the workflow should be paused. Governance becomes practical when the responsible people know what to do.
Measure and improve after release
Track completion quality, exceptions, rework and the effort required for supervision. Compare the result with the previous process. When an issue appears, update the evaluation cases as well as the implementation. The objective is a workflow the business can operate with confidence, not a one-time demonstration that works only under ideal conditions.