Usage Policy

Usage Policy provides standards which guide the end-users in their training and ongoing usage of the software.  The degree of formality may vary between different organizations.

Below is a simple example for front line support staff, covering scenarios for receiving calls from either new or existing callers.  This document would likely be included in training or policy manuals, posted in agent workspaces, or available as a searchable, printable document within TeamHeadquarters.  Most importantly, this document becomes the learning objective for end-user training.

Scenarios

Virtually any business process can be covered by Usage Policy.  In many cases, it is not necessary to document a process because it is commonly understood, consistently practiced, and rarely an issue.  For example, a smaller organization with low turnover might not need a formal escalation process for customer complaints.  As they grow, it might be necessary to formalize the process with something like:

It is hard to imagine having a documented business process for every conceivable scenario that your organization will confront, and it is likely not necessary because most situations are handled in ways that are intuitively appropriate.  What is important is that you have a documented policy statement that can be expanded easily as situations arise that need to be clarified for the future.

Here is a list of potential events that might be addressed by usage policy:

Example: Management-ready

Here is a real example of a management-ready policy statement.

Methods of Documenting and Communicating Usage Policy

• TeamHeadquarters tickets, which can show the history of the policy and who received email notification of changes in the audit trail

• TeamHeadquarters files with version control and email notification of changes

• Multimedia demonstrations posted in TeamHeadquarters or Intranet content

• Intranet sites

• Printed policy documents

• Printed statements posted in workspaces, meeting rooms, etc.