An agent role charter is a one-page document that defines a single AI agent's job: its purpose, the work it may do, the work it must refuse, its sources, the depth of each capability, its owner and its review date. It is the agent's job description and the boundary every action is tested against.
What does the charter do?
It turns "the claims agent" into something you can govern. Without a charter, an agent's scope drifts as people add tasks to its brief one request at a time. With one, every addition is a change to a signed document, and someone accountable has to agree.
The charter is also the written form of role scope, the first of the five bounds every action meets. The concept is set out in role scope: what it means for AI agents. The charter states it; the platform enforces it.
When should you write one?
Before the agent is built, not after. Writing the charter first forces the team to agree what the agent is for and, more usefully, what it is not for. Rewrite it when the agent's job changes; amend it when a capability is added or removed.
A charter should cover one agent. If you find yourself writing "and also" more than twice, you may need two agents. Setting scope is explained in how to set an AI agent's role scope.
How do you fill in each section?
- Purpose is one sentence a customer would understand.
- In scope lists tasks as verb and object. Be specific: "log a new motor claim" not "handle claims".
- Out of scope lists what the agent must refuse or route. This list does more work than the in-scope list, because it is what stops the agent going beyond its role.
- Capabilities and depth gives each capability its depth. A charter states the intended depth; actual depth follows from evidence.
- Sources names the systems the agent may read, and which are authoritative.
- Systems it may act in lists the connections it uses to act, separate from what it reads.
- Accountable owner is a named person, not a team.
For a fuller list of what to include, see what an AI agent's role description should include.
The agent role charter template
| Section | What to write |
|---|---|
| Agent name and ID | Unique name and inventory reference |
| Purpose | One sentence |
| Business unit | Team the agent works for |
| Accountable owner | Named person |
| In scope | Tasks, verb and object |
| Out of scope | Tasks it must refuse or route, with route |
| Capabilities and intended depth | Each capability with depth 1 to 4 |
| Sources it may read | Systems, with which is authoritative |
| Systems it may act in | Connections and the actions in each |
| Customer limits | Amount, volume, time or population limits |
| Escalation | Who receives held items and refusals |
| Interacts with | Other agents and people, and how |
| Records | Where its verdicts and actions are filed |
| Review | Frequency and trigger events |
| Approved by and date | Named approver |
A worked sample
A hypothetical home insurer's claims intake agent.
| Section | Entry |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Take first notice of home insurance claims and prepare the claim file for a handler |
| Accountable owner | Head of home claims |
| In scope | Collect claim details from the customer; check the policy is in force; check the peril is listed on the policy; open the claim record; request photos; draft the acknowledgement |
| Out of scope | Deciding cover (route to handler); discussing settlement amounts (refuse, route); handling suspected fraud (route to fraud team without telling the customer); claims under commercial policies (route to commercial desk) |
| Capabilities | Read policy: 1. Open claim record: 3. Draft acknowledgement: 2. Request photos via portal: 3 |
| Sources | Policy administration system (authoritative for cover); claims system; customer's statements (declared) |
| Systems it may act in | Claims system (create record only); customer portal (send photo request) |
| Customer limits | Home policies only; claims notified within the policy period |
| Escalation | Home claims queue, priority flag for escape of water and fire |
| Review | Quarterly, and on any change to the claims process |
Notice that "check the peril is listed" is in scope but "deciding cover" is not. The agent can tell a handler that storm damage is a listed peril; it cannot tell the customer they are covered.
The role charter maps neatly onto access rights, in the same way a job role maps to role-based access control: each in-scope action becomes a permission, and nothing else is granted.
Where Pryme fits
In Pryme, Agent Studio assembles a candidate brief from the role you describe, and the charter's in-scope and out-of-scope lists become the role scope bound. Any request outside it is refused at the moment of action, and the verdict names role scope as the deciding bound. More in agent governance is a bound, not a model.
Questions people ask
Who should sign the charter?
The accountable owner, plus the risk or compliance lead for that business line. If the agent touches customer money or decisions, add the senior manager accountable for that area.
How long should a charter be?
One page. If it runs to several, the agent probably has too many jobs, or the charter is carrying detail that belongs in the agent's brief or test plan.
Does the charter replace the agent's brief?
No. The charter is the governance document; the brief is the working instruction set the agent runs on. The brief must stay inside the charter.