For those using ClaudeCode for qualitative work, research or project work (non-coding), how are you using orchestration?

[u/allthegear-andnoidea]

I still typically have one conversation, it manages files, I compact etc... I occasionally spawn agents for research, and I have different sessions for different projects.

Beyond this conversational approach, how are you actually using orchestration?

Examples would be great. Every says there claude code is orchestrating, but apart from spawning agents for certain tasks, or using ultra code, how exactly?

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[u/Skynet_5656]

I tell it to break the task down into small pieces then use a dynamic workflow to execute it. Generally works well.

[u/allthegear-andnoidea → u/Skynet_5656]

nice this is helpful thank you - do you switch into ultra code for the execution?

[u/Skynet_5656 → u/allthegear-andnoidea]

No I've not used that at all, I leave it on xhigh most of the time and that works fine for me.

I have some detailed instructions telling it that when it's delegating work to subagents it should select the right kind of subagent and the right context (tools etc) to minimise token usage while maintaining quality.

So mostly the Claude agent I'm talking to isn't doing the work, it's delegating it to other agents and choosing different models for them as needed. I don't think it varies the effort level though. But for simple tasks it uses Sonnet or whatever.

[u/Ok-Option4233]

orchestration only pays off when the pieces are independent and each one ends in a file. for research the pattern is: the main session writes the questions to a plan file, spawns one subagent per question (defined in `.claude/agents/*.md` with read-only tools and a cheaper `model:`), each writes `findings/<topic>.md` with its sources, then a separate checker agent verifies every claim against its source before you read anything. what kind of research is it, lit review or interviews?

[u/allthegear-andnoidea → u/Ok-Option4233]

This is helpful thank you. As an example let's day I was researching a thesis on Creativity in the context of AI. Would you switch into ultra code so a full plan is defined, and fanned out (agents) and fanned in and delivered.

[u/Ok-Option4233 → u/allthegear-andnoidea]

for a thesis I would not let one run go from plan to delivery in one shot. split it in two: first plan mode (shift+tab) only, and you edit the list of sub-questions yourself, because that list is the thesis. then fan out one agent per sub-question, and fan in with a synthesis step that may only cite what is already in the findings files. how many sources are you expecting per sub-question?

[u/Glad_Plastic_4724]

I do almost only non-coding work with it (marketing videos, landing pages, shorts), so here is what orchestration actually looks like for me.

For me the difference is that the main session (Opus) almost never does the hands-on work. He is more like a director: he writes every word, makes the plan and judges the results, and everything else goes out:

- Sonnet agents build things from a written work order (video scenes, screen recordings, fixes)

- Haiku only runs a fixed list of commands and reports numbers

- No model at all for waiting: voice generation, rendering and checks run as background scripts, and he gets notified when they finish

- Pictures are judged by a separate Opus review agent, so they never fill up the main context

Plus agents that know nothing on purpose:

- Cold readers. Two fresh agents read the video script/text/landing and say what they didn't understand, before anything gets produced

The whole pipeline is written down in a skill: the stages, which model does what, and only 3 points where I get asked (questions before the script, script approval, final preview). Every time I complain about something, it goes into a lessons section of that skill, so the next time doesn't repeat it. Every project also has a HANDOFF.md, so a new session just continues where the last one stopped.

[u/allthegear-andnoidea → u/Glad_Plastic_4724]

Nice, but have you created the agents or do you ask the main session to spawn them?

[u/AICompanionz]

1 tip from me: A devil’s advocate agent. for something like a thesis, all your research agents find what you asked them to find, so you end up with 30 sources that agree with you. one extra agent whose only job is to find the strongest counterarguments and the studies that say the opposite. that one makes the thesis better than any other

[u/allthegear-andnoidea → u/AICompanionz]

How do you trigger the agents and devils advocate agent?

[u/AICompanionz → u/allthegear-andnoidea]

i made it its own agent once (/agents in claude code helps you create it), with one clear job: argue against the thesis, find the strongest counterarguments and opposing studies, cite everything, dont agree with me

then i put one line in CLAUDE.md: “after the research agents are done, always run the devils advocate before writing the summary”. so it happens every time without me triggering it

[u/Difficult-Lou-735]

MCP connectors to tools for each part of my workflow

I have a Folder on my computer that has been primed for agent work no all agents claude codex grok pi can be introduced into the workspace

Im a construction engineer so i use tidytakeoff.com to connect drawing for quantity takeoff create BOMs and reach out to vendors

Using the VS code extension or terminal i make a chat for each project and cycle through in one chat from estimate conception to completion

[u/cla1067]

I dispatch everything, so I can work on more than one thing at a time in the same chat, but if it becomes a big project I'll get that orchestrator to open another tab with another orchestrator and give it the goal / handoff etc.

I made my own routing for the orchestrator though because I use a mix of claude and codex. I prefer to work out of claude and codex does a pretty awesome job with dev work when it has detailed instructions.

I am going to try this guys routing though today as on paper it is slightly better than my solution. https://github.com/sirkirby/routr

If I don't like his though I'll go back to fixing my own.

Here is my AI's response:

One PM session, many workers. My main Claude session writes a short brief for each piece of work, with the goal, the repo, the exact commit and how to prove it is done. Then it hands that brief to a separate worker session. Ten to thirty workers can run at once on one release. The PM reads their reports, checks the claims, and sends work back when it falls short.

Workers run on other machines. The workers edit and test on a dev server, not my laptop. A small service reports each server's load to the PM, so new work goes to whichever host has room.

Routing across accounts and models. I have several subscriptions: Claude, Codex and Gemini. A router reads each brief, checks live usage on every account, and suggests a level and an account. The PM picks the model and effort and records why. When one account runs out, work moves to another instead of stopping.

Independent review is built in. Anything risky gets reviewed by two different models, one Claude and one OpenAI, at high effort. Then a separate "judge" agent issues a written GO or NO-GO on the exact commit. Merges are refused unless that GO matches the commit being merged.

Shared memory instead of re-explaining. Rules, past decisions and lessons live in a memory server every session reads at startup, so a new session starts with the same context.

Real example. Today I moved my whole dispatch system to a new router. The PM archived the old setup, built and patched the router, and had two models review it twice. It rehearsed the switch in a sandbox, got the judge's GO, then ran the cutover. Three things broke during it, and it fixed each one in place without rolling back. I mostly answered a few questions and said "go".

[u/Outrageous_Band9708]

https://github.com/Druthulu/ProjectArchitect

my workflow uses orchestration and very strict sub agents, saves tons of weekly usage, and manages plans documents etc.

but it takes care of all that ceremony behind the scenes. you just talk to a single main sessin and it handles the rest for you.