Save time with prewritten company policies and samples

Go to the pros for customizable pre-written company policies to fit your company's business mission, goals and employees. Most pre-written employee handbooks can be easily altered to suit your specific company policies.

I recommend: Bizmanualz provides pre-written employee manuals, HR policies and procedures and employee policies. Other solutions include Business Owner's Toolkit for a customizable smoking policy; this Sample Travel Policy; and a host of other employee policies at HR.BLR.com.

Choose company policy software to write employee policies

Company policy software can help you with a plethora of workplace issues: hiring, firing, benefits, employee privacy, performance appraisal systems, workplace dress codes and workplace behavior.

I recommend: Over 25,000 small businesses have used TemplateZone.com’s Office Policy Manual software, which features 50+ HR forms and more than 130 in-depth business and technology company policies, such as disaster recovery plans, military leave policy, blogging and IM usage policies, cell phone usage policies and more.  

Insist on legally compliant employee manuals, policies and procedures

Your company policies must be compliant with the EEOC, Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Immigration Reform Acts, along with other related federal, state and local statutes. Choose company policies written by attorneys or HR experts to ensure legal compliance.

I recommend: Get a comprehensive template for employee manuals at SampleEmployeeHandbook.com, which covers more than 80 company policy topics as well as state-by-state compliance information for all 50 states. Protect your business with software from The Standard Legal Network that contains customizable employee manuals and HR legal forms.

Outsource writing of employee policies and company policies to HR experts

If there are particularly touchy issues at hand - or, if you're in an especially litigious industry - don't skimp on your company policy. Hire an HR expert to write your company policy.

I recommend: CheckPoint HR is a leading provider of human resources management solutions that allow you to build custom employee handbooks using a powerful online wizard that takes into account both federal and state requirements. Find more HR experts who can help write employee handbooks at Business.com.

Test-drive company policies before purchasing

Many company policies and procedures vendors offer free trials or let you sample a limited number of resources before purchasing their software or templates.

I recommend: Personnel Policy Service, Inc. gives you 30 days free to try out their Personnel Policy Manual. Also check out their free HR policy download center to download free company policies on rest breaks, sexual harassment, holidays, layoffs, recalls and more.