Multi-Agent Workflows

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Overview

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How It Works

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Agent Collaboration System

• Provides Agent Context: The calling agent receives information about available agents in its system prompt
• Maintains Conversation Threads: Agents can continue conversations across multiple interactions
• Preserves Context: Information flows seamlessly between agents in the workflow
• Handles Permissions: Only allows calls to explicitly configured agents

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The Call Agent Tool

• Send messages to other specific agents
• Continue existing conversation threads
• Delegate specialized tasks
• Build complex workflows through agent collaboration

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Setting Up Multi-Agent Workflows

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1. Configure Agent Relationships

1. Enable the Call Agent Tool: Add call_agent to your agent’s available tools
2. Select Callable Agents: Choose which other agents this agent can invoke from your organization’s agent list
3. Automatic Integration: Agent details are automatically added to the system prompt

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2. Agent Information Integration

• Agent Names: Human-readable identifiers for each callable agent
• Agent IDs: Technical identifiers needed for the call_agent tool
• Agent Descriptions: Understanding of each agent’s capabilities and specializations

You have access to the following agents that you can call using the call_agent tool:

- Data Analyst (ID: 123)
  Description: Specializes in analyzing sales data and creating insights

- Report Writer (ID: 456)  
  Description: Creates professional reports and presentations from data analysis

When using the call_agent tool, you must provide the agent_id from the list above.

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3. Design Your Workflow

• Define Roles: What specific task does each agent handle?
• Map Information Flow: What information needs to pass between agents?
• Plan Entry Points: Which agent do users interact with first?
• Consider Threading: When should agents continue existing conversations vs. start new ones?

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Common Workflow Patterns

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Sequential Processing

1. Research Agent → Gathers information from web and knowledge bases
2. Analysis Agent → Processes findings and identifies key insights
3. Writer Agent → Creates formatted report from analysis
4. Review Agent → Quality checks and provides final output

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Specialized Task Delegation

1. Support Agent receives customer inquiry
2. Based on issue type, calls:
   • Technical Agent for product issues
   • Billing Agent for payment questions
   • Account Agent for user management
3. Support Agent synthesizes response for customer

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Parallel Processing with Coordination

1. Coordinator Agent breaks down research request
2. Calls multiple agents in parallel:
   • Web Research Agent → Industry trends
   • Data Agent → Internal sales data
   • Competitor Agent → Competitive analysis
3. Coordinator Agent combines all findings into comprehensive report

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Iterative Refinement

1. Writer Agent creates initial draft
2. Editor Agent provides feedback and suggestions
3. Writer Agent revises based on feedback (using thread ID to continue conversation)
4. Process repeats until quality standards are met

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Practical Examples

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Sales Intelligence Workflow

Prospect Researcher (Entry Point)
├── Data Collector → Gathers company information
├── Social Media Analyst → Reviews social presence  
├── News Tracker → Finds recent company updates
└── Sales Strategist → Combines insights into outreach plan

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Content Production Pipeline

Content Manager (Entry Point)
├── Topic Researcher → Identifies trending subjects
├── Writer → Creates initial content
├── SEO Optimizer → Enhances for search
├── Social Media Adapter → Creates platform-specific versions
└── Publisher → Schedules and distributes content

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Data Analysis Workflow

Data Coordinator (Entry Point)
├── Data Collector → Extracts from databases/APIs
├── Cleaner → Processes and validates data
├── Analyst → Performs statistical analysis
├── Visualizer → Creates charts and graphs
└── Reporter → Compiles findings into presentation

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Best Practices

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Agent Design

1. Single Purpose: Each agent should excel at one specific type of task
2. Clear Descriptions: Write detailed agent descriptions since these appear in system prompts
3. Consistent Interfaces: Design agents to work well together
4. Error Handling: Consider what happens when agents can’t complete tasks

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Workflow Planning

1. Start Simple: Begin with 2-3 agents and expand gradually
2. Map Dependencies: Understand which agents need outputs from others
3. Plan for Failures: What happens if an agent in the chain fails?
4. Test Thoroughly: Run complete workflows manually before deploying

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Communication Design

1. Clear Handoffs: Agents should know exactly what information to pass along
2. Context Preservation: Use thread IDs to maintain conversation context when needed
3. Status Updates: Keep users informed about multi-step progress
4. Result Integration: Plan how final outputs get assembled and presented

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Performance Considerations

1. Parallel vs Sequential: Choose based on dependencies and urgency
2. Thread Management: Use conversation threads strategically to maintain context
3. Token Efficiency: Monitor cumulative token usage across agent calls
4. User Experience: Balance thoroughness with response time

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Managing Multi-Agent Systems

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Configuration Management

• Agent Permissions: Carefully control which agents can call which others
• Role Clarity: Ensure each agent’s purpose is clearly defined and documented
• Version Control: Track changes to agent configurations and relationships

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Monitoring and Optimization

• Workflow Performance: Monitor how long complete workflows take
• Agent Utilization: Track which agents are called most frequently
• Success Rates: Measure how often workflows complete successfully
• User Feedback: Collect input on workflow quality and usefulness

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Troubleshooting Common Issues

• Context Loss: Information getting lost between agent handoffs
• Circular Calls: Agents calling each other in loops
• Permission Errors: Agents trying to call agents they don’t have access to
• Thread Management: Confusion about when to start new threads vs continue existing ones

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Getting Started

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Your First Multi-Agent Workflow

1. Identify a Multi-Step Task: Choose something that naturally breaks into distinct phases
2. Create Specialized Agents: Build 2-3 agents that handle different aspects
3. Configure Relationships: Set up which agents can call which others
4. Test the Flow: Run through the complete workflow manually
5. Refine and Expand: Improve based on results and add complexity gradually

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Simple Starter Workflows

• Research → Analysis → Report: Great for information gathering and synthesis
• Draft → Review → Revise: Perfect for content creation and quality control
• Collect → Process → Visualize: Ideal for data analysis tasks
• Triage → Specialize → Resolve: Excellent for customer support scenarios