5 Things You Should Always Document
In 1170, four knights under Henry II murdered Archbishop Thomas Becket in cold blood. Unfortunately, their client didn’t document the order, and Henry pleaded ignorance while the knights were exiled. The lesson here for medieval assassins and modern consultants: “If it’s not written down, it didn’t happen.”
Even if you’re used to having trust and rapport with your clients, the harsh reality is that without a strong policy of documentation, he-said-she-said situations are inevitable and may cost you dearly in undue blame or lost compensation for services.
Here are five commonly overlooked situations for which you should always gather – and share – documentation:
1. Get Signatures (And Public Agreement)
Once a project is kicked off, clients are notorious for conveniently deciding to treat a well-planned schedule as more of a general suggestion than a well thought-out plan. If they don’t commit to the plan in front of peers and with a signature, it may as well be just a suggestion. Demanding signatures on an early Requirements Document, Solution Design or other written outline can keep a project moving when a client is reluctant to mark a phase in the project as complete and provides proof of the entire staff’s support and participation. Making sure the sign-off happens in front of others produces an even greater level of commitment.
2. Get Proof Before You Break the Rules
As Henry II’s knights learned, hearsay (or phone calls and hallway conversations) will not protect you when you’re asked to deviate from your contractual duties, make a key system change, or other potentially risky steps that your trusted clients may ask of you. Many is the consultant who has lost a contract (or a job) because they did undocumented work in good faith. It’s common practice to document requests, and getting into the habit even with trusted clients can save you from being the scapegoat later.
3. Solve Disputes in Writing
To report problems to higher-ups in the chain of command or to address difficult issues, face-to-face conversations are an effective and diplomatic means of communication. But they won’t do you any good later, when a deft “Why wasn’t I informed of this?” leaves you all alone with the blame. Start with the hallway conversation, but back it up with an email and an issue log and include it in your next status report.
4. Document Re-assigned Tasks
I’ve seen many a consultant squirm at a status meeting when asked for an update on a task they thought was reassigned to someone else. Always assume a task is your responsibility until the reassignment is accepted in writing. This goes double for tasks that are reassigned to client personnel. In those cases, you want both the assignee and their boss (or project manager) to document their acceptance.
5. “Tentative & Preliminary / Draft”
Also, “proprietary and confidential,” “not intended for distribution,” or “strawman”: terms like these will protect you and encourage the client to understand the decisions they are making before the end of the project. Remember, no document is final until the client says they’re final, so include these disclaimers in every document. Even if you think they’re finalized and signed-off, only remove them when specifically requested by the client, ideally with a signature and confirmation email.
“Everyone is on one team until things go wrong.” But when a project goes off the rails, you will sometimes learn (to your great frustration and sadness) just how committed some of your teammates and clients are to “the team” as opposed to “their own neck.” This is as true for consultants and clients as it was for knights and kings. Make sure to always get your get-out-of-jail-free signatures, and documented every decision and accomplishment in writing.
