Company policies perform a variety of necessary actions, including providing clear instruction on how your employees are expected to behave and laying out what is acceptable and unacceptable within your company. Employee policies help avoid misunderstandings and provide legal protection from harassment and unfair treatment of staff members.

Create employee manuals that meet not only legal standards like addressing sexual harassment but also address issues such as dress code, tardiness and time-off policies.

1. Locate employee manual software programs to create your company procedures manual.

2. Use a high-quality employee handbook template to get you started with company manuals.

3. Save time and money using web-based employee handbook software.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Purchase employee manual software

Look for software designed to help you create an employee handbook that is specific to your industry. Take advantage of free trial offers and discuss ongoing technical support and training before you make a final decision on which software program to purchase. Also ensure that any software you're considering is compatible with the programs you currently run.

I recommend: Policy Technology International prides itself on offering user-friendly policy-making software and is known as an industry leader in this area. TemplateZone offers software designed to help you create legal employee manuals to protect both you and your staff.

Take advantage of employee manual templates

Explore prefilled templates that allow you to customize or edit specific fields so you can customize a handbook to meet your professional needs. Templates provide you with the starting point and allow you to tweak the documents to fit your specific needs, saving you the time and money of creating a manual from scratch.

I recommend: Atlas Business Solutions offers editable templates that get you started with company policies basics that you can then tailor to your specific industry. Bizmanualz has a set of nine prewritten and fully editable Word documents to allow you to create the exact wording you want for your employee manuals.

Opt for web-based employee manuals

Save on the costs of printing and distribution by opting for web-based programs. Evaluate how your employees can access the completed manual and how updates would be communicated to you and to your staff.

I recommend: Innovative Data Solutions offers web-based software for you to create paperless company policy manuals that your employees access through your intranet. Thompson has a build-your-own company handbook process that allows you to send employees to the Internet to view it, saving you the time and cost of printing.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Make reviewing and signing of business manuals mandatory on a regular basis to make sure the policies are understood. This is a good way to keep everyone focused on professionalism and to provide your business with an additional layer of legal protection.

Company policies are useful business tools. Often compiled into employee handbooks, they detail rules for employees as well as your company’s mission and goals. Don’t be daunted by the thought of writing your company policy – numerous vendors can assist you in writing your company policies and procedures or can provide prewritten employee manuals or company policies and procedures handbooks.

Here are the top considerations for company policies and employee policies:

1. Create company policies and procedures, including employee policies, to set forth company regulations for everything from making personal phone calls at work to handling customer refunds.
2. Company policies and procedures are the best way to set forth rules and regulations and to outline disciplinary issues.
3. Make sure all company policies and procedures, as well as employee manuals, are legal and compliant with federal, state and local requirements.
4. Establish and enforce anti-discrimination and anti-harassment employee policies.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Save time with prewritten company policies and samples

Go to the pros for customizable pre-written company policies to fit your company's business mission, goals and employees. Most pre-written employee handbooks can be easily altered to suit your specific company policies.

I recommend: Bizmanualz provides pre-written employee manuals, HR policies and procedures and employee policies. Other solutions include Business Owner's Toolkit for a customizable smoking policy; this Sample Travel Policy; and a host of other employee policies at HR.BLR.com.

Choose company policy software to write employee policies

Company policy software can help you with a plethora of workplace issues: hiring, firing, benefits, employee privacy, performance appraisal systems, workplace dress codes and workplace behavior.

I recommend: Over 25,000 small businesses have used TemplateZone.com’s Office Policy Manual software, which features 50+ HR forms and more than 130 in-depth business and technology company policies, such as disaster recovery plans, military leave policy, blogging and IM usage policies, cell phone usage policies and more.

Insist on legally compliant employee manuals, policies and procedures

Your company policies must be compliant with the EEOC, Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Immigration Reform Acts, along with other related federal, state and local statutes. Choose company policies written by attorneys or HR experts to ensure legal compliance.

I recommend: Get a comprehensive template for employee manuals at SampleEmployeeHandbook.com, which covers more than 80 company policy topics as well as state-by-state compliance information for all 50 states. Protect your business with software from The Standard Legal Network that contains customizable employee manuals and HR legal forms.

Outsource writing of employee policies and company policies to HR experts

If there are particularly touchy issues at hand - or, if you're in an especially litigious industry - don't skimp on your company policy. Hire an HR expert to write your company policy.

I recommend: CheckPoint HR is a leading provider of human resources management solutions that allow you to build custom employee handbooks using a powerful online wizard that takes into account both federal and state requirements. Find more HR experts who can help write employee handbooks at Business.com.

Test-drive company policies before purchasing

Many company policies and procedures vendors offer free trials or let you sample a limited number of resources before purchasing their software or templates.

I recommend: Personnel Policy Service, Inc. gives you 30 days free to try out their Personnel Policy Manual. Also check out their free HR policy download center to download free company policies on rest breaks, sexual harassment, holidays, layoffs, recalls and more.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Avoid workplace disputes (which can lead to employee turnover, poor customer service and declining workplace productivity) by setting forth company policies in writing.
• •  Plan to review and update your company policies, including employee handbooks, every year to ensure they address all current policies.
• •  Be specific in company policies and employee policies so there is no room for misunderstanding.
• •  Give new employees a company policy manual, and ask them to sign a sheet once they've read through the company policies and procedures.
• •  Don't allow some employees special privileges while others are expected to obey all employee policies to the letter.

Before you get down to developing your company procedures manual, you need to understand what company policies basics actually are. Your employee policies need to cover general behavior like your dress code, tardy and absentee policy, telephone and Internet usage and email guidelines. Once you outline the basics, you can move on to company policies and procedures that handle legal concerns like sexual harassment.

Recognize the reasons for employment policies and the protection they provide to you and your staff members. Setting down clear and easy-to-understand guidelines allows you and your staff to agree on policies, procedures and behaviors that affect the quality of your work environment. Going beyond the basics and setting polices into place to handle legal issues protects you and your employees from potential litigation.

1. Educate yourself in basic HR policies such as vacation time, dress codes and standard work hours.

2. Find examples of Internet and email company policies.

3. Implement legal policies on delicate topics like sexual harassment and termination.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn the ins and outs of basic company policies and procedures

Take the time to cover the basics in your employee manual, such as how much vacation time to give employees, if your business needs a dress code and what your core business hours are. Spelling out each employee policy in detail -- even if it seems obvious to you -- can eliminate confusion in the long run.

I recommend: Check out ecouncil.org for tips on how to create appropriate employment policies regarding vacation days. EmployeeIssues.com encourages you to keep discrimination issues in mind when establishing the dress code part of business manuals.

Make sure company policy manuals include policies on Internet and email usage

Establishing company policies on email and Internet usage is imperative for any business. Make it very clear in your company manuals that the Internet and email is to be used for business purposes only, and outline the repercussions if the employee policy is abused.

I recommend: American Bar Association offers a helpful employee policy sample on Internet and email usage. Microsoft's Small Business Center provides advice on why it's so important to establish company policies and procedures regarding the Internet.

Carefully create employee policies on legal issues like sexual harassment

When company policies on dress code or vacation time are misunderstood by employees, your HR staff may be mildly inconvenienced. When a company procedures manual fails to properly address issues like sexual harassment, you company could be facing a lawsuit.

I recommend: Check out eHow for a helpful guide on creating a sexual harassment policy. EzineArticles.com suggests how a termination policy can affect the image of your company.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Make sure that employee manuals clearly spell out the consequences for violating policies and outline the procedures for reporting violations. Provide all workers with an employee manual either printed out or online for their personal reference.
• •  Some websites offer an employee manual template that you can download as a helpful first step to creating your employee policy handbook.

One of the reasons companies thrive is organized management at multiple levels. Successful HR managers agree that solving problems begins at the prevention stage. When you effectively communicate—in writing—to your employees the behavior guidelines they are required to follow while at work, you are not only helping to avoid potential conflicts but you could also be protecting yourself from unwanted litigation. Here is an overview of company policy key terms to get you started on learning the ins and outs of this expansive subject.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Smoking in the workplace

A 'smoking in the workplace policy' tells employees where in the company they may or may not smoke.

I recommend: Not only does Business Owner's Tool Kit explain the legal reasons behind the decision of most companies today to enact smoking in the workplace policies, it also provides real advice on points you should consider when starting such a policy in your company.

Telecommuting

As companies try to be more flexible in terms of employee schedules, many have enacted a telecommuting policy that states the conditions under which employees may work from home.

I recommend: At HR Village you can view a sample telecommuting policy. Find out about some common principles on telecommuting that you might want to include in your own policy.

Attendance policy

Though some employees may have a hard time believing it, companies across the board must have a well-defined attendance policy and let employees know that the hours they put in at work are under close scrutiny.

I recommend: Take a look at a sample attendance policy at Texas Workforce, especially the discussion of "good attendance habits."

Flex time policy

Many companies have recognized that the nine-to-five hours of the past are simply not possible or even not necessary for many employees today.

I recommend: Check out Womans Work for a comprehensive treatment of a flex time policy, including definition, eligibility, objectives and suggested flex time schedules.

Internet usage

Mostly to avoid costly litigation, companies today are framing Internet usage policies to let employees know when and if they are allowed access to the Internet and, if so, which websites are off- limits.

I recommend: Go straight to the source by reading the Internet usage policy discussion at the American Bar Association. Find out what the most common points employers make are as they draft these necessary policies.

Travel policy

When a company drafts a travel policy it explains how employees who must travel for their work are expected to handle the resulting expenses.

I recommend: Read Business & Legal Reports to learn about specific provisions you may want your travel policy to state. For example, consider whether you want to cover the cost of taxis and entertainment.