What is an SOP?
You started your business to have more freedom, to make more money, and to leave a legacy. But now you’re CEO, Head of Sales, and Director of HR all rolled into one.
What will it take to get off the treadmill?
Whether you have 1 employee or 100, defining and documenting your standard operating procedures (SOPs) is the answer.
WHAT IS AN SOP?
SOPs are clearly defined, documented, repeatable processes that drive an organizations’ output. They’re the nitty-gritty, nuts-and-bolts systems that allow individuals and teams to execute with consistency, over and over again.
SOPs clarify the who, the what, and the how for each piece of a business’s operation.
What needs to be done?
Who should do it?
How do we define success?
Even if they’re not written down, your business has de facto operating procedures in place already. We all have established ways of doing things. But if they’re not clearly-defined, well-documented, and easily-accessible, you’ll run into trouble.
Think of a family recipe. Maybe your grandmother’s recipe for cornbread read, “Add milk until ‘just right.’” That may have worked for cornbread — but in business, not so much. All the generations who inherited that recipe had their own idea of “just right,” which means no one’s cornbread tasted the same. That’s an example of a de facto operating procedure in need of standardization.
IN BUSINESS, TRIBAL KNOWLEDGE CAN ONLY GET YOU SO FAR.
THE VALUE OF GREAT SOPS
But you’re busy... is taking time to work on SOPs really worth it? Although the project may feel daunting at first, here’s how you can benefit from a good set of SOPs:
A better employee experience
SOPs ensure consistent training. When they’re clear, there’s less risk of a trainer accidentally omitting critical knowledge or passing along their own quirks and habits. They also reduce stress for new hires.
Having a clearly spelled-out plan reduces anxiety and uncertainty, speeds up training, and increases confidence. Finally, SOPs clarify standards. We all like to know how to do a great job. Poor performance is often a result of unclear expectations.
Repeatable results
SOPs ensure that clients or customers know that they’re going to get the same quality service or product every time, which leads to great reviews and increased customer retention!
Common goals, shared responsibility
SOPs encourage a shared vision of excellence and purpose. The collaborative process of shaping SOPs connects team members and leadership as they work across silos and hierarchies, documenting what they do and refining as they go.
Straight-forward, no-surprises evaluations
SOPs can save painful moments of feedback for your direct reports. When there are clear, specific SOPs, team members know how to win.
Streamlined, high-success delegation
As a small business owner, you’re spinning a million plates! But you can’t hand off a plate until you’ve defined what’s on it and who you need to give it to. SOPs make delegation faster and more likely to succeed.
HOW TO GET STARTED
SOPs are no help if they don’t get used. In this case, marketers aren’t the only ones who should use SEO! When creating your SOPs, they should be: Shared widely, Engaging, and Organic.
Shared widely
Strong SOPs are consistent in both location and format. They’re easily-accessible (i.e. team members don’t have to click too many times to find them - cloud based services are a brilliant solution!), and mobile-friendly (for most companies this is an important piece of the puzzle, especially with the move to remote or hybrid work).
Engaging
There’s no need for SOPs to read like a textbook; use a mix of video, graphics, and reading materials to accommodate different learning styles. Check out one of the leading platforms for SOPs, Trainual. Trainual makes it easy to create and share engaging content!
Organic
SOPs aren’t something that you write once, then leave behind; they are a living, breathing part of your business. As such, they should be revisited and refreshed at least once per quarter.
The type of process being documented dictates its exact elements, but common features of SOPs include:
Intended department or team (who is it for?)
Purpose (what is the goal?)
Definitions (are there any terms that are potentially new or unclear?)
Step-by step-instructions for procedures. (this could include a numbered list, a workflow chart, graphics, videos, or text)
Summary (perhaps a final checklist for success)
Just as your business grows, changes, adapts, so do your SOPs. Need help getting your business out of your brain, and down on paper with some strong SOPs? Find out how we can help.
