# Maintenance escalation referral brief | SourceX

Canonical: https://refer.sourcex.si/resources/maintenance-escalation-closure-referral-brief-template
Last updated: 2026-10-19

A company introduction about maintenance escalation closure is a one-page handoff the operations director can confirm in their own words. It covers the business task, the record classes, years of coverage, the systems, rough volumes, any documented deadline, the one open question and the person who can authorize a licensing discussion. It is metadata only: no work orders, no photos, no tenant or unit details. Below is the template to copy, then a completed Illustrative example for a residential management company.

The template is part of the [maintenance escalation closure guide](/guides/workflow-maintenance-escalation-closure). Use it after a first conversation with the operations director, once you know who runs maintenance and where escalations are written down.

## The template: eight rows to copy

| Row | Prompt to answer | Acceptable answer when unsure |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | Company type, country, full-time headcount at peak, number of communities or doors | Headcount band from the CFO's office |
| Business task | The maintenance problem the records describe, in one sentence | The operations director's own phrasing |
| Records | Tenant requests, work orders with status history, contractor notes, photos and invoices, escalation notes, completion checks | Classes known to exist, others marked unknown |
| Coverage | Years on the current platform, plus any earlier platform still readable | Approximate, with source |
| Systems | Property platform, separate work order tool, contractor portal, accounting, where escalations are written | Unknown for anything not confirmed |
| Volume | Work orders a month and the share reopened or escalated | Estimate, marked not verified |
| Deadline | A documented access end: platform contract, management contract, portfolio sale date | None known |
| Decision-maker | Who can authorize a licensing discussion, and who reviews agreements | Role only, if the name is not yet confirmed |

Add one more line under the table: the open question. Only one.

## Completed handoff for a residential manager (Illustrative)

Invented for this page. A fictional 260-person residential management company with 31 garden-style communities in the U.S. The operations director confirmed every line.

| Row | Entry |
|---|---|
| Portfolio | Residential management company, United States, about 260 full-time employees at peak, 31 communities |
| Business task | Resolving tenant maintenance requests that recur after a job is marked complete, including escalation to specialist contractors |
| Records | Tenant requests, work orders with status history, contractor notes, photos and invoices, escalation notes, completion inspections |
| Coverage | About seven years on the current platform; earlier years on a retired system, readability unknown |
| Systems | Property management platform, a contractor portal, accounting; escalations mostly in supervisor email |
| Volume | Estimated by the operations director, not verified; a steady share of jobs reopen each month |
| Deadline | Platform contract ends in eleven months; the company is evaluating a replacement |
| Decision-maker | COO, with counsel reviewing owner agreements |

Open question: whether reopened jobs are linked to the original work order by a field or only by notes, which decides how many repeat-repair chains can be rebuilt.

That is the whole handoff. Nothing is attached. A worked repeat repair of the kind this company records, a roof leak with four work orders, is in the [exception examples](/guides/maintenance-escalation-closure-exception-examples).

## How to word the rows a reviewer reads first

**Records.** Say whether status history is kept with timestamps or only the current status. Status names differ by product: in Brightly's maintenance software, Complete usually means work is done but information is still missing, while Closed means everything is documented, and a closed order can be moved back to Complete. "Status history with timestamps, Complete and Closed used separately" tells a reviewer far more than "work orders".

**Systems.** Name where contractor notes live. In AppFolio's Vendor Portal, completed work orders are removed from the vendor's view once a contractor marks Work Done, so the management company's own records are what count. "Contractor notes and invoices attached to the work order" and "invoices only in accounting" are very different answers.

**Deadline.** A contract end date in writing is a deadline. A plan to "look at new software sometime" is not; write none known.

**Decision-maker.** The operations director is usually the sponsor, not the signer. The [who can license decision tree](/questions/who-can-license-maintenance-escalation-closure-records) explains how owner-controlled records change who must agree.

## What never goes in the handoff

- Tenant names, unit numbers, phone numbers or request text
- Work order exports, screenshots or photos
- Contractor names, rates or invoices
- Owner names or management agreement terms
- Any guess presented as a confirmed figure

The same discipline applies in other ticket-heavy businesses; [MSP ticket data](/data-types/msp-ticket-data) shows the IT services version.

## Check eligibility before you send

1. **Size and basics.** The company needs 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded), a documented operating history, rights to license the records, and an authorized contact. Companies in the U.S., Canada and the EU qualify, as do companies in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, South Africa, Latin America, the UAE and Saudi Arabia when at least 90% of the data is in English. Property managers that fit are described on the [property management licensing page](/industries/refer-property-management-company-data-licensing).
2. **Consent.** Record the client's agreement to be introduced; [how to document client consent for a referral](/resources/how-to-document-client-consent-for-a-referral) shows how.
3. **Covering note.** The [warm introduction brief](/resources/a-warm-introduction-brief-for-a-business-owner) gives a format, and it should say plainly that you may receive a referral reward.
4. **Agreement.** Sign the Channel Partner Agreement before submitting an introduction.
5. **Attribution.** The first valid introduction within the 90-day window is credited when the company submits a verified application. How rewards are calculated is on [the rewards page](/rewards).

Unknown until SourceX reviews it: buyer interest in this record set, the rights review result, which records are selected, any offer and any reward.

## Next step

> **Refer a company. Earn up to $100,000.** Default reward: 25% of Actual Supplier Payout, capped at $100,000 cumulatively per referred company. Eligibility and payment conditions apply, and a signed Schedule A or addendum can differ. A lead, meeting or signature alone does not trigger payment.

When the operations director has confirmed every row and named the decision-maker, [register as a partner](/register), check the company on [who qualifies](/who-qualifies) and read the [program terms](/terms) before you send the handoff.

## Sources

- https://refer.sourcex.si/terms
- https://help.brightlysoftware.com/Content/Documentation/Maintenance/Work%20Order/Daily%20Functions/Completing%20and%20Closing%20a%20Work%20Order.htm
- https://www.appfolio.com/help/vendor-portal