By SYG Consult, LLC · Published
The handoff is part of the work
A process map often shows neat boxes for each team's activities and a thin arrow between them. In practice, that arrow may contain the longest wait: someone needs a missing detail, cannot tell whether a request is ready, or assumes another team owns the next step.
When work stalls at a boundary, it is tempting to call it a communication problem. A better question is what the receiving person needs in order to act without chasing the sender.
Trace one item all the way through
Pick a recent request that was delayed and follow it across the actual tools and people involved. For every transfer, write down the sender, recipient, reason for transfer, required information, expected response time, and what happens when the next step is blocked.
Compare the intended path with what really happened. Did an email sit outside the system of record? Was the status visible only to the sender? Did two teams use different definitions of complete? A concrete example makes the gap discussable without turning the exercise into blame.
Agree on a small operating contract
Give each handoff a clear entry condition and a named owner for the next action. Keep the status visible in one place, and define a route for exceptions when the normal path cannot proceed. This can be as simple as a checklist and a shared queue; it need not begin with new software.
Test the change with the same kinds of requests that revealed the gap. Watch for fewer returns, shorter waiting time, and less time spent asking for updates. A visible handoff makes it easier to improve the system instead of repeatedly rescuing individual cases.