Standard Operating Procedure Writer
The Standard Operating Procedure Writer converts informal process knowledge into a structured, followable SOP document that a new team member could execute on day one without asking questions. It captures not just the steps, but the decision points, edge cases, and quality checks that experienced people handle intuitively but never document.
Operations managers, team leads building playbooks, founders preparing to delegate, and anyone who has ever answered the same "how do I do this?" question more than twice will find this template valuable. It is especially useful during team scaling, where processes that lived in one person's head need to be written down before they become bottlenecks.
The prompt produces SOPs that follow documentation best practices: one action per step, clear decision trees at branching points, explicit quality checkpoints, and a troubleshooting section for common failures. It avoids the two most common SOP problems. First, being so high-level that critical details are missing ("process the refund" with no mention of which system to use or what approvals are needed). Second, being so detailed that no one reads past page two.
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The Prompt
Write a standard operating procedure (SOP) based on the following inputs:
**Process Name**: [NAME OF THE PROCESS, e.g., "Customer Refund Processing", "New Employee Onboarding", "Monthly Financial Close"]
**Process Description**:
```
[DESCRIBE WHAT THIS PROCESS ACCOMPLISHES AND WHEN IT IS TRIGGERED, e.g., "This process handles customer refund requests from initial receipt through final payment. It is triggered when a customer submits a refund request via support ticket or email."]
```
**Who Performs This Process**: [ROLE(S), e.g., "Customer support agents (Level 1 and Level 2)"]
**How Often**: [FREQUENCY, e.g., "Multiple times daily", "Once per month on the 3rd business day"]
**Tools and Systems Used**:
```
[LIST ALL TOOLS INVOLVED, e.g.,
- Zendesk (support tickets)
- Stripe (payment processing)
- Google Sheets (refund tracking log)
- Slack #refunds channel (approval requests)]
```
**The Steps (describe as you know them)**:
```
[WRITE THE STEPS IN YOUR OWN WORDS, EVEN IF ROUGH, e.g.,
1. Check if the refund request is within our 30-day policy
2. Look up the original transaction in Stripe
3. If over $100, need manager approval in Slack
4. Process the refund in Stripe
5. Update the tracking sheet
6. Send confirmation email to customer
7. Close the ticket]
```
**Common Problems or Edge Cases**:
```
[THINGS THAT GO WRONG OR REQUIRE SPECIAL HANDLING, e.g.,
- Customer paid with a card that has since expired
- Partial refund needed (they want to keep part of the order)
- Transaction is older than 30 days but customer has a valid complaint]
```
Generate a complete SOP document with these sections:
### 1. Purpose and Scope
Two to three sentences stating what this SOP covers, who should follow it, and when it applies. Include what this SOP does NOT cover (adjacent processes that have their own SOPs).
### 2. Roles and Responsibilities
A table listing each role involved, their responsibilities in this process, and their escalation path.
### 3. Prerequisites
What must be in place before starting (system access, permissions, approvals, information from the requester).
### 4. Step-by-Step Procedure
Numbered steps, each containing:
- **Action**: One clear action starting with a verb ("Open the customer's account in Stripe", not "The account should be opened")
- **System**: Which tool or system to use
- **Details**: Any specific fields, buttons, or values to enter
- **Decision Point** (if applicable): A clear if/then branch ("If the amount exceeds $100, proceed to Step 5. If $100 or under, skip to Step 7.")
- **Quality Check** (where applicable): How to verify the step was completed correctly
### 5. Decision Tree
A text-based decision tree for the main branching logic in this process. Use indentation and clear conditions:
```
Is the request within the 30-day policy?
YES: Proceed to refund processing
NO: Is there an exception reason?
YES: Route to manager for approval
NO: Deny with standard template
```
### 6. Troubleshooting
For each common problem or edge case:
- **Situation**: What happened
- **Root Cause**: Why it happens
- **Resolution**: Step-by-step fix
- **Prevention**: How to avoid it in the future (if applicable)
### 7. Quality Checklist
A checkbox list to run through after completing the process, verifying that all critical steps were done correctly.
### 8. Revision History
A table for tracking changes to this SOP (Version, Date, Author, Changes Made). Pre-fill version 1.0 with today's date.Usage Tips
- Describe the process in your own words, not polished language: The prompt structures and formalizes your input. A rough brain dump of "first we check X, then if Y we do Z" is perfect raw material.
- Include the edge cases you have seen: The troubleshooting section is what separates a useful SOP from a decorative one. New team members encounter the same edge cases repeatedly, and this section prevents them from escalating every exception.
- Test with a new team member: Have someone unfamiliar with the process follow the SOP step by step while you observe. Every point where they hesitate or ask a question reveals a gap in the document.
- Set a review cadence: Add a recurring quarterly reminder to review this SOP. Processes change, tools get updated, and an outdated SOP causes more harm than no SOP because people follow incorrect steps with confidence.
- Link related SOPs: If this process connects to others (e.g., the refund SOP links to the customer complaint SOP), add cross-references so the reader can navigate between them.
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