Is an agency handoff complete before the first screen?

# Is an agency handoff complete before the first screen?

Published November 5, 2026

Question and scope

This file review asks what the agency handoff completeness record can show for a single recruiting team. It is a local method, not a sector rate or a hiring standard. The result applies to one population and one observation window. A recruiting lead can reproduce the check from the definition. Relocation approval records the amount, the approver, and the start-date condition.

Population and unit

Track one agency handoff from the first signal to the verified close. State the opening event, the closing evidence, and the pause rule before counting. A bare tally is not a measurement if the pipeline changes size during the window. List each exclusion so a second reviewer can rebuild the sample. Every closed candidate file carries a destination reference and a next check date.

Definitions and measures

Before opening the queue, agree on what complete means for agency handoff completeness. Name the required fields, the acceptable source records, and the rule for a blank value. Report the eligible count, the exclusions, the sample size, and the unresolved items. A rate without a denominator and a window is not a finding. Relocation approval records the amount, the approver, and the start-date condition.

Evidence standard

For each sampled record, capture the source, the time observed, the field supported, the reviewer, and the recruiting owner. Missing and confirmed-negative values stay apart in the report. Candidate detail remains in the approved system and notes use a reference. Collect only evidence the protocol can defend. Every closed candidate file carries a destination reference and a next check date.

Sampling and collection

Select routine, exception, and reopened records across the window. If a definition changes, preserve the earlier observation and write down the date. Example: A handoff lists a candidate but not the fee terms or the role evidence. A pipeline export is the starting point, not a list assembled after the result is known. The recruiter keeps the role reference, the source, and the hiring manager owner with the note.

Analysis and reporting

Report what was seen before what it might mean. Show the oldest open record and the missing fields, not only completion rate. Name the next decision and the recruiting owner who must make it. Put the sample size beside every rate in the agency handoff completeness report. Candidate consent and communication preferences stay visible in the record.

Limits and sources of error

Recruiting and recordkeeping guidance gives general framing but cannot answer this sample or a specific hiring question. A complete file is not proof that a hiring decision was correct. The method measures evidence quality, not candidate quality. Limits belong beside the result. The agency handoff names the fee terms, the role scope, and the first screen date.

Review cadence

Agree a fixed review date. End with one process change, one owner, and one check date. A repeated defect should change the template, the source, or the rule before coaching. Reuse the same sample rule each time and attach the review note to the change. The panel owner checks the calendar and the interview date before confirming the slot.