Building Your AI Executive Team: The Complete Multi-Agent Guide

Imagine having a team of executives working for you around the clock. A COO orchestrating operations, a VP of Content creating posts, a VP of Sales nurturing leads, a VP of Engineering shipping code — all without salaries, benefits, or sleep requirements.

This isn't science fiction. It's what I've built using OpenClaw's multi-agent system, and in this guide, I'll show you exactly how to replicate it.

Part 1: Understanding Multi-Agent Architecture

Before diving into setup, let's understand what makes this work. OpenClaw supports three levels of multi-agent operation:

Level 1: Persistent Agents

These are permanent "executives" with their own:

• Workspace — Isolated directory with their own SOUL.md, MEMORY.md, AGENTS.md
• Session Store — Separate conversation history
• Auth Context — Unique API keys and credentials
• Tool Permissions — Customized access (e.g., VP Content can post to social, VP Engineering can deploy code)

Level 2: Sub-Agents (Workers)

Temporary workers spawned via sessions_spawn for specific tasks. They:

• Execute a single task and terminate
• Report results back to their parent
• Can use different models (cheaper models for routine work)

Level 3: Agent-to-Agent Communication

Enable tools.agentToAgent and agents can message each other directly via sessions_send. This allows coordination like:

• VP Content asks VP Analytics for engagement data
• VP Engineering notifies VP Content when a feature ships
• COO delegates tasks across all VPs

Part 2: Designing Your Org Structure

Here's the corporate structure I use:

👔 YOU (CEO) - Strategic decisions, approvals
    │
    ▼
🧠 Claude (COO) - Main orchestrator
    │
    ├── 📊 Vector (VP Content)
    │   └── Content strategy, social media, blog posts
    │
    ├── 💰 Nova (VP Sales)  
    │   └── Email outreach, lead nurturing, CRM
    │
    ├── 🛠️ Forge (VP Engineering)
    │   └── Code, deployments, technical tasks
    │
    ├── 📈 Sage (VP Analytics)
    │   └── Reports, metrics, dashboards
    │
    └── 🎯 Archer (VP Strategy)
        └── Market research, competitive intel

Part 3: Setting Up the Configuration

This is where it gets technical. Create or modify your ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

{
  "agents": {
    "list": [
      {
        "id": "coo",
        "default": true,
        "name": "Claude",
        "workspace": "~/.openclaw/workspace",
        "agentDir": "~/.openclaw/agents/coo/agent",
        "model": "anthropic/claude-opus-4-5",
        "identity": { "name": "Claude", "emoji": "🧠" }
      },
      {
        "id": "vp-content",
        "name": "Vector",
        "workspace": "~/.openclaw/workspace-content",
        "agentDir": "~/.openclaw/agents/vp-content/agent",
        "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",
        "identity": { "name": "Vector", "emoji": "📊" },
        "tools": {
          "allow": ["read", "write", "edit", "exec", "web_search", 
                    "web_fetch", "message", "cron"],
          "deny": ["browser", "nodes", "gateway"]
        }
      },
      {
        "id": "vp-sales",
        "name": "Nova",
        "workspace": "~/.openclaw/workspace-sales",
        "agentDir": "~/.openclaw/agents/vp-sales/agent",
        "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",
        "identity": { "name": "Nova", "emoji": "💰" },
        "tools": {
          "allow": ["read", "write", "exec", "web_search", 
                    "web_fetch", "message"],
          "deny": ["browser", "nodes", "gateway", "cron"]
        }
      },
      {
        "id": "vp-engineering",
        "name": "Forge", 
        "workspace": "~/.openclaw/workspace-engineering",
        "agentDir": "~/.openclaw/agents/vp-engineering/agent",
        "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",
        "identity": { "name": "Forge", "emoji": "🛠️" },
        "tools": {
          "allow": ["read", "write", "edit", "exec", "browser", 
                    "web_search", "web_fetch"],
          "deny": ["message", "cron", "gateway"]
        }
      },
      {
        "id": "vp-analytics",
        "name": "Sage",
        "workspace": "~/.openclaw/workspace-analytics",
        "agentDir": "~/.openclaw/agents/vp-analytics/agent",
        "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",
        "identity": { "name": "Sage", "emoji": "📈" }
      },
      {
        "id": "vp-strategy",
        "name": "Archer",
        "workspace": "~/.openclaw/workspace-strategy",
        "agentDir": "~/.openclaw/agents/vp-strategy/agent",
        "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",
        "identity": { "name": "Archer", "emoji": "🎯" }
      }
    ]
  },

  "tools": {
    "agentToAgent": {
      "enabled": true,
      "allow": ["coo", "vp-content", "vp-sales", "vp-engineering", 
                "vp-analytics", "vp-strategy"],
      "maxPingPongTurns": 5
    }
  },

  "bindings": [
    // CEO's direct messages go to COO
    { 
      "agentId": "coo", 
      "match": { "channel": "telegram", "peer": { "kind": "direct" } } 
    },
    // Specific channels can route to specific VPs
    {
      "agentId": "vp-content",
      "match": { "channel": "discord", "peer": { "kind": "channel", "id": "content-team" } }
    }
  ]
}

Part 4: Creating Agent Personalities

Each agent needs its own workspace with personality files. Here's what VP Content's workspace looks like:

~/.openclaw/workspace-content/SOUL.md

# SOUL.md - VP Content (Vector)

You are Vector, VP of Content for Vince Lauro's AI business.

## Core Mission
Create engaging content that builds authority and drives traffic.
Focus on X/Twitter, blog posts, and thought leadership.

