Prompt Chain: Generate a Complete Incident Documentation Package

What This Builds

When an employee incident occurs — a safety violation, customer complaint, attendance issue, or policy breach — you need three separate documents: the incident report, the corrective action, and a 30-day follow-up reminder. Instead of writing each one separately (typically 45–90 minutes total), this prompt chain produces all three in a single 10-minute Claude conversation. You describe the incident once; the chain handles the rest.

Prerequisites

• Comfortable using Claude for basic document drafting (Level 3)
• Claude account (free works; Pro recommended for longer document chains)
• The basic facts of the incident ready to describe
• Time needed: 30 minutes to learn the chain; 10–12 minutes per incident after that
• Cost: Free (Claude basic) / $20/month (Claude Pro for longer conversations)

The Concept

A prompt chain is like a production line for documents. Instead of one big request ("write all three documents"), you feed Claude one step at a time — each output becoming the input for the next step. This produces more accurate, consistent documents because each step builds on a confirmed foundation.

Think of it like this: a sous chef doesn't make an entire dish from a recipe description — they prep each component first, then assemble. Your incident chain works the same way: incident facts → incident report → corrective action → follow-up. Each step reviews the previous one before moving forward.

Build It Step by Step

Part 1: Prepare Your Incident Facts

Before opening Claude, take 2 minutes to write down:

1. Employee name (or just "the employee" for privacy in the prompt)
2. What happened — specific behavior, date, time, location
3. Who observed it (you, another manager, a customer)
4. What the relevant policy is
5. Previous incidents or warnings (if any)
6. What was said when you addressed it with the employee

Having this ready makes the chain fast and accurate.

Part 2: Step 1 — Generate the Incident Report

Open Claude. Start a new conversation. Type:

I'm a grocery department manager who needs to document an employee incident.

Here are the facts:
Employee role: [clerk / cashier / department associate]
Incident: [describe specifically what happened]
Date/time: [when it occurred]
Observed by: [you / another manager / customer report]
Relevant policy: [what policy was violated or what expectation wasn't met]
Prior incidents: [none / or describe previous warnings]
Employee's response when addressed: [what they said when you talked to them]

Step 1: Write a formal incident report for the employee file. Include: description of the incident, policy reference, who was present, and a factual summary of the employee's response when addressed. Do not include recommendations — just the facts.

Review the output. Make sure all facts are accurate. If something's off, correct it before moving to Step 2.

Part 3: Step 2 — Generate the Corrective Action

After confirming the incident report, type:

Step 2: Based on the incident report above, write a [first / second / final] written corrective action.

Include:
- Summary of the violation (reference the incident report facts)
- The specific policy or expectation that was violated
- What improvement is expected going forward
- Consequence if behavior continues
- Signature lines for employee and manager

Professional and factual tone. No emotional language.

Review the output. Check that the consequence is appropriate for the level (first warning vs. final warning).

Part 4: Step 3 — Generate the 30-Day Follow-Up Email

After reviewing the corrective action, type:

Step 3: Write a brief 30-day follow-up email for my calendar.

This email is a reminder to myself to check in with the employee 30 days after this corrective action was issued. It should:
- Remind me of the specific issue this corrective action was for
- Ask me to evaluate whether behavior has improved
- Prompt me to either close out the issue or escalate if not improved
- Include the employee's role and the type of issue (not their name — I'll fill that in)

Keep it under 100 words. I'll set it as a calendar reminder email.

You now have all three documents from one 10-minute conversation.

Part 5: Finalize and File

Copy each document into Word or Google Docs. Fill in:

• Employee full name
• Your name and signature
• Specific dates
• Store/department name

Print two copies of the corrective action: one for the file, one to give the employee in a private meeting.

Set the follow-up email as a calendar reminder for exactly 30 days out.

Real Example: Attendance Issue

Setup: An employee has been late 3 times in 2 weeks. It's the first formal action.

Input to Claude (Step 1):

Facts:
Employee role: produce clerk
Incident: arrived 12-18 minutes late on 3 occasions in the past 2 weeks
Dates: March 4 (12 min late), March 8 (18 min late), March 14 (15 min late)
Observed by: me (department manager)
Policy: employees must be clocked in at their assigned station by shift start time
Prior incidents: none — first formal action
Employee response when addressed: said they've been having car trouble and will try to do better

Output Chain Produces:

Document 1 — Incident Report: A formal, dated account of the three late arrivals with the observation details and the employee's stated reason.

Document 2 — First Written Warning: A structured corrective action referencing the incident report, citing the attendance policy, stating expected behavior going forward, and noting that a second violation may result in further disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Document 3 — Follow-Up Email: "30-day check-in — Attendance warning issued [date] to [produce clerk]. Review attendance record for the period. If no further incidents: document improvement and close. If additional late arrivals: escalate to second written warning per progressive discipline policy."

Time saved: 45–75 minutes reduced to 10–12 minutes. Complete paper trail. Consistent tone across all three documents.

What to Do When It Breaks

• Output is too generic → Add more specifics to your facts. "Had car trouble" is vague; "employee stated they've had car trouble three times but has not provided documentation" is specific and documentable.
• Tone feels wrong → After Step 2, say: "Adjust the corrective action to be [firmer / more coaching-oriented]. The current tone is [too harsh / too soft]."
• Chain gets confused midway → Start over. Copy the incident facts and the Step 1 output, paste both into a new conversation, and continue from Step 2.
• Claude forgets context → If you're on the free plan and the conversation gets long, summarize the key facts in your Step 2 prompt rather than relying on Claude to remember Step 1.

Variations

• Simpler version: Run just Step 2 (corrective action) using the basic ChatGPT Level 1 approach — skips the chain but still saves time on the write-up itself.
• Extended version: Add a Step 4 prompt: "Write a talking-points script for the private meeting where I deliver this corrective action to the employee. Include how to open the conversation, how to state the issue, how to present the document, and how to close the meeting professionally."

What to Do Next

• This week: Run through this chain with a past incident as practice — don't use a real current situation until you've tested it once
• This month: Use it for every incident that requires formal documentation
• Advanced: Create a Claude Project with this chain saved as a template — open the project, paste facts, run the chain in under 8 minutes every time

Advanced guide for Grocery Department Manager professionals. For incidents with legal implications (harassment, FMLA, workers' comp), always have HR or your store director review documentation before use.