When what the company knows lives in a single head

In almost every small company there's one person who knows it all: the real prices, the exceptions, which client doesn't pay within thirty days, and how to phrase that paragraph that always convinces. As long as that person is around, there's no problem. The problem is that person also wants to go on holiday.

Why manuals fail

The fifty-page document gets written once, filed away, and is out of date within two months. It doesn't fail for lack of good intentions: it fails because documenting isn't connected to working.

Document what actually gets used

• Exactly what you sell and on what terms.
• The twenty questions you always get asked, with the good answer.
• The criteria you use to accept or turn down a job.
• Your real proposal templates, with the current version.
• What you never say to a customer, and why.

The new-hire test

If someone starts tomorrow, how long would it take them to answer a routine enquiry well? That number is the real measure of your documented knowledge — and of your risk.

Knowledge that only lives in one head isn't a company asset: it's a dependency.