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Standard operating procedure

Employee Onboarding

Northwind Studio

Company	Northwind Studio	SOP ID	SOP-HR-EO-01
Version	1.0	Department	People and HR
Owner	People Lead	Approved by	Hiring Manager
Effective date	2026-10-01	Review	Every 12 months, or after new hire survey scores fall below target for a quarter

1. Purpose

To give every new employee a consistent, well-organised start with the equipment, access, knowledge and relationships they need. Good onboarding shortens time to productivity and reduces early attrition.

2. Scope

Covers all new employees from signed contract to the end of their first 90 days. It does not cover contractors, internal transfers or the formal probation decision, which has its own SOP.

3. Definitions

Term	Meaning
Preboarding	Activities between contract signature and day one.
Onboarding buddy	A peer, not the manager, who helps the new hire with informal questions in the first weeks.
30-60-90 plan	A written plan of goals and learning for the first three months.
Access provisioning	Creating accounts and permissions the role needs, following least privilege.

4. Roles and responsibilities

Role	Responsibilities
People Lead	Owns the onboarding checklist, HR paperwork and induction sessions.
Hiring Manager	Writes the 30-60-90 plan, sets first tasks and holds weekly check-ins.
IT Administrator	Provides equipment and system access before day one.
Onboarding Buddy	Supports the new hire socially and with day-to-day questions.
New Hire	Completes required forms, training and acknowledgements on time.

5. Prerequisites, tools and materials

Signed contract and completed pre-employment checks
Onboarding checklist in [HRIS tool]
Role access matrix
Equipment stock or supplier order lead time
Employee handbook and mandatory policies

6. Procedure

#	Step and how	Owner
6.1	Start the checklist People Lead opens the onboarding checklist in [HRIS tool] at least 10 business days before the start date and assigns tasks to each owner.	People Lead
6.2	Order equipment and access IT Administrator orders the laptop and peripherals and creates accounts per the role access matrix, ready 2 business days before day one.	IT Administrator
6.3	Send the welcome pack People Lead emails the new hire a week before start with day-one time, location or video link, what to bring, first-week agenda and payroll forms.	People Lead
6.4	Prepare the 30-60-90 plan Hiring Manager writes the plan with clear outcomes for each period and lines up a meaningful first task achievable in week one.	Hiring Manager
6.5	Assign a buddy Hiring Manager picks a buddy from a different reporting line where possible and briefs them on their role.	Hiring Manager
6.6	Deliver day one People Lead runs the welcome session covering company story, values, policies and tools. Hiring Manager meets the new hire for at least 1 hour the same day.	People Lead
6.7	Complete mandatory items New Hire completes tax and bank forms, policy acknowledgements and mandatory training such as security awareness within the first 5 business days.	New Hire
6.8	Schedule introductions Hiring Manager books introductions with key colleagues and cross-functional partners across the first 2 weeks.	Hiring Manager
6.9	Hold weekly check-ins Hiring Manager holds a 30-minute check-in every week for the first 6 weeks, reviewing progress against the plan and any blockers.	Hiring Manager
6.10	Run a 30-day pulse People Lead sends a short survey at day 30 on equipment, clarity of role and support, and follows up on any score below 3 out of 5.	People Lead
6.11	Review at 90 days Hiring Manager reviews the 30-60-90 outcomes with the New Hire and records a summary, feeding into the probation review.	Hiring Manager
6.12	Close the checklist People Lead confirms all tasks are complete and closes the checklist, logging any onboarding improvements raised.	People Lead

7. Quality checks and controls

Equipment and access ready before day one
All policy acknowledgements recorded within 5 business days
Access granted matches the role access matrix, no extra privileges
30-60-90 plan shared by end of day one
Payroll details captured before first pay run cut-off

8. Measures of success (KPIs)

Measure	Target
Day-one readiness	95% of hires have working equipment and access on day one
New hire 30-day survey score	4 out of 5 or above
90-day retention	At least [95]%
Mandatory training completion in week one	100%

9. Risks and controls

Risk	Control or mitigation
Excess access granted	Role access matrix and manager approval for any exception.
Poor first impression causing early exit	Checklist with lead times and 30-day pulse.
Missed first payroll	Payroll forms in welcome pack and cut-off tracking.
Compliance training skipped	System tracking with reminders and manager escalation at day 7.

10. Related documents

Job Offer and Pre-employment Checks
Probation Review
Training and Development
IT Access Management Policy

11. Revision history

Version	Date	Change	By
1.0	2026-10-01	First issue	People Lead

	Name	Signature	Date
Prepared by	A. Pandey
Approved by	Hiring Manager

Standard operating procedure

Refunds and Returns

Northwind Studio

Company	Northwind Studio	SOP ID	SOP-CS-RR-01
Version	1.0	Department	Customer support and success
Owner	Support Agent	Approved by	Support Lead
Effective date	2026-10-01	Review	Every 12 months, or after a policy or pricing change

1. Purpose

To process refunds and returns quickly and fairly while protecting [Company] from fraud and errors. It makes decisions consistent with the published refund policy.

