Policy is the set of stipulations, rules, and principles that govern an organization. It represents the way in which a company delegates tasks and responsibilities to employees as well as sets the standards for acceptable behavior. A company’s policies are often created to align with laws and regulations as well as internal strategic objectives. A healthy business is not static and requires ongoing review and editing of its policies to reflect changes in the company, with its leadership, industry and legal changes.
Creating a policy takes time, but there are some best practices that can help make the process faster and easier for everyone involved. For starters, it is preferable to write policies that are specific to one issue rather than trying to address several issues in a single document. This allows the policy to be more focused and easier to rely on since readers only need to read what is relevant to them.
It is also important to involve multiple stakeholders throughout the policy creation process. This includes a wide range of employees across positions and departments to ensure that the final policies are practical and enforceable. Additionally, it is important to apply an equity lens to the policies to see how they may affect underserved and marginalized populations within the organization.
Lastly, it is important to develop a formal policy review and revision process that includes clearly defined workflows for who writes, reviews, approves and rescinds policies. This helps ensure that all policies are aligned with the needs, culture and resources of the university.
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