When many of us see change coming, we’re not sure what to do. We sometimes fear or mistrust change, or we put off big problems because they’re “too much all at once”, and we stick with outdated, inefficient tools, methods, and processes.
“Better the devil you know than the one you don’t.”
Anon.
We sense that the way we go about developing policies and procedures isn’t producing satisfactory results, yet we keep at it. We can’t afford to continue doing what we’ve been doing if we’re to remain competitive.
Now we proceed with the ten-step program for developing procedures:
- Understand the process – walk through it (literally) and map it out. See for yourself where the bottlenecks are. Determine where your resources are going to waste, not value. If an activity doesn’t add value, customers won’t pay for it.
- Estimate the resources you need to craft the procedure (people, time, etc.). Set your goals and milestones.
- Now, document (author) the process. For the best effect, combine pictures and words: either is good but together, they’re great!
- Once you author the procedure, have the process “doers” and their manager review it. Note: Here is where a document management system can improve your review process.
- Based on the results of the procedure review, revise the procedure.
- Repeat #4 and #5 once. Resist the urge to keep “tweaking” documents before releasing them – there is no such thing as a perfect procedure.
- Next, have other interested parties review the procedure (for example, the managers of the processes immediately before and after the process in question).
- Revise the procedure one last time, if necessary.
- Gain final approval of the procedure from top management. In the case of a small business (or SMB), that might be the owner, the president, your chief financial officer, and others. Top management needs to be involved because every process – hence, every procedure – is a reflection of the company’s vision, mission, and objectives.
- Once the procedure is approved, release it to the company. Releasing a procedure involves:
- Announcing the procedure to the entire company;
- Circulating it, or making sure it’s readily accessible to employees;
- Training the doers – those responsible for carrying out the procedure, and their managers; and
- Explaining the procedure to those who may be affected indirectly (for example, one process forward and one back).
Keep Procedures Fresh and Meaningful
As we said in step #6, perfect procedures don’t exist. The business environment changes, your company changes, and your procedures need to reflect that. Once you’ve released a procedure, there are two more things you must do:
11. Conduct a periodic procedure review. You review a procedure when something really big comes up that has a direct impact (a new or revised regulation, an audit finding, a new owner, etc.), correct? Oftentimes, nothing comes up – or we don’t notice when they do. That’s why we need to routinely review procedures (a rule of thumb is to review annually).
12. After the review, revise the procedure (if needed), review it, approve it, and release it.
What about you? Have any questions or comments? What do you – or would you – do differently? Do you have a system for writing and managing procedures – one you’d like to share with us?
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