Choose the template that helps your next decision. You do not have to fill them all in. Delete a field that serves no purpose in your case; keep the limits, the agreements and the next step that matter. Use a space suited to the information you are allowed to share.
Worked examples are in A useful first attempt, Improving without starting over and Six weeks to learn together. All their results are fictional.
A bounded attempt
- Person or use to help: …
- Fact observed, and context: …
- Assumption to examine: …
- Smallest useful attempt: …
- What already works and has to be preserved: …
- Agreements, access and support needed; who confirms them: …
- Time available and work displaced: …
- Limits and the condition for stopping: …
- Observation to gather, by whom, and when: …
- After the attempt: fact observed / interpretation / unknown: …
- Decision to carry on, change or stop; next responsibility: …
An attempt can confirm a practice that is already solid. It does not have to start from a flaw or end with something new.
A decision note
- Decision, owner and date: …
- Goal and realistic options, including keeping what exists: …
- Information available and sources you can reach: …
- Assumptions, unknowns and constraints: …
- Choice and reason: …
- Costs of preparing, using and maintaining: …
- People affected and agreements obtained: …
- Protections, the way back, and the limits of the mandate: …
- The fact or the moment that triggers a review: …
- At the review: result, limits of the observation, and next step: …
Keep the original reasoning. Add the feedback afterwards without rewriting what was known at the time.
A before and after
| Point to examine | Before | After the attempt |
|---|---|---|
| Route taken and people involved | … | … |
| Useful result, or protection to preserve | … | … |
| Difficulty, rework or effort observed | … | … |
| Load moved onto someone else | … | … |
| Period, cases, and method of observation | … | … |
| Limits and alternative explanations | … | … |
Decision and next check: …
If the situations differ, say so. You can describe a qualitative change without manufacturing a percentage. Fewer requests can mean fewer problems or less access to help.
A handover that was accepted
- What is finished and what stays open: …
- Remit handed over, and to whom: …
- Resources, access and demonstration needed: …
- What the recipient accepts, confirmed by them: …
- Decisions that stay elsewhere, and who to ask: …
- What to do if the handover gets stuck or someone is away: …
- Who will check the final result, if needed, and when: …
- End of the handing person’s commitment: …
Sending a document is not enough to confirm someone picked it up. If nobody can accept, get the remit or the deadline ruled on rather than keeping an open-ended responsibility.
Precise backing
- Help the person is asking for: …
- What I can offer inside my role: …
- Time, means, date and agreements needed: …
- What this help does not cover: …
- What I am deferring to honour this: …
- How the person can refuse or adjust the help: …
- Agreed feedback: did the help happen, and what did it make possible? …
- End, continuation or change to the agreement: …
An introduction needs agreement on both sides. A review can be useful without granting the power to approve the content or the business decision.
A log of decisions and results
| Moment and observation | Decision and reason | Owner, agreement and next check-in |
|---|---|---|
| … | … | … |
Keep a line when a fact changes or confirms a decision. Do not create a daily record if the rhythm of the activity does not call for it. Write “not observable yet”, “access missing” or “attempt paused” too, when that is the real situation.
A team account
- Period and question examined: …
- What already worked and was kept: …
- Actions taken: …
- Effects observed, with their context: …
- What is still unknown or not comparable: …
- Real effort, help received, and work displaced: …
- What each person wants to continue or adjust: …
- Decision: keep / change / stop / check another way: …
- Responsibilities accepted and means confirmed: …
- Next useful check-in, or close the tracking: …
Six weeks is one possible period, as in the example; choose a moment when relevant feedback can exist. If the tracking itself gets too heavy, lighten it while keeping the checks that are needed.