Standard operating procedure: documented steps for carrying out a recurring task consistently.
An SOP records the steps for a recurring activity so that staff can carry it out consistently. It gives a shared reference for performing the task and for explaining the method to someone learning it. The procedure needs to remain aligned with the work it describes, which makes maintaining the document part of its usefulness. A procedure sets out how an activity is performed, while a record shows what happened on a particular occasion. Testing documentation, for example, can accompany work carried out under an SOP.
In job listings
LVMH’s Payroll Manager role in Toronto required writing standard operating procedures, processes and policies to establish best practices and support change management. The employer shortened the name of those procedures to SOPs. It illustrates a responsibility for documenting recurring work, alongside the broader processes and policies that governed the function. Search local jobs for “sop”.
