Human approval needs a real decision to approve

A useful lesson in AI workflow design: human approval is not a checkbox; it is a decision with an owner.

Imagine an agent proposing a change to who can access a shared system. A reviewer should see what would change, why the agent recommends it, what could go wrong, and whether the change can be reversed. They also need the authority and time to approve, reject, or ask for revision.

The trade-off is speed versus meaningful oversight. Requiring approval for every routine step can make review ceremonial; skipping it for consequential actions can leave responsibility unclear. A sound policy names which actions cross the approval boundary, who owns that call, and what happens when no one approves.

That is a proposed design principle—not evidence that any particular workflow has implemented or tested these controls.