Savvy Sue LLC
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10-Point Diagnostic Tool

The Stranded
SOP Checklist

Savvy Sue LLC  ·  Susan Ross

Run any SOP through these 10 checks. Find out if it is connected to your operational system — or stranded in a folder your team cannot navigate when they need it most.

Save this checklist. Run it on every SOP in your business. Download a PDF copy to keep and share with your team.

1
Name the SOP you are auditing in the field below. Pick one your team uses — or should be using more.
2
Check each item your SOP currently includes. Leave unchecked what's missing. Be honest.
3
Read your verdict. Three or more unchecked items is a system architecture problem — not a documentation problem.

The 10 Checks

Layer 1 — Workflow Architecture 0 of 4 passing
Does it reference the step that comes before it?
Isolated SOPs don't tell your team where this task fits in the larger flow. Without that context, they complete the task and stop — they don't know what triggered this step or what to trigger next.
Does it define what "done" looks like at the end?
Without a completion definition, your team cannot confirm quality, close the loop, or know when to trigger the next step — without asking you.
Does it name the handoff — who receives the output, in what format, at what trigger?
Handoffs are the most consistently undocumented element in any workflow. Work that reaches the edge of one person's task with nowhere explicit to go waits — or routes to you.
Is it linked inside the broader workflow — not just living in a folder?
A SOP not linked to the workflow is invisible at the moment it's needed. Your team won't go looking for it. They'll ask you instead.
Layer 2 — Resource Anchoring 0 of 3 passing
Does it name the specific tools and templates used — with their exact location?
"Use the client report template" fails without: which template, which version, and exactly where it lives. That vagueness becomes your interruption.
Is it stored where the team can find it during the actual work?
If your team has to search for it, they'll either ask you or recreate what they need. Both cost more time than the SOP was built to save.
Does it have a version date and a named owner responsible for keeping it current?
An undated, unowned SOP drifts from reality. Everyone knows it's probably wrong — but no one has authority or obligation to fix it, so it stays wrong.
Layer 3 — Decision Clarity 0 of 3 passing
Does it identify what decisions must be made within this process?
If decisions aren't named inside the SOP, your team encounters them without warning — and defaults to asking you every time, even when they're fully capable of deciding.
Does it name who is authorized to make each of those decisions?
A decision without a named owner routes back to the founder by default. Every time. Naming it in the SOP is what creates the authorization to act without asking.
Does it name where to escalate if a decision falls outside the team member's authority?
Without a named escalation path, every edge case becomes a founder touchpoint — even in an otherwise well-built system. The path must be documented, not assumed.
0 of 10 checks passing
Check the items your SOP currently includes
Workflow Architecture
0/4
Resource Anchoring
0/3
Decision Clarity
0/3

Awaiting Results

Check the items your SOP includes to see your verdict.

Work through all 10 checks above. Your verdict will update as you go.

Save your results

Download a PDF copy of this checklist — with your results — to keep, print, and share with your team.

savvysueva.com  ·  Savvy Sue LLC  ·  Susan Ross

"Most businesses built the bricks. No one laid the mortar."

Susan Ross  ·  Savvy Sue LLC

Ready to Connect Your SOPs to a System

If more than 3 checks failed —
you have a system architecture problem.

Not a documentation problem. Not a team problem. The system is incomplete underneath the SOPs. A 30-minute discovery call is the right next step.

Book a Discovery Call  →