agent-protocol

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• SKILL.md
• invocation-patterns.md · references/

SKILL.md (first lines)

# Inter-Agent Protocol

How C-suite agents talk to each other. Rules that prevent chaos, loops, and circular reasoning.

## Keywords
agent protocol, inter-agent communication, agent invocation, agent orchestration, multi-agent, c-suite coordination, agent chain, loop prevention, agent isolation, board meeting protocol

## Invocation Syntax

Any agent can query another using:

```
[INVOKE:role|question]
```

**Examples:**
```
[INVOKE:cfo|What's the burn rate impact of hiring 5 engineers in Q3?]
[INVOKE:cto|Can we realistically ship this feature by end of quarter?]
[INVOKE:chro|What's our typical time-to-hire for senior engineers?]
[INVOKE:cro|What does our pipeline look like for the next 90 days?]
```

**Valid roles:** `ceo`, `cfo`, `cro`, `cmo`, `cpo`, `cto`, `chro`, `coo`, `ciso`

## Response Format

Invoked agents respond using this structure:

```
[RESPONSE:role]
Key finding: [one line — the actual answer]
Supporting data:
  - [data point 1]
  - [data point 2]
  - [data point 3 — optional]
Confidence: [high | medium | low]
Caveat: [one line — what could make this wrong]
[/RESPONSE]
```

**Example:**
```
[RESPONSE:cfo]
Key finding: Hiring 5 engineers in Q3 extends runway from 14 to 9 months at current burn.
Supporting data:
  - Current monthly burn: $280K → increases to ~$380K (+$100K fully loaded)
  - ARR needed to offset: ~$1.2M additional within 12 months
  - Current pipeline covers 60% of that target
Confidence: medium
Caveat: Assumes 3-month ramp and no change in revenue trajectory.
[/RESPONSE]
```

## Loop Prevention (Hard Rules)

These rules are enforced unconditionally. No exceptions.

### Rule 1: No Self-Invocation
An agent cannot invoke itself.
```
❌ CFO → [INVOKE:cfo|...] — BLOCKED
```

### Rule 2: Maximum Depth = 2
Chains can go A→B→C. The third hop is blocked.
```
✅ CRO → CFO → COO (depth 2)
❌ CRO → CFO → COO → CHRO (depth 3 — BLOCKED)
```

### Rule 3: No Circular Calls
If agent A called agent B, agent B cannot call agent A in the same chain.
```
✅ CRO → CFO → CMO
❌ CRO → CFO → CRO (circular — BLOCKED)
```

### Rule 4: Chain Tracking
Each invocation carries its call chain. Format:
```
[CHAIN: cro → cfo → coo]
```
Agents check this chain before responding with another invocation.

**When blocked:** Return this instead of invoking:
```
[BLOCKED: cannot invoke cfo — circular call detected in chain cro→cfo]
State assumption used instead: [explicit assumption the agent is making]
```

## Isolation Rules

### Board Meeting Phase 2 (Independent Analysis)
**NO invocations allowed.** Each role forms independent views before cross-pollination.
- Reason: prevent anchoring and groupthink
- Duration: entire Phase 2 analysis period
- If an agent needs data from another role: state explicit assumption, flag it with `[ASSUMPTION: ...]`

### Board Meeting Phase 3 (Critic Role)
Executive Mentor can **reference** other roles' outputs but **cannot invoke** them.
- Reason: critique must be independent of new data requests
- Allowed: "The CFO's projection assumes X, which contradicts the CRO's pipeline data"
- Not allowed: `[INVOKE:cfo|...]` during critique phase

### Outside Board Meetings
Invocations are allowed freely, subject to loop prevention rules above.

## When to Invoke vs When to Assume

**Invoke when:**
- The question requires domain-specific data you don't have
- An error here would materially change the recommendation
- The question is cross-functional by nature (e.g., hiring impact on both budget and capacity)

**Assume when:**
- The data is directionally clear and precision isn't critical
- You're in Phase 2 isolation (always assume, never invoke)
- The chain is already at depth 2

From 10srav/skills-mega-bundle, MIT.

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