Communication and governance
Core Vault
Communication, Governance and Visibility
News reaches people late or not at all, policies live in five places, risks sit on separate lists and nobody's sure who speaks when something goes wrong. Communication, Governance and Visibility puts all of that on a footing you can keep up, in four packs of nine connected systems.
Sound familiar?
- We said it once at a meeting, and half the team still don't know.
- The old rule and the new rule are both in the shared drive.
- A client sent us a supplier questionnaire and we started from scratch again.
- Our risks are on four different lists, and some of them aren't on any.
- If something went badly wrong tonight, nobody knows who'd say what.
Who it's for: Owners and operations, finance, people or client leads in businesses of 5 to 50 people, usually with no company secretary, compliance officer or communications team. Larger clients' questionnaires and audits are often what brings it to a head.
What you get
36 systems, each ready to use
Each Core Pack structures a full business area with nine connected systems, run every month. This Vault holds four of them.
Each pack also has a Pack Overview that shows where to start, a Set Up with AI prompt, and a Digital Kit to help you set it up in a tool such as ClickUp, Notion or Microsoft 365.
With every system
- Read Me FirstThe guide: what the system solves, how to set it up and how to run it.
- See It Filled InThe worked example, completed for Tamberly Studio, a fictional company, so you can see what good looks like.
- Your SystemThe Word file you fill in and keep.
- Start a New SheetA fresh copy for each new week, project or meeting, on the 18 of 36 systems that repeat.
- Print and Fill by HandThe PDF, if you prefer paper.
Look inside
The real pages, filled in
These are pages from the files you'd download, completed for Tamberly Studio, the fictional company used in every example. Click a page to read it full size.
Everything inside
Every pack and system in Communication, Governance and Visibility
Pack 1 of 4 · 9 systemsVisibility and Comms Systems
Fixes: People miss what matters, hear it differently or can't find it later.
- Internal Comms Audit
- Take the last ten messages that mattered and check who needed each one, who it reached and who found out last.Includes Start a New Audit Sheet
- Audience and Channel Map
- List every internal audience against the channels that reach them, including how each group hears when they aren't in that day.
- Internal Announcement Calendar
- Plan every one-off staff announcement eight weeks ahead, and check each week against a printed clash rule.
- Key Message Map
- Write each important message once: one sentence anyone can say in a breath, three points with proof and the questions people will ask.Includes Start a New Message Map Sheet
- Manager Cascade Brief
- After each leadership meeting, give managers one short brief to pass on within two working days in the same words.Includes Start a New Cascade Sheet
- Weekly Update Digest
- Send one all-staff update every Friday in fixed sections, with what people need to do first and at most three items.Includes Start a New Digest Sheet
- Town Hall Planner and Run Sheet
- Plan each all-staff meeting with one purpose and a timed agenda, and give every unanswered question an owner and a date.Includes Start a New Town Hall Sheet
- Message Understanding Check
- Once a quarter, ask everyone five short factual questions anonymously, and send anything people got wrong back for another message.Includes Start a New Check Sheet
- Announcement Archive
- Keep every announcement in one list, marked with what it replaced and whether it's still true, with a start here list for new starters.
Pack 2 of 4 · 9 systemsGovernance and Policy Ops
Fixes: Rules sit in a handbook, a drive and old emails, nobody can show who approved what, and company records drift out of date.
- Policy Register
- List every policy in one place with its owner, version and next review, and mark each one Required by law, Expected or Our choice.
- Policy Drafting Sheet
- Write every policy in the same seven parts, then test that a new starter could follow it in five minutes and that it fits on a page.Includes Start a New Policy Sheet
- Policy Sign-Off Sheet
- Record who was consulted on each policy, what changed because of it, whether an adviser checked it and who approved it.Includes Start a New Sign-Off Sheet
- Policy Rollout and Acknowledgement Log
- Roll out every policy the same way, managers first, with counts by team and a named chase from day 5.Includes Start a New Rollout Sheet
- Policy Version Log
- Keep every version of every policy with the dates it was in force, and never overwrite an old one.
- Interests, Gifts and Hospitality Register
- Record declared interests and every gift or hospitality against a printed value line, with the decision and who approved it.
- Speak Up and Whistleblowing Log
- Give everyone a printed route for raising wrongdoing, then log each concern with a receiver who isn't involved and dated follow-up.
- Company Records and Statutory Registers
- Keep the company's own records and filings in one place, with every row compared with the public Companies House record once a year.
- Annual Governance Review
- Once a year, answer the same nine governance questions against evidence opened in the room, and turn every gap into a dated action.Includes Start a New Year Sheet
Pack 3 of 4 · 9 systemsRisk and Compliance
Fixes: Risks are scattered or unowned, insurance renews unread, and a client audit means a scramble.
