Brief 04

Brief 04

Notes and handover

Your notes are for two readers: you, next week, and the other person, when you stop. If the notes only make sense in your head, they will not survive a handover.

Write dated entries. Record decisions alongside the tasks. When someone changes their mind, keep the old decision visible and mark the new one, with the date. If you were given a document, note what it was and where you put it. Do not store passwords or identity documents in a casual folder if you can avoid it; give those back.

When you stop

A handover is a short packet, not a monologue. Include: the agreed scope, what you did, what you did not do, any open questions, and a list of files you are returning. If a third party was involved (a translator, a school office, a contractor), say who they were and what was left with them.

Do not keep copies of other people's private papers longer than you need to finish the handover, unless they have asked you in writing to hold them and you have agreed. This is ordinary care, not a full data policy. If the papers are sensitive, ask them how they want them returned.