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Lesson 6.3 - Escalation Writing

Story

“XAUUSD Has a Problem”

A Dealer posts in a group chat: “XAUUSD has a problem.”

No one knows what happened, when it started, how many clients are affected, whether the condition is market-related or system-related, who is reviewing it or when the next update will arrive. The message creates noise rather than operational control.

Learning Objectives

  • Write factual, decision-useful operational updates.
  • Separate verified facts from assumptions and unverified conclusions.
  • State impact, current action, assigned owner and next update time.
  • Create communication that can be transferred into Incident and handover records.

Six-Part Update

  1. Time — state when the condition was observed.
  2. Observation — describe the confirmed signal without assigning a cause.
  3. Scope / impact — identify affected products, accounts, orders or systems.
  4. Verified evidence — state what has been checked and what remains under review.
  5. Current action / assigned owner — state the present monitoring or investigation action and its owner.
  6. Next update time — give a specific review time or update trigger.

Weak vs Strong Message

Weak message

“Quote source has issues.”

Effective message

“20:18 UTC — Quote Source B quote frequency on XAUUSD fell by approximately 45% over 10 minutes; observed latency increased from 180 ms to 610 ms. Quote Sources A and C remain stable, and the Bridge queue is normal. Large-order fill quality is under review. The Shift Leader or Manager and technical owner have been notified. Next update at 20:25 UTC or on material change.”

The effective message gives the observation time, measurable change, comparison sources, current system condition, open review, notified roles and next update time without claiming an unverified root cause.

Communication Flow

Observe the Exception→Verify Facts
Verify Facts→Assess Scope
Assess Scope→Write a Structured Update
Write the Update→Name the Owner and Current Action
Confirm Ownership→Set the Next Update Time
Issue the Update→Update the Incident / Handover Record

Facts vs Assumptions

Classification Example
Confirmed fact Quote Source B reconnected three times in 10 minutes.
Confirmed fact XAUUSD spread widened from 20 to 43 points during the review window.
Assumption Quote Source B may be experiencing upstream degradation.
Unverified conclusion Quote Source B is definitely broken.

Assumptions must be clearly labelled and supported by available evidence. An unverified conclusion must not be presented as fact.

Practical Training

Scenario

During an active session, Quote Source B quote frequency declines, latency rises and a small group of XAUUSD orders shows worse fill quality. Other quote sources and the Bridge queue remain stable.

Required Output

Write a six-part update containing the time, confirmed observation, scope, verified evidence, current action, assigned owner and next update time.

Common Mistake

Writing “Quote Source B is broken” before the upstream condition or order impact has been confirmed, or sending an update with no owner or next update time.

Correct Handling

Use measurable observations, state what remains under review and identify the role responsible for the next action. Continue updating the Incident or handover record until the item is closed or transferred.

Summary

Clear escalation writing reduces misunderstanding, speeds up decisions and creates traceable operational and audit records. A useful update distinguishes facts from assumptions and makes the next action unmistakable.

Handover Record Standard

Handover is a specific form of operational communication. It transfers open risk, unfinished actions and current monitoring priorities to the incoming shift.

Use the following structure when material open items remain:

Shift:
Outgoing Dealer:
Incoming Dealer:
Handover time:

Platform and access
Quotes and trading sessions
Bridge and quote sources
Exposure and risk
Open Incidents
Pending changes
Upcoming events and priorities
Incoming-shift confirmation

For each material open item, record the current status, available evidence, assigned owner, next action and next update time.

A handover is incomplete if a material open item has no assigned owner, next action, or next update time.

Completion Criteria

  • Can explain the key risk or operational objective of this lesson
  • Can identify the required systems, data, or evidence to review
  • Can describe the correct escalation or handling process
  • Can apply the lesson correctly in a supervised scenario