Pass work between people with an agreed state, required evidence, named receiver and explicit next action.
Define the moment responsibility changes
Handoff detail
A hand-off is not ‘I sent an email’; it is the point at which one role has supplied an agreed package and another has accepted the next action. Name common transitions such as sales to scheduling, workshop to delivery or site team to invoicing. If nobody can say when responsibility changes, work will sit between queues while each person reasonably believes somebody else owns it.
Make acceptance visible
Handoff detail
The receiver should acknowledge that the package is complete enough to enter their queue. This can be a status change, named assignment or signed paper slip, depending on the business. Acceptance does not mean immediate completion; it means the next owner and due expectation are known. Urgent work needs an agreed escalation route and direct confirmation, not an ‘urgent’ label added to an already crowded shared inbox.
Agree the minimum ready state
Handoff detail
For each transition, define what must be true before the receiver can act. Scheduling may need an accepted scope, customer contact, site postcode and access constraints. Accounts may need completion approval, purchase-order reference and agreed variations. Keep the list short and operational. Optional context can travel with the job, but missing required information should return to the current owner rather than becoming the receiver’s detective work.
Carry decisions, not every conversation
Handoff detail
Summarise the current scope, customer commitments, exceptions and unresolved questions. Link to the authoritative quote, drawing or job record rather than attaching several conflicting versions. Record who approved a variation and when. Informal messages can support the history, but the receiver should not reconstruct the job from a long chat thread. Avoid including personal or sensitive information that the receiving role does not need.
Practical template
Job hand-off slip
Use this as a paper slip or a required block in the job record at each responsibility change.
Job identityJob reference, customer or site, and a short plain-language description of the agreed work.
From and toCurrent owner, receiving role/person and the date and time responsibility is proposed to change.
Ready-state checksTick the required items for this transition and mark any agreed exception explicitly.
Current decisionState what has been approved, by whom, and link to the single current quote, plan or instruction.
Customer commitmentRecord confirmed dates, access promises, communication preference and anything the customer expects next.
Open pointList each unresolved question, its owner and whether it blocks the next action.
Next actionWrite one observable next step, its owner and due expectation rather than ‘please action’.
Attachments or evidenceLink current photos, measurements, completion notes or purchase order; identify superseded versions.
Receiver responseAccept with date/time, or return to the named owner with the exact missing or conflicting item.