We want to document our core processes using AI to quickly generate our standard operating procedures, but our actual daily workflows are disorganized and inconsistent across our offices. How do we avoid using AI to automate and scale a broken process?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Documenting a broken process with AI is a fast track to scaling chaos. AI is highly efficient at generating professional-sounding manuals, but it cannot fix a fractured workflow. It will simply create beautiful documentation for a broken way of working.

In EOS, we use the 3-Step Process Documenter approach. First, you must identify your hand-off points and simplify the workflow manually before you write down a single word. Your leadership team must agree on the major steps of each core process, keeping it at a high level, eighty percent of the results with twenty percent of the detail.

Do not ask AI to invent your workflow. Instead, have the person who actually runs the seat record a short video or write a bulleted list of how they successfully perform the task today. You can then use AI to clean up the transcription, organize the formatting, and make the steps readable.

The AI's role is strictly as an editor and formatter, not as the designer of your operations. Once the draft is generated, the seat owner must physically test the instructions to ensure they are accurate. If the output is too long or contains steps your team does not actually do, cut it down. Your core processes must remain simple, practical, and fully owned by your humans.