Compare Sequential Workflow and Supervisor Patterns
Select the appropriate Select AI agent-team pattern based on how the team must select workers and coordinate tasks.
Select the sequential workflow pattern when the team must run configured agent-task pairs in a known order. Select the supervisor pattern when the team must select workers at run time based on the request, intermediate results, failures, or requests for more information.
| Characteristic | Sequential Workflow Pattern | Supervisor Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| Run plan | Fixed. The agents array defines the workflow order. |
Variable. The supervisor selects the next worker at run time. |
| Entry point | The first configured agent-task pair. | The supervisor agent. |
| Task selection | The team runs configured agent-task pairs in order. | The supervisor calls one or more workers as needed. |
| Context passing | Task dependencies pass prior task output to downstream tasks. | The supervisor sends each worker a self-contained subtask. |
| Best suited for | Predictable pipelines with known stages. | Variable requests that need conditional routing or coordination. |
| Parallel runs | Not supported. Tasks run one at a time. | Not supported. Worker subtasks run one at a time. |
The following table provides differences between Sequential pattern and Supervisor pattern that can help you decide your workflow.
| Sequential Pattern | Supervisor Pattern |
|---|---|
| Fixed workflow | Dynamic Orchestration |
| Every step runs in order | Only the needed steps run |
| Good for linear pipelines | Good for branching enterprise requests |
| Less decision logic | Less manual routing logic, more runtime judgement |