Identify the current owner when a question concerns decisions you did not make. Share a factual detail if you know it and state the limit. Pass the question with context, or request a proper briefing and defined period if you are expected to provide cover.
You know a little about a colleague's project, so you answer a question while they are away. The next questions come to you too. Eventually you are explaining decisions you did not make and chasing information you do not own.
Point people to the current owner when the question concerns their work. If you can provide one factual detail, do that and make the limit clear. "The file is in this folder; Maya can confirm the latest decision."
Pass the question with its context
If a handover is needed, include the question and what you have already answered. That saves the person from restarting the conversation. Avoid adding your own guess about an unresolved decision simply to make the message feel complete.
If you are expected to cover the project, ask for a proper briefing and a defined period. Coverage is a task that needs information and time. At the end of the period, tell the team who is handling new questions so the temporary arrangement does not continue by accident.
Redirecting a question about a colleague's work
An illustrative exampleImagine answering where a colleague saved a draft while they are away. The next message asks whether a disputed section has been approved. You can say, "The draft is in the shared folder. The project owner can confirm approval." If the question must be passed on, include the section and the file location already supplied. Avoid guessing to complete the answer. If the team expects you to cover the project, ask for the latest decisions, access and the period of responsibility. At the end of that period, confirm where new questions belong. Sharing one helpful fact then stays separate from becoming the indefinite contact for every decision in the project.
Redirect with useful context
Tick the steps as you work through them.
0 of 5 steps checked
When people keep coming back to you
Check whether the team's contact information still lists you or whether the owner is difficult to reach. Update the normal route with the appropriate people instead of forwarding every message privately forever. If your role includes continuing cover, make that responsibility visible and obtain the briefing it requires. Avoid answering unresolved decisions merely to keep a message moving. A specific factual limit gives the recipient a more reliable route than an answer that sounds complete but rests on your guess about another person's work.
Draft the redirection
Your notes stay in this page. Copy them before leaving; they are not saved or sent to us.
