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In this guide
What should a warehouse shift handover include?
A warehouse shift handover records the period being handed over, checked facts, changes, open questions and next actions. Each action needs an owner role and a due time. The receiving shift should be able to tell which figures were verified and which information still needs a check.
The free Floor Read template is for warehouse supervisors and operations teams preparing a recurring summary. It provides a reporting structure you can adapt to your existing process. It is not a replacement for your site's safety, incident or equipment procedures.
Start with the header: prepared by, checked by, report period, time zone and data cutoff. Give the handover one purpose and a status: draft, checked or awaiting clarification.
1. Checked facts
Put the measure, definition or formula, source, selected row count and result together. Keep a reviewer role beside the result. “Shipping cost per order” needs its denominator: distinct orders, for the agreed report period.
2. What changed
Compare periods only when their definitions and source coverage match. If you have no comparable earlier period, write “unknown.” A single day's extract cannot establish a trend.
3. Open questions and missing inputs
Describe the exact gap, the missing field or confirmation, the role that can resolve it and when the answer is needed. For example, an extract of shipments does not show all work still waiting to ship.
4. Next actions
Give each action an evidence-based reason, an owner role, a due time and any approval needed. “Check the report” is vague. “Report owner: confirm whether the extract covers all shipments through the cutoff” is specific.
5. Handover check
Before sharing, review the cutoff, IDs, filters, arithmetic and units. Keep unknowns labeled. Confirm that the receiving role understands the open questions and owns the next steps assigned to it.
A filled warehouse handover example
The free starter contains four generated shipment rows. One order has two shipments, so the extract contains four shipments and three distinct orders. The example below describes only those supplied rows; it does not claim to cover an entire real shift.
Report day: March 31, 2026
Checked facts: Four unique shipment IDs; three distinct orders; $41 in shipping cost. Shipping cost per order is $41 ÷ 3 = $13.67, rounded.
What changed: Unknown. No comparable prior period was supplied.
Open question: Does the extract include every shipment for the intended report day? Open work and promised service timestamps were not supplied.
Next action: The report owner confirms extract coverage and definitions before the summary is used for an operational decision. The receiving role agrees a due time; the example does not invent a real deadline.
Read the complete worked handover or follow the shipment report checklist to trace the calculations. Shipping cost is not total fulfillment cost. A shipment extract alone cannot establish labor productivity, late orders or the cause of a performance change.
How to use the template at shift change
- Make a copy. Use the HTML or plain-text template in your team's approved document tool. Keep the blank original for the next report.
- Set the boundary. Write the report start, end, time zone and data cutoff before entering any result.
- Fill checked facts first. Use an approved source, record the row count and verify each formula against its definition.
- Assign the gaps. Keep missing inputs visible with the role that can confirm them. Do not turn an unanswered question into a fact.
- Review with the receiving role. Agree the next owners and due times, and confirm how the team will record answers that arrive after the handover.
Download and editing options
The HTML template opens in a browser for reading or printing. To edit the content, copy it into your document tool or use the plain-text Markdown file. The complete free starter ZIP also includes the fictional CSV, answer key, worked handover and validation checklist.
You may edit the blank files for your own work and training inside your organization. Follow your organization's data and AI policies. See the terms and internal-use license.