2. Scope

Covers refunds for subscriptions and services and returns of physical goods requested by customers. It does not cover chargebacks already raised with a card issuer, which go to Finance, or supplier returns.

3. Definitions

Term	Meaning
RMA	Return merchandise authorisation number issued before goods are sent back.
Goodwill refund	A refund outside policy approved as an exception.
Pro-rata refund	Refund for the unused part of a subscription period.

4. Roles and responsibilities

Role	Responsibilities
Support Agent	Receives requests, checks eligibility and processes refunds within their limit.
Support Lead	Approves refunds above the agent limit and goodwill exceptions.
Finance	Approves refunds above [finance limit], reconciles and handles chargebacks.
Warehouse Operative	Receives, inspects and restocks returned goods.

5. Prerequisites, tools and materials

Published refund and returns policy
Access to [billing or payment system] with refund permissions by limit
Return label or RMA process
Refund log

6. Procedure

#	Step and how	Owner
6.1	Log the request Record order or invoice number, reason code and requested amount in the ticket.	Support Agent
6.2	Check eligibility Check the request against policy: time window, usage, condition of goods and previous refunds on the account.	Support Agent
6.3	Try to resolve first Where the cause is a fixable issue, offer a fix or replacement, but never block a refund the customer is entitled to under policy or law.	Support Agent
6.4	Get approval by limit Agents approve up to [agent limit], Support Lead up to [lead limit], Finance above that. Goodwill exceptions always need Support Lead approval.	Support Lead
6.5	Issue RMA for physical goods Send the RMA number, return address and label with packing instructions within 1 business day.	Support Agent
6.6	Inspect returned goods Inspect within 2 business days of receipt, record condition and photos, and restock, refurbish or write off.	Warehouse Operative
6.7	Process the refund Refund to the original payment method within [5] business days of approval or receipt of goods.	Support Agent
6.8	Confirm to customer Send confirmation with amount, method and expected bank timing, and close the ticket with a reason code.	Support Agent
6.9	Reconcile monthly Match refunds in the payment system to the refund log and accounting records and investigate differences.	Finance
6.10	Review reasons Monthly, report refund volume and top reasons to product and operations for root-cause fixes.	Support Lead

7. Quality checks and controls

Every refund above agent limit has recorded approval
Refunds go only to the original payment method
Returned goods inspected before refund where policy requires
Monthly reconciliation signed off

8. Measures of success (KPIs)

Measure	Target
Refund processing time	95% within 5 business days of approval
Refund rate	Below [x]% of revenue
Reconciliation errors	Zero unexplained differences
Chargeback rate	Below [0.5]% of transactions

9. Risks and controls

Risk	Control or mitigation
Refund fraud or abuse	Account history check and approval limits
Refund to wrong account	Original payment method only and no manual bank details by email
Non-compliance with consumer law	Policy aligned with local consumer rights; check local law

10. Related documents

Refund and Returns Policy
Customer Complaint Handling
Accounts Receivable and Credit Notes
Chargeback Handling

11. Revision history

Version	Date	Change	By
1.0	2026-10-01	First issue	Support Agent

	Name	Signature	Date
Prepared by	A. Pandey
Approved by	Support Lead

Standard operating procedure

Security Incident Response

Northwind Studio

Company	Northwind Studio	SOP ID	SOP-IT-SIR-01
Version	1.0	Department	IT and security
Owner	Incident Lead	Approved by	IT Administrator
Effective date	2026-10-01	Review	Every 12 months, after every SEV1 incident, or after an annual tabletop exercise

1. Purpose

To limit the damage and recovery time of security incidents such as account compromise, malware or unauthorised access. It sets out who leads, how decisions are made and how evidence is preserved.

2. Scope

Covers suspected or confirmed security incidents affecting company systems, devices, accounts or data, including at suppliers that hold company data. It does not cover production outages without a security cause, which follow the Production Incident and On-call SOP.

3. Definitions

Term	Meaning
Security incident	An event that threatens the confidentiality, integrity or availability of systems or data.
Incident Lead	The person with authority to direct the response until closure.
Containment	Actions that stop an incident spreading, such as isolating a device or disabling an account.
Severity	SEV1 critical (active attack or data exposure), SEV2 high, SEV3 contained or low impact.

4. Roles and responsibilities

Role	Responsibilities
Incident Lead	Declares severity, directs actions and approves closure.
IT Administrator	Performs containment, evidence collection and recovery actions.
Communications Owner	Handles internal updates and any customer or partner messages.
Executive Sponsor	Approves major decisions such as shutting systems or engaging outside help.
Data Protection Lead	Assesses whether personal data is involved and triggers breach notification.

