Operations template
A board for writing the warehouse's routines and getting them used: map the flow of goods, draft each routine in order, have the site's safety owner approve the drafts, then version them, brief every shift and review the errors monthly.
No account and no email needed. Opens in Excel or Google Sheets.
Fifteen tasks across six stages, each with a completion criterion and its own checklist, plus a suggested day. The routines follow the goods rather than the org chart, and the release stage exists so no shift is working from an unapproved draft.
Warehouse routines get written once, usually after an incident, and then drift. Each shift develops its own way of doing putaway, the returns process is whatever the person on the desk decides, and stock adjustments happen without anyone recording who authorised them.
What that looks like
A warehouse or operations manager who wants written routines for goods in, storage, picking, dispatch, returns and stock counts.
Group is the stage of the SOP set: scope and approval, goods in, storage and picking, dispatch and returns, counts and adjustments, release and review. Status and priority already use the product's own fixed values, so they map without edits.
Download the CSV
It opens in Excel or Google Sheets. Edit the tasks first if you like, or import it as it is.
Create a board in TaskSiddhi
Give it a name, such as the week, the project or the client.
Open the spreadsheet import
Upload the CSV. Columns are matched automatically; map Group, Done when and Checklist to a text column or to custom fields.
Preview, then import
Check the rows before anything is written, then import.
Make it yours
Work the stages in order: the routines reference each other, so drafting dispatch before goods in creates gaps. Brief every shift, not just the one you are on.
All fifteen tasks, with their completion criteria and checklists. Owner and due date are left blank on purpose.
15 tasks in 6 groups, 57 checklist items
Draw receiving, putaway, picking, packing, dispatch and returns as one simple flow, and mark each point where responsibility passes from one person or team to another.
Done when
A one-page flow shows every stage from receiving to dispatch and returns, with each handover point marked and an owner role named for it.
Checklist0 of 3 ticked
List the routines that happen every day or cause the most errors, choose the first few to draft, and name an owner role for each. Versions and dates are set later, after approval.
Done when
A ranked list exists with a reason for each choice and an owner role per routine, and the document identifier for each routine's draft is recorded once it exists.
Checklist0 of 3 ticked
List what is checked on arrival, such as quantity, condition and labels against the order or notice, using the warehouse's own standard for acceptable condition, and name where results are recorded.
Done when
The draft routine lists the quantity, condition and label checks, states the warehouse's own acceptance standard and where results are recorded, and its document identifier is recorded on the task.
Checklist0 of 5 ticked
Set a marked hold area, who decides what happens to held goods, and how and when the supplier is told and where the report date and reference are recorded.
Done when
The draft routine identifies the hold location, the decision owner, when a supplier is contacted, and where report dates and references are recorded.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
State where each type of stock goes, how locations are named, who may assign a location, and that the stock record is updated when the goods are placed.
Done when
The draft rules cover where each stock type goes, the location naming scheme and who assigns locations, state that the stock record is updated at placement, and have a recorded document identifier.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Describe how orders are picked and packed, and add one accuracy check before a parcel or pallet is sealed, using the method the warehouse has chosen.
Done when
The draft steps cover picking and packing and name an accuracy check on the warehouse's chosen method before sealing, with a recorded document identifier.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
List the checks made before equipment is used and where a fault is reported. Who may operate powered equipment follows the site's own procedure and local requirements, held by a responsible person.
Done when
The draft lists the pre-use checks and a fault-reporting route, and names a responsible person who holds the authorised-operator list under the site's own procedure; the list itself is not copied onto the board.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Specify the check of the load against the dispatch note, who records the carrier and collection time, and where that record is kept; driver personal details stay out of the board.
Done when
The draft routine specifies the load-to-dispatch-note check, who records carrier and collection time, and where that record is kept, and states that driver details stay in the warehouse's own system.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Define who receives returned goods, how they are held and inspected, who decides whether they are restocked, reworked or scrapped, and how that decision is recorded.
Done when
The draft routine names who receives, holds, inspects and decides, lists the allowed outcomes and where decisions are recorded, and states that returned goods remain out of available stock until an authorised disposition is recorded, subject to the site's system and rules.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Choose which stock is counted and how often, who counts, and who investigates and signs off any difference between the count and the stock record.
Done when
The draft plan names the stock, the frequency, the counter role and the role that investigates and signs off differences, with a recorded document identifier.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
State that any change to a stock record needs a written reason and a named approver, list who may approve each size of adjustment as the warehouse decides, and say where the audit trail is kept.
Done when
The draft rule requires a reason and an approver for every adjustment, documents approval roles, any required separation between counting, deciding and approving, and where the adjustment audit trail is retained.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Send the applicable draft routines to the site's designated safety owner and record their approval or required changes before any routine involving manual handling, racking or powered equipment is released for use.
Done when
The site's designated safety owner has reviewed the applicable draft routines and recorded approval or required changes before those routines are released for use.
Checklist0 of 3 ticked
After approval, record for each routine its document identifier, owner, approver, version and approval date, and set the effective date only then.
Done when
Each approved routine has a link or identifier, owner, approver, version and approval date recorded, and its effective date is set after the approval date; no stock records are copied onto the board.
Checklist0 of 3 ticked
Walk each shift through each approved routine, record which routines and which versions each shift has covered, and release a routine for use only after its briefings are done.
Done when
A dated record shows which approved routines and versions each shift has covered, and each routine is released only after its briefings are recorded; the record holds role names and completion status, not personal records.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Use the discrepancy and pick-error figures the warehouse's own system provides, note where people departed from a routine, and record each justified change with an owner and due date, or a reason for no change.
Done when
A dated sign-off records that a month of figures was reviewed, each justified change has an owner and due date or a no-change reason is recorded, and the next review date is set.
Checklist0 of 4 ticked
Open a task to see what counts as finished and its checklist. Ticks here are just to try it out and are not saved.
The same rows as a CSV. Columns in the file: Task, Group, Status, Priority, Owner, Due date, Suggested day, Done when, Checklist, Notes.
Download warehouse sop (CSV)The measured demand behind this template, and what it does not prove. We publish it so the page cannot be mistaken for a forecast.
| Keyword | India | US | UK | UAE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| warehouse sop(target) | 210 | 110 | 30 | 20 |
A warehouse or operations manager looking for written routines rather than software. India carries most of the measured volume for this phrasing, which is unusual in this set and worth watching.
What we hold this page to
Moderate demand, intent verified
A limited US search snapshot for the target term noted Mecalux, MaintainX, GoAudits, ShipBob and Sphere WMS, plus an aid-agency document and a social post. Positions and pages were not retained.
It routes them, it does not define them. The board requires the site's designated safety owner to review and approve the drafts before release, but what those requirements are depends on your site, your equipment and your jurisdiction, and has to come from a qualified person.
Because the common failure is two versions in circulation at once, with each shift following whichever is nearer. A version number and an effective date make "which one is current" answerable without asking anyone.
Yes. The stages are the flow of goods, which is the same in a stockroom at smaller scale. Drop the tasks that do not apply and keep the approval and briefing stages, which are the ones that make the rest stick.
Counts and adjustments are their own stage, with the adjustment authority written down. After setup, make each count a dated or recurring task so it is a record of that count rather than one task that reopens forever.
No. The board holds the routines and whether they were followed. Stock quantities belong in whatever system actually holds your inventory, where they can be reconciled against a count.
See reportingImport the template, assign owners and see what is overdue at a glance. Free, with no paid plan.
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