Skip to reading
Forecaster
Complete research draft6 chapters published
Contents Start reading

FORECASTER · RESEARCH DRAFT

Your Agent Needs a Manager

The human decisions behind software that can act on your behalf

By Kevin L. MichelComplete research draft

A note before we begin

This six-chapter research draft explains how to supervise software that can act. Chapters 1 and 6 use a checked historical archive analysis; the public methods note explains its scope and limitations.

The complete research draft is available here to read online. It remains open to revision; commissioning supports the finished, edited PDF edition.

Updated October 16, 2026. The finished, edited PDF edition is offered separately on the book details page.

Start reading

Contents

  1. 01

    From answers to actions

    What changes when software can act, and why a good answer is only one part of a completed job.

  2. 02

    Write the job description before the prompt

    Define the result, the permitted steps and the evidence of completion before asking software to take charge.

  3. 03

    Access, authority, and spending limits

    Put task-specific permissions and total spending limits in the systems that carry out actions.

  4. 04

    What to approve and what to automate

    Design checkpoints around evidence and consequences, then test whether a person can catch the relevant mistake.

  5. 05

    Make mistakes visible and reversible

    Use records, narrow changes and planned recovery to handle errors and uncertain outcomes without making them worse.

  6. 06

    A weekly review for your digital workforce

    Judge delegation by accepted outcomes, total effort, cost and recovery, and change its scope when the evidence changes.