Creating a procedures manual from scratch can be a daunting task. However, nearly every E&O attorney will tell you that it is a necessary step in reducing or eliminating E&O losses. Of course, once it is prepared, it must be used by everyone in the agency. You may have to “sell” your staff on the benefits of having a procedures manual, which includes E&O loss control, but also results in greater efficiency and productivity for the staff, freeing up time to do what the employee prefers and does best—selling and servicing accounts.
There are a few ways to obtain or create a procedure manual:
- Hire a consultant to create customized workflows and procedures based on your agency’s operations and its management information system
- Purchase a procedures template for each department of the agency and customize it using agency personnel
- Develop a customized procedures manual using agency staff
Obviously, the first method, hiring a consultant, is the easiest in terms of not stretching the agency’s staff resources too thin. It will still require a team of agency personnel who will work with the consultant to create the customized documents. The process can take anywhere from three days to three months, and the cost will vary based on the amount of time spent by the consultant on-site and off, the number of departments in the agency, and the extent of the project.
Purchasing a template is usually the least expensive method, but it can also require a lot of changes based on the agency’s way of doing business. A template that is specific to the agency’s choice of management system would be best. Your agency E&O Improvement Specialist can be instrumental in helping you complete the customization that is necessary to make the procedures manual useful.
The last method, creating the manual using only internal resources, is both time-consuming and expensive, and smaller agencies may not be able to spare people in order to complete the task. Creating the manual tends to be a “round to it” project in most agencies, and one that often gets put on the back burner when people are already feeling overworked. If you decide to use this method, it will still require forming a team who can divide the work among themselves and hold each other accountable to stay on track. You can use the sample procedures included in this website to get started on this project.
Regardless of which method you choose, prepare yourself for an interesting journey. You will probably find, during the course of the project, that you don’t really have a single agency—you have as many different ways of doing things as you have people. Some people, especially those who have been doing things a certain way for a very long time, will bristle at the change. Others will welcome it. In the end, everyone will have to give something up in order to gain something better. The result will not only be better E&O loss control, but a more efficient and productive staff, happier customers, and an improved financial picture for the agency.