5. Prerequisites, tools and materials

Incident contact list with out-of-hours numbers
Incident log template and dedicated chat channel
Contracts or contacts for external forensic support and cyber insurer
Admin access to IdP, endpoint management and logging tools

6. Procedure

#	Step and how	Owner
6.1	Report and log Anyone who suspects an incident reports it to [security email or channel] immediately. The first responder opens an incident log with time, reporter and what was seen.	IT Administrator
6.2	Triage and assign severity Within 30 minutes, assess scope and assign SEV1 to SEV3. SEV1 incidents page the Incident Lead and Executive Sponsor at any hour.	Incident Lead
6.3	Open the response channel Create a private incident channel and bridge, invite only those needed and record all decisions with timestamps in the log.	Incident Lead
6.4	Contain the threat Isolate affected devices from the network, disable compromised accounts, revoke sessions and tokens and block malicious domains. For SEV1, aim to contain within 4 hours.	IT Administrator
6.5	Preserve evidence Before wiping anything, export relevant logs, take disk or memory images where feasible and record hashes. Keep evidence in restricted storage.	IT Administrator
6.6	Assess data impact Determine whether personal or confidential data was accessed or exfiltrated. If personal data may be involved, start the Personal Data Breach Notification SOP immediately.	Data Protection Lead
6.7	Decide on outside help For SEV1 or where in-house skills are insufficient, the Executive Sponsor decides within 4 hours whether to engage forensic responders and notify the cyber insurer.	Executive Sponsor
6.8	Eradicate the cause Remove malware, close the exploited weakness, patch systems and reset all credentials that may be exposed.	IT Administrator
6.9	Recover services Restore from clean backups where needed, monitor closely for 72 hours for signs of return and confirm normal operation with system owners.	IT Administrator
6.10	Communicate Send internal updates at least every 4 hours for SEV1 and daily for SEV2. Customer or partner messages are approved by the Incident Lead and Executive Sponsor before sending.	Communications Owner
6.11	Close and review Close the incident when contained, eradicated and recovered. Hold a blameless review within 10 business days and track actions to completion.	Incident Lead

7. Quality checks and controls

Incident log has timestamps for detection, containment and recovery
Evidence preserved before systems are rebuilt
Data protection assessment recorded for every incident
Post-incident actions have owners and due dates

8. Measures of success (KPIs)

Measure	Target
Time to triage	Within 30 minutes for 95% of reports
Time to contain SEV1	Within 4 hours
Review completion	100% of SEV1 and SEV2 reviewed within 10 business days
Repeat incidents from same cause	Zero within 12 months

9. Risks and controls

Risk	Control or mitigation
Evidence destroyed during cleanup	Mandatory evidence step before eradication
Attacker monitoring company chat or email	Use an out-of-band channel for SEV1 incidents
Regulatory deadlines missed	Early involvement of the Data Protection Lead
Confusion over who is in charge	Single named Incident Lead per incident

10. Related documents

Personal Data Breach Notification
Phishing Report Handling
Data Backup and Restore Testing
Blameless Post-mortem
Information Security Policy

11. Revision history

Version	Date	Change	By
1.0	2026-10-01	First issue	Incident Lead

	Name	Signature	Date
Prepared by	A. Pandey
Approved by	IT Administrator

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HREmployee OnboardingPrepares, welcomes and integrates new hires so they are equipped, compliant and productive by day 90.HRRecruitment and Job RequisitionTurns an approved hiring need into a budgeted, well-defined job requisition and a live job advert.SupportRefunds and ReturnsHandles refund and return requests fairly and consistently with clear eligibility checks and approval limits.FinanceCustomer Invoicing and BillingEnsures every billable sale is invoiced accurately, on time and in the right format so cash arrives when expected.FinanceMonth-end CloseCloses the books within a set number of working days with reconciled balances and reliable management accounts.ITSecurity Incident ResponseDetects, contains, investigates and recovers from security incidents in a controlled way, with clear severity levels and communication.ProductProduct ReleaseMoves a tested product version into production in a controlled, communicated way with a clear go or no-go decision.SalesLead QualificationScores and qualifies inbound and outbound leads consistently so sales time goes to buyers who fit and are ready.OperationsPurchase Requests and Purchase OrdersTurns internal buying needs into approved purchase orders so spend is authorised, budgeted and traceable before suppliers deliver.RetailStore OpeningThe store opens on time, safe, clean, stocked and with a verified till float, every trading day.MarketingSocial Media Posting and ModerationKeeps company social channels active, on-brand and safe, with clear rules for replies, moderation and escalation.ProjectsProject KickoffEvery project starts with agreed objectives, scope, roles, plan and governance, documented in a charter.

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What every SOP includes.

One proven structure, so your procedures look and read the same across the company.

01Document controlID, version, owner, approver, effective and review dates.
02Purpose and scopeWhy it exists, who it covers and what it does not.
03DefinitionsThe terms a new starter might not know.
04Roles and responsibilitiesWho does what, so every step has an owner.
05PrerequisitesAccess, tools, forms and training needed first.
06ProcedureNumbered steps, each with an owner, timing and limits.
07Quality checksThe control points that catch mistakes.
08KPIsHow you know the process is working.
09Risks and controlsWhat can go wrong and what stops it.
10Related documentsForms, policies and linked SOPs.
11Revision history and sign-offEvery change, and who approved it.

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A standard operating procedure is a written, step-by-step description of how a task is done in your business, who does each step and how you check it was done right. It lets anyone trained on it get the same result every time.

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