Documents or Instructions? One question decides
TrainedTeam holds two kinds of content. One is read and acknowledged. The other is performed, step by step, with evidence captured as it happens. Choosing correctly is the difference between a policy nobody can prove they saw and a procedure you can show was followed.
Published 8 September 2026 · Last updated 8 September 2026
Everything follows from one question.
Not what the content is about. Not how long it is. What it asks of the person on the other end.
The question
Does someone have to perform this, in order, at a moment in time?
Pick an answer to see what the record holds, and how to set it up.
Two objects. Two jobs.
Both are written in the same editor, with the same slash commands and the same AI Spotlight. Everything else - how the first draft is generated, what the reader is asked to do, and what comes back as proof - is different.
| Aspect | Document | Instruction |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Policies, guides and reference material. | A process broken into numbered, sequential steps. |
| What it asks of the reader | Read it, and acknowledge it. | Work through it, one step at a time. |
| When it is opened | Before the work, or whenever someone needs to check what the rule is. | During the work, at the moment each step happens. |
| How it ends | An acknowledgment recorded against a specific version. | A completed run, carrying the evidence each step asked for. |
| What it cannot do | Carry a Knowledge Check. | Collect a signature. |
In depth: how Documents work and how Instructions work.
Each one leaves a different kind of proof.
This is the real cost of choosing wrong. A signature cannot tell you the work was done. A completed run cannot tell you someone agreed to a policy.
A Document leaves an acknowledgment
- Who acknowledged it, and the timestamp
- The document version they acknowledged, so a later edit cannot rewrite what they agreed to
- On Pro: their typed legal name, an optional drawn signature, and the IP address it came from
An Instruction leaves a run
- Every step, and who completed it
- The photo proof you required, uploaded at the step that required it
- Written notes - observations, measurements, comments - captured against the specific step
- Time taken, and the version of the instruction they ran
An honest read on both. What these records give you is a factual account: who, when, which version, and what they uploaded. Whether that satisfies a particular inspector, auditor or tribunal is their judgement to make, not a promise this page can make for them. What you can say is that the account exists and has not been reconstructed after the fact.
E-signature with typed legal name, drawn signature capture, IP address recording and review-date reminders are Pro features, as is the Scheduler. Free records a click-to-acknowledge with the timestamp and the user, and version tracking is on every plan. See pricing.
Two blank pages, two different first drafts.
The choice changes how the AI helps you, because a policy and a procedure fail in different ways when they are written badly.
Documents start from an outline
The document wizard asks what the policy is for and who it is for, generates a structured outline of headings, then writes each section against that structure. A policy that wanders is a policy nobody finishes, so the outline comes first and the prose fills in behind it. AI also writes the summary description from the finished content.
Instructions start from the work
Describe the process and AI generates the step structure, writes each step, and suggests where screenshots belong. Or start from a video: paste a YouTube link and the transcript is extracted automatically; Loom is a guided transcript copy. Either way AI identifies the procedural steps and embeds the relevant clip in each one.
Shared by both: AI Spotlight
Highlight any passage and the AI works on just that selection - shorten, expand, add detail or simplify. It is the same editor behind both content types, so there is one set of habits to learn rather than two.
Signing is not understanding.
This is the sharpest asymmetry between the two, and the one most likely to change your answer.
Only an Instruction can be tested
Add a Knowledge Check to an Instruction and AI generates the questions across five types - comprehension, retention, application, safety and sequence. The team member has to pass before they can start a run. Understanding is verified before the work begins, not discovered afterwards.
A Document cannot carry one. An acknowledgment tells you the policy was received and by whom. It does not tell you it was understood.
So if you need to prove understanding rather than receipt, that is an argument for making the content an Instruction - even when it reads like a policy.
What a Document gives you
- A signed acknowledgment against the exact version they read - the one thing an Instruction cannot produce
- An outline that builds itself from your headings, so a long policy stays navigable
- Word count and reading time, which keeps policies honest about how long they are
Both go stale. Both tell you.
Here the two converge. Governance works the same way on either, with one difference that matters.
Review dates
Set 3, 6 or 12 months on either type. When the date arrives a “Review due” badge appears, and you mark it reviewed once you have checked it is still true. A Pro feature.
Version tracking
Every change is versioned on both. Editing a live policy or procedure does not quietly rewrite the past.
The one difference
A Document records the version acknowledged. An Instruction records the version run. Same mechanism, two different questions it answers.
Run the test on eight real ones.
The same question, applied to the content most teams already have lying around.
Fire evacuation policy
DocumentNobody performs a policy. They need to have read it, and you need to know which version they read.
Opening the kitchen
InstructionA fixed sequence, done at a specific moment, by whoever is on early.
Allergen reference chart
DocumentConsulted, not performed. It gets looked at mid-shift and never completed.
Deep-cleaning the coffee machine
InstructionSteps in order, and a photo at the end is the only way to know it was done properly.
Data protection policy
DocumentA commitment the organisation makes. It needs signing, not running.
Cash-up at close
InstructionCounts and discrepancies belong in written notes captured against the step that produced them.
Uniform and appearance standards
DocumentReference material. There is no moment at which someone performs it.
Receiving a delivery
InstructionCheck, count, record, put away - with the evidence captured at the point it happens.
The one that resists the test
A disciplinary procedure is both, depending on who is reading it. For most of the team it is a Document: something they are told exists and acknowledge. For the manager actually running one, it is a sequence of stages performed in order, with a letter at each stage. When a piece of content splits like this, split the content: the policy states what the organisation commits to, and a separate Instruction carries the stages for the person running them. Our ACAS disciplinary guide sets out what those stages are.
Most real training is both at once.
A new starter induction is not one thing. It is a handbook to read and sign, a health and safety policy to acknowledge, and half a dozen procedures to actually work through. A Collection bundles any mix of the two into an ordered package, assigned with optional due dates and tracked per person, with a badge awarded on completion.
You do not have to bundle. A Document can go out on its own when it is a single policy that needs signing. But once there is more than one item and an order they should be done in, a Collection is the thing that makes them a programme rather than a pile.
Common questions
What is the difference between a Document and an Instruction?
A Document is content your team reads and acknowledges - policies, guides and reference material. An Instruction is a process broken into numbered, sequential steps that your team performs, one step at a time, with photo proof and written notes captured as they go.
How do I decide which one to use?
Ask one question: does someone have to perform this, in order, at a moment in time? If yes, make it an Instruction. If no - they need to read it and agree to it - make it a Document.
Can an Instruction be signed?
No. E-signature acknowledgment belongs to Documents. An Instruction proves itself differently: through a completed run that records every step, the photo proof and notes captured against each step, the time taken, and the version that was run.
Can a Document have a Knowledge Check?
No. Knowledge Checks attach to Instructions, and the team member must pass before they can start a run. If you need to prove understanding rather than receipt, that is an argument for making the content an Instruction.
Do I have to choose one for a whole training programme?
No. A Collection bundles any mix of Documents and Instructions into an ordered package, assigned to team members and tracked to completion. Most real training is both: the policy is read and signed, the procedure is run with evidence.
Still sorting the wider pile? Policies, SOPs and work instructions covers the same problem in general operations terms, and what is an SOP is the definitional starting point.
Sort it once, then stop guessing.
Write the policy, build the procedure, and let each one prove itself the way only it can.
Free for up to 5 team members · No credit card