Taming the Snookelflaken: Mastering Process Documentation for Success
The next time you want to make someone’s eyes glaze over, utter these three words…
Standard. Operating. Procedures.
…then watch them sigh and sag in their chair.
The purpose of this article is to turn your frown upside down and make you say “Yipee!” about process documentation. No, really. I’m totally serious.
Just go with me on this one, folks. Picture in your mind a business process that is absolutely critical to the success of an organization. We will call this process Snookleflaken.
Imagine if you worked in this imaginary organization and said any of the following things:
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There would be a problem, right? Enter the need to develop – you guessed it – a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Snookelflaken.
SOPs do not have to be overly complicated. Nor do most SOPs require the purchase of specialized software. A basic SOP includes: (1) what is done, (2) who is accountable for doing it, and (3) the timeline in which each step needs to be completed.
I often develop SOPs for clients. Despite the dread with which some people approach the task, in the end there are some surprising (and not so surprising) benefits.
Benefits of Developing Standard Operating Procedures:
What is the Snookelflaken in your organization? Go and develop an SOP. Then, say…
“Yipee!”
Yep, record those processes so others can learn how to do it.