Free SOP template: A standard operating procedures guide

The most efficient teams have processes for everything, from best practices to naming company file folders. Teams perform these processes routinely and get better at them over time. But how can you be sure everyone is performing each process the same way? That’s where having a standard operating procedure (SOP) becomes useful.

SOPs document important company processes and guide team members as they learn or relearn tasks. You can write SOPs at either the team- or company-wide level. Read on to learn more about what SOPs are and how to create them.

What is a standard operating procedure (SOP)?

Standard operating procedures (SOPs) are a set of written instructions that map out how your team will complete a specific process. They’re used for tasks that team members perform regularly because they streamline communication, reduce errors, and promote consistency. 

SOPs are typically part of a larger workflow documentation process. A workflow is a set of repeatable, end-to-end processes that help teams meet their goals by connecting the right people to the right data at the right time. Within any given workflow, there are likely processes that your team does regularly—and these processes can benefit from an SOP. By creating SOPs for each process within a workflow, you can help your team accomplish end-to-end processes and deliver results faster.

Benefits of standard operating procedures

SOPs may be time consuming to create on the front end, but they provide many long-term benefits to team members in their daily workflow. They also improve the overall efficiency of the company.

The benefits of SOPs include:

• Create uniformity: SOPs help team members perform processes in the same way.

• Reduce training time: Having written guidelines makes it easier to train (and retrain) team members on tasks and tools.

• Offer quick answers to common questions: Team members can use SOPs to find answers to procedural questions on their own.

• Streamline communication: SOPs provide a common source of truth for how team members should accomplish internal tasks.

• Save time: SOPs offer fast clarification for team members, saving time for everyone involved in the related workflow.

• Reduce work errors: Team members can follow SOPs when performing tasks and know that they’re receiving accurate information. This prevents them from resorting to guesswork. 

Types of SOP formats

When developing standard operating procedures, consider which format is best suited to your goals. Your audience, your objective, and the level of detail you require will all affect the SOP integration you choose.

For example, you may have used company-wide SOPs before to learn common processes. But as a manager, you can also create SOPs to support your team and clarify common processes. 

Some example processes an SOP is helpful for:

• Onboarding new hires and clients

• Offboarding team members and clients

• Processing time-off requests

• Performing internal audits

• Processing payments

• Submitting project change requests

Categories that SOP formats fall into include step-by-step, hierarchical, and flowchart.

Step-by-step SOP

A step-by-step SOP works best for straightforward processes, like receiving payments from clients. This SOP breaks down a process into a list of steps for the reader to follow and learn from.

In a simple, or step-by-step, SOP format, it's important to include: 

• Purpose statement

• Brief summary

• Clear, bulleted or tabulated step-by-step instructions, and the 

• Specification of the responsible person for each step of the procedure.

Hierarchical SOP

A hierarchical SOP works best for complex processes like team member onboarding because it breaks down every stage of a process, including policy, procedures, guidelines, and documentation.

For a hierarchical SOP format, ensure it includes: 

• Table of contents 

• Division into various sections, such as a purpose statement, a concise summary, detailed step-by-step instructions with relevant links to standards, checklists, or action plans

• Identification of responsible teams or stakeholders for each stage.

Flowchart SOP

A flowchart SOP gives your audience a visual way to learn. This SOP format is useful for processes that have conditional circumstances. For example, a submission and approval process may require different actions from the reader based on whether a document is approved or rejected.

A flowchart-based SOP should integrate key elements like

• Statement of purpose

• Clear and easy-to-understand flowchart or diagram that illustrates different scenarios

• Designation of accountable individuals for each step in the process.

Free SOP template

Teams require well-defined processes to achieve their goals efficiently. The question is, how does your team document and communicate existing processes to ensure everyone is aligned?

This free SOP template offers a uniform way for your team to document internal procedures by providing essential context about your operational methods and leveraging your project management tools effectively.

Here's how successful integration of an SOP template can benefit your team:

• Marketing SOP: Implementing a fresh campaign or giving out promotional gifts to clients? A standard operating procedure template makes sure that all team members and stakeholders are equipped with clear instructions, complete with company names and contact information, for executing specific tasks effectively.

• Sales SOP: Provide your sales team with clear instructions for following company-wide sales practices, whether they use email, CRM, or sales interaction tools.

• Human Resources SOP: An HR SOP template can streamline a number of complex tasks, such as a new employee onboarding process that ensures new hires are efficiently integrated from their effective date.

• Engineering and product SOP: Ensure your team follows the standard operating procedure for coding, testing, and launch phases. These SOPs not only specify timelines but also integrate quality control standards and automation for a more efficient process.

• Customer support SOP: Establish the standard operating procedure for handling real-time support processes to guarantee that essential information such as escalations, refunds, and FAQs is readily available for your customer experience teams.

Below, you’ll find a free standard operating procedure template. Use this step-by-step SOP template for simple topics with smaller scopes.

How to use a standard operating procedure template

To get the most out of a SOP template, your instructions need to be clear, organized, and adaptable. Here are some key tips to ensure your standard operating procedures are both efficient and user-friendly.

• Under the header "Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for:", clearly define the specific task or process the SOP template will be used for. This title should be precise and easily identifiable.

• In the "This document was created for the purposes of:" header, concisely articulate the main objective or goal of the SOP. Explain why this procedure is important and how it benefits the workflow.

• Use the numbered list to outline each step of the procedure in a sequential manner. Ensure each step is clear and detailed, leaving no room for ambiguity.

• Use a consistent style and language throughout the document. This helps in maintaining clarity and understanding, especially for complex tasks. Avoid using jargon unless you are certain the reader understands it. To avoid confusion, spell out any abbreviations or acronyms.

