When documenting our Core Processes using the 20/80 Rule, how detailed should the high-level steps actually be so that a buyer or prospective Integrator can understand our operations without drowning in technical manual fluff?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

The EOS® approach to process documentation relies on the 20/80 Rule: document the 20 percent of the steps that produce 80 percent of the results. Traditional corporate standard operating procedures fail because they run fifty pages long, bury the essential steps, and sit unread on a digital drive.

To build an exit-ready Core Process document that an acquirer or a new Integrator can actually use, target high-level clarity over micro-management. A Core Process should typically take between two and five pages per process, structured as a clean checklist or sequential flowchart.

Focus strictly on the handoffs, quality gates, and non-negotiables that define how your business creates value. For example, in an HR process, you do not document how to click buttons inside your payroll software. Software interfaces change constantly. Instead, document the exact checklist: run background check, verify references using the People Analyzer®, send welcome packet within 48 hours of signature, and conduct day-one cultural onboarding. The tactical software instructions can live in job training aids, but the Core Process captures the overarching standard.

Once documented, the process must be Followed by All (FBA). That means training your frontline, measuring compliance on your weekly Scorecard, and using quarterly reviews to verify that everyone executes the same basic playbook. A buyer does not want to buy an encyclopedia of theoretical rules; they want clean, operational proof that your business runs on a repeatable system that survives ownership transitions.