When to Revise
Campbell writes that there are numerous opinions about when and how often you should revise, but the best approach is to find a balance between regularly scheduled review and revision and as-need review and revision. The best balance will depend on content factors and logistics.
Campbell then goes on to describe regularly scheduled reviews, stating that the ideal is to review and revise annually. She notes that if this isn’t possible, you should create a realistic schedule and stick to it. Another possible solution is to perform rolling reviews, which are a good way to work regular revisions into a schedule with a minimum of disruption. To perform a rolling review, you schedule different groups of policies and procedures for review periodically, and then as each review is completed, roll another group into the schedule.
Next, Campbell discusses as-needed reviews, which are needed when a significant number of changes have been made to the documents, content changes occur or are pending, and certain types of problems or behaviors increase. A good rule to follow when revising is: if approximately 25 percent of the given policy or procedure has been changed, it’s time for a complete review. Also, anytime you have new equipment, programs or products, you’ll need to adjust your policies and procedures. Finally, you should listen to others around you. If you hear about accidents, complaints, questions, confusion, errors, deviations, rejection rates, and corrective actions, it’s probably time to update.
When Not to Revise
Campbell writes that before you revise a policy or procedure you should first ask “why?” She says that you shouldn’t rush into revision because the policy or procedure may not be broken; it might be the implementation process.
How Much to Revise
According to Campbell, your goal is to change as much as necessary and as little as possible. How much you revise depends on the nature and degree of the changes themselves. Campbell notes that you can change the following: a portion of an individual policy or procedure, all of an individual policy or procedure, a section or related group of policies and procedures, or an entire handbook or manual.
How to Revise
Campbell writes that the revision process is similar to the process you followed in the original development of your policies and procedures. However, you must also take the following steps: Develop a follow-up mentality, Check and double-check related documents and cross-references, create a formal mechanism for users to give feedback, continually solicit information, keep a file for suggestions and ideas, and keep records of all revisions.
How to Clarify the Changes
Next, Campbell writes that you should make it as easy as possible for the user to see what, and how much, has been revised. You can use one or more of the following options: visually highlight the changes on the page, use clear, descriptive wording in your transmittal document, and summarize the changes. You have many choices for highlighting, but the trick is to highlight the changes so that they are immediately obvious to the user. To help the reader see what you’ve changed, use clear words like added, replaced, deleted, modified, etc. The goal is to make it fast and easy for the reader to tell what’s been changed. Also, in the transmittal document, give readers a brief summary of the major changes. You should tell readers: what areas are affected, how extensive the change is, the reason for the change, and the impact on the bottom-line.
How to Hold Users Responsible
To avoid users coming back several months after the revision has been sent saying they never got it, Campbell suggests using a notification system that forces users to share responsibility for updating their document(s). She says the system is easy to construct, and its effectiveness lies in its simplicity. It should contain the following parts:
- Users are given a revision index from which they record all revision notices in the order of receipt.
- All change notices are clearly numbered in an obvious and easy-to-identify manner so that any missing numbers can be spotted immediately.
- Users are instructed that it is their responsibility to record all change notices in their revision indexes and to notify the appropriate person if any are missing.
- A summary of all the change notices issued is periodically sent to users.
3 comments:
Campbell's chapter on when and when not to revise was helpful. The 25% rule makes perfect sense. A lot of time at the workplace procedures will be in place and you don't realize how old they are until a new person is hired and asks questions about out dated software or systems. I wonder how many businesses actually have an annual review. Many of the policies and procedures the Free Press has are still in "effect" but not really followed by the employees.
I agree with the 25% rule. A few of the documents I updated at my internship simply needed to be placed in a template while others needed an overhaul.
I find the question of when to revise a policy or procedure to be an interesting one. Often there seems to be a belief that if something isn't going well, it can be fixed by simply enacting a new policy or procedure declaring the "right way" to act. This approach, however, ignores the many human factors that play into why something isn't working as planned. There are many systemic problems that can prevent policies and procedures from being implemented properly. Sometimes it only takes a small change to make a big difference in the adoption of a policy. For example, in some cases simply adding a signature line to a form could introduce accountability into a process and thereby motivate compliance.
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