An Operations Manual That Will Minimize Errors, Waste, and Stress

Describe the paper work required for purchasing and / or receiving tools and material.

Safety
In this day and age, keeping people safe is not only a moral obligation, it makes financial sense. Weekly meetings are required onsite. Provide safety talks in the operations manual. Show the procedure for reporting an accident. Clarify the need to report even the most minor reportable.

Staffing
This section should start with a copy of all job descriptions. All employees need to know who does what in your company. That awareness alone saves lots of hassle and lost time.

For recruiting and staffing; include a list of all resources used to advertise openings, sample help wanted advertisements for use online and in print, bonus program for new employee referrals, and pay scales for field positions.

You also need to present a summary of the EEOC guidelines to ensure no one steps outside the lines when writing help wanted ads and during the interview process.

Provide detailed interviewing instructions including a flow chart showing the process, sample interview questions, an agenda for running interviews, a list of people involved and their roles, and any tests or surveys to be used.

Personnel Management
Clearly explain the following policies and procedures:

• Anti-harassment
• Disciplinary
• Performance review
• Attendance

Project Management Procedures
Your firm must perform several project management tasks well in order to be profitable. You operations manual is the perfect place to capture the means and methods of performing them.

Explain the following procedures:

• Estimating
• Scheduling
• Job Costing
• Close-out
• Accounting

Easy, Right?
Sure, your manual is going to be a monster but it will be invaluable to your company's growth. Think of it as the history of your company's development.

For that matter, you can really bring your manual to life by starting it off with a message from the founder, an explanation of how it got to where it is, and the legacy you hope to leave.

More than anything, your operations manual is your library of best practices. That is a term that has faded away to some extent but it is a great term and a great goal: constantly be improving and documenting the best practices used in your business. Your business' performance and value will escalate as you do.

If you would like assistance with the creation of your operations manuals or find yourself far short of having the described procedures and systems perfected, give me a call (913-961-1790)

Ron Roberts, The Contractor's Business Coach, teaches contractors how to turn their business into a profit spewing machine. To receive Ron's FREE Contractor Best Practices Newsletter visit www.FilthyRichContractor.com.