Failure modes checklist.
Common failure modes in real workflows — and the deterministic gates that stop drafts from becoming decisions.
The system subtly changes the task definition mid-run (different audience, different constraints, different deliverable).
Require an explicit scope block and a reviewer approval step before downstream actions.
Defaults are silently invented (units, thresholds, policy interpretation, missing context) and become treated as true.
Force an assumptions list with required fields; reject outputs with missing assumptions.
Statements read confidently but have no cited evidence or input source.
Deterministic evidence rules: claim → source mapping, or mark as unknown and block approval.
The output is fluent but not operational: no checklist, no fields, no acceptance criteria.
Enforce artifact schemas (tables, checklists, diffs, forms) with validation before review.
Tool calls or automations run with unclear permissions, producing irreversible changes.
Require allowlists, sandboxing, and a deterministic human approval gate for side-effecting actions.
Old documents, outdated policies, or cached context lead to a correct-looking but wrong result.
Require input timestamps and an explicit ‘data freshness’ check before approval.