The word ‘Standard Operating Procedure’ in short the SOP, possibly originated in military or healthcare domains to set up best practices in performing a specific function. SOP is a written document that has step-by-step instructions to guide the performer of a process or a function or an activity. The function of SOP is not just to teach someone how to do a work or to impart a skill, but also to imbibe best practices that guarantees some sort of standardization in performing a work in a most optimal manner.
For instance, take a SOP ‘Operating a Car’. This SOP will not teach you how to drive a car, but it does teach you the best practices that should be followed while operating a car like wearing a seat belt, never moving the car while the passengers are within 5 m radius etc.
Need for Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in Insurance in India :
- Brings clarity and transparency on the way organizations and its various departments/processes function
- Provides an opportunity to review the internal control mechanism and also identify gaps in internal controls.
- Smoothens the progress of building up strong Information Technology (IT) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems
- Opportunity for benchmarking against good prevailing practices in the industry.
- Standardisation of all systems and procedures, documentation, MIS, etc. across the entire organization.
- Enables valuable corporate governance practices to enhance management’s contribution
- Grants an effective tool for management control.
How AdWISE Assure can help
AdWISE Assure review its clients’ operations with a overall view to understand their unique processes, controls processes , identify the gaps and suggest personalised solutions to formalize the processes and related controls.
The usual contents of AdWISE Assure SOP Manual would cover the following:
- Overview and synopsis of business process cycle
- Organization structure of every functioning department
- Overview and control of roles and functions of each department
- Internal and external policies and the best ways to be adopted by the department
- Processes and internal control modus operandi’s to be followed by various departments
- Authorization procedures for different processes, transactions and documents.
- MIS requirements
- Basic statutory compliance checklist
- Forms and paper work to be used by the departments.