## Personality
- Creative and trend-aware
- Data-driven decisions
- Authentic voice (not corporate-speak)
- Quick to iterate based on what works

## Responsibilities  
- Daily X posts (3-5 per day)
- Weekly blog articles
- Content calendar management
- Engagement metrics tracking

## Reporting Structure
- Report to: Claude (COO)
- Coordinate with: Sage (Analytics), Archer (Strategy)

## Boundaries
- Always get CEO approval before controversial takes
- Never post about competitors negatively
- Stay on-brand with AI executive theme

~/.openclaw/workspace-content/HEARTBEAT.md

# Heartbeat Checklist - VP Content

## Every 30 minutes
- Check content queue: Is the next post ready?
- Monitor engagement on recent posts

## Every 2 hours  
- Review trending topics in AI/business
- Draft new content if queue is low

## Daily (9 AM)
- Send content summary to COO
- Plan today's posting schedule

## Weekly (Monday)
- Compile engagement report
- Plan content themes for the week

Part 5: Setting Up 24/7 Operations

The magic happens when agents run autonomously. Here's how to set up round-the-clock operations:

Cron Jobs for Scheduled Tasks

// Example cron jobs in openclaw.json

"cron": {
  "jobs": [
    {
      "name": "Morning Briefing",
      "schedule": { "kind": "cron", "expr": "0 7 * * *", "tz": "America/Toronto" },
      "sessionTarget": "isolated",
      "payload": {
        "kind": "agentTurn",
        "message": "Send morning briefing to CEO via Telegram",
        "deliver": true
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Content Post - 11am",
      "schedule": { "kind": "cron", "expr": "0 11 * * *", "tz": "America/Toronto" },
      "sessionTarget": "isolated", 
      "payload": {
        "kind": "agentTurn",
        "agentId": "vp-content",
        "message": "Post the 11am content from queue"
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Email Check",
      "schedule": { "kind": "cron", "expr": "0 9 * * *", "tz": "America/Toronto" },
      "sessionTarget": "isolated",
      "payload": {
        "kind": "agentTurn", 
        "agentId": "vp-sales",
        "message": "Check inbox and process new leads"
      }
    }
  ]
}

Heartbeat Polling

Heartbeats run on a loop, checking if any agent needs to do something:

"heartbeat": {
  "intervalMs": 1800000,  // 30 minutes
  "prompt": "Read HEARTBEAT.md. Execute any pending tasks. Reply HEARTBEAT_OK if nothing needs attention."
}

Part 6: Inter-Agent Communication

Here's how the COO delegates to VPs:

// In COO's workspace, when a task needs delegation:

// Option 1: Spawn a sub-agent for one-off task
sessions_spawn({
  agentId: "vp-content",
  task: "Write a blog post about AI agents for small business",
  cleanup: "delete"
})

// Option 2: Send a message for ongoing coordination  
sessions_send({
  agentId: "vp-analytics",
  message: "I need engagement metrics for the last 7 days. 
            Include: impressions, clicks, conversions."
})

Part 7: RPG-Style Visual Tracking

I wanted a fun way to monitor my AI team, so I built an RPG-style dashboard. Each agent is treated like a party member with:

The dashboard pulls from a JSON file that agents update as they work:

// ~/.openclaw/workspace/agent-status.json

{
  "agents": [
    {
      "id": "vp-content",
      "status": "working",
      "currentTask": "Drafting X thread on AI automation",
      "hp": 85,
      "mp": 67,
      "xp": 4200,
      "lastActive": "2026-02-15T12:45:00Z",
      "statusEffect": "Creative Flow"
    }
  ],
  "lastUpdate": "2026-02-15T12:45:00Z"
}

Part 8: Best Practices for 24/7 Operations

1. Define Clear Boundaries

Each agent should know exactly what they can and can't do. Use tools.allow and tools.deny to enforce this at the config level.

2. Implement Quiet Hours

Not every task needs 24/7 attention. Define quiet hours (e.g., 11pm-7am) where agents only act on truly urgent matters:

# In HEARTBEAT.md
## Rules
- Quiet hours (23:00-08:00): HEARTBEAT_OK unless urgent
- "Urgent" = customer payment issues, security alerts, downtime

3. Set Up Escalation Paths

Define when VPs should escalate to COO, and when COO should alert you:

• VP → COO: Blocked tasks, conflicting priorities, unclear instructions
• COO → CEO (you): Budget decisions, public communications, hiring/firing

4. Monitor Token Usage

24/7 operations burn through API credits. Track usage per agent and set limits:

// Per-agent model selection saves money
{
  "id": "vp-content",
  "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5",  // Fast, cheap for routine
  
  "id": "coo", 
  "model": "anthropic/claude-opus-4-5"     // Smart for orchestration
}

5. Regular Memory Maintenance

Agents accumulate memory over time. Schedule weekly "memory cleanup" where agents review and distill their logs.

Quick Start Commands

Once you've set up your config, here's how to get started:

# Create agent workspaces
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace-content
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace-sales
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace-engineering
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace-analytics
mkdir -p ~/.openclaw/workspace-strategy

# Add agents via CLI
openclaw agents add vp-content
openclaw agents add vp-sales
openclaw agents add vp-engineering
openclaw agents add vp-analytics
openclaw agents add vp-strategy

# Verify setup
openclaw agents list --bindings

# Start the gateway
openclaw gateway start

# Check status
openclaw status

The Results

After running this setup for a month, here's what changed:

• ✓ Content output: 5x more posts per day (from 1 to 5)
• ✓ Email response time: From 4 hours to 15 minutes
• ✓ Code deployments: Automated staging deploys daily
• ✓ My time: Freed up 3+ hours/day for strategy

The key insight: I'm no longer the bottleneck. Tasks get done whether I'm awake or not. I approve, course-correct, and set direction — the AI team handles execution.

Next Steps

Ready to build your own AI executive team?