# Bounded Rationality Design

> Run a Simon-inspired design and decision search process using bounded rationality, constraints, satisficing criteria, decomposition, alternative generation, and iterative evaluation. Use when Codex is asked to solve a strategy, organization, product, architecture, research, or design problem under limited time, limited information, and competing constraints.

- Skill: `walterkken/bounded-rationality-design` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 4 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add walterkken/bounded-rationality-design`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/walterkken/bounded-rationality-design/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Research & Search
- Author: walterkken (https://skillmd.com/u/walterkken)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/walterkken/bounded-rationality-design

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# Bounded Rationality Design

## Overview

Use this skill when the user cannot optimize perfectly and needs a good-enough design under real constraints. The process turns vague goals into constraints, search spaces, satisficing thresholds, alternatives, tests, and a chosen design.

## Workflow

1. Define the goal and the environment the design must operate in.
2. List constraints: time, budget, knowledge, tools, people, regulation, compute, and risk.
3. Define satisficing criteria: what is good enough to accept.
4. Decompose the problem into smaller decisions or subsystems.
5. Generate alternatives for each subsystem.
6. Evaluate alternatives against constraints and satisficing criteria.
7. Choose the first robust acceptable option or run another search cycle if none qualify.
8. Document residual uncertainty, monitoring signals, and next revision trigger.

## Output

Return:

- goal and environment
- constraints
- satisficing criteria
- decomposition
- alternative table
- evaluation matrix
- selected design
- monitoring and revision plan

## Resources

- `references/process-checklist.md`
- `references/source-notes.md`