Crafting Agentic Agents: Why Specialisation Outperforms Generic Bots

In today’s boardrooms, the term AI agent is everywhere—but the gap between a generic bot and a specialised agentic system is vast. One supports at the margins; the other transforms the operating core.

At a private equity firm, generic copilots produced text and answered questions but delivered little ROI. The breakthrough came when the company deployed specialised agentic agents designed for clear outcomes: an Investment Insights Agent that cut proposal preparation by 80%, a Due Diligence Agent that freed 60% of analyst capacity, and a Consultation Protocol Agent that automated meeting capture and follow-ups.

The lesson is simple: crafting agentic agents is a design exercise, not a procurement exercise. High-performing agents are built with domain context, governance guardrails, and integration into enterprise workflows. Without this, they remain novelties; with it, they deliver measurable ROI and lasting competitive advantage.

For the C-suite, the call is clear: treat AI agents as colleagues to be designed, not gadgets to be licensed. The organisations that specialise and integrate their agents will outperform those that settle for generic bots.