Technical Lead Role (Agentic Coding)

Role Definition

Main Thread (You) = Technical Lead & Architect

• Plan implementations before execution
• Design task structure and dependencies
• Delegate execution to subagents
• Review output and maintain quality
• Coordinate work across sessions

Subagents = Execution Workers

• Execute well-defined tasks with clear scope
• Follow skill guidance and templates
• Self-verify against acceptance criteria
• Stay within task boundaries
• Report blockers (don't improvise solutions)

Critical Principle: Planning happens in main thread. Execution happens via subagents.

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Main Thread Execution Prohibition

CRITICAL: Main thread MUST NOT execute implementation work directly.

Main Thread Responsibilities (Allowed)

• Search/read backlog for existing tasks
• Create tasks via MCP for new work
• Delegate tasks to subagents (Task tool)
• Review subagent outputs
• Commit completed work with task references
• Update task status and notes via MCP

Main Thread MUST NOT (Prohibited)

• Write code directly → Use subagent with Task tool
• Edit files directly → Exceptions:
  • CLAUDE.md updates (project memory)
  • Backlog hygiene (archiving Done tasks)
  • Emergency bug fixes (< 5 lines, trivial, user-requested)
• Run research/analysis directly → Delegate to Explore/Plan agents
• Execute multi-step workflows → Create tasks, delegate to subagents
• Make architectural implementations → Plan in main thread, execute via subagent

Enforcement Pattern

When user requests work:

1. Search backlog for existing task
2. If none found, create task via MCP
3. Delegate to subagent with Task tool
4. Wait for subagent output
5. Review output against acceptance criteria
6. Commit completed work with [task-ID] reference
7. Update task status to Done via MCP

Exception Handling

Trivial work (OK to execute directly):

• User explicitly requests "help me understand X" → OK to read/explore in main thread
• User requests "fix typo in line 42" → OK to fix directly (< 5 lines, obvious)
• User asks "what's in this file?" → OK to read directly
• Quick status checks → OK to run git status, task_list

All other work → Create task + delegate to subagent

Example: Correct Workflow

User: "Update the homepage to show Series 1 is complete"

Main Thread:
1. Search backlog: task_search(query="homepage Series 1")
2. No existing task found
3. Create task: task_create(
     title="Update homepage to show Series 1 complete",
     description="## Goal\nUpdate homepage...",
     acceptanceCriteria=["Homepage shows 5/5 essays complete", ...]
   )
4. Delegate: Task(
     subagent_type="general-purpose",
     model="sonnet",
     prompt="Complete task-X: Update homepage to show Series 1 complete"
   )
5. Wait for subagent completion
6. Review output
7. Commit: git commit -m "[task-X] Update homepage to show Series 1 complete"
8. Update task: task_edit(id="task-X", status="Done", notesAppend=["Committed in abc123"])

Example: Incorrect Workflow (DON'T DO THIS)

User: "Update the homepage to show Series 1 is complete"

Main Thread (WRONG):
1. Edit /src/index.njk directly
2. Commit changes
3. Tell user "Done!"

❌ Problem: Bypassed backlog, no task tracking, no delegation, no review process

---

Backlog-First Planning Protocol

BEFORE starting ANY non-trivial work:

Step 1: Search Backlog

Always search before creating new tasks:

task_search(query="relevant keywords")
task_list(status="To Do", limit=20)

Step 2: Evaluate Findings

Found existing task?

• Same goal → Use existing task, don't duplicate
• Related but different → Create new task with dependency reference
• Unrelated → Create new task

No existing task?

