Client transition communication (account/staffing changes)

Steps

1. Confirm the internal decision is final: new owner assigned, effective date set.
2. Draft one message: who is taking over, their role and standing, what changes for the client (usually just the point of contact).
3. Check clients/roster.md for each client’s primary channel (email-only vs Slack-active).
4. Send the same core message to EVERY active client the same day, email and Slack both when both exist.
5. Log each client’s reception (positive, call requested, no response, churn signal) in one decision page for the whole round.
6. Book any requested call within the week.
7. Flag quiet or negative clients in inbox/ for manual follow-up.

When: any time an agency changes who runs a client’s account, engagement scope, or delivery model (staffing restructure, tool migration, offer change). Pattern observed across the Jul 30-31 Megaphone restructuring (Blake Emal taking over all accounts): 9+ clients notified across two channels (email + Slack) with a consistent format and zero recorded churn or friction from the notifications themselves.

What worked

1. Notify every active client, not just the ones likely to react. All remaining Megaphone clients got the same message on the same day, regardless of account size or perceived risk. No client was skipped as “probably fine, skip the heads-up.”
2. Same core message, two channels. Email for clients without a Slack channel or as the primary record; Slack posts in the client’s own channel for clients using Slack day to day. Use both when both exist; do not rely on Slack alone for anything material.
3. Lead with who, not why. The message introduces the new lead (name, role, standing) rather than explaining the internal reasoning behind the change. Clients do not need the org-chart story; they need to know who to talk to now.
4. Move fast after the internal decision. Team restructuring decided Jul 30, client notifications sent Jul 31, same day/next day. Do not let a staffing decision sit un-communicated to clients while internal logistics get finalized; the two can happen in parallel.
5. Log the reception, not just the send. Track whether each client responded positively, asked for a call, or said nothing (see the Jul 31 decision page documenting exact receptions). A quiet client is not automatically a fine client; it is one to watch, not skip.

Procedure

1. Confirm the internal decision is final (owner assigned, effective date set).
2. Draft one message: who’s taking over, their role/standing, what changes for the client (usually: nothing about deliverables, just point of contact).
3. Send via whichever channel is that client’s primary (check clients/roster.md for email-only vs Slack-active clients).
4. File one decision page per notification round listing every client notified, contact, and reception (positive / call requested / no response / churn signal). Do not create a separate page per client; one round = one page.
5. If a client requests a call in response, get it on the calendar within the week (Mantis VC and Project Omega both converted to scheduled syncs the same day in the Jul 31 round).
6. Any client that goes quiet or negative gets flagged in inbox/ for a manual follow-up, not left to resolve itself.

Pitfall

“For the remainder of the engagement” language, even used casually, signals a short-term or winding-down relationship. If that phrase shows up in a notification draft, confirm deliberately whether the client actually is on limited remaining scope; do not let it slip in as boilerplate for an active, ongoing client.

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