Account handover checklist: handing over client accounts before leave

Why handovers matter more now

Since April 2026, Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave have been day-one rights for employees (Business.gov.uk), and the Budget on 28 October 2026 confirmed that eligible self-employed fathers, partners and adopters will be able to access parental pay from April 2029 (Budget document). In small agency teams, even a short absence can leave a key account without its usual contact, so a repeatable handover process is worth having.

1. The account at a glance

• Client objectives for this quarter and how success is measured
• Scope of work, retainer or budget, and anything out of scope that has been requested
• Current status of every live project, with deadlines
• Upcoming meetings, reports and approvals during the cover period

2. People and relationships

• Key client contacts, their roles and who signs off what
• How each contact prefers to communicate, and how quickly they expect a reply
• Recent wins, concerns or sensitivities, written plainly
• Internal team members and suppliers working on the account

3. Access and information

• Where briefs, reports, contracts and creative files are stored
• Access to platforms, project tools and shared inboxes, granted through proper user accounts rather than shared passwords
• Any confidentiality or data-protection requirements the client has set

4. Open actions and commitments

• Promises made to the client that are still outstanding
• Decisions waiting on the client, and on the agency
• Risks to watch, such as a budget review or a change of stakeholder

5. The introduction

• Introduce the person covering before the leave starts, ideally on a joint call
• Send a short email confirming who to contact, from when and until when
• Agree how and when the returning account manager will be updated

6. The return

• Book a handback session before the first client contact
• Summarise what happened, what changed and what is next
• Let the client know the usual contact is back, and thank them for their patience

Need someone to cover

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