- Operational Risk Register
- Keep the 10 to 20 risks that could hurt the whole business in one register, linked to the lists that already own them and scored the same way.
- Risk Appetite Statement
- Write down how much risk you'll accept in each area and the line that triggers action, as a number wherever you can.
- Insurance Cover Check
- Before each renewal, list every policy with its limit and exclusions, read client contracts for what they ask, and decide on each gap in writing.Includes Start a New Year Sheet
- Financial Crime Risk Check
- Once a year, rate your exposure to five kinds of financial crime from the procedures you already run, with one action and owner per gap.Includes Start a New Year Sheet
- Intellectual Property and Licences Register
- List what the business owns and what it uses under licence, with the proof, and flag freelance work with no written assignment.
- Law and Regulation Change Watch
- Scan a fixed list of trusted sources each quarter and write down each coming law change that may affect you, with an owner and a ready-by date.
- Client Due Diligence Answer Bank
- Keep one approved answer for each question clients ask in supplier questionnaires, each tied to its evidence with a recheck date.
- Audit Preparation Checklist
- Prepare for every outside audit the same way: scope agreed in writing, an evidence list, a dry run and every finding owned.Includes Start a New Audit Sheet
- Quarterly Risk and Compliance Review
- Spend one hour each quarter reading every risk and compliance summary in a fixed order, leaving with at most three actions.Includes Start a New Quarter Sheet
Pack 4 of 4 · 9 systemsStrategic Comms and Crisis Messaging
Fixes: When news is big or bad, the first hour goes on working out who says what to whom.
- Stakeholder Messaging Map
- List every group that must hear big or bad news, who contacts each one, how, out of hours and in what order.
- Spokesperson and Sign-Off Rules
- Settle in advance who may speak in public, who signs which words at each of three levels and what everyone else says.
- Crisis Messaging Playbook
- Keep pre-approved first words ready for your five most likely crises, with what never to say and what to tell each group.
- Channel Consistency Checklist
- For one approved statement, pause scheduled marketing first, then put the same words everywhere they need to appear, each one checked live.Includes Start a New Statement Sheet
- Crisis Situation Update
- Keep everyone affected informed with one fixed update at set times, always giving the next update time, even when nothing has changed.Includes Start a New Crisis Sheet
- Media Enquiry Log
- Log every press contact within 15 minutes, send a two-line holding reply and let only the spokesperson answer.
- Reputation Watch and Response Log
- Check once a month what's said about the business in public, log it, and decide reply, correct, ignore or escalate from a printed guide.
- Strategic Announcement Planner
- Plan one major announcement on one sheet, with the key message, the embargo, who hears first and the questions people will ask.Includes Start a New Announcement Sheet
- Crisis Comms Rehearsal
- Once or twice a year, spend 60 minutes rehearsing one scenario against timed targets, and send every lesson on.Includes Start a New Rehearsal Sheet
Area 7: Communication and governance
How this area builds up
Mini and Core do different jobs, and they aren't copies of one another. Masterworks holds both, for every area.
Core Vault · $299
Run the whole area every month
Communication, Governance and Visibility
Four Core Packs of nine connected systems. 36 systems.
You are here
Mini Vault · $75
Focused fixes for specific problems in this area
Four Mini Packs of two focused systems, each used in a week or two. 8 systems.
Masterworks
$999
Both, for every area
All 352 systems, with a 90-day plan to roll them out.
Mini and Core in just three areas costs $1,122, more than the whole library.
Questions
Common questions
Is this software?
No. Systems are done-for-you templates in Word and PDF, built from real operating experience. We call them systems because each one is ready to use and connects to the next.
Do I have to change the tools I use?
No. Keep ClickUp, Notion, Microsoft 365 or whatever you use now. Every pack includes a Digital Kit to set it up there.
I've tried templates before and stopped using them. Why would this stick?
Writing it down is only the start. Every system names an owner, a review date and a place in the routine, and each one feeds the next. Files can help a team keep going, but nothing can guarantee it. The running is still up to you.
What happens when I buy?
You pay through Lemon Squeezy, then land on a page with your download buttons. We also email you a download link. There is no account to set up.
Do I get updates?
Yes, you get lifetime updates. When a system you own is updated, we email you, and every change is listed on the update log.
Can I get a refund?
The free pack and the page previews let you see what you are buying first, so we do not offer change-of-mind refunds. UK and EU consumers can cancel within 14 days if nothing has been downloaded. Faulty or wrong files are fixed, or we arrange a refund, and your legal rights are not affected. See the refund policy.
Not ready to buy?
Start with the free pack.
The Business Operating Manual is nine free systems in Word and PDF. It shows how we work, on your own business, before you spend anything.