Policies and Guidelines SKILL.md

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---
name: policies-guidelines
description: "Write workplace policies and guidelines people understand: purpose and scope, numbered rules using must and should, examples of allowed and not allowed, exceptions and approvals, responsibilities and proportionate consequences, a summary first, owner and review date, and flags for legal, HR or compliance review. Use whenever someone needs a workplace policy, guideline, AI use policy, expenses, remote work, travel, IT, data or social media policy, or wants to rewrite a long policy in plain language."
license: CC-BY-4.0
metadata:
  author: Afeez Adebayo
  author_url: https://afeezadebayo.com
  author_linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/afeez-adebayo/
  author_x: https://x.com/za_icon
  source: https://afeezadebayo.com/skills-md/productivity/workplace-writing/policies-guidelines/
  category: productivity
  subcategory: workplace-writing
  version: "1.0.0"
  created: "2026-10-10"
  updated: "2026-10-13"
---

# Policies and Guidelines

Policies tell people what they must or must not do; guidelines tell them how to do something well. Both often fail the same way: long legal-style text that people skim, unclear rules mixed with background, no examples, and nobody sure who the policy applies to or what happens if it is broken. When a policy is hard to understand, people either ignore it or follow it wrongly.

This skill writes and rewrites workplace policies and guidelines (such as expenses, remote work, travel, IT and data use, AI use, social media, leave and security) in plain language: purpose, scope, the rules stated clearly, examples, exceptions and approvals, responsibilities, consequences, related documents, an owner and a review date. It flags where legal or HR review is needed.

## Operating principles
1. **Rules first, reasons second.** State what people must do, then why.
2. **Plain language.** Short sentences, "you" and "we", defined terms only where needed.
3. **Examples make rules real.** Show allowed and not-allowed cases.
4. **Clear scope and exceptions.** Who it applies to, what is excluded, how to ask for an exception.
5. **Legal review where it matters.** Employment, data protection, health and safety and regulated areas need qualified review.

## Policy versus guideline versus procedure
| Document | Says | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Policy | What must or must not happen | "Customer data must not be pasted into public AI tools." |
| Guideline | How to do something well (recommended) | "Write prompts without personal names where possible." |
| Procedure (SOP) | Steps to follow | "1. Open the approved AI tool. 2. ..." |

## When to use, and when not to
Use it to write new policies, rewrite unclear ones, create guidelines (style, brand, AI use, social media) and prepare policy summaries for staff.

Don't use it as legal advice; employment contracts, regulated policies and anything with legal effect should be reviewed by HR, legal or compliance professionals. For step-by-step processes, use `sops-process-docs`.

## Inputs
- The topic and why a policy is needed now.
- Existing policy, laws or standards that apply (to be confirmed by professionals).
- Who it applies to and any regional differences.
- Decisions already made by leadership.
- Approval and review process.

## Workflow

### Step 1. Define purpose and scope
Why the policy exists, who it covers and what it does not cover.

### Step 2. List the decisions
The actual rules leadership has decided. Where decisions are missing, list them as questions rather than inventing rules.

### Step 3. Write the rules
Numbered, short, using "must" for requirements and "should" for recommendations.

### Step 4. Add examples
Allowed and not allowed, or a table of common situations.

### Step 5. Exceptions and approvals
How to request an exception, who approves and how quickly.

### Step 6. Responsibilities and consequences
Who does what (employees, managers, owners) and what happens if the policy is not followed, in proportionate language.

### Step 7. Add a summary
Five to seven bullet points at the top for people who read nothing else.

### Step 8. Review and publish
Legal, HR or compliance review where needed; owner, version and review date; announce with the summary and where to ask questions.

