Understand Workflows
Unit 2 of 10 · Module 12: Build agent-driven workflows using Microsoft Foundry
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Belts, stations, and diverters
Look at how the baggage hall actually works. Nobody writes a program for each bag. Instead, the hall is laid out once: conveyor belts connect a set of stations, and every bag follows the route the layout allows. A Foundry workflow is the same idea. Instead of writing code, you describe the steps and the order they happen in, and the platform runs them and keeps track of where each request is. That declarative, visual style suits business processes that mix AI reasoning, rules, and conversations with people.
Nodes on a path
Each station in the hall is a node. Some nodes call an agent, like a scanner that reads the tag. Others check a condition, like a diverter that sends a bag left or right. Some store or reshape data, and some talk to the user. Connected together, the nodes form a path that every request travels along, and by arranging them you decide how information moves and where decisions are made.
Several agents, and a person when needed
The big win is teamwork between agents. One agent trying to do everything often stumbles on messy, ambiguous requests. A workflow lets each agent do one job well: one classifies, one decides, one drafts the answer. And when a bag's tag is smudged, it goes to a person at the inspection desk instead of the wrong plane. Workflows can do the same: pause, ask someone a question, or escalate when an agent isn't confident. That mix of automation and human control is what makes workflows fit real business systems.
Facts from Microsoft's documentation: Build a workflow in Microsoft Foundry (Preview) (CC BY 4.0), rewritten in Loop's own words and examples. Narration, animation, and quiz by Loop. Microsoft, Azure, and Microsoft Foundry are trademarks of Microsoft. Loop is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.