What you will learn
Building an agent without understanding the work it needs to do is like hiring someone without writing a job description. You might get lucky. More likely, you will waste time fixing something that was never set up properly. This section gives you the method for designing agents that actually solve the right problem.Map the work
Break down a current process into steps before deciding what to automate
What / When / How
Use a simple framework to define agent responsibilities clearly
Write a job description
Create a structured brief that translates directly into an agent build
Spot the blockers
Identify data access, integration, and permission issues before you start building
Start with the work, not the tool
The temptation is to jump straight into a platform and start building. That is the equivalent of hiring someone on day one without ever defining the role. The more valuable step is to slow down and look at the work itself. What are you doing today? Where does your time go? What is manual, repetitive, or frustrating?A real example: Pathfindr’s content pipeline
Internally at Pathfindr, the team faced this exact challenge. One team member was responsible for keeping the Academy Portal content up to date: updating blog posts when AI tools released new features, writing in the Pathfindr voice, structuring content into the right format, and publishing it. The manual process looked like this:Research updates
Search official documentation and release notes for the latest changes across ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, and Gemini
Test your understanding
Test your understanding
The What / When / How framework
Once you have mapped the work, you need a way to translate each task into something an agent can execute. The framework is simple: What should the agent do? When should it trigger? How should it execute?What
Define the task clearly. What is the agent responsible for delivering? What does the output look like?
When
Define the trigger. Is it time-based (every Monday at 9am)? Event-based (when a file is added to a folder)? On demand?
How
Define the execution. What tools does it need? What steps does it follow? Where does the output go?
Who reviews
Define the human checkpoint. Who reviews the output before it goes live? What level of oversight does this task need?
Example: Meeting preparation agent
Here is how the framework applies to a common leadership pain point: arriving at meetings unprepared.| Detail | |
|---|---|
| What | Research attendees, pull related documents and recent emails, and send a briefing summary |
| When | 24 hours before each meeting in my calendar |
| How | Check calendar for upcoming meetings. Look up each attendee on LinkedIn and in email history. Search Drive for related documents. Compile a briefing and send it to me via email. |
Test your understanding
Test your understanding
Writing the agent job description
When you put this together, you get something that looks like a job description for a new team member. This is deliberate. The clearer the brief, the better the agent performs. A strong agent job description includes:Job title and purpose
One sentence on what this agent does and why it exists.
Responsibilities
The specific tasks it performs, each written in the what/when/how format. An agent might have one responsibility or five, just like a human role.
Data and access requirements
What tools, platforms, and data sources does the agent need to connect to? Gmail, Google Drive, LinkedIn, Slack, a CRM, a project management tool?
Potential blockers
What could prevent this from working? IT permissions, tool integrations that do not exist yet, data that lives in a system the agent cannot reach?
A single agent can have multiple skills or responsibilities. Your personal assistant agent might triage emails, send meeting briefings, and track project statuses: three separate responsibilities under one role. Each one follows the what/when/how framework independently.
The three-step evolution
The founder of Relay frames the agent-building journey in three stages. This is a useful way to think about where to start and where you are headed.Step 1: Delegate the mundane
Step 1: Delegate the mundane
Start with tasks you are already doing that are boring, repetitive, or time-consuming. Filing documents into the right folder. Renaming files to match a convention. Sending RSVP reminders before meetings. These are low-risk, high-frequency tasks where agents deliver immediate value and you build trust in the system.
Step 2: Amplify what you could do
Step 2: Amplify what you could do
Move to tasks you are capable of doing but never have enough time for. Reading every competitor’s LinkedIn posts. Watching every relevant YouTube video in your industry. Scanning every blog post in your niche. You have the skill to do this analysis, you just do not have the hours. Agents give you that capacity back.
Step 3: Access expertise you do not have
Step 3: Access expertise you do not have
Finally, use agents for work that requires knowledge you do not personally hold. Financial modelling if you are not an accountant. Legal document review if you are not a lawyer. Technical analysis if you are not an engineer. The agent brings the subject matter expertise. You bring the business judgement about what to do with the results.
Quick checkpoint
You are done with this section when you can:Map a process
Break down one of your current workflows into clear, sequential steps
Apply What / When / How
Write at least one agent responsibility using the framework
Write the brief
Produce a job description for an agent that includes purpose, responsibilities, access needs, and blockers
Start at Step 1
Identify a mundane, repeatable task in your work that is a strong candidate for your first agent
Next: Building and Testing in Relay
Learn how to turn your agent design into a working workflow in Relay