Prompt details

Tested on

Claude Opus 5.5

Length

512 words · 3 fill-ins

Example input

[How the task is done]: Voice note transcript: "Ok so this is closing, for whoever's on close. Last seating's at 9:30, we stop taking walk-ins at 9:30 and the kitchen closes at ten, except Fridays and Saturdays it's 10:30 for the kitchen. Uh, first thing, actually before that, around 9:45 whoever's closing front of house starts rolling silverware, we need like 80 rolls for the next day, 120 on Friday for the weekend. Then the kitchen, the closing line cook breaks down the line, wraps everything, labels it with the date, and anything that's been out of temp more than four hours gets tossed, they know that. Filter the fryer oil Tuesday and Friday nights, change it if it's dark, Marco knows how. Then check the walk-in temp and write it on the log on the clipboard, it has to be 41 or below, if it's higher you call me or Jess, don't just leave. Oh and the dish machine gets drained and the screens cleaned every night. Floors, sweep and mop the kitchen, front of house sweeps the dining room, chairs up on the tables Tuesday and Friday for the deep mop. Cash, the shift lead counts the drawer, it starts at $200 in the morning so you leave $200 in the drawer and the rest goes in the deposit bag in the safe. If it's off by more than five bucks either way, recount with a second person and write it on the cash log with both initials. Card tips come off the POS report, cash tips split per the tip sheet. Then lights, the back door, make sure the walk-in door is closed, gas on the stove off, we leave the pilots on. Alarm, the code's 2580, don't text it to anybody. And never walk out to the car alone, two people leave together after close, especially the back lot. Oh, and trash and recycling go out to the dumpster before mopping, obviously, and the grease bin. Also turn the music and TVs off and the sign. And text me the sales number and anything that broke."

[Who will follow it and where]: New closing shift leads, usually promoted servers or line cooks, 18 to 25 years old, some closing for the first time. They read it on their phone or on a laminated sheet by the back office. They have keys and the POS manager login. The restaurant is a 70-seat neighborhood Italian place, open Tuesday to Sunday, owned by me; Jess is my general manager.

[Tools, forms and rules]: Toast POS (end-of-day sales report and tip report). Paper temperature log and cash log on the clipboard in the office. Manager book in the office desk drawer. The health inspector expects the temperature log filled in every day.

Example output

Closing Procedure: [Restaurant name]

Purpose: Close the restaurant safely and the same way every night. This keeps food safe, cash correct, the building locked and staff safe.

Scope: Applies to every closing shift, Tuesday to Sunday. It does not cover opening, or Mondays when the restaurant is closed.

Owner: [Owner name], Owner. Backup contact: Jess, General Manager.

Version: 1.0 | Effective: [date] | Next review: [date] | Approved by: [name]

---

Before you start

Roles on close:

Shift lead: runs the close, handles cash, does the final lock-up.
FOH closer: front of house closer.
Line cook: the closing line cook.
Marco: does the fryer oil on Tuesday and Friday.

Have ready:

Keys and the Toast POS manager login
Clipboard in the office with the temperature log and the cash log
Tip sheet [confirm: where the tip sheet is kept]
Deposit bag and access to the safe [confirm: who can open the safe, and where an authorised person keeps the combination]
Alarm code. It is not written here. Get it from the owner or Jess [confirm: where an authorised person keeps the alarm code]
Phone with the owner's and Jess's numbers saved [confirm: phone numbers to list here]
Manager book, in the office desk drawer [confirm: what the closer uses the manager book for]

---

Procedure

Phase 1: Wind down (9:30 PM onward)

1. Shift lead: Seat the last table at 9:30 PM. Stop taking walk-ins at 9:30 PM.

2. FOH closer: Start rolling silverware at 9:45 PM.

3. FOH closer: Finish rolling silverware. Done means 80 rolls, or 120 rolls on Friday for the weekend. [confirm: count needed on Saturday and Sunday]

4. Line cook: Close the kitchen at 10:00 PM. On Friday and Saturday, close it at 10:30 PM.

Phase 2: Kitchen breakdown

Warning: Food out of temperature for more than four hours makes people sick. Never wrap and keep it.

5. Line cook: Throw out any food that has been out of temperature for more than four hours.

6. Line cook: Break down the line.

7. Line cook: Wrap every item you are keeping.

8. Line cook: Label every wrapped item with today's date.

9. Marco (Tuesday and Friday only): Filter the fryer oil. [confirm: who does this if Marco is not working; cooling time before filtering]

10. Marco (Tuesday and Friday only): Change the fryer oil if it is dark. [confirm: how to judge "dark"]

Claude Opus 5.5

Write an SOP – SOP writing prompt for ChatGPT and Claude

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Claude Opus 5.5

This prompt turns how you do a task into a standard operating procedure. Paste your notes or a voice-note transcript; you get ordered steps by role, decision rules, checks, a printable checklist and questions.

What you get

Every step in the order it really happens, each with one role and a clear finish line
Your ifs, unlesses and exceptions turned into a decision table with who to contact
Quality checks a manager can verify and a one-page checklist to print
Questions for you wherever your notes were unclear, instead of guesses

How to use it

1
Talk it through
Record yourself describing the task, or doing it, and paste the transcript. Say the exceptions and what goes wrong, not only the normal run.
2
Answer its questions
Read the questions at the end, answer them in one message, and ask for the SOP again with your answers filled in.
3
Test it on someone new
Have a new person follow the checklist once while you watch. Every place they hesitate is a step to rewrite.

Better results

Dictate the task while you do it. Voice notes catch the small steps people skip when they write it down.
Say who will read it and where, such as on a phone in the kitchen. The step length and wording follow the reader.
For computer tasks, record the clicks with a tool such as Scribe or Tango and paste the steps in, so the SOP adds the decisions and checks.

Questions

Can ChatGPT write an SOP?

Yes, ChatGPT or Claude can write a standard operating procedure from your notes or a voice-note transcript. It is only as complete as what you give it, so include the exceptions and limits. This prompt asks questions where your notes are unclear instead of inventing steps.

What should an SOP include?

An SOP should include its purpose and scope, an owner, numbered steps with who does each one, decision points for exceptions, warnings before risky steps, quality checks and a short checklist. A version and review date keep it current.

How do I turn a process into an SOP?

Turn a process into an SOP by recording how the task is done today, exceptions included, then making each action one numbered step with a role. Put every if and unless in a decision table and test the result on someone new. This prompt does the conversion.

What is the best AI SOP generator?

For tasks you can describe, any capable chat assistant with a good prompt works well. For computer tasks, tools such as Scribe, Tango and Glitter capture each click with screenshots. Many teams use both: capture the clicks, then add decisions and checks with a prompt.

Updated 8 Nov 2026