Practical guide · Jonathan Malchow Vega
Keep a source trail that someone else can follow
A practical way to connect a record, its transformations, and the claim it supports.
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Start with one claim
A useful source trail lets another reader work backward from a statement to the material behind it. Begin by writing the statement you want to support. “The supplier was approved” and “a supplier record was edited” require different evidence. If you cannot state the claim clearly, collecting more files will not resolve the ambiguity.
Worked example: an exported spreadsheet
This is a fictional example, not a client case study. A coordinator exports a supplier register on 12 October. The export has a row marked “approved,” but no approval date or decision maker. The file establishes that the exported register contained that value at that time. It does not, by itself, establish who authorized the supplier or what was reviewed.
Record the transformation
Write down the original system or folder, the source identifier, who made the export, and when. Record whether columns were removed, dates reformatted, or values manually corrected. Keep the original export alongside your working copy in an access-controlled location. Use links or identifiers in shared notes instead of copying sensitive source contents.
Separate observation from inference
Observation: the exported row contains “approved.” Inference: a review may have occurred before the export. Missing evidence: the approval record and the criteria used. Next action: ask the responsible owner for the linked decision record. That wording gives the next reader a way to check the conclusion without treating a missing record as proof that nothing happened.
Review the trail
Ask a colleague to locate the source using only your notes. Can they identify the exact version and understand what changed? If a link is inaccessible, describe the owner and the access route. Do not solve an access problem by making private records public. Review the trail when the source changes or when someone uses it to support a different claim.
Source and scope
W3C PROV Overview. PROV describes provenance in terms of entities, activities, and agents. The worksheet is a plain-language exercise inspired by those distinctions, not a PROV implementation.
Short answers
What is a source trail?
A source trail lets another reader work backward from a statement to the material behind it. It connects a record, its transformations, and the claim it supports.
What should you write down when you export or change a source file?
Write down the original system or folder, the source identifier, who made the export, and when. Record whether columns were removed, dates reformatted, or values manually corrected, and keep the original export alongside your working copy in an access-controlled location.
How do you separate observation from inference in your notes?
Write down the observation, the inference, the missing evidence, and the next action as separate items. In the article’s fictional example, the observation is that an exported row contains “approved,” while the inference is only that a review may have occurred before the export. That wording lets the next reader check the conclusion without treating a missing record as proof that nothing happened.
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Related in the DESCRIBED series: What belongs in a useful decision record? (Governance Simplified)