| Standard
Operating & Operation Manuals
Used in nearly every industry
world-wide, Standard Operating Procedures and Operations Manuals
provide documentation of operating principles and practices,
enabling organizations to control quality, manage performance and
deliver consistent results. In a hotel or food service operation,
these tools will:
- Establish benchmarks of standards
and procedures
- Detail specifications for quality control
- Identify key operational systems and controls
- Provide consistency from location to location (and within each
location)
- Assist in limiting liability (regarding health, safety, personnel
practices, etc)
- Provide clear accountability for contractual agreements
- Establish a foundation for training content and design
- Provide content for conversion to on-line systems
Standard Operating Procedures and
Operations Manuals both provide a reflection of your company's
mission, values and operating principles. In addition, however, they
are two distinct documents designed to meet different organizational
needs.
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) establish minimum parameters
for acceptable operating practices. The document or set of documents
used to record SOPs is a static and objective tool; it does not have
a "personality," but is designed solely to convey detailed
information about company standards (e.g. safety and sanitation in
the kitchen). The SOP document reflects minimum guidelines for
performance - it seldom delves into variables or situational
management. In addition, the SOP document provides a legal
foundation of a company's operating procedures and is effective for
contract and franchise agreements.
The Operations ("Ops") Manual is the dynamic sister of the
SOP. While standards of performance are the same, Operations Manuals
convey a greater sense of company culture, have a broader
operational perspective and address not just standards but also
their application. The Operations Manual may also address variables
in controlling operations from one location to the next. While the
Operations Manual is not a learning document, like a training
manual, it does provide structure for operating within the
parameters of the company, established by the SOPs.
P R O C E S S
Based upon the needs of your organization, our professionals help
you determine the format (Standard Operating Procedures vs.
Operations Manuals) or format that will best serve your intended
audience. We then develop proprietary SOP or Operations manuals that
accurately reflect the policies, procedures and operating systems
for your organization, not a generic vision of the industry.
F E E S
Development costs for SOP and Operations manuals depend upon the
amount of "research" required to complete the project.
Work for your project will generally fall into one of three
"levels":
1. Design from
scratch
2. Structure and formalize existing resources
3. Update current versions
During an assessment phase, we review the client's wants, needs and
depth of resources to determine a plan for the project. Factors such
as company size, location dynamics and infrastructure, number of
departments/work groups and service expectations can all impact the
amount of work required to create a quality product.
After the assessment, we produce a recommendation document that
includes the scope of work, a project timeline and a breakdown of
costs.
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