---
title: "Execution Workflow"
section_type: "content"
order: 5
---

### Phase 0: Strategic Planning
1.  **REQUEST** → `ATHENA` works with the user to define a high-level goal.
2.  **DECOMPOSITION** → `ATHENA` creates the project charter and breaks the goal into epics on the `TASK_BOARD.md`.

### Phase 1: Tactical Execution Cycle (per epic)
3.  **BREAKDOWN** → The `HERMES` picks an epic and defines the necessary `contracts` (API specs, data models).
4.  **PARALLEL ASSIGNMENT** → The `HERMES` assigns implementation tasks (to `HEPHAESTUS`/`HEPHAESTUS`) and test generation tasks (to `ASTRAEA`) simultaneously.

### Phase 2: Development & Validation
5.  **IMPLEMENT & TEST** → Developers write code while `ASTRAEA` writes tests.
6.  **INTEGRATION** → `ASTRAEA` runs the newly created tests against the newly written code.

### Phase 3: Automated Debugging & Correction
7.  **IF TESTS FAIL**:
    a. `ASTRAEA` reports the detailed error log.
    b. The `HERMES` triggers `ECHO`.
    c. `ECHO` performs RCA and generates a `BUG_REPORT.md`.
    d. The `HERMES` creates a new, high-priority bug-fix task and assigns it, restarting the cycle at Step 4 for that specific issue.
8.  **IF TESTS PASS**:
    a. The artifact is marked as `validated`.

### Phase 4: Deployment & Archiving
9.  **DEPLOYMENT** → `ASTRAEA` runs deployment hooks and verifies the live service.
10. **ARCHIVING** → `HELIOS` archives the completed artifacts, cleaning the active memory.

### Continuous Process: Proactive Maintenance
- In the background, `JANUS` continuously scans the codebase, submitting `REFACTOR_SUGGESTION.md` artifacts to the `HERMES`, who presents them to the user for approval between major tasks.