Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Adds substantial context beyond the readOnly/idempotent annotations: asynchronous persistence forcing an overlapping window, de-duplication by resultCaseID, the 600 requests/hour heavy rate class, timezone handling for timestamps, and the privacy note that respondent personal data is never returned. These are exactly the operational traits an agent needs.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Front-loads what the tool returns, then layers filters, rate class, and the export alternative. It is dense and sentence-heavy, but nearly every clause carries distinct decision-relevant information, so little is wasted.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

Complete for a filtered-list tool: it covers return structure, filter combination semantics, timezone expectations, rate limits, the file-export alternative, and privacy scope. With an output schema present, no return-value explanation is owed, yet the column/Case explanation still adds interpretive value.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema coverage is already 100%, so the baseline is 3, but the description adds real semantic value: FromDate/ToDate compare inclusively against each response's StartDate, ChangedSince is a delta-sync bound, Device maps to buckets, and Source 'external' identifies API-submitted responses.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

Opens with a specific verb and resource ('Returns all responses of a survey as a tabular data set') and explains the Questions/Cases shape so the agent understands exactly what comes back. It also explicitly distinguishes itself from siblings, naming export_survey_responses and get_survey as related but different tools.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Gives clear routing guidance to export_survey_responses for large data sets and describes the incremental-read pattern using ChangedSince. It does not explicitly state when to use get_survey_response (single response) instead, but the context is strong enough to infer the boundary.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.