Follow-Up Cadence After Handoff

The Section Tracker

Maintain a single sheet covering every package the section has in flight.

Review weekly. The tracker is the single source of truth. Without the tracker, packages bleed.

The Three-Touch Cadence

Each package gets three touches after handoff.

1. Day 7. Status check with S-1 contact.
2. Day 14 or window end. Verification at the destination system.
3. Closure conversation with the Marine.

Skip touch one and you find blockers late. Skip touch two and you assume the system worked. Skip touch three and the Marine never sees the close-out.

What Day 7 Looks Like

• Pull the package list.
• For each package past 7 days, contact S-1.
• Confirm the package is in queue and not blocked.
• Document the response in the tracker.

Most day-7 calls take 30 minutes for a section's full set. The 30 minutes saves multiple lost days downstream.

What Day 14 Looks Like

For packages with a 10-day window, day 14 is the verification mark.

• Verify at the destination system. LES, OMPF, DEERS, Marine Online.
• Confirm the change landed correctly.
• If the change did not land, walk to S-1 with the Marine.

For packages with longer windows (FitRep at 60 days, awards at 30 to 60 days), set the verification to the window end.

Closure Conversation

After verification, sit with the Marine.

• "Your package processed. Here is the result on LES (or OMPF, or DEERS)."
• "Here is what to watch for next month."
• "Your responsibility going forward is to verify your own LES every payday."

The closure conversation transfers ownership back to the Marine. Without it, the Marine assumes you will always do the verification.

When the Cadence Catches a Problem

The 7-day or 14-day check surfaces a stuck or wrong package.

• Stuck. Coordinate with S-1 to unblock.
• Wrong. Submit correction request.
• Lost. Resubmit with the original package date documented.

Most catches at this stage are recoverable inside the same pay period.

Section-Level Pattern Recognition

Over months, the tracker reveals patterns.

• Same package type stalls repeatedly. Talk to S-1 about a process gap.
• Same Marine submits incomplete packages. Pull the Marine into a counseling session.
• Same time of month sees backlog. Plan submissions outside that window.

The tracker is also a leadership tool, not just a status board.

Where to Go Next

• Escalation paths when packages stall past 14 days.