Nobody reads a 40-page manual. What works is a one-page checklist for a single job. You can write one in an afternoon.
Pick the right job
Choose a task that is repeated often, done by one person, and causes trouble when that person is away. Common candidates: onboarding a new customer, preparing a quote, closing the day, handling a return, collecting fees.
The 4-step method
1. Watch it happen once. Do not ask the person to describe it. Sit with them while they do it for real. People forget the small steps when they explain, and remember them when they do.
2. Write the steps as verbs. “Open the order sheet. Check stock. Reply with price and date. Add the row to the tracker.” Each line should start with an action word and fit on one line.
3. Add the three things people forget. For each step, note: where the information comes from, what “done” looks like, and what to do if it goes wrong.
4. Test it on someone new. Hand the page to a person who has never done the job and watch where they get stuck. Fix those lines. Your first draft will always miss something.
A one-page SOP template
Job: [e.g. Sending a quote]
Owner: [name] Last checked: [date]
Starts when: [e.g. a customer asks for a price on WhatsApp]
Done when: [e.g. quote sent and logged in the sheet]
Steps
1. [verb + what] Info from: [where]
2. ...
If it goes wrong: [who to ask / what to do]
Never: [e.g. offer a discount above 5% without approval]Keep it alive
Store the page where the team already works, such as a shared Drive folder or a pinned WhatsApp message. Put the date at the top and the name of the person who owns it. Review it when the job changes. A checklist that nobody owns is out of date within months.
Why this matters for automation
Everything you can write as a clear checklist can be handed to a tool later. You cannot automate a process nobody can describe. The documentation step is often where businesses discover that they have three versions of the same job.
Related: signs your business depends on you.
Too many processes, not enough time?
An Operational Audit finds which ones to document first, ranked by what they cost you.
See the Operational Audit