What Policy processes and procedures have to do with upscaling
A longstanding client calls you; he has your mobile number on fast dial since the early days when you had only twenty employees, but now you are the company’s vice-president with 450 employees. The client needs you to add this minor feature to the software: it’s simple and easy — a few hours work max. You call the head of your development team and ask for this slight change; it should be quick: it won’t even require opening a new Ticket in the system, and you’re on to the next thing on your to-do list, as soon as the ad hoc conversation is over.
The developer given this assignment wants to prove himself. He knows that it’s generally useful to keep systems uniform — and he is keen on the idea of this feature — so naturally, he adds this feature to every client’s system so that they can all benefit from this upgrade.
The very next day, the feature is launched: a truly tiny and negligible adjustment.
Within an hour, customer service is flooded with calls.
A customer service rep, who is generally pleasant and relaxed, tries to find the relevant knowledge in the system about the change — but comes up with nothing and has no idea what to tell the clients.
In the best-case scenario, clients ask what the new feature in their system does and why changes have been made without first informing them.
In the worst-case, this tiny component will affect a more extensive process that ultimately causes the entire system to crash… but all it was, after all, was just one minor feature.
The scenario described above frequently occurs in successful companies that have undergone fast upscaling in their number of employees and clients without adequately preparing the ground before doing so.
How to avoid this chain of events can be encapsulated in 3 words: POLICY, PROCESSES, PROCEDURES.
Does this sound threatening, over-complicated, and unsuited for today’s fast-changing and agile world of hi-tech?
On the contrary: a policy, processes, and procedures (specifically standard operating procedures — S.O.Ps) speed up our work and make it more effective since they urge us to align our goals and chart a path to them, setting clear boundaries and thus avoiding misunderstandings and time-wasting.
A proper policy, processes, and procedures can also be adjusted to a fast-paced work style: it is all a matter of keeping proportion and balance while doing so.
Returning to the example described above: the problems could have been avoided if the company policy had included the following four principles:
- All client requests should be passed on to the person responsible for the client’s account, who will be knowledgeable about the client and the needs and limits of his product.
- Tasks performed for a client must be recorded in the company’s assignment system.
- While the company encourages creativity and problem-solving resourcefulness, the extension of a specific task into an area of development must first be authorized by the head of R & D to assess the possible consequences and side-effects.
- Every upgrade, adjustment, or addition to a product must be reported to customer service so that it can provide the most knowledgeable and helpful service possible to clients.
A company’s processes should include the methods by which its policy is implemented and passed on to its employees, preferably via built-in computer processes.
A company’s policy and processes should be documented briefly in the form of clear and unambiguous procedures, which should include all the knowledge needed by employees to understand what is expected of them and perform their work.
Well-crafted procedures are both a valuable resource for existing employees and an unsurpassed source of information for new recruits.
Finally, the sooner S.O.Ps are assimilated by an organization, the easier it will be to face future changes in its structure and the resultant inclusion of large groups of new employees.
