Browse the docs
Worked example
Publish an SOP with a sign-off record
Turn a recorded procedure into a controlled document: document number, purpose and scope, an approver’s sign-off and a review date.
- Plan
- Pro
- Reading time
- 2 min read
- Checked against Thoth for Windows on
- October 23, 2026
The situation
Pinecrest’s insurer wants a written procedure for raising a purchase order, with a document number, an owner, and proof that a manager approved this version.
What you end up with: SOP-014 “Raise a purchase order”, revision 1.0, as a PDF with document control, purpose, scope, steps, revision history and the approver’s name and date, and a reminder to review it in a year.
- For
- Operations and compliance
- Takes about
- 1 hour, plus the reviewer’s time
Draft the procedure#
- 1
Record and clean it
Record the purchase-order task with sample data, then tidy the titles and add the warnings people need, such as
Orders over $5,000 need a second approver.See Edit a guide. - 2
Fill in the document info
Choose Export → PDF, then Customize design and document info… and open Document info. Set the document number
SOP-014, revision1.0, department, owner and approver, then write the Purpose, Scope and Responsibilities.Document info holds the details that make a guide a controlled document. - 3
Choose the Classic SOP design
It prints the number and revision in the header, the effective date in the footer, and the sections in order: Purpose, Scope, Responsibilities, Definitions, Prerequisites, Contents, Steps, Revision history and Approval.
Get it approved#
- 1
Send for review
Choose the approval chip, Send for review…, tick Email the reviewer, enter the manager’s address, set Revision to review to
1.0and add a note. See Get a guide approved. - 2
They decide
The manager signs in with that address, reads the copy and chooses Approve or Request changes. If they ask for changes, fix them and send again.
- 3
Thoth fills in the record
On approval, the revision, effective date, revision history and the Approval table fill in with the reviewer’s name and the date, and a version is saved.
- 4
Export the signed copy
Export the PDF. The sign-off is in the document. While a guide is still pending, or has changed since approval, the same export is marked DRAFT across each page.
Keep it controlled#
- Set Guide settings → Owner and review → Every year, and the guide appears under Needs review when it is due. See Review reminders.
- If anyone edits the guide afterward, it shows Changed since approval, and you can see what changed. Make the changes, then approve revision
1.1or2.0; the old revision is kept in the history. - Every request, approval and reminder is in the approval History, with who and when.