How to write an account handover note that the next person can act on

Write it for someone who has never met the client

A handover note is read once, in a hurry, by someone who will have to act on it alone. Write it so the first week of work can start from the note, without a call.

The order of sections

• Where things stand: the accounts, the live tests and the budget per account, with the date of writing.
• Open items: each one with its owner, its due date and the next step.
• Decisions waiting: the question, who decides and the date it must be answered by.
• Promises made: what was said to the client, when, and whether it was kept.
• Known risks: what broke before, and how it was handled.
• People: who signs off, who changes store settings and who owns the data.

Rules for the writing

• Write dates in full, for example 12 March, never 'next week'.
• Mark every number as measured or not measured, and name the source.
• Keep facts and guesses on separate lines, and label each guess as a guess.

The note alone is not enough. The new person repeats the first two open items back to the outgoing person in writing, and the outgoing person confirms or corrects them.