Why you Need to Implement Standard Operating Procedures

Every successful business has a system of how things are done. The organization follows some standard operating procedures to run their business systems.

Whether it’s writing the tasks list, assigning the tasks, or setting a procedure to finish a task, it takes a lot of planning. If a business wants to run the day-to-day operations smoothly, they must adopt a systematic approach.

The most popular way to create an aligned process is implementing Standard Operating Procedures.

All the efficient business teams follow the standard operating procedures. It ensures that the team completes the task by following the set guidelines that provide the highest productivity with minimal errors.

Every business has their way of doing a specific task. The process might differ with each person as well.

What if you hired a new employee who did the task differently at the previous organization?

You can’t teach someone a new process in a few minutes. You need to have standardized written instructions to do the task. SOPs ensure that the business runs smoothly and efficiently when a new person is hired.

Do you want to write effective Standard Operating Procedures? Check out this video.

You can write different SOPs for each department including:

• Production/operations
• Customer Support
• Administration
• Sales
• Marketing
• Legal
• Finances
• Human Resources

SOPs work as a reference document when the employees are stuck in a difficult situation.

I know what you are thinking. You have trained staff and managers that are experienced and qualified to teach any new employees.

Then why would you need SOPs?

SOPs act as a tool to layout the correct way of daily operation within the organization. Here are a few reasons you need to implement Standard Operation procedures to ensure your business systems' success.

Define Job Duties

The training period can be overwhelming for new employees as there is so much to learn and adapt.

Businesses use SOPs to define job responsibilities and duties so that each employee remembers all the necessary steps to accomplish a specific task.

It can be a daunting task to remember a big set of instructions in a 2-day training session. The SOP comes in handy while working on a project.

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Ensure Task Consistency

As an SOP defines the steps of performing a task, it ensures that every employee is doing the task in the same exact way. All the expectations and responsibilities are clearly written.

If an employee leaves the task at a certain step, the next worker can catch up right from the next one, without any hassle.

Enhance Productivity

When the task instructions are mentioned and understood by the employees, there is no chance of errors and distractions. No one needs to constantly check whether the worker is doing everything as per the required procedure.

The employees have a list of tasks, and they don’t have to waste time while waiting to ask questions from the manager or team leaders. The SOPs are self-explanatory and provide a detailed description of each step involved in the task.

With the help of SOP, the workers can finish the task quicker, saving time and money.

Validate Employee Evaluations

The evaluation process can be complicated if there are no SOPs set out for each business system. It is impossible to hold an employee accountable for a project's mistake if the whole team worked on it.

With the help of SOP, the business owner can identify the mistake and correct it before sending the project off to the client.

SOPs help the business owners to evaluate employee’s performance based on procedures and its expectations. In the case of disciplinary action, all the reasons are written in the SOP as well.

Accident Investigations

Similar to employee evaluations, SOPs outlines the steps to start an accident investigation. It offers a checklist to keep the record of all the accident-related details.

Ideal for Team Training

In most cases, managers are responsible for the training of new employees. But, with the help of SOP, other team members can train new workers.

The employees who want a promotion or move to a different business system, use the SOPs to improve their work skills.

Creates a Safe Work Environment

SOPs ensure that the work environment is safe and consistent for the employees. The SOP acts as the training guide in the production unit. It ensures that all the employees are aware of all the safety and health procedures.

Creating a Standard Operating Procedure requires a lot of planning and preparation. If you are thinking about building an SOP for your business, follow these steps:

• Talk to your employees and create a detailed list of business processes. You can use this list as the basic procedures.
• The next step is to plan whether you want the SOP as a written guide or diagrams.
• Create a rough template and cross-check with your senior staff to make sure all the steps are accurately written.
• Build a procedure for each aspect of your business.
• Along with the steps and instructions, you can add the reason why each task is done in that specific way. You can mention if it’s a universal requirement or client-specific step.

To keep up with the advancements in the business world, the SOPs get updated every year. It is done to make the business flexible and have a system in place.

You can create an electronic copy of the SOP and add it to the Project Management platform like Trello and Asana. It will ensure that the SOP is accessible to the employees at one click.

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