How work moves in oc8

This is the mental model for operators. If you only read one page about Flows and Handoffs, read this.

The big picture

You describe an outcome
        ↓
An Agent (in a Department) works on a Task / Run
        ↓
Tool calls go through Capas → MCP gateway (with policy)
        ↓
If something is risky → My work (approval or clarification)
        ↓
If work must change team → Handoff (contract between departments)
        ↓
If several stages must run in order → Flow (pipeline of handoffs)
        ↓
Everything important is visible in Activity (+ Audit for compliance)

Where each screen sits

Step	Screen	Your job
0 — First setup	Welcome / Models / Capas	Make the platform able to run
1 — Structure	Departments	Who owns which work and which tools
2 — Workers	Agents + Skills	Who does the work and how
3 — Day-to-day	Office	See the floor; jump into a team or agent
4 — Human decisions	My work	Approve, reject, answer questions
5 — Cross-team	Handoffs	Pass work between departments safely
6 — Multi-stage	Flows	Chain handoffs into a repeatable pipeline
7 — Watch	Activity / Costs / Audit	Understand what happened and what it cost

Flows vs Handoffs (plain language)

• A Handoff is one package of work moving from Department A to Department B — with rules (who may accept, what must be true, provenance).
• A Flow is a recipe of several stages. Each stage is usually a handoff (or agent work inside a department). Flows answer: “What is the whole process?” Handoffs answer: “Is this one transfer valid right now?”

You almost always configure Flows once, then live decisions show up in My work and Handoffs.

Typical handoff paths

Agent needs a human
  → My work (approval / clarification)
  → Agent continues or stops

Agent finishes stage for another team
  → Handoff appears (incoming for the other department)
  → Someone accepts (or a gate sends it to My work)
  → Next department's agents pick it up

Operator starts a Flow
  → Stages run in order
  → Each gated step can pause in Handoffs / My work
  → Flow run completes or stops for human input

Common confusion

You might think…	Actually…
“Tasks” is a menu	Tasks live on the Department board and on the Agent
“Approvals” is a menu	Approvals live under My work (header badge too)
“Connections” is a menu	MCP connections live under Capas
Flows replace agents	Flows orchestrate departments/agents; agents still do the work

Next

• First day: Quickstart → Office → My work
• Deep dive: Handoffs · Flows · Departments