What is an SOP?

A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) or standard operating procedure is a step-by-step guide in which companies establish a standardized approach to their operations (usually in critical areas), such as how they develop products or provide services.

If activities are determined to pose environmental, health and safety hazards, then companies should create SOP templates. This allows them to record specific steps to reduce the hazard in their operations. SOP templates ensure the safe reproducibility and standardization of processes.

What is a SOP template for?

A good SOP pattern helps any employee (no matter how experienced) perform individual steps. It is precise as well as easy to understand. So that employees can always look for details about a procedure, or precise sequences of steps, SOP templates should be carefully created. As a reminder, SOP templates create measurable processes that provide structured instructions in case of problems or even emergencies.

With strict compliance requirements and in quality and safety management, SOP templates standardize operational activities, ensuring consistency, quality and safety. They also provide a way to make processes measurable and record any deviations. The records, in turn, are helpful in implementing corrective actions.

This article covers the topics:

1. In which industries SOP templates are used

2. What a sample SOP template looks like

2. How to create an SOP form effectively

4. What benefits an SOP template brings

5. How mobile technology streamlines SOP documentation

A Simple SOP Template and Sketch

Front Page

The title page shall contain the full SOP title, the SOP number, the version number or date of approval, the name and signature of the author, the name and signature of the person authorising the SOP format, and the date of signature.

Table of contents

Enter the page numbers and the total number of pages in the standard operating procedure.

Purpose

The purpose defines the objectives and scope of the standard operating procedure.

Procedure

The procedure provides clear and mandatory descriptions of the individual process steps.

Quality assurance

The quality assurance specifies the criteria for the control of the described product/service, system or process.

References

All associated SOPs of operations used in this SOP.

How to write an effective SOP template

SOP templates come in different forms depending on purpose, industry and target group and can range from process instructions to checklists and flowcharts. However, they should all focus on the following three core areas to create an effective general SOP form:

This area provides a clear objective of what needs to be achieved and why the SOP is important. In this core area, the following questions are to be answered: "What is the target process?", "What needs to be changed in this process?" and "Why write an SOP template for this process? A clearly formulated purpose is to help employees understand why they should follow relevant SOP procedures and not just perform processes for the sake of the process.

SOP example (housekeeping in the office):

The SOP aims to outline the domestic services and to ensure that the workplaces are free of dirt and disorder. This is critical to maintaining a safe working environment and avoiding minor or major incidents.

This section describes which specific tasks are covered for the target group. This should refer to the persons who should adhere to the SOP and list the relevant tasks and responsibilities covered by the SOP. It may also be helpful to explain what does not fall within the scope of this particular SOP format and to refer to other documents that may be referred to in other tasks.

SOP example (housekeeping in the office):

This SOP is intended to assist facility management personnel in the coverage of the following tasks:

• Window cleaning


• Carpet care


• Dusting


• Waste management

This SOP format does not apply to the identification of damage to equipment and repair work. Further information on these tasks can be found in the SOP incident report.

This report shall contain a list of detailed steps to be taken to ensure the effective accomplishment of the tasks referred to. The procedural steps should be written down in an orderly, concise and easily understandable SOP format. All steps should be followed by the staff

Why does a mobile app like Lumiform help with SOPs?

With Lumiform's mobile app you can easily perform any type of quality and safety inspection using a tablet or smartphone - online or offline. With the desktop software you can create checklists and effectively evaluate the data collected in the field. This significantly reduces the risk of quality losses, industrial accidents, documentation errors and damage to your reputation.

An effective digital SOP tool like Lumiform's should be easy for staff to use while giving managers and trainers full transparency of what is happening in the field. In addition, an effective digital SOP tool gives the ability to react to deviations at lightning speed and solve incidents within the team.

• The flexible form builder helps you to convert any individual SOP standard operating orocedure format into a digital SOP format within minutes.


• Lumiform offers via 9,000 ready-made templates , so that you can quickly and safely go digital.


• With the super intuitive mobile app you can perform any SOP example with ease and save time.


• Solve issues collaboratively with your teammates.


• All Standard Operating Procedure results are automatically summarised in a SOP report and can be sent to stakeholders on-the-fly.


• Comprehensive analyses help you to uncover inefficient areas in your company faster and thus to improve SOP processes continuously.