Review Day: Using a Client’s Setup in Your Meeting

Review Day: Using a Client’s Setup in Your Meeting (For Professionals)

Purpose

When to schedule a review day

• Before drafting or updating wills, trusts, POAs, or beneficiary designations

• After a financial plan reveals estate hygiene gaps

• During annual review when paperwork is scattered or stale

Prerequisites to check the day before

• You have view or comment access to the client’s Family Harbor checklist and their Drive/Dropbox folder

• The client’s access map shows which advisors can view what

• At least the IDs, insurance summaries, and a preliminary asset/beneficiary list are present

• You have a private place to screen-share without saving client PII locally

The 20-minute agenda (recommended default)

1. Opening frame (2 min)
Set expectations: this is a working check-in to confirm what is complete, clarify what is next, and decide who does what by when.

2. Folder snapshot (5 min)
Open the client’s Family Harbor master folder in their Google Drive/Dropbox. Skim top-level sections: IDs, insurance, accounts and beneficiaries, prior instruments, health and POA docs, shared notes.

3. Checklist pass (8 min)
Open the Family Harbor checklist. Confirm completed items, mark blockers, and record decisions in the checklist’s notes fields. If you keep comments read-only, have the client click while you narrate.

4. Decide and assign (4 min)
Convert blockers into next steps with owner and due date. Capture external handoffs (e.g., attorney consult) in the checklist or the meeting notes doc inside the folder.

The 45-minute deep-dive agenda (use when many gaps remain)

1. Opening and goals (5)

2. Access map and privacy quick check (5)

3. Folder walkthrough with spot checks (10)

4. Checklist working session with light coaching (15)

5. Decisions and handoffs (8)

6. Recap and next nudge schedule (2)

What to open, and in what order

1. Family Harbor master folder in the client’s Drive/Dropbox

2. Family Harbor checklist in your browser (view or comment)

3. Access map

4. Notes or meeting summary doc inside the Family Harbor folder

Decisions to aim for by the end of the meeting

• Whether a will is sufficient or a trust consult is warranted

• Named agents for financial POA, health-care proxy, and HIPAA release

• Which beneficiary designations should be confirmed or updated and with which institutions

• Whether any account titling or TOD/POD needs attention

• What professional handoffs are required and in what order

Assigning next steps

• Use the Family Harbor checklist to add an owner and due date for each open item

• If you keep read-only access, have the client enter updates live as you talk

• For external handoffs, add a single line in the checklist notes with the partner name and the folder path for any supporting files

• Keep tasks inside the client’s system; do not create a parallel to-do list in your systems that duplicates client data

Remote and in-person tips

• Remote: ask the client to share their screen and drive; you coach and summarize in comments

• In-person: open the client’s folder on your machine, but avoid downloads; type decisions into the checklist while they watch

• If multiple parties are present, keep the screen on the checklist to anchor the discussion

Security and privacy guardrails

• Client-owned storage only; access can be revoked at any time

• Use view or comment permission; avoid editor access unless the client requests it

• Do not email documents back and forth; link to items in the client’s Drive/Dropbox from the checklist notes

• Do not capture PII in your CRM notes beyond what your policies allow; point to the Family Harbor folder path instead

Common roadblocks and how to handle them

• Missing beneficiaries or account list
Ask the client to list institutions first, then add details over the next week. Set a short due date and a follow-up nudge.

• Unclear who should be POA or proxy
Use the Choosing a Trusted Contact/Executor guide inside the Family Harbor resources and set a decision checkpoint for next meeting.

• Client is anxious about sharing access
Walk through access map settings and remind them access is revocable. Offer comment-only access if that reduces friction.

• Too many loose documents
Use the Paper vs. Digital Originals guide and the File Naming guide. Rename two or three items together as a live example.

What good looks like after review day

• Folder shows organized top-level sections with at least IDs, insurance, and a basic asset and beneficiary list

• Checklist has owners and due dates on open items

• One or two professional handoffs are scheduled with attachments or links already in the client’s folder

• A short recap note lives in the folder and in the checklist notes

Suggested recap note template

Lightweight scripts you can use

• Opening
Today we are reviewing what is gathered in your Family Harbor folder and checklist, deciding what’s next, and assigning owners and dates. You keep your files in your Drive; I’ll only view or comment.

• Assigning owners
Let’s assign this beneficiary update to you, and I will note the institution contact details here. We will check back in next Thursday.

• Closing
I am leaving a short recap note inside your Family Harbor folder and a link to it in the checklist. Your next reminder will come from Family Harbor, and we will reconvene in two weeks.

Compliance note

One-page checklist you can print or paste

• Confirm access works to the client’s Family Harbor checklist and Drive/Dropbox

• Open master folder, then the checklist, then the access map

• Skim for IDs, insurance, accounts and beneficiaries, prior instruments, health/POA docs

• Convert blockers into next steps with owner and due date

• Record external handoffs with partner name and folder path

• Save a recap note inside the folder and link it in the checklist

• Set next nudge cadence and the next review date