## Policy template
```
Title: <policy name> | Owner: <role> | Version: <x> | Effective: <date> | Review: <date>
Summary: <5 to 7 bullets>
Purpose: <why this policy exists>
Scope: Applies to <who> | Does not cover <what>
Rules
1. You must ...
2. You must not ...
3. You should ...
Examples: <allowed and not allowed>
Exceptions: <how to request, who approves>
Responsibilities: <employees, managers, policy owner>
If the policy is not followed: <proportionate consequences>
Related documents: <links>
Questions: <contact>
Change log: <date, change>
```

## Example: AI use policy rules
```
1. Use only approved AI tools for work tasks (list: <tools>).
2. You must not paste customer personal data, passwords or confidential financial data into AI tools that are not approved for it.
3. You are responsible for checking AI output for accuracy before sharing it.
4. You should tell readers when content was largely written by AI, where that matters to them.
5. Ask <team> before using AI for decisions about people, such as hiring.
```

## Situation tables
| Situation | Allowed? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Taxi home after 9pm from the office | Yes | Up to \u00a330; keep the receipt |
| Client dinner | Yes | Up to \u00a360 per person; list attendees |
| Monitor for home office | Yes, once | Manager approval first |
| Alcohol without clients | No | |
Tables answer most questions faster than paragraphs and reduce requests for clarification.

## Writing rules clearly
| Unclear | Clear |
|---|---|
| Employees are expected to exercise appropriate judgement regarding expenditure. | You must get approval before spending more than \u00a3500. |
| Data should be handled in line with relevant regulations. | You must not email customer data outside the company. |
| Remote working may be permitted subject to agreement. | You can work remotely up to three days a week with your manager's agreement. |

## Announcing a policy
Share the summary, the effective date, what changed from the previous version, where to find the full policy and who to ask. Give people time to adjust before enforcement, and answer common questions in a short FAQ.

## Guidelines
Guidelines help people do things well rather than set rules. Keep them practical: principles, dos and don'ts, examples and templates. Brand, writing, social media and AI guidelines work best with many real examples and few abstract statements.

## Reviewing policies
Review each policy on its date, after relevant law changes, after incidents and when people repeatedly ask the same question. Archive old versions and keep a change log so people know what changed.

## Using an AI agent
The agent can turn leadership decisions into numbered rules, rewrite legal-style text in plain language, build situation tables, draft the summary and FAQ and list questions that need legal or HR review. It must not invent rules or state legal positions; missing decisions are listed as questions.

## Edge cases and judgement calls
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Legal requirements unclear | Mark for legal review; do not state legal positions as fact |
| Different rules by country | One core policy with country annexes |
| Policy conflicts with practice | Find out why; change the practice or the policy deliberately |
| Very long existing policy | Summary first; split into policy plus procedures |
| Sensitive topic (discipline, health) | HR review; respectful, neutral wording |
| Guideline rather than rule | Use "should" and examples; avoid "must" |

## Handoffs to related skills
- Procedures: `sops-process-docs`
- Plain language: `plain-english`
- Team writing standards: `team-style-guide`
- Staged writing: `writing-process`
- Email security rules: the Email and Inbox `email-security` skill

## Worked example
A company's 14-page expenses policy generated constant questions. The rewrite put a seven-bullet summary first, cut the rules to 12 numbered lines using "must" and "should", added a table of 10 common situations (taxis after 9pm, client meals, home office equipment), set a clear exception route with a two-day response time, and moved procedures to a linked SOP. Finance reviewed limits and HR reviewed consequences. Questions to finance fell sharply in the next quarter, and late expense claims dropped.

## Common mistakes
- Background before the rules.
- Legal jargon.
- No examples.
- Unclear scope or exception process.
- No owner or review date.

## Self-check before you answer
- Is there a summary and clear scope?
- Are rules numbered with must and should?
- Are examples and the exception route included?
- Is legal or HR review flagged where needed?

---
Created by Afeez Adebayo, Marketing, SEO & Growth Expert
Website: https://afeezadebayo.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/afeez-adebayo/
X: https://x.com/za_icon
Source: https://afeezadebayo.com/skills-md/productivity/workplace-writing/policies-guidelines/

Licence: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). You may copy, share and adapt this skill, including for commercial use, as long as you credit Afeez Adebayo and link to the source URL above. Keep this notice in any copy or adapted version.