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Toolbox Talk

Reset the plan when the handoff changes

A good handoff keeps the next crew from working off yesterday's plan after people, equipment, conditions, or priorities have changed.

For Construction, landscaping, maintenance, utility, and field-service crews
Reset the plan when the handoff changes — construction crew safety meeting
Run it before the work starts

Here’s the conversation to have.

A handoff is not just passing along keys or pointing at the next task. It is where a crew decides whether the plan still matches the job. Before the next person starts, name what changed: the work area, traffic, weather, equipment condition, materials, schedule, or who is on the crew. If nobody can explain the change and the control, stop long enough to reset the plan. The foreman's job is to make that reset easy. Walk the new lead to the work area, show the boundaries and hazards, and make sure the crew knows who has the stop-work call. A two-minute handoff now is cheaper than sorting out a close call later.

Before you turn the crew loose

What needs to be checked.

  • Walk the incoming lead through the work area before the task changes hands.
  • Name the one change most likely to affect today's work.
  • Confirm the work zone, equipment status, and traffic plan.
  • Assign a clear lead and stop-work authority.
  • Pause and reset the plan whenever the conditions no longer match the briefing.
Ask the crew

Don’t just read it. Get an answer.

1. What changed on this job since the last crew worked here?
2. Who needs to hear that change before work starts?
3. What would make us stop and reset the plan today?
Reference material

Use these when you need the rule or want to dig deeper.

This is a starting point for the tailgate talk. The crew, the equipment, and the job conditions in front of you decide what has to happen next.