Take Over an Undocumented SFMC Account
Stabilize first, reconstruct second, improve third.
Evidence tier describes my hands-on relationship with the content. Official sources describe platform contracts/documentation. Production observations should not automatically be treated as official limits.
Do not redesign blind
First identify active sends, automations, journeys and business-critical dependencies.
Create a read-only inventory
Capture metadata before changing names, folders, keys or structures.
Build a dependency map
Queries and automation targets often reveal foundational tables faster than naming conventions do.
Trace recent production behavior
Use tracking, automation history and stakeholder context to distinguish live versus abandoned assets.
Document unknowns explicitly
Unknown is safer than an invented explanation. Track confidence and evidence.
Apply governance incrementally
Naming, documentation and structural cleanup should follow understanding, not precede it.