• Once the steps are documented, review the completed SOP template to ensure accuracy and completeness. It may be beneficial to have it validated by someone who performs the task regularly.

• Be prepared to update the standard operating procedure as processes change or evolve. An SOP is a living document that should reflect the most current practices.

Incorporating these best practices into your use of the SOP template will not only enhance the clarity and efficiency of your standard operating procedures but also contribute to a smoother and more effective workflow.

When to write an SOP

Your team probably has many business processes that can benefit from having an SOP. If you’re writing one for the first time, a good starting point is to brainstorm all the internal processes your team regularly completes. Also, consider the typical tasks you teach to new team members. Based on this information, you can decide which processes could benefit from an SOP and which might not need one—either because they’re simple enough or because they need more hands-on, live training. 

The most common SOP docs include:

• How to onboard a new client

• A step-by-step guide to the first day of work

• How to name files based on their type and location

• Tips for scheduling meetings and tasks

• Guidance on your team’s standard project workflow

• How to navigate project management software

• An overview of your team’s performance review process

You may not need an SOP in the following situations:

• For one-off tasks

• For unique processes that apply to only one individual

• For events that rapidly change and are impractical to document

• For complex, skill-based processes that require more in-depth training 

By making a list of your team’s most common work processes, you can visualize which tasks can benefit from an SOP template, which items are less urgent, and which can remain undocumented.

How to write an SOP

Regardless of which SOP format you use, they all have similar components. Your SOP should have a clear title so team members can easily access the document. You’ll also want to include a section explaining the SOP’s purpose and step-by-step instructions to guide the reader. Use the steps below to begin the SOP writing process.

1. Identify your end-user

Once you’ve chosen which process to write your first SOP for, you’ll need to get clear about who your end-user is. If you’re writing this SOP for your team, ask the following questions:

• Which team members will use this SOP?

• What is their role on the team in relation to others?

• How often will they use this document?

• Will this SOP serve as training material or a reference?

• Will this SOP have multiple uses or end-users? 

You’ll use SOPs internally, but you can apply similar strategies as you would in a GTM strategy. Create a buyer persona and decide on key messaging for your document. While you aren’t trying to make a sale, your reader should get the most value from the SOP you create.

Tip: You may have multiple end-users for one SOP. For example, team members with different job roles may read the general project workflow SOP to understand their different roles throughout that workflow. While you don’t need to make multiple SOPs in this situation, you need to consider these different perspectives and potentially break down your steps so that each user understands exactly what they need to do.

2. Define your goals

You ultimately want to help your end-user perform a procedure or process. But you may have bigger goals for your SOP depending on what the process is and whether you’ve experienced issues in the past. 

For example, you might want to create an SOP for team member onboarding because your team has suffered from low retention rates. After reviewing exit interview data, you’ve noticed that people have left the team because of poor onboarding experiences. Your SMART goals for the onboarding SOP are to:

• Improve the first day of work experience

• Outline a 30-60-90 plan

• Increase retention rates by 20% over the next year

Tip: Just like any other goal you have, you can set KPIs or OKRs for your SOP creation process. OKRs can help you set stretch goals for how many SOPs you want to create in the next year. KPIs can help you measure whether each SOP is improving team productivity.  

3. Determine your scope and format

You should now have the basic idea of your SOP, which means you’re almost ready to write it. You now need to determine how you want to display your information and how in-depth your document will be. The following key can help you determine your scope and format:

• Straightforward topics: Use a step-by-step SOP format, which works best for smaller scope topics. This SOP will likely have only a few sections, with one section explaining the “why” of the SOP and the others providing work instructions. 

• Complex topics: Use a hierarchical SOP format, which allows for a larger scope. You should include a table of contents with this SOP, as well as headings and multiple sections. 

• Conditional topics/approval process: Use a flowchart SOP format, which offers a flexible scope size. This SOP may include various decisions or conditional items, and you’ll need to ensure you draft it in a way that’s easy to follow. You can also include a short “why” section at the top.

Tip: Your topic should lead you to your SOP format, not the other way around. For example, if you have a complex topic like onboarding and try to put it in a flowchart format, your readers won’t have all the details they need and will struggle to complete their training. 

4. Draft your SOP

Writing standard operating procedures requires you to break down your process or procedure into sections and steps. It’s important that you get detailed with your instructions so the SOP is clear for all readers. Even if you think a step is obvious, you should include it to avoid confusion and reduce the chance of errors. 

For example, if you’re creating a new SOP on how to process a client payment, your SOP draft may have a title, a section explaining the purpose of the document, and a list of detailed instructions on things like:

• How to ask for the payment

• Security guidelines for storing client payment information

• How to navigate the payment platform

• Where to record the processed payment

• What to do once the payment is processed

After drafting your SOP, you can show it to your end-users and ask for feedback on whether the document includes everything they need to complete the task. If your team has questions, improve the SOP as needed.  Tip: Once you finish writing your SOP, you’ll need to revisit it intermittently to ensure it’s still relevant. Processes require continuous improvement. By keeping your SOP up-to-date, you can feel confident that your team knows how to perform at a top-notch level.

SOP example

Here’s an example of a flowchart SOP. This SOP outlines how to submit an expense report and receive reimbursement. Above the flowchart, there’s a blurb explaining the purpose of the SOP.

Build and scale your workflows with SOPs

SOPs are an important part of documenting your team workflows. Workflows can streamline your operations and help your team meet their goals.Use work management software like Asana to build workflows that can pave the way to stronger processes and performance.