How to escalate an urgent issue?
A clear process for when something needs immediate attention.
Urgent issues happen in every business. When they do, here is exactly how to escalate them effectively so nothing falls through the cracks.
What qualifies as an escalation:
- A customer complaint that has gone unresolved for more than 24 hours
- A billing dispute or refund request that requires immediate action
- A tool or platform outage that is blocking critical work
- A client-facing error that needs to be corrected before it causes further damage
- Any situation where a decision needs to be made that is outside the VA's authority
Step-by-step escalation process:
1. Flag the issue immediately — send a message via your agreed communication channel with URGENT at the start
2. Describe the issue clearly — what happened, when it happened, who is affected, and what has already been done
3. Jenard will acknowledge the escalation within 30 minutes during working hours
4. A resolution plan will be shared within 1 hour of acknowledgement
5. Updates will be provided every 30–60 minutes until the issue is resolved
6. A post-resolution summary will be documented so it can be prevented in the future
Information to include when escalating:
- A clear description of the issue
- The customer or account affected (if applicable)
- Any screenshots, error messages, or reference numbers
- What have you already tried
- Your preferred resolution outcome
After the escalation is resolved:
Every escalation is logged and reviewed. If a pattern emerges — the same issue happening repeatedly — a process improvement will be proposed to prevent it from happening again.
For non-urgent issues:
Use the standard communication channel and mark the message as Normal priority. We'll address these within the standard response time.
To discuss your escalation process preferences: https://calendly.com/jerinecua/discovery-call