agentic-process-data-flow.md

name	Agentic Process Data Flow
keywords	data flow inputs outputs dependencies workflows steps coherence
last_updated	2026-02-18

How Data Flows Through Workflows

A DeepWork workflow is a directed acyclic graph (DAG) of steps. Data flows through explicit input/output declarations:

1. A step declares outputs — named artifacts it produces
2. A downstream step declares inputs with file and from_step — pulling specific outputs from prior steps
3. The dependencies array must include any step whose outputs are consumed

Dependency Rules

• If step B has an input from_step: A, then A must appear in B's dependencies (directly or transitively through the workflow ordering)
• Concurrent steps (written as [step_a, step_b] in workflow lists) must be genuinely independent — no input/output relationships between them
• Circular dependencies are invalid and will cause runtime failures

Workflow Step Ordering

workflows:
  - name: example
    steps:
      - step_a           # runs first
      - step_b           # runs after step_a
      - [step_c, step_d] # run concurrently after step_b
      - step_e           # runs after both step_c and step_d

Common Data Flow Issues

• Dangling outputs: A step produces an output that no downstream step consumes. Not an error, but worth questioning whether the step belongs in the workflow or the output should be removed.
• Missing dependencies: Step B uses output from step A but doesn't declare the dependency. This will fail at runtime.
• Phantom inputs: Step B references from_step: X but step X doesn't exist or doesn't produce the named output.
• Concurrent mutation: Two concurrent steps both write to the same file path. This creates a race condition.

Review Coverage for Data Flow

When step B depends on step A's output, check:

• Does step A's review validate the structural aspects that step B's instructions assume?
• If step A's output has specific format requirements (YAML structure, section headings, etc.), are those in A's quality criteria?
• If the review misses a structural issue, it will propagate silently to step B.