The most wildly successful hospitality and event businesses run like well-oiled machines. And whilst they make everything look super sexy on the surface, it’s usually the direct result of something a lot less glamorous going on behind the scenes. Processes!
For example, you’ve probably heard the saying about a goal without a plan being just a wish. This principle is at the heart of processes. And processes are so important to hospitality and event businesses. They provide a structured roadmap that’s worlds apart from operations where staff are left to their own devices, hoping for the best.
The most common way to consolidate your processes is writing a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP).
So, let’s take a closer look at what a SOP is, in order to understand how hospitality and event businesses benefit from having one.
What is a SOP?
Think of a SOP as a step-by-step instruction manual that walks your people through the end-to-end process of a task in detail. So, it goes beyond what the task is, by drilling down deeper into exactly how to do the task. This includes answering questions such as –
· When?
· Where?
· Who?
A SOP doesn’t guarantee that everything will run like clockwork 100% of the time (especially in hospitality and event businesses!). Even so, having a SOP brings clarity and uniformity across teams and the whole of the business. And this helps to inform and predict outcomes.
But there’s a potential downside that holds some hospitality and event businesses back. And this is because writing a SOP can run away with itself. The job itself can get too laborious and time-consuming. And the document can get so involved it becomes impossible to follow and understand, which defeats the purpose.
But truthfully, writing a SOP doesn’t have to be such a gruelling task when you know how. And there are many reasons why you should hang on in there.
How Does a SOP Benefit Hospitality and Event Businesses?
A key objective of a SOP is the removal of doubt. By setting your processes in stone, you’re creating your own guidebook for delivering products and services consistently, to the same high standards, every time.
In addition, writing a SOP requires you to look at situations from different angles, for example –
· Your building and other facilities (if you’re in a hotel or non-hotel venue)
· Your delegates, guests and visitors
· Your team members
It’s a multi-faceted approach that covers various aspects of your operations. And this 360 outlook helps you to level up on consistency, efficiency and safety at every touchpoint. In high churn sectors like hospitality and events, having a SOP is an effective way to keep your people on board and on track with the service levels you aspire to.
At Selling Savvy, we understand that hospitality and event businesses sometimes have a will but not a way when it comes to writing a SOP from scratch or updating an old one. If this resonates, our SOP writing workshops are the answer to your prayers. Get in touch at kate@sellingsavvy.co.uk to find out how we can help reduce the overwhelm and take the stress out of writing a SOP you’ll be proud of.
