MISSION 05

Build a Better SOP

Turn rough process notes into something a new employee can use

CRITDON’T PROMPT. COLLABORATE.ITERATEVERIFY

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Your 20-minute mission

1Download and upload the filesUse the workshop data so everyone begins from the same place.
2Run the first promptNotice how CRIT gives the conversation structure and invites an interview.
3Refine—do not restartUse the second prompt as an example of coaching the response toward better work.
4Continue the conversationChoose your own direction. Faster learners can take on the challenge.

MONDAY MORNINGWhat real file or process from your job could you use with this same workflow?

⚙MISSION BRIEF

Returns Process Improvement

A returns process has evolved over time and now exists mostly through tribal knowledge, handwritten notes, and informal instructions. Your goal is to turn these incomplete notes into a clear SOP that a new employee can follow while identifying questions that management still needs to answer.

Returns Process Notes Acme Returns Process Notes Draft

FIRST PROMPT · CRIT

Context: I am documenting a customer-return process that currently lives mostly in people’s heads. The attached notes are incomplete and messy.

Role: Act as an experienced distribution operations manager and process facilitator.

Interview: Before writing the SOP, interview me one question at a time to uncover missing decisions, handoffs, approvals, exceptions, and system steps.

Task: Create a professional SOP that a new employee could successfully follow on their first day.

Requirements: Organize it into purpose, scope, roles, step-by-step process, exceptions, and a final checklist. Do not invent missing policies; flag them as questions requiring management decisions.

Source material: Use the attached notes and any answers I provide during the interview.

REFINEMENT PROMPT

Good work. Now rewrite the SOP for a new employee with no prior experience. Add a simple process flow, highlight common mistakes, and end with a manager's checklist for training and quality control.

Continue the conversation

You have seen how to start and how to refine. Write the next prompt that would make the work more useful to you.

Type your next prompt in ChatGPT…

Extra challenge: Ask AI to turn the SOP into a one-page training guide, a new-hire checklist, or a presentation for onboarding employees.