Assuming that what you
want to do is to describe how a task ought to be performed to ensure
it is carried consistently each time there is certain information you
need to convey to the people who will use it. In deciding what should
go into procedures one should limit them to defining the activities
and decisions to be carried out and only prescribe how actions and
decisions should be carried out where:
- the method is critical to the result
- too much choice can be bad for efficiency
- it would be unreasonable, unsafe or unreliable to
expect staff to commit the knowledge required to memory
A typical structure is shown above right. There are
variations on this theme with Objectives in place of purpose,
References before Procedure and a section on Responsibilities.
However, it should not be necessary to define responsibilities
separately from the procedure text since the “who does what” should be
stated in the text. By including a separate responsibility statement,
you increase the probability of duplication and conflict. You can
identify the functions to which the procedure is applicable in the
scope and applicability statement. There has
to be a limit on what you document. At school we are taught reading,
writing and arithmetic so documents should not attempt to define how
these activities are performed. But it depends on what you are trying
to do. The documents in regular use need only detail what would not be
covered by education and training. A balance should be attained
between training and procedures. If you rely on training rather than
employing documented procedures, you will need to show that you have
control over the quality of training to a level that will ensure its
effectiveness. We expect staff to know how to do the various tasks
that comprise their trade or profession, how to write, how to design,
how to type, answer the telephone, how to paint, lay bricks etc. You
may feel it necessary to provide handbooks with useful tips on how to
do these tasks more economically and effectively and you may also use
such books to bridge gaps in education and training but these are not
your procedures. If you need something to be done in a particular way
because it is important to the outcome, the method will need to be
documented so that others may learn the method.
You can combine several procedures in one document,
the size of which depends on the complexity of your business. The more
complex the business the greater is the number of documents. The more
variations in the ways that work is executed, the larger the
description of management system will need to be. If you have a small
business and only one way of carrying out work, your system
description will tend to be small. Your management system may be
described in one document of no more than 30 pages. On the other hand
a larger business may require several volumes and dozens of documents
of over 10 pages each to adequately describe the system.
Control procedures need to be user-friendly and so
should be limited in size. Remember you can use other documents such
as guides, standards, and operating procedures to extend what you have
written in the control procedures. The procedures should not, however,
be so short as to be worthless as a means of controlling activities.
They need to provide an adequate degree of direction so that the
results of using them are predictable. If you neglect to adequately
define what needs to be done and how to do it, don't be surprised that
staff don't know what to do or constantly make mistakes. It is also
important to resist the desire to produce manuals that are impressive
rather than practical. Printing the documents on expensive paper with
coloured logo does not improve their effectiveness and if they are not
written simply and understood by a person of average intelligence,
they will not be used. |
