What is a regulation, how to create

Any organization can be compared to a complex mechanism consisting of people, equipment and business processes. In order for such a multi-tiered structure to work smoothly, properly, like clockwork, each of its elements needs to be directed and controlled. To do this, it is worth implementing regulations – a set of rules describing the actions of subdivisions, departments, each employee within the framework of the enterprise. Compliance with regulations ensures the consistency of the company’s work. It gets rid of routine, allowing you to focus on important strategic issues. We will try to understand the meaning and some types of regulations in this article.

What it is and why a company needs it

A regulation is a document containing a set of rules, procedures and instructions describing the activities of employees in an organization. Clear guidelines are developed for each position:

• What kind of work the employee does;
• Who he is in charge of and who he reports to;
• What reports, and in what timeframes provides to management.

It is one of the main documents of the manager that is being developed:

• For a structural subdivision of an organization (department, workshop). In this case, it helps to divide the areas of responsibility between separate teams involved in common business processes. Each of them performs its own tasks without asking the management for instructions and clarifications.
• For each performer in the team. It is a detailed instruction that defines the order and sequence of individual functions or processes of an employee. Includes explanations of how to properly perform certain production operations, for example: make a sales report, plan, conduct inventory in the warehouse.

Implementation of regulations greatly simplifies company management and makes the work of its employees organized and understandable. Despite the fact that its development takes quite a lot of time, requires focus and close attention to detail from the manager, its implementation pays for itself in full.

Benefits of implementation

Work regulations are necessary for organizations whose employees have difficulties in mastering uniform work processes. They constantly turn to their superiors, ask questions related to functionality, and the manager has to be distracted from his direct duties to explain each process in detail. To make such activities simple, understandable for each participant in the organization, regulations are needed. Its other advantages:

• Standardization of activities. Means that unspoken rules become mandatory for everyone. They are observed by top managers, the CEO, and all executives.
• Procedures become consistent. By following routines that describe each step of a task, employees make fewer mistakes by following a ready-made pattern or example. This has a positive impact on the speed, quality of activities, bringing profit to the organization.
• Quick adaptation of new employees, reducing their training costs.
• Reducing dependence on “star” employees. The team should not suffer because of the departure of one or two performers. With detailed instructions from the regulations in front of them, the new member will quickly get up to speed and work as well as his predecessor.
• Prompt correction of errors arising due to the “human factor”.
• Increased satisfaction and quality of customer relations as a result of reduced rejects. Contractors perform their duties based on requirements and standards. Therefore, they clearly understand what the end customer needs as a result.
• Improved communication between individual departments. Colleagues know where to go to get signatures for invoices, so they don’t waste time traveling endlessly through offices.

The Regulations provide clear answers to the most common questions concerning the activities of the organization. The Regulations facilitate mutual understanding between the management, the organization and its structural elements. It helps to timely detect and promptly eliminate errors arising in the work. The Regulations ensure quick on-the-job training of new employees.

Regulations in the company’s legal system

This set of rules is part of a system of local legal acts, which also includes:

• Regulations on the organization, indicating the status, list of competencies of the organization.
• Instructions containing a step-by-step algorithm of work for each position. For example, the procedure for interviewing job applicants.
• Methodological recommendations describing the sequence of steps to obtain the desired result.
• Rules for the performance of certain types of work.

Rules governing the procedure for performing certain operations within the economic activities of an organization.

In large organizations, this documentation is combined into a whole system of legal acts, united among themselves.

Types of regulations

In practical terms, three types of regulations are used:

Administrative

It is used in governmental structures. Its tasks:

• Establishing the rights and responsibilities of the legislative, executive branches of government.
• Defining the boundaries of their authority.
• Clarification of spheres of interaction between municipal and state organizations to solve joint tasks.
• Determining the list of services provided to legal entities and individuals.

Transparent work of state bodies is ensured through normative acts, administrative regulations help to prevent corruption. Internal normative acts are one of the stages of implementation of legality at any level.

Technical

Technical regulation establishes work requirements for quality, safety, operation, production conditions of products. It is created for goods or services that affect the environment, health, safety of people.

In accordance with the legislation, different types of technical instructions may be in force at production enterprises:

• Permanent or temporary;
• One-offs;
• Laboratory.

Also, general TRs have been established in the industry:

• For sewage treatment plants. Without this document, the organization is not connected to the water supply network.
• For waste management. It is approved by the developer performing construction. It specifies the list of wastes, their classification by hazard classes, storage location, disposal method.

Administrations

Such a set of rules is intended for business. Such regulations prescribe the powers of employees, norms of economic activity of the enterprise. Regulations include the following elements:

• Charter, goals, mission.
• Information on personnel, including rules of recruitment, formation of personnel, conclusion of labor contracts.
• Job descriptions, regulations and guidelines describing business processes.

