Operational Execution: Maintaining Control

At The Controls

Governance is the backbone of any organization’s ability to execute consistently. It provides structure, ensures accountability, and mitigates risks.

However, too much governance can lead to bureaucracy and a lack of speed and agility in making decisions and moving forward. There must be a balance!

As smaller companies grow, one of the biggest fears is losing the speed of decision-making and responsiveness to customers, which often comes with structure. It doesn't have to be that way, but some checks and balances can naturally support an organization's growth by ensuring consistent approaches and standard processes.

From an operational perspective, so I'm excluding a company's board of directors, I view the following as key aspects of ensuring governance and control:

1. Have clear policies and procedures, especially for critical processes.

2. Ensure legal and regulatory compliance. This is an absolute!

3. Define clear accountability, performance measures, and reviews.

In this article, I'll focus on the first two items. The necessary policies and procedures will address legal and regulatory compliance, and I'll leave the accountability, performance measures, and reviews for the following article.

Governance ensures that companies can scale, adapt, and maintain quality as they grow. Organizations face inconsistencies, inefficiencies, and increased risk without a structured approach to governance. It's no longer typically possible for an owner or founder to maintain visibility of every process or product being made or provided.

Key benefits of a strong governance system include:

• Consistency: Employees follow the same approach, reducing variability in execution.

• Compliance: Regulatory and internal requirements are met without gaps.

• Efficiency: Clear processes eliminate wasted effort and duplication.

• Accountability: Defined roles and expectations improve ownership and performance.

• Continuous Improvement: Standardization makes it easier to identify and address inefficiencies.

A Quality Management System (QMS) plays a key role in governance by formalizing how work gets done, ensuring compliance, and driving continuous improvement. Introducing a well-defined QMS encompasses policies, procedures, standard work, and work instructions, forming the foundation of a disciplined and high-performing organization. The introduction of a QMS should be methodical to ensure adoption and effectiveness. Here’s how organizations can successfully implement one:

Step 1: Define the Needs and Objectives

Before implementing a QMS, organizations must identify why it’s needed and what it aims to achieve. Common objectives include:

• Ensuring product/service quality

• Complying with industry standards (ISO 9001, Baldrige, etc.)

• Reducing risks

• Improving efficiency and performance

Engaging stakeholders early helps align the QMS with business goals and ensures organizational buy-in. Note: Getting certification, such as ISO, is not a requirement when introducing a QMS. Many companies do so because customers often look for these certifications when selecting vendors, but with them comes more maintenance and system reviews. A good first step is to put in place the elements of a QMS you deem the most important right now, with the idea that you will grow it and possibly include certification later down the road.

Step 2: Develop Key Policies

Policies are the highest-level governance documents that define what needs to be done within an organization. These establish the overarching principles and expectations that employees must follow. Examples include:

• Quality Policy: Outlines the company’s commitment to delivering high-quality products and services.

• Compliance Policy: Ensures adherence to regulatory requirements.

• Safety Policy: Establishes protocols for maintaining a safe work environment.

• IT Security Policy: Protects company data and systems from threats.

Policies should be clear, concise, and easy to access. They serve as guiding principles rather than detailed instructions. Because of this, these policies should rarely change, although they should be reviewed (often yearly).

Step 3: Create Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

While policies define what needs to be done, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) provide a structured approach to how specific processes should be carried out. SOPs ensure that tasks are performed consistently and efficiently, reducing errors and variability.

Key Elements of a Strong SOP:

• Purpose: Why the procedure exists and what it aims to achieve.

• Scope: Where and when it applies.

• Roles & Responsibilities: Who is responsible for executing each step.

• Step-by-Step Work Instructions (WI): Clearly defined actions to be taken. Note: These work instructions can often be in the SOP or a separate document. It depends on the change frequency and how detailed you want the SOPs to get.

• Required Tools or Resources: Any necessary software, equipment, or materials.

• Review & Updates: A mechanism for continuous improvement.

As you can see from the descriptors above, an SOP covers a process's who, what, where, when, and why. The "how" is usually covered in greater detail in a WI. For more straightforward implementations, keeping the WI steps in the SOP is a good first step to keep the layer of documents shallow. You are adding complexity, layers, and maybe bureaucracy by needing to maintain policies, SOPs, and WI. Use your judgment here.

Example SOP: Order Fulfillment Process

SOP

By standardizing common tasks and identifying ownership, SOPs enable employees to work more effectively and reduce new hires' training time.

Step 4: Develop Work Instructions for Task Execution (as required)

Work instructions provide the most detailed level of documentation and are used for training and on-the-job guidance. These documents outline step-by-step instructions for specific tasks, ensuring that work is done correctly and consistently. Again, based on the depth your QMS will go into, you might include detailed instructions as part of your SOPs, especially if there are only a few steps. There is no right or wrong answer here. Including them in the SOPs keeps the number of documents to a minimum, while separating them allows employees to focus solely on the work steps (such as during training).

There is one absolute requirement—involve the people who are doing the work in creating the WIs. Not only might this capture some "trick" or "hidden factory knowledge," but it also enhances engagement in the process.

Characteristics of Effective Work Instructions:

• Highly detailed, with screenshots or visuals if needed

• Written in clear, simple language

• Focused on a specific task

• Used as a training and reference tool

Example Work Instruction: Order Fulfillment Process

WI

These examples should provide clarity on the differences between SOPs and WIs.

Step 5: Implement Standard Work

Standard work complements SOPs and WIs and defines what an individual employee or leader needs to do daily, weekly, or periodically. It ensures that recurring tasks are performed consistently.

Example of Standard Work:

Standard Work

Standard work ensures that all team members align and maintain efficiency over time.

The example above shows a document for a leader; however, it is equally applicable to front-line employees and individual contributors. It often includes the duration of each activity and any required key documents or resources.

Step 6: Establish Review and Continuous Improvement Processes

Governance structures, including QMS elements, should not be static. A structured review process ensures that policies, procedures, work instructions, and standard work remain current.

Key Review Mechanisms:

• Annual Policy Reviews: Ensure alignment with changing business needs and regulations.

• Quarterly SOP Audits: Identify inefficiencies and process improvements.

• Employee Feedback Loops: Encourage teams to provide input on refining work processes.

• Internal Audits and Compliance Checks: Ensure adherence to established governance frameworks.

I will discuss reviews and continuous improvement in future articles.

Step 7: Drive Adoption Through Training

A QMS is only effective if employees understand and follow it. Organizations must train teams on new governance structures and reinforce their importance.

Best Practices for Training:

• Use hands-on demonstrations for complex processes.

• Provide easy-to-access documentation in a digital repository.

• Incorporate governance principles into onboarding programs.

• Conduct refresher training sessions periodically.

Final Thoughts: Governance as a Competitive Advantage

Strong governance, supported by a well-implemented QMS, is not about unnecessary red tape - it is about creating a system that enables efficiency, consistency, and continuous improvement. By establishing clear policies, SOPs, standard work, and work instructions, organizations can:

• Reduce errors and inefficiencies

• Ensure compliance with industry standards

• Improve employee confidence and performance

• Create a culture of accountability and continuous improvement

Governance should be seen as a tool that enables execution, not a hindrance. Keep the templates simple and as short as possible. This will help gain buy-in and adherence and allow people to see the value the process is providing. When implemented correctly, it provides a structured yet flexible framework that helps organizations scale, innovate, and sustain long-term success.