Sanne de Vries

Turn a Rambling Process Description Into a Clear SOP

Convert a messy, spoken-style description of how a task gets done into a numbered SOP a new hire can follow, with the gaps flagged.

At a glance

Best for: Small business owners and team leads writing down processes that live in one person's head, before hiring, delegating or going on holiday.
Tested on: Claude · Opus 5.5
You fill in: process_namedescriptionaudience
You get: SOP: Processing a customer return Purpose: check returned items, record them and get the customer refunded or exchanged correctly. When to use: each… (full result below)

Prompt

Turn this messy description of how we do a task into a standard operating procedure that a new team member could follow in their first week without asking anyone.

Process name: {{process_name}}
How it's done today, in the words of whoever does it: {{description}}
Who will use the SOP: {{audience}}

Format:

• Purpose (1 sentence) and When to use it (the trigger event).

• Before you start: the access, tools and information needed.

• Steps: numbered, one action per step, each starting with a verb. Write decisions as "If X, do Y; otherwise go to step N." Say who does each step if more than one role is involved.

• Done when: a checklist of 2-4 observable end states.

• Common mistakes: 2-3, taken from what's in the description.

Then, separately, list "Gaps I had to guess at": every point where the description was ambiguous or silent, what you assumed, and the question to ask the person who wrote it. Don't fill gaps silently.

Fill in

{{process_name}}: What the process is callede.g. Processing a customer return
{{description}}: How it's done today, pasted as spoken or typed, however messye.g. ok so when a return comes in, usually it's Jo who opens the parcels...
{{audience}}: Who will follow the SOPe.g. New part-time warehouse assistant, with Sam as backup

Example input

process_name: Processing a customer return
description: ok so when a return comes in, usually it's Jo who opens the parcels in the morning, she checks it against the returns email - oh we get them in the returns@ inbox, people fill in the form on the site which emails us. if it's damaged we take photos, if it's not in the original packaging it depends. if it's jewellery we can't take it back unless it's faulty because of hygiene, earrings anyway. then she puts it on the shelf in the back and marks it in the spreadsheet, and then I (Sam) do the refunds in Shopify on Fridays, sometimes Thursdays if it's busy. if they wanted an exchange instead we just send the new one out but check stock first. oh and if it's over 30 days we normally say no but if they're a regular we sometimes let it slide.
audience: New part-time warehouse assistant, with Sam (owner) as backup.

910

Generated Outputs (1)

3 hours ago

Claude

Opus 5.5

3 hours ago

Generated Output

SOP: Processing a customer return

Purpose: check returned items, record them and get the customer refunded or exchanged correctly.
When to use: each morning, when opening returned parcels.

Before you start

• Access to the returns@ inbox and the returns spreadsheet

• Phone or camera for photos

• The returns shelf at the back

Steps (Warehouse = assistant; Sam = owner)

1. Warehouse: Open the parcel and find the matching return form email in returns@.

1. If there's no matching email, put the parcel on the shelf marked "unmatched" and tell Sam. Otherwise continue.

1. Check the order date. If it's more than 30 days old, tell Sam, who decides. Otherwise continue.

1. If the item is earrings or other jewellery, check it for a fault. If it isn't faulty, tell Sam, because it can't be accepted. If it is faulty, photograph the fault and continue.

1. If the item is damaged, photograph the damage before doing anything else.

1. If it isn't in its original packaging, tell Sam before accepting it.

1. Put the item on the returns shelf.

1. Log it in the returns spreadsheet: order number, date received, condition, photos taken (yes/no), and refund or exchange.

1. Sam: If it's an exchange, check stock. If it's in stock, send the replacement. If not, contact the customer.

1. Sam: Every Friday, or Thursday in busy weeks, process the logged refunds in Shopify and mark them done in the spreadsheet.

Done when

• [ ] The item is on the returns shelf

• [ ] The spreadsheet row is complete

• [ ] Photos are saved if the item was damaged or faulty

• [ ] The refund or exchange is marked done

Common mistakes

• Accepting non-faulty earrings, which can't be resold for hygiene reasons

• Sending an exchange without checking stock

• Logging a damaged item without photos

Gaps I had to guess at

1. Unpackaged items "depend". I routed them to Sam. What decides yes or no?

1. Jewellery: does the hygiene rule cover all jewellery or only earrings? I included all jewellery, to be safe.

1. The 30-day window: 30 days from the order or from delivery? And who counts as "a regular"?

1. Photos: where should they be saved?

1. Unmatched parcels weren't mentioned. I invented the "unmatched" shelf. What happens now?

1. Damaged returns: do they get a full refund, or does damage caused by the customer change that?

1. Exchanges out of stock: I assumed you contact the customer. Should it default to a refund?

Why it works

"One action per step, starting with a verb" turns a stream of consciousness into something you can tick off. The "If X, do Y; otherwise go to step N" format brings out the decisions hidden in phrases like "it depends". The most useful part is "Gaps I had to guess at": rather than confidently making up a policy, the model lists every assumption with a question for the owner, so the SOP is checked by the person who knows. "Done when" gives a clear finish line.

When not to use it

Don't publish the SOP before the process owner has answered the gap questions; its guesses can become policy by accident. For regulated processes (food safety, medicines, finance controls) you need the actual legal requirements, not just a tidied description. Very variable, judgement-heavy work suits a checklist of principles better than numbered steps.

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