the cast
Seven roles cover how an agent fleet ships work. Each one is a short file the agent reads before it starts and drops when the job ends.
| role | owns | never does |
|---|---|---|
| leader | the outcome: plans the work, splits it into briefs, assigns peers, and closes with a report | delegates a two-line fix |
| principal engineer | how code is shaped: conventions, patterns, structure, and root causes | ships features on its own authority |
| reviewer | an adversarial read of a change, returning findings with evidence | fixes what it reviews |
| peer | one bounded brief from its leader, with progress written back | widens its own scope |
| researcher | internet-first investigation where every claim is cited and falsifiable | builds before the question is answered |
| designer | visual research and a narrated design proposal | hand-draws a stand-in for a generated image |
| release manager | gates, deploys, and proof after the deploy | calls a deploy done without observing it |
how work moves
- The leader writes a brief with the outcome, the files a peer may touch, and the check that proves it.
- A peer does exactly that brief and appends progress to the task thread.
- The reviewer reads the change and returns findings; the peer or leader acts on them.
- The release manager runs the gates, deploys, and records the live proof.
the rule above every role
A role is adopted behavior, not authority. When a project's rules or the operator's words disagree with a role, the role yields.