Employee Time Off Coverage SOP

To ensure continuity of work and maintain client satisfaction during employee absences by establishing clear expectations for communication, handoffs, and coverage during both planned and unexpected time off.

This SOP applies to all TMG employees who take time o:, whether scheduled (e.g., vacation, personal leave) or unscheduled (e.g., sick leave, emergencies).

Objectives

This SOP is to guide and direct you on the appropriate steps to take to ensure client work is completed in accordance with their engagement and to ensure all team members are able to have time away from work without stressing over details while they are out.

Procedures

Planned Time Off

1. Request & Approval
   • Submit time-off requests at least two weeks in advance through the vacation calendar request system.
   • Reference the “Vacation Request Policy” for assistance
2. Internal Planning & Coordination
   • Identify critical tasks, deadlines, and client responsibilities that fall within the requested time off (Particularly focus your efforts in Financial Cents, looking ahead and adjusting projects/tasks as needed).
   • Review current and upcoming projects with each of your clients
   • Meet with your team to delegate responsibilities and ensure all coverage is clearly assigned. You can use the “Client-Team-Tracking Sheet” to verify the team.
   • Update internal documentation or task in Financial Cents with notes, status updates, and relevant files.
3. Client Notification
   • Notify relevant clients at least 5 business days in advance of your time off.
   • Provide them with:
     • The dates you’ll be out
     • The name and contact of the team member covering during your absence
     • Assurance of continued support and/or any changes to expected deliverables
4. Out-of-Office Setup
   • Set an Out-of-Office auto-response on email the day before leaving.
     • Message must include:
       • Dates of your absence
       • When you will return and resume correspondence
     • Example Message: Thank you for your message. I’m currently out of the office and will return on [Date]. During this time, please contact [Name, Email] for assistance. I will respond to your message upon my return.
   • Set Out-of-Office voicemail in Freedom Voice
     • Message must include:
       • Dates of your absence
       • When you will return and resume correspondence
     • Example Message: Thank you for your call. I’m currently out of the office and will return on [Date]. If you would like to leave a voicemail, you may do so after the tone and I will respond to your message upon my return.
     • *Be sure to set a reminder to change your voicemail back to its normal recording when you return.
   • Set out of office status in Slack
5. Handoff Checklist
   • Complete the following handoff checklist before your leave:
     • Delegate tasks and confirm understanding with backup team member(s)
     • Ensure all team members have access to shared files/folders
     • Send client communications
     • Set out-of-office messages
     • Notify internal team and leadership of final coverage plan

Unexpected Time Off

1. Notification
   • Contact Joseph or Kris as soon as possible (preferably before the workday begins) to notify them of your unavailability.
   • If possible, include an estimated return date and the status of any critical responsibilities.
2. Internal Coverage
   • Joseph or Kris (whoever is contacted) will post a message in the Slack General channel to let all staff know of team members absence.
   • Joseph or Kris will assess urgent client needs or deadlines and redistribute work accordingly.
   • Team members may be asked to assist temporarily to ensure no disruptions occur.
3. Communication
   • If you’re able, set your email’s out-of-o+ice response indicating an unexpected leave and that you are unavailable.
   • If you’re able, set your status in slack as well.
   • Covering team member may reach out to clients if deadlines or communication will be affected.
   • Sample Client Message: Hi [Client Name], I wanted to inform you that [Employee Name] is unexpectedly out of the office. In the meantime, I’ll be your point of contact for any urgent needs. Please feel free to reach out to me directly at [Contact Info]. Thanks for your understanding.

Responsibilities