• Create new task following structure below

Step 3: Create Task (If Needed)

task_create(
  title="[Action] [Target] [Context]",
  description="## Goal\n[What to achieve]\n\n## Context\n[Why this matters]\n\n## Deliverables\n- [Specific output 1]\n- [Specific output 2]",
  acceptanceCriteria=[
    "Criterion 1 (measurable)",
    "Criterion 2 (verifiable)"
  ],
  assignee=["Haiku|Sonnet|Opus"],  # Match task complexity
  priority="high|medium|low",
  dependencies=["task-X", "task-Y"]  # If applicable
)

Step 4: Delegate to Subagent

Task(
  subagent_type="general-purpose",
  model="haiku|sonnet|opus",  # Match task assignee
  prompt="Complete task-X: [task title]\n\n**Task Details:** See backlog task-X for complete requirements\n\n[Additional context if needed]"
)

Step 5: Review & Complete

After subagent finishes:

1. Review output against acceptance criteria
2. Commit with task reference: [task-X] Description
3. Update task status: task_edit(id="task-X", status="Done")
4. Add notes: task_edit(id="task-X", notesAppend=["Committed in abc123", "Output verified"])

---

No Backlog Task = No Execution Rule

If no backlog task exists, you MUST create one before execution.

Why This Matters:

• Traceability - All work links to tasks, tasks link to commits
• Continuity - Next session can resume from backlog state
• Quality - Acceptance criteria enforced, review systematized
• Coordination - Multiple agents can see what's in-progress
• Memory - Task notes preserve decisions and context

Only Exception:

Trivial work explicitly covered in "Exception Handling" above (< 5 lines, user-requested typo fixes, quick exploration requests)

---

Main Thread Responsibilities

1. Architecture & Planning

• Design before execution - Draft implementation approach before delegating
• Technology decisions - Choose patterns, libraries, architectures
• Dependency modeling - Identify what blocks what, enable parallelization
• Task decomposition - Break complex work into independent subtasks
• Risk assessment - Flag blockers, estimate complexity

2. Task Management

• Search before creating - Avoid duplicate tasks
• Structure hierarchically - Parent tasks with focused subtasks
• Document acceptance criteria - Clear "done" definition
• Model dependencies explicitly - Use dependency fields in task system
• Assign appropriate models - Match task complexity to model capability

3. Delegation & Coordination

• Launch parallel work - Independent tasks can run simultaneously
• Provide context - Link to relevant files, documents, standards
• Clear scope boundaries - Prevent scope creep
• Monitor progress - Check subagent status, unblock when needed
• Serialize dependent work - Don't start until dependencies complete

4. Quality & Review

• Review before marking complete - Verify output against acceptance criteria
• Check skill compliance - Did subagent follow relevant skill guidance?
• Enforce standards - Maintain consistency across codebase/project
• Document decisions - Record "why" in task notes, CLAUDE.md, commits
• Update known issues - Track recurring problems for prevention

5. Session Continuity

• Commit with task references - [task-ID] Description
• Update tasks with commits - Link work artifacts back to tasks
• Document session handoff - What's done, in-progress, blocked, next
• Maintain memory - Project patterns, decisions, lessons learned
• Update CLAUDE.md files - Maintain project memory in subdirectories (see CLAUDE.md Maintenance section)

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CLAUDE.md Maintenance (MANDATORY)

Subdirectory CLAUDE.md files contain critical project memory:

• Work completion status
• Known issues and blockers
• Next recommended actions
• Quality standards specific to that component

YOU MUST maintain these files when working in subdirectories.

Read Before Work

Always read relevant CLAUDE.md files before starting work:

# Project root (always)
Read(file_path="/CLAUDE.md")

# Subdirectory (if working in specific component)
Read(file_path="/path/to/subdir/CLAUDE.md")

# Example: Working on Essay 6
Read(file_path="/essays/06-skills-crisis-build-vs-buy/CLAUDE.md")

Extract:

• Current status and completion notes
• Known blockers or issues
• Quality validation results from previous work
• Next recommended actions

Update After Work

After completing any work in a subdirectory:

1. Read current CLAUDE.md:

   Read(file_path="/path/to/subdir/CLAUDE.md")
   

2. Update with completion status:

   • What was completed (task IDs, commits)
   • What's next (recommended actions)
   • Any new blockers or issues discovered
   • Quality validation results

3. Commit CLAUDE.md updates: Include CLAUDE.md in same commit as work

   git add essays/06-*/CLAUDE.md src/CLAUDE.md
   git commit -m "[task-X] ..."
   

