The Top 5 Mistakes in Writing Policies and Procedures

Those who know me will all tell you one thing: I am passionate about systems. I know not everyone shares my interest, but strong systems are the backbone of any successful organization. They help you communicate with your team, equip your team for productivity, and (in the long run) save you money. They’re not always easy to write, though – I’d like to share some mistakes to avoid when you’re writing your policies and procedures.

Before we dig into that, however, I’d like to explain a bit more about why strong systems are such an asset to your business.

First, they aid in decision making. The average person makes 35,000 decisions every day – and when the logic tree for some of these decisions isn’t clear, it becomes mentally taxing. This, in turn, can lead to stress, burnout, and poor decisions that can create problems for your business. Obviously, it’s essential to avoid these results whenever possible!

By creating a clear “when x happens do y” structure for your team, you can reduce a lot of the mental fatigue and help them not only perform their job with excellence, but also to find more satisfaction in their role. (Both of these will help you keep your top performers!)

Second, systems give much-needed clarity. In a fast-paced environment, clarity is key. You obviously won’t have time to communicate how you want every single thing done to each of your team members (well, not if you want to have a life, grow your business, and keep your sanity)…let your systems do it for you!

Lastly, your systems can help you stay in compliance with things like legal regulations, industry standards, and best practices. These things might seem like second nature to you – after all, you chose your industry and specialty – but that doesn’t mean your team members will have the same context. By creating clear systems for your team to follow and giving the why behind the processes, you can ensure that all of the work that comes out of your company is up to par.

You know you need strong systems, but what are some pitfalls and mistakes you’ll want to avoid?

Mistake #1: Trying to Include Too Much

Strong SOPs are important, but that doesn’t mean that every process needs to include 32 steps with screenshots, color coded action steps, and an annual calendar of every use case. This can be tempting to do, though!

When you’re writing your systems, take a moment to put yourself in your team’s position:

• If you were a new employee trying to learn the process during your first week or two, would it make sense?
• If you were stepping in to back someone up, would you be able to do so without throwing your day off track?
• If the process was part of your normal job, would you have a quick checklist you could run your finger down to confirm you didn’t miss anything?

While they might not be as pretty or impressive, these tools will be a lot more useful to your team members – and in the end, they’ll be a lot more effective. When in doubt, keep it short and simple and simply link the resource to other related processes!

Mistake #2: Failing to Determine a Clear End Result

Have you ever read a recipe that had no photo of the finished product? Or that used terms you’re unfamiliar with, but didn’t provide a process photo?

If you’re an avid baker or cook, you can probably figure it out…but if you just get inspired to try a new recipe and don’t have context, the results could be disastrous. (Or hilarious, depending on your mood.)

This might be ok if you’re just trying a recipe on a lazy weekend afternoon, but if you’re trying to complete a task at work, it’s helpful to know what the end result should be. Otherwise, the result could end in a lost client or several hours of extra work (rather than a fallen souffle).

The fix for this? Be clear as to the end result. Make sure your team knows what they’re trying to accomplish!

Mistake #3: Forgetting to Explain the “Why”

There is a story that tells of an experiment that dealt with hiring people to dig holes, fill them back in, and then repeat the process the next day. Some say it was a way to give people employment during the Great Depression, others state it as a college psych department experiment. There is no clear documentation for the origin of the story (or even whether it really happened), but the point of it remains the same.

As the story goes, groups of people were hired to dig holes. They didn’t really know why they were digging, but they were being paid to do so…so they dug. Later in the day, they were told to fill the holes back in. And the next day, they had to come back and do the same thing without knowing why.

I’ll let you guess what the result was. It didn’t take long to fail.

If you don’t know why you’re doing what you’re doing, the task itself becomes pointless. Not only will you have no idea if you’re succeeding, but you’ll quickly lose motivation to do the work. (Neither is a good thing to have in a business.)

My point? Explain the why. Purpose is essential.

This is why we always provide a policy. “It is the policy of the company to __________ so that we can ____________.” It doesn’t have to be any more complicated than that. A clear, simple explanation will go a long way toward getting your team’s buy in!

Mistake 4: Writing from a Single Point of View

Do you ever feel like just sitting down and writing out all your systems so they’ll be done? (I do, and I’ve worked with plenty of clients who have felt the same.)

The theory behind this is that you can streamline the process and just hand your team a finished systems manual they can implement. Sounds like a great idea, right?

At least until your team completely ignores what you made them because they don’t want to tell you about the holes in your systems.

You see, I could write a whole set of systems for my Bookkeeper, but I’d probably miss a lot of what she knows she should do (because she does it day in and day out.) I could do the same for my Copywriter, but she’d probably continue to use the processes that she’s refined over the years.

Neither one would willfully ignore what I want them to do…but they know the ins and outs of their jobs better than I do. (That’s why I hired them.)

Instead of dictating processes to your team, involve them in the process. Let them know what you want the end result to be and ask them how they’d do it – and then work with them to document those processes and logic trees. Take advantage of their experience and perspectives to strengthen the processes throughout your company!

Mistake #5: Failing to Document WHO Shall Do WHAT By WHEN

“WHO Shall Do WHAT By WHEN.” This is one of my favorite phrases – I even used it to name the Boot Camps that I offer. Yes, it’s catchy, but it’s also essential.

If you want systems to get created and implemented, there has to be a clear chain of command. In other words, make sure that everyone knows what they’re responsible for and when the due dates are.

This might seem pretty obvious, but you’d be amazed at how often it gets left out of the process. When we’re running at a thousand miles an hour (as business owners usually are), simple things like deciding on responsibilities and timelines is an easy thing to miss.

When you provide this clarity, however (and provide it in ways that make sense to your team members), you can make the entire process a lot easier and get your employees on board to help you build, grow, and succeed.

If you’re struggling to write systems (or finding it a challenge to get your team to follow them), let me know. I’ll be happy to chat with you, send you resources that can help, and work with you to create an action plan to get things back on track!