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Glossary · Updated Sep 24, 2026

Exception handling

Exception handling is the part of an automated process that detects a case it cannot handle confidently and routes it to a person instead of guessing or failing silently.

Most real processes have a fast path for the normal case and a long tail of exceptions: a missing signature, an address that does not match, an order that arrives damaged. A workflow that only automates the fast path still leaves the exceptions to be found and handled manually, often after a customer already noticed the problem.

Good exception handling names the exception, explains why the case was flagged and routes it to the right person with enough context to act quickly, rather than dumping it back into a shared inbox. The common mistake is treating exceptions as failures to eliminate. Some rate of exception is normal, and the goal is routing them well, not pretending they will stop happening.

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