Start with access you already pay for
Inventory current subscriptions, local models, free allowances, and existing business tools. Assign a zero-dollar external API budget until a workflow proves that new spend creates enough value.
Do not paste keys into chat. Add them through the host-supported environment only for the specific integration that needs them, with the lowest practical permissions.
- Subscription inventory
- Local and free options
- Zero-dollar API default
- Scoped credential storage
Route by task difficulty
Use lower-cost models for classification, extraction, formatting, and routine drafts. Use stronger models for ambiguous synthesis, complex code, security review, or consequential decisions, then return to a cheaper model for mechanical follow-up.
Record the routing policy in plain language so operators understand why a task escalates. Model names and prices change, so review current provider information before hard-coding a recommendation.
- Simple transformation
- Standard drafting
- Complex reasoning
- Independent review
Bound loops and tools
Set maximum retries, pages, files, search queries, tool calls, and run duration. Require a stop with partial results when the budget is exhausted instead of silently expanding the task.
Cache reusable source material where permitted and avoid re-reading or re-summarizing the same large context. Keep logs that show the major cost drivers without storing sensitive payloads.
- Retry ceiling
- Tool-call budget
- Time and file limits
- Safe partial-result behavior
Review cost against outcome
Track cost per completed workflow, not just total tokens. Compare the spend with time saved, quality gained, and the number of human corrections required.
Require explicit approval before increasing a monthly limit, activating a paid integration, or moving a recurring job to a more expensive model.
- Cost per accepted output
- Correction rate
- Monthly ceiling
- Approval before expansion
Build the controlled foundation first.
Agent Ready turns these principles into four working documents before it asks you to automate anything.
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