agent-specialization

# Agent Specialization Skill

Guide for creating focused, single-purpose agents that maximize effectiveness.

## When to Use

- Designing new agents for workflows
- Refactoring god-mode agents into specialists
- Optimizing agent context usage
- Creating eval-friendly agent architecture

## Core Principle

> "One Agent, One Prompt, One Purpose"

Every agent should:

- Have exactly one purpose
- Run exactly one prompt
- Use the full context window for that purpose
- Be reproducible and improvable

## Design Workflow

### Step 1: Identify the Single Purpose

Ask: "What is the ONE question this agent answers?"

| Good Purpose | Bad Purpose |
| --- | --- |
| "Classify this issue" | "Classify, plan, and implement" |
| "Generate a patch plan" | "Fix all the bugs" |
| "Review against spec" | "Review, test, and document" |

### Step 2: Determine Minimum Required Context

Apply the Minimum Context Principle:

```markdown
## Required Context
- [Specific file or section needed]
- [Pattern or example needed]

## NOT Needed
- [Documentation that's irrelevant]
- [Code that won't be touched]
```

### Step 3: Select Appropriate Tools

Only include tools the agent will actually use:

| Purpose | Tools |
| --- | --- |
| Classification | Read |
| Planning | Read, Write, Glob |
| Implementation | Read, Write, Edit, Bash |
| Review | Read, Bash, Glob |
| Documentation | Read, Write |

### Step 4: Choose Model

Match model to task complexity:

| Model | Best For |
| --- | --- |
| haiku | Classification, simple extraction |
| sonnet | Planning, moderate reasoning |
| opus | Complex implementation, critical decisions |

### Step 5: Design Focused Output Format

Output should be:

- Structured (JSON when appropriate)
- Minimal (only what downstream needs)
- Parseable (for automation)

## Agent Template

```markdown
---
description: [Single sentence describing the ONE purpose]
tools: [Only tools actually needed]
model: [haiku/sonnet/opus based on complexity]
---

# [Agent Name]

You are a [ro