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What I Know Versus Reality

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Cindy Pao
Cindy Pao

Cindy Pao provides tips for incorporating real-world practices into formal policies and procedures. She recommends removing unnecessary words, rewriting policies in plain English using active voice, emphasizing what employees should do rather than not do, and being persistent with out-of-cycle document approvals while avoiding overuse. Pao also stresses the importance of thorough reviews to catch errors before final approval and implementation.

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What I Know Versus Reality Cindy Pao Your company has a procedure in place for creating and updating policies and procedures, and enforcing that process is your job. How do you incorporate what’s really happening at your company into the process? Knowing when you may be flexible in the process and when you should not can help you publish this information in a timely and correct manner. Policy Violations You might work with a committee to review and update the employee handbook, which contains Human Resources’ and safety policies. If you are aware that managers and employees violate certain policies consistently, revise those policies with the following points in mind: • Remove unnecessary words and what if scenarios. • Re-write the policy in Plain English. • Use active voice. • Emphasize what employees should do, rather than what they should not. Handling Approved Documents There will be some policies that are not approved in your usual way. For example, policies about company governance are often reviewed by subject matter experts at the C level and approved by the Board of Directors. Work with these policies as follows: • Apply the correct template and document styles. • Perform an abbreviated copy edit, checking for proper usage and grammar and the correct use of certain terms only. • Record the policy changes in the document history. • Update the document’s revised date and approver name. Prioritization Some documents are very important and must be approved out of cycle. You can move them forward by being persistent: • Send documents out of cycle rarely; avoid sending weekly if your approval cycle is monthly. • Set a shorter response time for out-of-cycle approvals. • Send a reminder to or call outstanding approvers shortly before the deadline. • Use follow-up flags to remind yourself and the approvers about deadlines.
• Know which approvers you can pester. For those you should not pester, ask the policy submitter to help with reminders. You might also work with people who want you to hurry, but then make you wait. Remember those people well and document their projects well. Handle future requests with care so that they do not disrupt other high- priority projects. Review Quality Too often, reviewers do not take their responsibilities seriously enough, and inadequate or incorrect policies and procedures are approved and released. Later, the document must be retracted or updated to avoid policy or procedure violations. Encourage thorough reviews: • Remind reviewers that they are the final step before approval. • Ask that non-management employees participate in the review by attempting to comply with the policy or trying to complete the task in the procedure. • Hold in-person review meetings where the reviewers discuss concerns and make changes together, rather than in silos. • Record the names of the reviewers and include this information when you send the document for approval. Author Contact Information Cindy Pao Lead Technical Writer 20519 Autumn Terrace Lane Katy, Texas 77450 281.773.3752 Author Biography Cindy Pao is a Lead Technical Writer. She was previously the Policies & Procedures Coordinator and was responsible for writing, editing, facilitating reviews and approvals, and publishing policies and procedures. She has also produced safety alerts and other user information for such industries as mortgage banking, oilfield services, and software. Cindy is a member of the Community Affairs Committee for STC, as well as the immediate past president of the Houston chapter and immediate past co-manager of the Instructional Design & Learning SIG.

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What I Know Versus Reality

  • 1. What I Know Versus Reality Cindy Pao Your company has a procedure in place for creating and updating policies and procedures, and enforcing that process is your job. How do you incorporate what’s really happening at your company into the process? Knowing when you may be flexible in the process and when you should not can help you publish this information in a timely and correct manner. Policy Violations You might work with a committee to review and update the employee handbook, which contains Human Resources’ and safety policies. If you are aware that managers and employees violate certain policies consistently, revise those policies with the following points in mind: • Remove unnecessary words and what if scenarios. • Re-write the policy in Plain English. • Use active voice. • Emphasize what employees should do, rather than what they should not. Handling Approved Documents There will be some policies that are not approved in your usual way. For example, policies about company governance are often reviewed by subject matter experts at the C level and approved by the Board of Directors. Work with these policies as follows: • Apply the correct template and document styles. • Perform an abbreviated copy edit, checking for proper usage and grammar and the correct use of certain terms only. • Record the policy changes in the document history. • Update the document’s revised date and approver name. Prioritization Some documents are very important and must be approved out of cycle. You can move them forward by being persistent: • Send documents out of cycle rarely; avoid sending weekly if your approval cycle is monthly. • Set a shorter response time for out-of-cycle approvals. • Send a reminder to or call outstanding approvers shortly before the deadline. • Use follow-up flags to remind yourself and the approvers about deadlines.
  • 2. • Know which approvers you can pester. For those you should not pester, ask the policy submitter to help with reminders. You might also work with people who want you to hurry, but then make you wait. Remember those people well and document their projects well. Handle future requests with care so that they do not disrupt other high- priority projects. Review Quality Too often, reviewers do not take their responsibilities seriously enough, and inadequate or incorrect policies and procedures are approved and released. Later, the document must be retracted or updated to avoid policy or procedure violations. Encourage thorough reviews: • Remind reviewers that they are the final step before approval. • Ask that non-management employees participate in the review by attempting to comply with the policy or trying to complete the task in the procedure. • Hold in-person review meetings where the reviewers discuss concerns and make changes together, rather than in silos. • Record the names of the reviewers and include this information when you send the document for approval. Author Contact Information Cindy Pao Lead Technical Writer 20519 Autumn Terrace Lane Katy, Texas 77450 281.773.3752 Author Biography Cindy Pao is a Lead Technical Writer. She was previously the Policies & Procedures Coordinator and was responsible for writing, editing, facilitating reviews and approvals, and publishing policies and procedures. She has also produced safety alerts and other user information for such industries as mortgage banking, oilfield services, and software. Cindy is a member of the Community Affairs Committee for STC, as well as the immediate past president of the Houston chapter and immediate past co-manager of the Instructional Design & Learning SIG.