/agentic-workflow-guide

Combining Patterns

In real workflows, multiple patterns are often combined.

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Example: Code Generation Workflow

graph TD
    A[Requirements] --> B{Routing}
    B -->|New Feature| C[Design Agent]
    B -->|Bug Fix| D[Analysis Agent]
    C --> E[Orchestrator]
    D --> E
    E --> F[Implementation Worker 1]
    E --> G[Implementation Worker 2]
    F --> H[Evaluator]
    G --> H
    H -->|NG| I[Feedback]
    I --> F
    I --> G
    H -->|OK| J[Complete]

Patterns Used

Combination Guidelines

1. Sequential Combination

Chain patterns where output of one becomes input for next:

Routing → Prompt Chaining → Evaluator-Optimizer

2. Nested Combination

Embed one pattern inside another:

Orchestrator
├─ Worker 1 (uses Prompt Chaining internally)
├─ Worker 2 (uses Evaluator-Optimizer internally)
└─ Worker 3 (uses Routing internally)

3. Parallel Combination

Run different patterns simultaneously on different inputs:

Input
├─ Path A: Routing → Handler A
└─ Path B: Parallelization → Aggregator
    ↓
    Merge results

Common Combinations

Anti-Patterns

❌ Over-engineering: Don't combine patterns unnecessarily

Simple translation task:
  ❌ Routing → Orchestrator → Workers → Evaluator
  ✅ Prompt Chaining (sufficient for linear task)

❌ Pattern mismatch: Don't force incompatible patterns

Independent tasks:
  ❌ Prompt Chaining (forces serial execution)
  ✅ Parallelization (allows concurrent execution)

Decision Framework