Regulation structure

Organizations may have several types of regulations that are complementary and consistent with each other. These include:

1. Strategy for companies.
2. Organizational Composition.
3. The interaction of its elements.
4. Administrative Instruction.
5. Documentation of the activities of individual units.
6. Staff job descriptions.
7. Working Time Regime.
8. Internal regulations of the organization.
9. Sources of funding.
10. Motivation.
11. Technical regulations for products and services.
12. Provisions for the development of other regulations.

How to write regulations: step-by-step instructions

The manager must decide which position in the organization is to be regulated. It makes more sense to start with the job that brings direct profit to the organization, i.e., salespeople. Or the job in which employees make the most mistakes and errors.

Conventionally, this task is divided into several stages:

Preparatory

1. Appointment of persons responsible for drafting the document.
2. Discussing the upcoming process with the implementers to incorporate their interests and suggestions.
3. Involvement of experienced staff in the development of guidelines and standards.
4. Scheduling meetings to oversee development.

Goal setting

Determine what area of activity the instruction will govern. Here are some options:

1. Standardization of processes with the development of uniform standards for all its departments.
2. Optimization of the company’s operations (increasing productivity, reducing bloated staff, improving processes).
3. Improving the quality of products (services), reducing scrap and industrial accidents.
4. Establishing effective interrelationships between departments.

Approval of the form

The document must contain the following information:

1. Name of Organization.
2. Document Name.
3. Unique number, date, place of creation.
4. Name of approving authority, date of approval.
5. Signatures of the persons agreeing to the document.

Table of Contents

Regardless of the type, contains the following sections:

1. Introduction. It specifies the objectives, purpose, scope of application of the document. This section also contains information on the persons responsible for its development, approval and compliance.
2. General Provisions. Describes the tasks for which the regulation was developed, as well as all the rules, standards, and requirements that employees must comply with. In addition, the section specifies the procedures for adopting and repealing the regulations.
3. Purpose. Brief description of the regulated process.
4. Scope. This contains information about the objects, processes involved.
5. Terms, definitions.
6. Regulatory references to laws, basic documents in force in the industry.
7. Description of processes, methods with expected performance results.
8. Zones, types of responsibility (administrative, disciplinary).
9. Types of control and persons responsible for its implementation.
10. A methodological guide that defines the rules binding on all performers.
11. Instructions for employees and individual units.
12. Procedure for making clarifications, amendments to the document.
13. Appendices in the form of reference books, charts, forms, tables, other additional information necessary for the preparation of relevant documentation.

Harmonization

The final draft of the regulations is approved after discussion with the company’s employees, management and investors. After the document has been approved, the manager issues the relevant order. From that moment on, the organization works in accordance with the approved regulations.

Formalization

Structure information using bulleted lists. Use headings, sections and subsections for clear presentation of information. Write in the regulations a system of links for quick access to different sections of the document. Keep the final version in a non-editable format to protect it from accidental or deliberate changes, so that only a certain number of people can edit the document.

Rules for the application of regulations

All employees must be familiarized with the document. For this purpose, an attestation is organized or signatures are collected from employees stating that they undertake to comply with the requirements set out in the regulations. It is important that each performer understands what is required of him. If the document is written in complex language, it should be simplified, rid of unnecessary water and clericalisms. The information in it should be presented in an accessible and understandable form.

To check the implementation of the regulations, a system of reports is developed, meetings are held with the participation of employees and managers, and control programs are installed on employees’ computers. To ensure that the implementation of regulations does not cause rejection among the performers, they should have detailed instructions in hand. Work without violations should be encouraged. In case of problems or disputes, employees should be able to contact technical support.

Effective management with LeaderTask

In order to structure and regulate the activities of any organization, it is important to properly build work processes. It is convenient to use the LeaderTask electronic planner to distribute responsibilities between performers and departments within a project. With its help, you can manage the activities of employees, assess their professional skills, adjust their authority, and use their experience to develop regulations.

Advantages and possibilities of the service:

• A single digital space to capture goals, objectives, and store important information;
• Organizing effective communications between individual colleagues and departments;
• Coordinated, organized work by building clear schedules;
• A notification system to help you stay informed about important events and deadlines for completing tasks;
• Various options for documentation, reports to analyze and improve processes.

The app works on all digital devices, including those without an internet connection.

Conclusion

Regulations are necessary for every company to maintain order and discipline of employees. This document identifies areas of responsibility. It contains step-by-step instructions for each position, making routine processes simple and clear. Regulation facilitates the transfer of authority from one performer to another. The organization does not depend on “star” employees, whose dismissal can slow down the team’s activity.

When drafting a regulation, it is necessary to follow the content rules. It should necessarily contain an introduction, main provisions, and other important sections. In order for its implementation to be of real benefit to the organization, regulations should be created with the participation of all employees. Any revisions to this set of rules should be made as necessary.