Chapter 11 - We Haven't Used That Procedure in Years

Team 7 Jaeger/Lopez

When to Revise a policy and procedure:

You must find a proper balance between:

1) Regularly scheduled review and revision

2) As-needed review and revision

The best balance for your organization depend both on content factors and on logisitics.

Regularly Scheduled Reviews:

Ideal time to review policies and procedures is once a year. Otherwise, create a realistic schedule that will work in your organization with your own time frames. The more frequent, the better. Consider your consequences if you choose not to review them. One method of reviewing is called rolling reviews. Roll through different groups of policies and procedures for review periodically and move along to the next, next time around. The key here is a disciplined schedule.

As-Needed Reviews:

A revision is needed when:

1) A significant number of changes have been made to the documents

2) Content changes, such as operation or legal, occur or are pending

3) Certain types of problems or behaviors increase

Accumulated Changes are when a number of changes have been made over a period of time to the policy and procedures document. You must eventually fix the whole and not continue to patch it up. Good rule to follow is if approximately 25% of a given policy or procedure has been changed, it’s time for a complete review.

Content Changes are when a policies and procedures need adjustment anytime you have new equipment, new programs, or new products, procedures, and policies. Makes notes on other people so opinions about your policies. Keep these for future changes.

Significant Clues might tell you that a change is necessary. Pay attention to others conversations and be alert at meetings; they could be telling you something. Some clues that it’s time for a change might include: Accidents, Errors, Complaints, Deviations, Questions, Rejection rates, Confusion, Corrective actions.

When Not to Revise

Even if your policy or procedure isn’t working, that might not mean it is time to review. Look at other reasons why it may not be working. Don’t rush to revision.

How Much to Revise

The goal is to change as much as necessary and as little as is possible. Depends. You can change: A portion of an individual policy or procedure, all of an individual policy or procedure, a section or related group of policies or procedures, an entire handbook or manual.

How to Revise

Research the topic, organize the information, format it, and draft it. Review it, edit it, and get it approved.

How to Clarify the Changes

Make it as easy as possible for the user to see what, and how much, has been revised by: Visually highlight the changes on the page, Use clear, descriptive wording in your transmittal document, and summarize the changes.

How to Hold Users Responsible

Revisions often have people saying afterward that “I never got it!” To avoid problems like this, use a notification system that forces users to share responsibility for updating their document(s). A shared responsibility system is fairly easy to construct.

1) 1) Users are given a revision index form on which they record all revision notices in the order or receipt.

2) 2) All change notices are clearly numbered in an obvious and easy to –identify manner.

3) 3) Users are instructed that it is their responsibility to record all change notices in their revision indexes and notify the appropriate person if any are missing.

4) 4) A summary of all the change notices issued is periodically sent to users.

This system is straightforward and simple, yet very effective.

Chatper 10 Campbell: But That's Not The Way We've Always Done It

Chapter 10 Campbell

But That’s Not the Way We’ve Always Done It

Don’t Give Up

You will undoubtedly run in to resistance and grief when trying to implement something new. All the user testing and ensuring there will be minimal problems is not all for nothing. Be patient.

Dealing with Resistance

Keep in mind that most resistance to change occurs because of fear. You will not be able eliminate other people’s fears but there are six things you can do to help users manage change:

Involve

Explain

Listen

Enforce

Reinforce

Evaluate

Early Communication

Initiating communication earlier on in the process will benefit you later. Early communication also serves two other critical purposes: Early detection and advanced preparation.

Early Detection

Skepticism is likely in the beginning. Most users think that the problem will go away or inevitably end up to their disadvantage. Open communication, as well as being honest in the beginning prevents problems in the end. Early detection will also reveal cynicism. Skepticism is one thing but cynicism can reveal a personal agenda. Communication in the beginning will help to reveal cynics.

Advance Preparation

Involving people early and often allows them to be included on the process and therefore allows them to be heard. Disagreements are still likely to occur but if the person feels they are genuinely being heard they are often easier to deal with.

Continuing Education

As implementation continues, keep talking to people. Run status updates by everyone even if nothing has happened. Keeping lines of communication open allows for continued input and allows for valuable opinions to be heard.

Final Notice

If you have kept communication lines open then the final notice of implementation will come as no surprise. Users who were heavily involved will make the transition smoothly. Make sure to keep listening to skeptics but also remember that there comes a time when you many need to put your foot down. Just be sure they understand the consequences of non-compliance.

Grace Periods

Grace periods allow for a gradual adjustment to a new system. The more controversial the policy or procedure the more grace period becomes vital. Grace periods allow for more preparation. Grace periods also let the user know that there is some flexibility initially and that full enforcement begins at a later date. Using a grace period is a sort of announced gradual transition that allows everyone to adapt gracefully.

Delivering Bad News

Don’t try to change an unpopular procedure to popular in a blink of an eye. Planning, patience and preparation are required. The greatest asset you have is the communication that has already taken place. If good communication has occurred than the user will likely trust you enough to listen seriously.

Preempting

Preempting is a way to deal with anticipated issues before they arise. Holding a meeting to discuss likely objections will steal the objectors thunder.

Taking the Heat

You must be willing to accept responsibility for the policies and procedures that you create. Just remember that people have the right to feel strongly about things that affect them or their jobs and it’s not personal. Be patient and calm.

Here Comes Trouble

There are 14 “indicators” for trouble (all 14 are located at the back of the chapter on page 339). Trouble is sometimes unavoidable with policies and procedures, but they are common ways to avoid problems. The most common indicators are:

Unfairness – Unfairness often really means “unreasonable from my point of view.” To avoid this, look at the policy from another’s point of view and make sure it is reasonable.

Negativity – Negativity is an unconscious trap during writing. It is easier to state “don’t do something” rather than an alternative. For example, instead of writing “don’t take extended breaks,” write “observe the scheduled break times.”

Hypocrisy – The substance of the policy must support the company’s goals and viewpoints. Actions that conflict with the words of a policy can be viewed as hypocritical.

Pointlessness – Point out why a policy or procedure is important. Workers are more willing to adapt to a policy that proves it will accomplish a task.

Unworkableness – There are three keys: accuracy, completeness, and testing. Make sure a policy can exist in the “real world” of the company.

Restrictiveness – Maintain a balance between control (policy and procedures) and flexibility (user’s needs). Be detailed when necessary, and specific when necessary.

When the Writer is the Resister

When writing a policy, you as the writer may not agree with it yourself. Be sure to address your own concerns the same way you would anyone else’s: listen and consider. Note the reasons for the policy and why it is being created and keep this in mind as you are writing it.

Chapter 10 Campbell: "But that's not the way we've always done it"

I can't resist blogging on this one! This chapter pointed out ways to work with negative feedback on any type of change. There is usually one person in my work group who is the first to say, 'it's a waste of time' to just about any change in policy or precedure. Even so, I've found that including the naysayers in every step of a process change goes a long way toward at least compliance at the end. The negative comments often do give me ideas I hadn't considered before and then can implement them in the change. Including everyone involved with the process goes a long way toward a better final product plus gives value to all input and this comes in handy for future changes or improvements. Everyone feels like their input matters, myself included, when users have a stake in the product. This is a way of demonstrating mutual respect too. Campbell's 6 steps to help users manage a change, involve, explain, listen, enforce, reinforce and evaluate, are going to be useful in my job in more areas than policy change. Campbell has a nice way of identifying and explaining things to remember when writing in general.