Franchise Operations Manual: Writing Procedures People Can Use

In an established business, many things work because the owner knows what to do and staff are familiar with the outlet’s routines. Once a franchise network takes shape, this implicit knowledge is no longer enough. The operations manual must turn it into instructions that can also be used by someone who has never worked alongside the founder. The aim is not to write everything down: it is to make the decisions and actions needed to do the job properly easy to understand.

1. Start with activities, not the manual’s contents page

A common mistake is to begin with a blank document and a long list of chapters. It is more useful to observe a real working day and record the steps that are currently explained verbally.

First, identify recurring tasks: opening up, handling an enquiry, preparing an order, delivery and closing up. Add less frequent situations that cause uncertainty or disruption. For each activity, note who is involved, what information they need and what outcome they must achieve.

Distinguish between three types of content:

• Procedure: explains how to carry out an activity from start to finish.
• Checklist: helps people remember steps they already know.
• Reference sheet: brings together specifications, references or criteria that need to be found quickly.

These documents are not interchangeable. A checklist item saying ‘check the order’ does not teach someone what to check; a five-page procedure, on the other hand, may slow down someone who only needs a reminder of the final steps before closing.

Prioritise activities where missing information could bring service to a halt or cause errors that are difficult to correct. This allows you to build a useful core of material rather than a seemingly comprehensive volume that is rarely consulted.

2. Use a consistent structure for every procedure

Each set of instructions should answer the same questions in the same order. A consistent structure helps readers find their way around more quickly and makes missing information easier to spot.

For each procedure, include:

• Purpose and when to use it: the intended outcome and when the procedure applies.
• Responsible role: who carries out the activity and who can authorise any exceptions.
• Prerequisites: the tools, information and conditions needed before starting.
• Numbered steps: specific actions in the correct order.
• Decision points: what changes when a condition is not met.
• Outcome and records: how to recognise completion and what evidence to retain.

Use verbs that describe observable actions: compare, count, enter, confirm. Phrases such as ‘manage appropriately’ or ‘exercise the utmost care’ do not specify behaviour that someone else can reproduce.

For example, when receiving a delivery, ‘check the goods’ is too vague. Instead, the instruction could ask the reader to compare the packages received against the delivery note, check for visible damage and record discrepancies through the prescribed process. The details must, of course, reflect how the business actually operates.

Include images only when they clarify an action, a layout or something the reader needs to recognise. A decorative photograph takes up space; an annotated photograph can replace an ambiguous explanation.

3. Explain what to do when the process breaks down

Procedures become truly useful when something does not go to plan. If they describe only the ideal situation, franchisees will still have to call head office whenever they are unsure.

For each critical step, ask yourself: what information might be missing? Which tool might fail? What request might fall outside the usual scenarios?

Then set out simple options: continue, pause, use an authorised alternative or ask the appropriate contact for a decision. Specify what information must accompany the request, rather than using vague phrases such as ‘contact head office’.

There is no need to anticipate every possible event. What matters is making clear where people must stop improvising. Operating instructions must not replace professional judgement or mandatory requirements, particularly where safety, health or data protection are involved.

Before distributing a procedure, ask someone who did not write it to follow it without any additional explanation from the author. Note their questions, hesitations and any steps they interpret differently. If you need to intervene repeatedly, the text needs improvement: blaming the reader’s difficulty is not enough.

4. Understand the manual’s place in Italian law

In Italy, franchising is governed by Law No. 129 of 6 May 2004, on commercial franchising. Article 3 requires the franchisor to have tested its business format on the market: writing a manual is no substitute for that testing.

The law also defines know-how as a body of practical knowledge derived from the franchisor’s experience and testing that is secret, substantial and identified. A well-structured manual can help describe that knowledge in sufficient detail, but it does not automatically turn generic instructions into know-how.

The legislation does not prescribe a standard contents list for the manual. It does, however, require the contract to specify the know-how provided to the franchisee. It is therefore advisable to have a lawyer review how this operational knowledge is described and transferred. Matters not covered by the specific legislation are subject to the general rules of the Italian Civil Code.

Take action now: choose one recurring activity, write a complete procedure and have someone use it without help from the author. Resolve any ambiguities first, then extend the approach to the rest of the manual.