Process documentation template
Process documentation describes how work happens today; a standard operating procedure prescribes how it must be done. You document the process first to see what is real, then you write the SOP to lock in what you want. This template records the current way a task is done — the steps, the systems, the handoffs and the delays — without judging them, because the point is to capture reality. The worked example documents how a purchase order currently moves through a small office. When the two documents sit side by side, the gap between them is your improvement list.
A structure for describing how work actually happens today — the starting point for improving it, and the difference between process documentation and an SOP.
PRC-001 · Rev 1.0
[PROCESS DOCUMENTATION TEMPLATE]
Process documentation describes how work happens today; a standard operating procedure prescribes how it must be done. You document the process first to see what is real, then you write the SOP to lock in what you want. This template records the current way a task is done — the steps, the systems, the handoffs and the delays — without judging them, because the point is to capture reality. The worked example documents how a purchase order currently moves through a small office. When the two documents sit side by side, the gap between them is your improvement list.
1. PURPOSE
> Note — One sentence on what this document captures.
[PURPOSE]
2. HOW THIS DIFFERS FROM AN SOP
> Note — State plainly that this describes, it does not prescribe.
A process document describes how work happens today, including the parts that are not how it should be. An SOP states how it must be done. This document is a picture of reality, not a rule.
3. THE PROCESS AS IT IS
> Note — Numbered steps in the order they actually happen, including the inefficient ones.
[STEP_1]
[STEP_2]
[STEP_3]
[STEP_4]
4. SYSTEMS AND TOOLS
> Note — The systems and tools each step touches.
[TOOLS]
5. HANDOFFS AND DELAYS
> Note — Where the work changes hands and where it waits.
[HANDOFFS]
6. GAPS TO IMPROVE
> Note — What is worth fixing, and how to turn it into an SOP.
[GAPS]
Free to use in your own documents, including commercially.
Purpose
[PURPOSE]
How this differs from an SOP
A process document describes how work happens today, including the parts that are not how it should be. An SOP states how it must be done. This document is a picture of reality, not a rule.
The process as it is
[STEP_1]
[STEP_2]
[STEP_3]
[STEP_4]
Systems and tools
[TOOLS]
Handoffs and delays
[HANDOFFS]
Gaps to improve
[GAPS]
Worked example
Purpose
To capture how a purchase order actually moves through the office today, so the handoffs and delays can be seen before they are fixed.
How this differs from an SOP
A process document describes how work happens today, including the parts that are not how it should be. An SOP states how it must be done. This document is a picture of reality, not a rule.
The process as it is
A staff member who needs something asks the office manager, usually by message.
The office manager finds a supplier and gets a quote, which waits in the inbox until someone follows up.
The owner approves the quote, sometimes days later because approval needs a signature.
The office manager places the order and the invoice is filed when it arrives.
Systems and tools
Messages for requests, the shared inbox for quotes, a paper file for invoices. None of these talk to each other.
Handoffs and delays
The work waits twice — between request and quote, and between quote and approval — and neither wait is visible until someone chases it.
Gaps to improve
Requests and quotes live in three places; the approval step has no stated time; and there is no record tying an invoice to a request. Each gap becomes a step in a purchasing SOP.
These documents are starting structures for you to build on, not professional or legal advice. Anything that will have legal or contractual effect, or that varies by jurisdiction, should be reviewed by someone qualified in the relevant place.
How this differs from an SOP
Process documentation describes how work happens today. A standard operating procedure prescribes how it must be done. You document the process first to see reality, then write the SOP to lock in what you want. When the two sit side by side, the gap between them is your improvement list.
Use this template when you are trying to understand a process. Use the SOP template when you are ready to state how it must be done.
Turn a folder of documents into something a team can actually find and follow
Every template on this site is free and stays free. The kit is what turns a folder of documents into a system you can actually run: a register with numbers, owners and review dates; who reviews what and how often; a numbering scheme that still works at fifty documents; and the thirty-day sequence for getting a team to use any of it, which is where most of these projects die.
Opens a short sponsor step, then brings you straight back to this page with the kit open. Nothing you have entered goes with you.