diff --git a/navi/tools/spawn_agent.py b/navi/tools/spawn_agent.py
index 14e2828..6e00f07 100644
--- a/navi/tools/spawn_agent.py
+++ b/navi/tools/spawn_agent.py
@@ -25,12 +25,15 @@
         "SYNCHRONOUS — blocks until the sub-agent fully completes. "
         "There is no background process and no continuation.\n\n"
         "USER CANNOT SEE sub-agent output — synthesise findings into your own response.\n\n"
-        "USE when a step requires 3+ tool calls to complete as a single logical unit.\n"
+        "USE when a step requires 3+ tool calls to complete as a single logical unit. "
         "DO NOT USE for a single tool call — call the tool directly.\n\n"
-        "PROFILE SELECTION: omit profile_id to use the parent session's current profile. "
-        "Set profile_id only when the sub-task clearly belongs to another profile. "
-        "The sub-agent uses that selected profile's subagent_tools, falling back to "
-        "enabled_tools when subagent_tools is empty.\n\n"
+        "PROFILE SELECTION: if your plan says to use a specific profile (e.g. 'server_admin' for remote ops, "
+        "'developer' for coding, 'secretary' for research), you MUST pass that exact profile_id in the JSON. "
+        "Only omit profile_id when the plan does NOT specify a profile — then the parent session's current profile is used.\n\n"
+        "Examples (copy this structure exactly):\n"
+        '  {\"task\": \"...\", \"profile_id\": \"server_admin\", \"briefing\": \"...\"}\n'
+        '  {\"task\": \"...\", \"profile_id\": \"developer\"}\n'
+        '  {\"task\": \"...\"}  ← only when plan does not specify a profile\n\n'
     )
     parameters = {
         "type": "object",
@@ -120,7 +123,9 @@
         user_message = task
 
         # Resolve profile: explicit override → parent session's profile → first available
-        profile_id = params.get("profile_id", "").strip()
+        # Support both 'profile_id' and 'profile' as parameter names since models sometimes
+        # use 'profile' when the description says "Profile to use".
+        profile_id = (params.get("profile_id") or params.get("profile") or "").strip()
         if not profile_id:
             profile_id = await self._resolve_parent_profile(ctx)
         try: