If your business feels like it relies too much on you—or a few “star employees”—it’s a sign you’re missing two critical tools – Performance Standards and a Playbook.
These two elements are the foundation of a business that runs smoothly, trains new staff quickly, and delivers consistent results. Most companies only have one (or neither). Here’s how they work—and why you need both.
Performance Standards – Defining “What Great Looks Like”
Performance Standards (PS) are outcome‑driven. They define the operational and service results you expect from a process or a role.
Think of them as the bar your team must clear. They focus on results, not steps, like:
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Delivering on time
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Maintaining quality and accuracy
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Completing work without rework
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Creating a great service experience (how phones are answered, how emails are written, or the “extras” that delight clients)
Good Performance Standards are measurable. Here’s an Accounts Payable (AP) example:
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Zero payments without a 3‑way match (PO, invoice, receipt)
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99% of vendor bills entered within 2 business days
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Payment runs Wednesdays only, early‑pay discounts captured if ≥1.0% effective annualized
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Exception rate <2% per month, all exceptions resolved in 5 business days
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Fraud controls: dual approval for any payment >$10k; vendor master changes segregated
A Performance Standard is not a motherhood statement; it is something measurable in physical reality. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it—and Performance Standards give you the yardstick for accountability.
Playbook – Making the Work Repeatable
If Performance Standards are the “what,” your Playbook is the “how.”
A Playbook is a step‑by‑step guide or checklist that ensures your team can consistently hit the standards—even when you’re not in the room.
Continuing with the AP example, a Playbook might include:
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Invoice intake: where they arrive, naming convention, and upload to Xero/HubDoc
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3‑way match SOP: screenshot‑rich walkthrough in ApprovalMax with edge‑case examples
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Payment‑run checklist: start‑to‑finish steps plus what to do if the bank file rejects
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Vendor setup process: template emails, required banking data, and sample remittance PDFs
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Payment method decision tree: when to use Plooto vs. wire vs. cheque, including FX handling
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Weekly reconciliation routine: report template, exception log, and sign‑off process
A strong Playbook turns tribal knowledge into documented knowledge, making it easy for any trained staffer to perform consistently—and for new hires to get up to speed fast. What is tribal knowledge? It is the stuff people keep in their heads on how they perform processes. The problem? When they leave, the knowledge leaves with them, and you are back at ground zero, with your replacement hire.
Why You Need Both
Businesses often get stuck because they only have one side of the system:
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Standards with no Playbook: You know the result you want, but everyone does it differently. Errors and inconsistency creep in.
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Playbook with no Standards: People follow steps, but you don’t know if the outcome meets expectations. You get activity, not results.
When you have both, you create a system that:
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Sets the bar (Performance Standards)
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Shows the way (Playbook)
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Makes results measurable and repeatable
This combination is what allows your business to scale without stress, protect quality, and remove dependency on any single person.
Take Action in Your Business
If you’re ready to stop firefighting and start scaling, here’s where to begin:
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Write 3‑5 clear Performance Standards for each critical process.
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Track performance weekly so everyone knows if the standard is met.
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Build a simple Playbook so any trained team member can hit the standard every time.
When you combine clear standards with a repeatable playbook, your business becomes trainable, scalable, and a whole lot easier to manage.
Thanks for reading…