23 – Written Policies and Procedures

The chapter defines a policy as a guide to what management wants, and a procedure as the tool that prescribes how it is to be accomplished, and starts with the examination of a case study to illustrate the historical evolution of written policies and procedures. The benefits of the written policy and procedure are examined in some depth, including such factors as consistency in performance, reduction of decision-making time, enhancement of controls, and provision for objective performance evaluation. Also discussed are flexibility, combining policies and procedures, free-standing policies, the security manual, and post orders.