Process Documentation Glossary
Essential terms about process documentation, SOPs, onboarding, and operational management — explained simply and clearly.
- SOP (Standard Operating Procedure)
- A document that describes, step by step, how to execute a task or process within a company. Ensures everyone does it the same way, regardless of who executes. Learn more →
- Process documentation
- Formal record of how a task or activity should be executed. Includes steps, responsible parties, prerequisites, and expected results. Essential for scaling operations and preserving institutional knowledge. Learn more →
- Onboarding
- The process of integrating new hires into a company. Goes beyond day one — includes access, training, process introduction, and follow-up during the first months. Learn more →
- Process standardization
- Defining the best way to execute each task and ensuring everyone follows that standard. Reduces errors, improves quality, and enables scaling operations. Learn more →
- Process mapping
- Identifying and recording all steps of a process as it's executed today (as-is). The first step before optimizing or standardizing.
- Step-by-step guide
- A document describing a numbered sequence of actions, each with clear instructions and ideally screenshots. The most effective format for documenting software processes. Learn more →
- Knowledge base
- A centralized repository where a company stores all its documentation: guides, SOPs, FAQs, manuals. Allows anyone to find the information they need without depending on colleagues. Learn more →
- AI refinement
- Using artificial intelligence to rewrite and improve documentation text. AI transforms quick notes and narrations into clear, objective, standardized instructions — reducing creation time from hours to minutes.
- Automatic capture
- Technology that records user actions in a browser or system and transforms each click into a documented step with a screenshot. Eliminates the manual work of creating documentation.
- Time to productivity
- A metric measuring how many days a new employee takes to execute tasks independently. Good onboarding with clear documentation reduces this by up to 50%. Learn more →
- Checklist
- A verification list with items to be completed. Unlike an SOP, it doesn't detail how to execute each item — it only lists what needs to be done.
- Buddy program
- A designated person to accompany a new employee during onboarding. Serves as the go-to point for day-to-day questions in the first months. Learn more →
- Continuous improvement
- The practice of regularly reviewing and optimizing processes. Only possible when processes are documented and standardized — without a baseline, there's no way to measure progress. Learn more →
- Flowchart
- A graphical representation of a process using standardized symbols (rectangles for actions, diamonds for decisions, arrows for flow). Useful for visualizing complex processes before documenting them in detail. Learn more →
- BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation)
- An international standard for business process modeling. More detailed than a simple flowchart, used by process analysts to map complex flows with swim lanes, events, and gateways. Learn more →
- Tacit knowledge
- Knowledge that exists in an employee's head but isn't documented. Acquired through experience and hard to transfer — which is why it's essential to capture it in guides and SOPs before the person leaves. Learn more →
- Explicit knowledge
- Knowledge already formalized in documents, manuals, or systems. Unlike tacit knowledge, it can be easily shared and accessed by anyone.
- Work instruction
- A detailed document describing how to execute a specific task within a larger process. More granular than an SOP — it focuses on a single activity, not the complete flow. Learn more →
- Playbook
- A collection of guides and procedures describing how a team or function operates. Combines SOPs, policies, and best practices into a centralized reference document.
- Runbook
- An operational document with procedures for recurring situations or emergencies. Widely used in IT and DevOps for incident response, deployment, and system maintenance.
- Compliance
- Adherence to laws, regulations, and internal standards. Documented processes are essential for proving compliance during audits and avoiding penalties.
- Process audit
- A systematic evaluation to verify whether processes are being followed as documented. Identifies deviations, risks, and improvement opportunities.
- KPI (Key Performance Indicator)
- A metric used to measure the effectiveness of a process. Examples: execution time, error rate, customer satisfaction.
- SLA (Service Level Agreement)
- An agreement defining deadlines and quality standards that must be met in a process. Without clear documentation, it's impossible to measure whether SLAs are being met.
- Bottleneck
- A step in a process that limits the total capacity of the flow. Process mapping helps identify bottlenecks so they can be eliminated or optimized. Learn more →
- Process automation
- Using technology to execute repetitive tasks without human intervention. Documentation is a prerequisite — you need to understand the process before automating it.
- RPA (Robotic Process Automation)
- A type of automation using software robots to execute repetitive tasks in systems. Different from automatic documentation, which captures and records processes — RPA executes them.
- Lean
- A methodology focused on eliminating waste and maximizing value. In process documentation, it means creating lean, objective guides without unnecessary information.
- Six Sigma
- A process improvement methodology focused on reducing variability and defects. Uses data and statistical analysis. Documented, standardized processes are the foundation for applying Six Sigma.
- PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act)
- A four-step continuous improvement cycle: plan, do, check, act. Used to iterate on documented processes and progressively improve them.
- As-is process
- A description of how a process is executed today, before any optimization. The first step in process mapping is documenting the as-is to then design the to-be. Learn more →
- To-be process
- A description of how a process should be executed after optimization. Designed from analyzing the as-is process, it represents the desired future state.
- Handoff
- The moment when responsibility for a task passes from one person or team to another. Poorly documented handoffs are one of the biggest sources of operational errors. Learn more →
- Document versioning
- The practice of maintaining a change history for documents. Ensures everyone accesses the most recent version and allows reverting changes if needed.
- Asynchronous training
- A training model where employees learn at their own pace using materials like guides, videos, and SOPs. Scales better than in-person training and reduces dependency on instructors. Learn more →
- Just-in-time documentation
- An approach of creating documentation at the moment a process is executed, rather than setting aside separate time to document. Automatic capture tools make this possible.
- Process governance
- A set of practices for managing, monitoring, and keeping process documentation up to date. Includes defining process owners, review cycles, and formatting standards.
- RACI matrix
- A tool that defines roles in a process: Responsible (executes), Accountable (approves), Consulted (provides input), and Informed (is notified). Eliminates ambiguity about who does what.
- Operational error
- A failure in process execution that generates rework, financial loss, or customer impact. The main cause is a lack of clear, up-to-date documentation. Learn more →