Building SOPs so the business runs without me — my documentation framework

I own 3 businesses and I can't be in all of them every day. SOPs are what make that possible. But most operators either don't document anything or write 50-page manuals that nobody reads. Here's my framework for SOPs that actually get used: Format: Every SOP is a one-page Google Doc with 3 sections: 1. WHEN to use this SOP (trigger event) 2. STEPS (numbered, no step longer than one sentence) 3. IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG (who to call, what to do) Examples: - "New customer call comes in" → 8 steps from greeting to job booking - "Tech can't fix the problem on-site" → 5 steps for escalation - "Customer wants a refund" → 6 steps including approval thresholds Rules I follow: - No SOP longer than 1 page. If it's longer, break it into 2 SOPs. - Every SOP has an owner (one person responsible for keeping it updated). - We review SOPs quarterly. Anything that hasn't been updated in 6 months gets questioned — is it still accurate? - New employees read the 10 most common SOPs in their first week and sign off that they understood them. How I build them: - I don't write them at my desk. I stand next to the person doing the task and write down exactly what they do, step by step. - Then I ask "what could go wrong?" and add the troubleshooting section. - Then I hand it back to them and ask "would this make sense to someone who's never done this before?" If not, we revise. We have 43 SOPs across 3 businesses. It took about 6 months to build the library. Now I spend maybe 2 hours a month maintaining them. The real test: when someone quits or goes on vacation, their replacement can pick up the SOPs and handle 80% of the job on day one. That's the goal.