Preliminary research on SOPs

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Background:

Think of all the instructions and process descriptions you have read in your lifetime—instructions for games, recipes, how to assemble furniture, how to take your medication, on the job training materials, etc…. Standard Operating Procedures are a subset of instructions and process descriptions. SOPs are often used to train employees on new procedures or processes, maintain consistent standards in a business or organization, and to provide transparency to stakeholders.

Now think of how often these documents are written well. Not very often, right? Standard Operating Procedures are difficult to write and take skill, patience, and testing to be sure they are logical and easy to follow. You want your audience to be able to accomplish what they set out to do from reading your document.

Your task is to create a model document demonstrating the best-practices in writing Standard Operating Procedures. This means you should attempt to incorporate as many of the standard features of instructions and process descriptions as possible in this document.

Instructions:

Choose your topic. Conduct some preliminary research on SOPs. Avoid topics that are commonly known or that usually already come with a manual or list of instructions. What is a set of instructions or a process that not many people are familiar with? What kind of SOPs might be needed in your current job? What about at a future position within your industry?
Here are a few sample topics:

SOPs for breaking down and cleaning equipment in a restaurant or cafe
SOPs for writing a proposal or other lengthy document at work
SOPs for complex tasks at work like training a new hire, how to conduct a professional workshop or conference, setting up/breaking down for a special event…

 

Sample Solution

A standard operating procedure (SOP) is a document that performs the role of providing a clear-cut directions and instructions as to how teams and members within an organization must go must run certain processes. Note that SOP documentation is much more involved than a simple procedural document. The main difference being that process documentation is meant to provide a high-level overview of the process in question, while SOPs provide an “on-the-ground” explanation of what needs to happen to ensure a given process goes as planned. (That is, a process-focused document typically explains that the organization will go from “Point A”

wisdom that will enable him to finally mentor Po. Shifu realizes that, with Oogway gone, he must train Po by himself and therefore he must fill in the “mentor” role. This is a reconfiguration of Campbell’s monomyth structure. Stevenson and Osborne include a second mentor narrative structure by using Shifu’s doubts as a mentor as part of his heroic development, casting him as a master who must become the student. Shifu achieves “Acceptance of the Call” after Oogway’s “Supernatural Aid”. At first, Shifu denounces Po and rejects him as the Dragon Warrior. When the Dragon Scroll is threatened, Shifu places himself at Tai Lung’s mercy when Tai Lung demands to be named the Dragon Warrior and rewarded the scroll. Shifu rebuffs him: “Dragon Warrior has taken scroll halfway across China by now. You will never see that scroll, Tai Lung. Never” (Stevenson, Osborne : ). Shifu finally acknowledges Po as the true Dragon Warrior. This moment is when the third generation of masters, Po, is finally recognized. After Po almost witnesses a “death of the mentor” moment, Po becomes the third wave of mentors and enters the “Master of two worlds” phase of Campbell’s monomyth. It is this three-generation set of masters that “flips the script” on the mentor narrative of the monomyth. Not only does Kung Fu Panda include Shifu’s “heroic” or mentorship development, but it also includes Po’s development from disciple to mentor as shown through the “Master of Two Worlds” threshold.

SECOND BODY:

When Po becomes the third generation of mentors, he enters the “Master of Two Worlds” stage. At this stage, not only is he figuratively able to navigate both the heroic realm and the quotidian, peasant, noodle-making one, but he is also literally a master of Kung Fu once named the Dragon Warrior. After defeating Tai Lung with the special Wuxi Finger Hold, Po returns to the Valley of Peace square. While the villagers applaud Po, his adoptive goose father emerges: “‘That’s my boy. That big, lovely kung fu warrior is my son!’” (Stevenson and Osborne, : ). Po has figuratively become the master of both his humble upbringing as well as his new-found prominence in Kung Fu. His adoptive father, proclaiming him as the Kung Fu Warrior, is his reconciliation with both worlds. Po’s father’s approval is a figurative gate into Po’s mastery of the ordinary world because in the beginning, like everyone else, he doubted Po’s ability to be a great Kung Fu warrior. Po’s father’s praise of Po and his mastery of Kung Fu symbolizes a harmonization of Po’s roles within both realms. Right after he is awarded his father’s admiration, Po is honored by his past idols, the Furious Five. Once his fiercest doubter, Tigress leads the other Five in granting Po respect: “‘Master.’ Tigress bows deeply. The others follow. ‘Master?’” (Stevenson and Osborne, : ). Po is now literally a master of both worlds. Po has gained

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