Have you ever defined a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) only to find out later that nobody is following it?  In other words, you take the time to define the step-by-step procedures, document them and communicate them but employees fail to actually follow them.

With SOPs there are two major hurdles an organization has to face.  The first has to do with SOP content.  Getting a set of clearly defined and consistently documented SOPs is a challenge unto itself.  But once the SOP content is completed – organizations are often faced with another challenge whereby employees don’t always execute the SOPs even though they’ve been defined.

After all, if an employee has been doing something one way for several months or even years – when you introduce a new standard operating procedure, the real battle is getting them to change their old behavior.

If you want employees to actually execute the SOPs you define and document, you need measurable accountability.  It’s that simple.  A general rule of thumb to keep in mind is that the degree to which you want people to comply (another way of saying “execute” or another way of saying “change their behavior”) is tied directly to the degree to which they are held measurably accountable.

When it comes to SOPs, I recommend the following four points of measurable accountability that map to the acronym SECA.

·         Sign Offs- Have people sign off on the SOPs applicable to their job function.  By acknowledging the SOP, there’s no opportunity for someone to say “I didn’t know about that.” Or “I must have missed that email.”  This is the first step towards changing someone’s behavior.

·         Exams- Ask employees to answer a few questions to demonstrate they have an accurate understanding of the SOP.  It doesn’t take many questions – just a few.  And of course you don’t have to call this point of measurable accountability “Exams” you can call it whatever you want – “Tests”, “Reviews”, “Key Questions”, etc…

·         Contributions- If someone identifies a new and improved way of doing something, hold them accountable for contributing these ideas.  In other words, people can’t just deviate from an SOP because they have found a “better way.”  They need to be held accountable for submitting these contributions so everyone can benefit from the feedback and the SOPs can ultimately be improved.

·         Audits- The final point of measurable accountability involves auditing your people to determine if they are actually executing the SOPs.  These quality assurance efforts whereby work samples are reviewed helps to represent an accurate picture of which people are actually following the SOPs and which people are not.

One final note.  Although a total of four points of measureable accountability have been listed, you might want to start with only one or two.  Find the combination that works for your organization.  Wherever you start, the key is the measurable accountability.  For instance, if employees sign off but you don’t keep track of this information– then it’s not measurable accountability.  Remember, people will change their behavior based on the degree to which they are held measurably accountable.

Geese have a very efficient process for migration. Simple in design, the V formation used during flight enables the flock to fly up to 70% further and at higher speeds.

Furthermore, the process affords maximum visibility whereby each bird is accounted for. If one falls behind, a minimum of two others will drop off and join in order to support and protect one another.

Finally, the geese in the back of the formation actually honk as a form of encouragement for the geese in the front. The process even includes a rotation whereby the birds switch positions on a routine basis. As one bird becomes tired, it slips to the back and another bird advances, assuming the lead position. 

But what about human beings? At a time when process engineering is at an all-time high, organizations are quickly learning that, unlike the geese, compliance among employees isn't always easily achieved despite the quality of the process! In fact, there is a direct relationship between employee accountability and compliance. Unlike geese who instinctively comply, the degree to which an employee complies with a defined policy or procedure is tied directly to the degree to which his or her accountability is measured.

The process by which geese migrate is certainly impressive. Perhaps what's even more impressive, however, is the compliance exercised by each member of the flock. Instinctively, the geese adhere to the process year after year with little to no resistance.

When you hear the words "standard operating procedures" does it conjure up an image of documentation in the form of dusty notebooks filled with unread pages sitting on a bookshelf?  Do the words "boring" and "useless" or "rigid" come to mind?  If so, it’s time to change your thinking!
 
It used to be SOPs were reserved for the military, manufacturing plants and a few other environments that required tight controls.  But, in today's ever increasingly competitive world, standard operating procedures – simple instructions for how to get things done – are emerging as an invaluable tool for middle management.
 
Department-level SOPs don't have to be complex.  They should consist primarily of two components – a policy statement and the accompanying step-by-step procedures.
 
The policy statement should follow a when, who, summary of what structure.  For instance:  [When] "Prior to upgrading the operating system on a network server, [Who] it is the Network Administrator's responsibility to [Summary of What] perform a complete backup."
 
Then, the accompanying Step-by-Step Procedures detail how you want employees to complete the associated procedures.   The amount of detail you include in these step-by-step instructions is entirely up to you.  Simply put, if there are multiple ways of accomplishing something and you want it accomplished a certain way, then those details need to be included in the step-by-step procedures.
 
If you're interested, more examples at the end of this post.  Take a look at them and you’ll see that once you get the hang of it, writing policy statements almost becomes rhythmic… "when, who, summary of what."  And as for the details in the accompany step-by-step procedures, check your email and your notes from recent team meetings.  You're probably already communicating these details – just not in an organized manner.
 
More Examples:
[When] "When answering incoming calls, [Who] it is the Representative's responsibility [Summary of What] to answer the call using the standard Call Center greeting."
 
The accompany step-by-step procedures would detail this greeting.
 
And another example…
[When] "After interviewing a potential new hire, [Who] it is the Supervisor's responsibility [Summary of What] to complete the Post Interview Evaluation within 1 day of the interview.
 
The accompany step-by-step procedures would detail where the Post Interview Evaluation can be found and where it should be stored/or submitted, once it is complete.
 
And one more example…
[When] "After completing a sales call with a prospective buyer, [Who] it is the Sales Executive's responsibility [Summary of What] to enter all applicable details in Salesforce.com with 1 day of the meeting.
 
The accompanying step-by-step procedures would include the information that needs to be completed.

Fifteen years ago I was responsible for running a relatively large Service Desk in New York City for what was known at the time as one of the “big six” accounting firms.  Feedback indicated I was a good people manager and we were a successful team in terms of customer satisfaction.  Because I was considered a strong people manager and I established a strong rapport with senior management and my staff, I thought I was effective.

But when I left and became an independent consultant, within two years I learned one of the most valuable lessons of my career and what I feel is a lesson every Manager should learn sooner rather than later.

My consulting engagements were focused on building or fixing Service Desks and Call Centers.  The key was that I had to build or fix in a manner that would sustain long after my engagement was over (something I had not done in my previous job in New York).

The lesson I learned was simple.  As a manager responsible for a team of people you need to define how you want things done.  In other words, you need standard operating procedures.  Then, with the SOPs in place, you need to manage your team – motivate, inspire, and coach them relative to the execution of these SOPs.

The difference between the results you get from simply managing people as compared to the results you get from managing people to defined process is enormous.  Yes, people are very important.  Yes, as a manager you need people skills to manage these people.  But if you are simply managing your people – it is not enough.  In fact, it’s irresponsible.  In today’s global, competitive economy you need to manage your people to define policies and procedures in order to achieve the best possible results.