A series applying people-management discipline to AI agent oversight: delegation, earned trust, guardrails, and accountability.
AI & Automation
'Always keep a human in the loop' sounds like a safeguard. Applied to every task, forever, it's a rule no manager would accept for a new hire. The real design question was never yes or no. It's which loop, and for how long.
AI & Automation
Good managers stopped asking 'is this person ready?' decades ago. The better question is 'ready for what?' That question is missing from most agent oversight, and it changes how much rope an agent should get.
AI & Automation
Approving every step an agent takes feels like the responsible choice. It's actually a named failure mode with costs that compound: throughput capped at your attention, a gate that never earns its way open, and a reviewer who quietly stops reviewing.
AI & Automation
Micromanaging AI agents comes from a reasonable place, but it defeats the purpose. Effective agent management looks a lot like effective delegation to a person.