Agentic Engineering Lesson #1: Stay in the Loop

Recognising that LLM driven software development isn't about to disappear overnight (as much as some of us would like it to) we're trying to codify some of the do's and don'ts of this new world we find ourselves in.

The first item on our list of recommendations is simple: stay in the loop.

If you watch YouTube/TikTok/X/Instagram videos you may see people running 26 terminal windows, each working on a different part of their project, or across multiple projects. These are people with too many tokens, a disregard for the code those agents are writing and a very big monitor.

There are situations where that is a valid approach! I've written several projects, games, tools and experiments where the quality of the code was not my main concern. When I wanted something simple to catalogue my book collection, the fact that it worked when I scanned a barcode was far more important to me than whether or not the code would pass any smell tests.

But with a team of people, all of whom have spent years hand-crafting every line of code, the introduction of LLMs does not mean you are no longer responsible for the code you are submitting for peer review. Not only should you respect the time of your colleagues who are going to review it, but you also must be able to answer questions that may come back without needing to consult with your clanker friend.

You must therefore stay in the loop. This means one session where you and the LLM act more like colleagues, pair programming your way problems and leaning on each others strengths. You are the human with taste, software engineering skill and an understanding of customer expectations. Leverage those skills along with the LLMs capability to brainstorm ideas with you, push back with potential gotchas and generate solutions quickly.

Do not be replaced by the robot. Do not spend the time between turns working on another task. Focus on one thing at a time and continue to take pride in the output.

Treat the LLM like a carpenter treats a table saw. A great friend to have until you stop paying attention and you just lost a limb.