task-coordination-strategies

Decompose complex tasks, design dependency graphs, and coordinate multi-agent work with proper task descriptions and workload balancing. Use this skill when breaking down work for agent teams, managing task dependencies, or monitoring team progress.

By wshobson · 8,625 installs

npx skills add wshobson/agents --skill task-coordination-strategies

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Task Coordination Strategies Strategies for decomposing complex tasks into parallelizable units, designing dependency graphs, writing effective task descriptions, and monitoring workload across agent teams. When to Use This Skill Breaking down a complex task for parallel execution Designing task dependency relationships (blockedBy/blocks) Writing task descriptions with clear acceptance criteria Monitoring and rebalancing workload across teammates Identifying the critical path in a multi task workflow Task Decomposition Strategies By Layer Split work by architectural layer: Frontend components Backend API endpoints Database migrations/models Test suites Best for : Full stack features, vertical slices By Component Split work by functional component: Authentication module User profile module Notification module Best for : Microservices, modular architectures By Concern Split work by cross cutting concern: Security review Performance review Architecture review Best for : Code reviews, audits By File Ownership Split work by file/directory boundaries: src/components/ — Implementer 1 src/api/ — Implementer 2 src/utils/ — Implementer 3 Best for : Parallel implementation, conflict avoidance Dependency Graph Design Principles 1. Minimize chain depth — Prefer wide, shallow graphs over deep chains 2. Identify the critical path — The longest chain determines minimum completion time 3. Use blockedBy sparingly — Only add dependencies that are truly required 4. Avoid circular dependencies — Task A blocks B blocks A is a deadlock Patterns Independent (Best parallelism) : Sequential (Necessary dependencies) : Diamond (Mixed) : Using blockedBy/blocks Task Description Best Practices Every task should include: 1. Objective — What needs to be accomplished (1 2 sentences) 2. Owned Files — Explicit list of files/directories this teammate may modify 3. Requirements — Specific deliverables or behaviors expected 4. Interface Contracts — How this work connects to other teammates' work 5. Acceptance Criteria — How to verify the task is done correctly 6. Scope Boundaries — What is explicitly out of scope Template Workload Monitoring Indicators of Imbalance Signal Meaning Action Teammate idle, others busy Uneven distribution Reassign pending tasks Teammate stuck on one task Possible blocker Check in, offer help All tasks blocked Dependency issue Resolve critical path first One teammate has 3x others Overloaded Split tasks or reassign Rebalancing Steps 1. Call TaskList to assess current state 2. Identify idle or overloaded teammates 3. Use TaskUpdate to reassign tasks 4. Use SendMessage to notify affected teammates 5. Monitor for improved throughput