Policies, processes, procedures and forms are used together to form the framework in which an organisation operates.

Policies are those principles that underly an organisation’s behaviours. They are the guidelines that set the culture of an organisation.

Procedures define how a policy is implemented. Procedures are usually a written step-by-step set of instructions. They can often be accompanied by a process – which is often represented as a flowchart.

Organisations should first define their policy (what is it we want people to do?). From this the procedure is developed (how do we want people to do this). A complex procedure may need a high-level process flow to help guide the user.

Finally, forms will be required to support the procedure and help with the flow of communication within an organisation.