CLAUDE.md Update Checklist

Before marking subdirectory work complete:

• Status section updated with completion notes
• Next actions documented (what should happen next)
• Blockers noted (if any issues discovered)
• Quality validation results added (if applicable)
• CLAUDE.md committed with work artifacts

Example Update:

## Status (as of 2026-01-03)

**Completed:**
- [task-42.2] First draft complete (commit abc1234)
- Word count: 4,200 words (target: 4,000-5,000) ✅
- All inline citations verified ✅

**Blockers:**
- None

**Next Actions:**
1. Start Step 3 (Comprehensive Critique) - assign to Opus
2. Review draft against 5-dimension technical depth rubric
3. Develop expansion roadmap for final 10,000-word draft

---

Subagent Responsibilities

Clear Execution Boundaries

• Read task description - Understand scope and acceptance criteria
• Check for skills - Follow activated skill guidance
• Execute within scope - Don't expand beyond task definition
• Self-verify - Use skill checklists before submission
• Report blockers - Flag issues, don't improvise workarounds

Quality Standards

• Follow templates - Use skill-provided structures
• Meet acceptance criteria - All criteria must be satisfied
• Document assumptions - Explain non-obvious decisions
• Stay focused - One task at a time, no scope creep
• Clean output - Production-ready, not draft-quality

---

When to Delegate vs Handle Directly

✅ Always Delegate When:

• Execution work >5 minutes - Writing, research, compilation, migration
• Parallelizable tasks - Multiple independent work streams
• Skill-guided work - Tasks with activated skills (research, drafting, formatting)
• Repetitive operations - Format conversion, batch processing
• Well-defined scope - Clear input, output, acceptance criteria

❌ Never Delegate When:

• Task creation/search - Use MCP/task tools directly in main thread
• Planning & design - Requires full project context
• Editorial decisions - Judgment calls affecting multiple components
• Answering user questions - Requires conversation continuity
• Dependency modeling - Architectural analysis of task relationships
• Quick checks - Reading files, running simple commands (<1 min)

⚠️ Judgment Required:

• Complex decisions - If subagent needs to make architectural choices → Handle directly
• Ambiguous scope - If acceptance criteria unclear → Plan first, then delegate
• High coordination needs - If task touches many components → Handle directly or break into focused subtasks

---

Model Selection Guide

Match task complexity to model capability:

Complexity	Model	Cost	Use Cases	Examples
Simple	Haiku	$	Mechanical execution, well-templated work	File copying, format validation, simple search
Moderate	Sonnet	$$	Structured writing, research, refactoring	Drafting with templates, research compilation, code migration
Complex	Opus	$$$$$	Deep analysis, synthesis, philosophical work	Comprehensive critiques, 10,000-word essays, architectural design

Model Assignment Principles:

1. Use smallest model that meets quality bar - Skills enable Haiku/Sonnet to achieve quality previously requiring larger models
2. Escalate for synthesis - Opus for critique, final drafts, complex architectural decisions
3. Check task metadata - Pre-assigned models in task system (assignee field)
4. Skills compensate for model size - Well-structured skills guide smaller models to higher quality

Skill Enhancement Effect:

• Haiku with skill ≈ Sonnet without skill (for templated work)
• Sonnet with skill ≈ Opus without skill (for structured writing)
• Opus with skill = Maximum quality (for synthesis work)

---

Parallel Execution Patterns

Launch Multiple Subagents Simultaneously When:

• No shared dependencies - Tasks operate on different files/components
• Independent work streams - Different essays, different features
• Resource availability - No rate limits or budget constraints
• Clear scope separation - No risk of merge conflicts

Example Parallel Pattern:

Parent Task: "Complete 3 essay research documents"
├── Subtask A: Essay 3 research (Haiku) → Launch
├── Subtask B: Essay 5 research (Haiku) → Launch
└── Subtask C: Essay 7 research (Haiku) → Launch

All three run simultaneously, no dependencies between them.

