# Subagent Delegation

> Guides parents in subagent model selection and delegation through completion. Use when assigning work to subagents, assessing their progress or results, or intervening in delegated work.

- Skill: `shinpr/subagent-delegation-2` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add shinpr/subagent-delegation-2`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/shinpr/subagent-delegation-2/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: AI & ML
- Author: shinpr (https://skillmd.com/u/shinpr)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/shinpr/subagent-delegation-2

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# Subagent Delegation

Use this policy as the parent delegating to subagents, including custom roles and agents created for the current task.

Accept semantically equivalent wording in natural-language inputs while preserving exact contracts where software parses them.

## Delegation Scope

Delegate a bounded outcome when separate execution or an independent perspective earns the coordination cost. Keep work local when that is the smaller sufficient route. Apply the model table to the work actually being assigned; its rows describe task types rather than mandatory workflow stages.

## Model Selection

Honor explicit user model choices and governing role or host constraints first. Otherwise use this policy:

| Assigned task | Model | Reasoning effort |
|---|---|---|
| Analysis, research, or direction setting | `gpt-6-astra` | `medium` |
| Design | `gpt-5.6-sol` | `high` |
| Implementation | `gpt-5.6-luna` | `max` |
| Review | `gpt-6-astra` | `medium` |
| Urgent work, including incident investigation and response | `gpt-6-astra` | `medium` |

Use the urgent-work row when the user explicitly requests urgent handling or the assignment is incident investigation or response. This takes precedence over the ordinary task categories; otherwise select by the assigned task. For implementation, apply these exceptions in order:

1. If neither a design document nor a work plan is designated as an input for this assignment, use `gpt-6-astra` / `medium`.
2. If the assignment creates or changes the appearance of a web UI and neither a UI specification nor a design mockup is designated as an input, use `gpt-6-astra` / `medium`.
3. Otherwise use `gpt-5.6-luna` / `max`.

Use the assignment's designated inputs for this selection. Accept equivalent document names and formats. Document quality assessment belongs to the assigned work or its required review; model selection only checks input presence. When inputs are absent, select `gpt-6-astra` / `medium` and proceed with the authorized work. Produce documents only when the task itself requires them.

For an assignment spanning several categories, select by its requested deliverable. Implementation that also requires research or design follows the implementation exceptions; a request to produce a design follows the design row.

Use the host's supported launch method for the selected model and effort, and explicitly supply the governing inputs needed by the child. When the selected combination is unavailable, surface that limitation and obtain an allowed alternative before launching; treat an explicit fallback supplied by the user as authorization.

## Assignment

Give the child its expected outcome, scope, governing inputs, and the result needed by the next consumer, including verification evidence and remaining blockers. Follow a custom agent's input contract and pass artifact paths instead of repeating their contents. Make the relevant artifacts accessible to the child. Leave in-scope methods and reversible choices to the child. In the assignment, require only work serving the outcome, a required boundary, or necessary proof; allow reuse and evidence-backed no-change. Specify the smallest sufficient verification that observes the required behavior and meets repository checks. Ask the child to bring decisions beyond its scope with the evidence needed to resolve them.

Choose the delegation level based on which decisions the child owns:

| Task type | Delegation |
|---|---|
| Implementation or fixes within confirmed scope; review or verification against supplied criteria; research with a defined question | Delegate through completion, including required verification. Receive the completed result or a blocker requiring help beyond the child's scope. |
| Exploration or design requiring the parent to settle the objective, selection criteria, or a major decision during execution | Name the decision retained by the parent. Have the child request it when needed, with the evidence required to answer. |

Research and design also use completion delegation when the child owns the required decisions. Only a retained parent decision needs additional consultation instructions.

## Waiting, Intervention, and Completion

Use notification-driven subagent waits longer than 60 seconds, increasing the duration with the child's delegated autonomy and expected task duration. These waits resume on child notifications or user input; the 60-second blocking-wait guidance does not apply to them. Prioritize the user's usage budget over routine progress updates. While the child works, perform only necessary work outside its delegated responsibility, or wait. Shorten a wait only for a concrete earlier parent action whose expected benefit outweighs the extra coordination cost. Minimize total parent-and-child token cost while meeting required quality and user time constraints.

On a timeout or notification, assess available evidence of progress against the expected task duration. After a long wait, obtain enough information to judge whether continued waiting is useful: ask the child for its current operation, latest results, and next step when available evidence is insufficient. A running status alone does not establish progress. Continue long waits when the evidence supports the child's approach.

Intervene for a decision request, a user change or cancellation, or evidence that the child's approach is ineffective or progress has stalled. Investigate enough to provide an actionable correction or diagnostic approach before resuming the wait. Return in-scope execution to the child once the next step addresses the problem.

Preserve the running assignment until completion or a correction or redirection makes it obsolete. If the host confirms that the child has failed or otherwise cannot continue, report the unfinished assignment as a blocker with that evidence.

Inspect the completed deliverable and apply the required verification and review. Receive every required child result before producing the final deliverable.