Five Phrases That Turn Your Handover Notes Into a Treasure Hunt

The moment you hand over a project, finish a shift, or head off on annual leave, your notes become somebody else's Monday morning. Usually somebody who has never met the client, does not know the history, and has about four minutes to work out what on earth is going on.

That is the real test of a handover note: not whether it looks thorough, but whether a colleague can act on it without asking you a single question. Most of us fail that test, and we fail it with the same five phrases.

Why handovers drift into vagueness

Nobody sets out to write a useless handover. It is usually written at 5.55pm, from memory, by someone whose brain has already left the building. Shortcuts creep in because they are quicker to type, and because the writer knows what they mean.

The reader does not. That gap between what you meant and what you wrote is where the chasing begins — the Teams message at 8.40am, the voicemail, the slightly passive-aggressive "just checking you saw my note?".

Here are the usual suspects.

1. "As discussed"

This is the undisputed champion of notes that help nobody. It assumes a shared memory, a shared date and a shared conclusion — and it records none of them.

If a decision was made in a meeting or a call, write the decision down. Then add when and with whom.

Instead of: "Pricing — as discussed with the client."

Try: "Agreed with Dev at Hartley's on 3 Nov: hold the 12% discount until January. Next step: I send revised schedule, due 10 Nov."

2. "Ongoing"

"Ongoing" describes a state of being, not a position. It tells the reader that something has not finished, which they could probably have guessed.

Replace it with four small facts: what is done, what is left, what is blocking it, and who is doing something about it next.

Instead of: "Recruitment for the Leeds role — ongoing."

Try: "Leeds role: two candidates interviewed, one withdrew. Offer decision with Priya by 12 Nov. Blocked on budget sign-off from regional director."

3. "Actioned"

A word that sounds efficient and communicates almost nothing. Actioned by whom? What was the action? What came back?

Think of the reader as someone who needs to know whether they can now stop worrying about this item. Give them the result, not the verb.

Instead of: "Invoice query actioned."

Try: "Invoice 4471: sent credit note to supplier accounts team (Tues). They confirmed by email it will clear this week. No further action needed from you."

4. "On track"

Reassurance without evidence. It is the written equivalent of a thumbs up, and it collapses the moment anything shifts.

If something is genuinely on track, prove it briefly — the milestone, the date, and the one thing that could still derail it.

Instead of: "Website refresh — on track."

Try: "Website refresh on track for 14 Nov go-live: design signed off, copy due from Marcus 11 Nov. Risk: copy slip would push launch to 21 Nov."

5. "See email below" or "Various"

Both are filing systems pretending to be communication. One buries the answer in a thread the reader now has to scroll through; the other points at a category instead of a fact.

Paste the one line that matters. Summarise the decision. If there is a thread worth keeping, name the date and subject so it can actually be found again.

Instead of: "Client feedback — see email below. Various updates on the Bristol site."

Try: "Bristol site: client approved phase two on 4 Nov (email 'Bristol — phase two', 4 Nov, 14:32). Outstanding: they want a revised programme by 13 Nov."

A one-page handover template you can adapt

You do not need a system. You need seven headings and about twenty minutes.

1. What this is — one sentence on the project, account or shift.
2. Where things stand — done, in progress, not started. Bullet points only.
3. Decisions already made — what was agreed, by whom, on what date.
4. Open actions — owner, deadline, next step. One line each.
5. Who to contact — names, roles, and when to escalate rather than wait.
6. Known risks — what could go wrong, and what should trigger a phone call.
7. What I pick up on my return — so nobody sits on something assuming you will.

Keep it to a single page. A page gets read; a six-page document gets skimmed and then emailed back with questions.

The twenty-second test

Before you log off, read each line and ask one question: could somebody who joined yesterday act on this without contacting me?

If the answer is no, the missing piece is almost always a noun — a name, a date, a number, a decision. Add it. Your colleague gets a head start, and you get a quieter first morning back, without a queue of people asking what "as discussed" was supposed to mean.