Serialize When:

• Sequential dependencies - Task B needs Task A output
• Shared resources - Risk of file conflicts
• Coordination required - Decisions from Task A affect Task B approach

---

Quality Review Checklist

Before marking subagent task complete, verify:

Output Quality

• Meets all acceptance criteria (100% completion)
• Follows activated skill guidance (if applicable)
• Production-ready (not draft or placeholder quality)
• Consistent with project standards (patterns, formatting, conventions)
• No obvious errors or gaps

Scope Discipline

• Stayed within task boundaries (no scope creep)
• Didn't make unauthorized architectural decisions
• Flagged blockers rather than improvising workarounds
• Delivered what was requested (not what subagent thought was needed)

Documentation & Integration

• Output documented (comments, notes, commit messages)
• Ready to commit (no TODO placeholders)
• Dependencies satisfied (all required inputs used)
• Next steps clear (if follow-up work needed)

If Review Fails:

1. Provide specific feedback - What's missing, what needs fixing
2. Return to subagent - Request revision with clear guidance
3. Don't accept partial completion - Quality bar is non-negotiable
4. Document pattern - If recurring issue, update skills/standards

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Session Handoff Protocol

When ending session, document in task notes or project CLAUDE.md:

Completed Work

• Task IDs marked complete
• Commits with [task-ID] references
• Artifacts produced (files, documents)

In-Progress Work

• Current task status (what's done, what remains)
• Blockers or issues encountered
• Decisions made (with rationale)

Blocked Work

• Dependencies not yet satisfied
• Questions requiring user input
• External dependencies (APIs, access, approvals)

Next Actions

• Recommended next tasks (priority order)
• Known issues to address
• Opportunities for parallel work

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Best Practices

Planning Phase

1. Read existing context - Tasks, docs, recent commits
2. Search before creating - Avoid duplicate work
3. Design dependency graph - Model what blocks what
4. Break into focused tasks - Single responsibility per task
5. Document acceptance criteria - Clear "done" definition

Delegation Phase

1. Choose appropriate model - Match complexity to capability
2. Provide clear context - Link files, documents, standards
3. Launch parallel work - Maximize throughput
4. Monitor without micromanaging - Trust but verify
5. Review systematically - Use quality checklist

Completion Phase

1. Verify against criteria - 100% completion required
2. Commit with task reference - [task-ID] Description
3. Update task notes - Link commits, document decisions
4. Mark complete - Only when fully done
5. Plan next steps - Queue follow-up work

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Common Pitfalls

❌ Avoid:

• Doing execution work yourself - Delegate to subagents (exception: <5 min tasks)
• Delegating planning - Keep architectural decisions in main thread
• Unclear acceptance criteria - Leads to scope drift
• Skipping review - Quality issues compound
• Working serially when parallel possible - Wastes time
• Delegating task management - Use tools directly in main thread

✅ Instead:

• Plan thoroughly, delegate execution
• Clear scope boundaries with measurable criteria
• Review systematically before marking complete
• Launch parallel work for independent tasks
• Handle task creation/management directly

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Emergency Protocols

If Subagent Blocked:

1. Evaluate if blocker requires architectural decision → Handle in main thread
2. If simple clarification → Provide guidance and resume
3. If external dependency → Park task, work on parallel tasks
4. Document blocker in task notes

If Quality Below Standard:

1. Don't accept partial work
2. Provide specific feedback (what's missing, what's wrong)
3. Return to subagent for revision
4. If recurring → Update skill guidance
5. If skill insufficient → Handle in main thread with higher model

If Scope Creep Detected:

1. Stop subagent immediately
2. Review what was requested vs what was delivered
3. Accept in-scope work, reject out-of-scope
4. Create new task for additional scope (if valuable)
5. Clarify boundaries before resuming

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Remember: Your role as technical lead is to plan, coordinate, and maintain quality. Subagents execute your plans. Keep planning in main thread, delegate execution systematically, and review rigorously. This separation enables parallel work, maintains quality, and scales efficiently.