A one-page warehouse procedure: how to write it

A warehouse procedure often turns into a 40-page folder: it takes months to write, then gathers dust on a shelf and nobody reads it. An employee goes to the manager with a question, and the manager answers by word of mouth, "we do it like this". As a result everyone works in their own way. A good warehouse procedure is different: one page per process, hung at the workplace, read in five minutes. Below we look at how to write one.

What one page must answer

A procedure answers six questions:

• why this process exists (in one sentence);
• who performs it and who checks it;
• when it starts, that is, after which event;
• by what steps it goes (five to eight);
• when it counts as "done";
• whom to contact if the order is broken.

If the answers to these questions will not fit on one page, the process is too complicated: split it in two. At the top of the page go the procedure's title, version and owner, at the bottom the date of approval. It is a small thing, but it tells an old copy from a new one. Each step should fit in one sentence; a long sentence should be split into two steps.

A sample page

As an example, a receiving procedure (illustrative). Title: "Receiving a delivery". Purpose: to confirm that the arriving goods match the documents. Responsible: the receiver; checked by the shift manager. Start: the truck has reached the door. Steps: take the delivery note and compare it with the order; inspect the packages from outside; count the quantity; check the batch number and expiry date; photograph and record any discrepancy; enter the goods in the system. Done: goods are in the system, the document is signed, the goods have moved from the buffer area to the shelf. Exception: if the quantity differs, tell the shift manager before accepting.

How to write it

Do not invent a procedure sitting in an office. Watch the process across three shifts, write down who actually does the work and how, then choose the best method. Write the text together with the worker who does the job, because they know which step is unclear. Keep the language plain: instead of "it is advisable", "it is necessary", use the command form and an exact number: "open 3 packages at random". Add a picture to a step where you can: a rack marking, a sample label, a correctly stacked pallet. A picture is understood faster than a long description. If the team speaks Uzbek and Russian, write the procedure in both, or one group will not read it.

Write exceptions separately. An employee goes wrong most often exactly in exceptions: what to do if the quantity differs, the document is missing, the goods are damaged? Each procedure should contain the three most frequent exceptions with their solutions, and for the remaining cases the rule "refer to the shift manager" is enough.

Testing and updating

Give the written procedure to a new employee and let them work using only that. Where they go wrong is the weak spot of the procedure. Fix it and hang it at the workplace. Every procedure should have an owner, be reviewed every quarter, and have the date and version of changes recorded. The most dangerous mistake is when a new edition appears and the old one keeps hanging at the workplace. When you hang the new one, take down the old. Once a month compare the procedure with real work: watch one random operation and see whether the steps are done as written. Ask staff too: "which procedure gets in your way or is out of date?" They know best how the work really goes.

Typical mistakes

• trying to write every process in a single day; to begin with choose the three with the most errors, for example receiving, picking and shipping;
• writing an "ideal" order that nobody follows, or conversely recording things as they are and so legitimising the mistakes;
• writing to collect signatures: what matters is not that people have read the procedure but that it is carried out;
• writing "check" in a step without saying what to check and how: every check needs a criterion;
• several documents for one process: the page should hold everything itself, without references to other documents.

Conclusion

A procedure is not a document but a working tool: it must be short, visible and tested. The OmborExpert specialists assess the main processes and help write one-page procedures for them together and train staff.