What this means for your practice
Define stages around observable administrative events. Decisions about candidates remain with authorised people; the system should record those decisions and keep next actions visible.
An example to discuss with your team
Move an application backwards for clarification; preserve the prior history and current owner.
What to ask before you choose
Follow an application that moves backwards for clarification. Its history should remain visible with a current owner and next action. Agree what must happen before entering or leaving each stage. Candidate decisions stay with authorised people; the system records those decisions and supports the resulting administration.
Give each stage one shared meaning
Write a short explanation of the event that moves an application into each stage and what work happens there. For example, 'awaiting interview arrangement' should identify a scheduling task, while a decision about selection belongs to the authorised hiring process. Keep those distinctions understandable to everyone using the system.
Follow a fictional application that needs clarification and then returns to an earlier stage. The history should show what changed and who is responsible now, without making the candidate appear to have several conflicting statuses. Agree how communication is recorded so one colleague does not send an invitation while another is still requesting information. Review a sample of waiting applications in a team meeting. If nobody can explain the next action, adding more stage labels is unlikely to help. Simplify the process and clarify ownership first. Reports become more useful when the stages reflect consistent work rather than personal habits in updating a board.
How to check the result
Count applications with no clear next action.
Turn reading into a next step
Your action checklist
Work through these checks with your team or supplier. Tick the ones you have resolved and leave unknowns open.
Record what you know, what is still missing and the answer you need from your team or supplier.
Use project decisions only, without personal, patient or confidential details. Entries stay in this page and are not submitted to Kay & Co. Copy or download before leaving; this page does not save your notes.
Further reading
These sources provide background for the topic. The practice examples and checklist are illustrative planning suggestions from Kay & Co.
Related guides
Need help with this?
Tell us what is getting in the way. Kay & Co. can help you understand the options and turn the next step into something that works for your practice.
Explore software & apps services or discuss your project.
Try the free Healthcare Digital Planner to find your starting priority.