The Must-Have Processes for Small Businesses With 50–200 Employees

Why Processes Matter as Your Business Grows 

When your company is under 20 employees, you can often get away with informal communication and ad-hoc ways of working. But once you cross the 50–200 employee range, growth exposes cracks: 

• Inconsistencies in how tasks are handled. 

• Repeated mistakes due to lack of documentation. 

• Slower onboarding for new employees. 

• Leadership bottlenecks as managers answer the same questions again and again. 

The solution? Defined and documented processes. 

With strong processes in place, your business can scale sustainably while ensuring clarity, efficiency, and accountability. 

The Must-Have Processes for Small Businesses (50–200 Employees) 

1. Human Resources (HR) Processes 

• Recruitment & hiring workflow 

• Employee onboarding & training 

• Performance management & reviews 

• Offboarding & exit procedures 

2. Finance & Administration Processes 

• Invoicing & accounts receivable 

• Payroll & benefits management 

• Expense approvals & reimbursements 

• Budgeting and financial reporting 

3. Sales Processes 

• Lead qualification & handover 

• Sales pipeline management 

• Proposal, quoting, and contracting 

• Client onboarding 

4. Marketing Processes 

• Campaign planning & execution 

• Content creation & approval workflows 

• Social media scheduling & monitoring 

• Tracking and reporting ROI 

5. Operations & Service Delivery Processes 

• Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for service delivery 

• Quality assurance checks 

• Project management workflows 

• Customer support & escalation handling 

6. IT & Security Processes 

• Data access & permissions management 

• Backup and disaster recovery protocols 

• Cybersecurity awareness & response 

• Software procurement & integration requests 

7. Compliance & Legal Processes 

• Document retention policies 

• Industry-specific compliance workflows (ISO, GDPR, HIPAA, etc.) 

• Contract management 

How to Document These Processes Effectively 

To avoid “dusty manuals no one reads,” processes should be: 

• Mapped visually with BPMN diagrams for clarity. 

• Backed by SOPs that outline step-by-step actions. 

• Accessible in a central system (knowledge base or project management tool). 

• Owned and updated by responsible team members. 

📌 Pro tip: Use your project management tool (like monday.com, Asana, or ClickUp) to integrate process documentation directly into workflows. 

Final Thoughts 

For small businesses in the 50–200 employee range, processes are no longer optional—they’re the backbone of scaling. 

By documenting HR, finance, sales, marketing, operations, IT, and compliance processes, you’ll reduce chaos, improve accountability, and free leadership to focus on growth rather than firefighting. 

Action Step 

We know setting up processes can feel like a lot. But as a founder or operations professional, you don’t have to worry—we’ll handle the heavy lifting for you.