There are several challenges faced by those responsible for tracking and recording policy and procedure within any given organisation – policy management software can solve them.
Common Policy Management Problems
1. “I don’t need to read them”
There are some procedures that are used regularly – and staff needn’t waste time on reading or learning those they don’t use. With policy management software, you can see when staff have (or have not) engaged with your new policy.
2. “Nobody trusts them“
In an environment that changes fast, adhering to written policies is impossible. The slightest change in a process has to be reflected in 5 or 10 documents owned by different people. Of course, most policies end up outdated. After some time, people stop reading them when they understand that following these outdated documents may negatively impact them.
3. “Managing access rights is a nightmare“
You want to protect the body of procedures from being edited, so you set up access rights. But in a fast-changing environment, those rights might have to be completely reassigned multiple times each year. And, as soon as someone can’t access a document they require, they stop reading the policies altogether, replacing it by asking a co-worker.
4. “New policies are still introduced through in-person presentations”
This allows you to gauge their understanding of the change. So, you may present each change in person instead of long-form, written details of new procedures. However, who has time to call a company-wide meeting each time there’s a change to a policy? And how often are new policy and procedure roll-outs delayed coinciding with meetings?
The arduous nature of distributing and checking acknowledgement of policies frequently breeds this from the outset, on both sides of the coin. So, how do you combat this? Modernising the method of distribution – the start of the process – is one idea by using policy management software.
It’s Time to Go Digital
For decades, pen and paper were the preferred medium of communication for crucial business updates, and it’s somewhat surprising that this has continued into the digital age in many cases.
Recording the distribution and receipt of documents shouldn’t be stressful, but it so often is. Read receipts on policies emailed out are not fit for purpose and, alternatively, pulling people into the office to physically sign off on updated documentation can consume hours rather than minutes of the working day. Typically, a signature is all it is, rather than any level of understanding of the content.
Digital Policy Management Software
Digitisation of your policy library is the way to overcome these challenges. Housing your policy and process library within one, centralised infrastructure – with a variety of intelligent distribution options – resolves these issues altogether.
Using an electronic register of policies ensures:
- Regular backups ensure crucial information is never misplaced – or worse, lost.
- Policy content can be updated quickly.
- Easily-accessible audit trails of earlier versions for reference.
Custom Groups of Staff
Creating custom groups means that staff are alerted to policy updates pertaining to their roles, and only those, negating any potential for confusion. To ensure full understanding, consider attaching quick surveys and even media to policy updates to ensure staff genuinely understand the content and can carry this new knowledge into their work.
Book a Demo Today!
In 15 minutes, we can show you a better way to manage your policy and procedure library through Compliance Pod. Get in touch and book a demo to see how 15 minutes can save you hour upon hour of unnecessary work.