What’s special about your company? It’s not just what you do. It’s about how you think, work, and treat each other. Ultimately, those are the things that exemplify your values as an organization.
A Field Manual serves to clarify and codify those values. It’s the compass that keeps everyone pointing in the same direction, even when the path is elusive.
Unlike a Brand Book or Style Guide, a Field Manual goes beyond marketing and communications guidelines. It’s your organization’s story, guidebook, and cultural compass all in one. It has the potential to be used in practical, everyday scenarios: to solve conflicts by referring to shared principles, to guide decisions when you’re unsure, to help new teammates understand how things work, and to remind everyone what matters most. Like an army’s Field Manual, an organization’s Field Manual is designed to be referenced in real-world scenarios, providing clear principles to guide decision-making and actions to keep everyone aligned as an organization.
In this article, we’ll provide a brief history of the Field Manual and present the three reasons we think every organization needs one.
A History of Field Manuals
Did your eyes just glaze over with disinterest? You can skip this part. Move right on down to the next section. But if, like us, you appreciate a little bit of context and history, read on.
A Field Manual is a publication issued by military organizations to provide detailed instructions and guidelines for soldiers in various operational and training scenarios. These manuals cover a wide range of topics, including tactics, procedures, and equipment usage, serving as essential references for military personnel in the field.
The concept of Field Manuals has evolved. In the United States, the Army began publishing these manuals to standardize training and operations across its units. By the late 1930s, the manual system was updated, consolidating various training regulations into branch-specific Field Manuals, such as the Basic Field Manual, which covers essential military knowledge for all soldiers (think fundamentals like rank structure and marching movements) and the Cavalry Field Manual, which covers specific information about combat operations.
Over the years, Field Manuals have continued to adapt to the changing nature of warfare and technological advancements. In 2009, the United States introduced a pilot project to Wikify many of their manuals, so that anyone with an ID card granting access to the Army Internet System could contribute (of course, unlike Wikipedia, this can’t be done anonymously).
Field Manuals remain a cornerstone of military doctrine, ensuring that all personnel have access to standardized procedures and knowledge essential for effective operations.
Why Your Team Needs a Field Manual
It Brings Your Culture to Life
A company’s culture isn’t its beer carts or bean bags or the mottos on the wall (no disrespect to beer carts or bean bags). It is, instead, the living embodiment of its values. Put another way, it’s how people work together day to day. A good Field Manual bridges the gap between the big ideas and the actions. When our Field Guide says our purpose is to “raise intelligence and awareness,” we explain what that means for our team and what kind of self-inquiry can guide our day-to-day towards actualizing that purpose. For us, that means questions like “What did I learn today?”; “What did I teach today?”; and “What problem did I help solve today?” In describing our culture, our Field Guide pays special attention to the practical details of how we work effectively together, and what dysfunction looks like.
Corporate Documents Are Boring
Most company handbooks and the like end up forgotten in desk drawers or buried in email folders, brought out from oblivion when an employee has questions about their benefits policy. A Field Manual is different. It’s meant to be referenced and marked up. Notes from team members that appear in its margins may end up in a later edition. A field guide should be practical, yes, but it should also be engaging, personal, and even fun.
Better Teams, Better Work
When everyone understands how and why things are done, work gets easier. There’s less confusion, fewer conflicts, and more focus on what matters. As Patrick Lencioni points out, good teamwork is rare — which makes it incredibly valuable when you get it right. (We agree. And that’s why we invest so much in our Weekly Heartbeats, the meeting system we use to keep our team working as one healthy organism. You can learn more about that here.)
What Goes Into a Great Field Manual
A great Field Manual is one of the most important internal documents your organization will ever create. In outlining key stories and principles about your team, you’re also defining a larger narrative: who you are and what you stand for. If this hasn’t yet been formally compiled, this will help you do that.
Our Field Manual is divided into two main sections: Our company and Our brand. You may decide to do it differently. The below are just some of the things we’ve included in our Field Manual, but it’s by no means an exhaustive list. No one company or team will have the same items in their Field Manual. And that is exactly the point.
Start at the Beginning
Every organization has a reason for being — something bigger than just making money. Your Field Manual should tell that story. What problem are you solving? Why does your work matter? Those aren’t just nice-to-have details, they’re the foundation that keeps people motivated when work gets tough.
In subsequent sub-sections, we address questions such as:
- What are your core values?
- What are some examples of those values in action?
- What does company culture look like?
- What qualities translate into success at your company?
- What does good teamwork look like in your company?
- What are the small but important details that make your company unique?
- What are some of the quotes and ideas that have shaped your company?
Include Practical Elements of Brand Identity
- The brand spirit or personality
- How you talk to customers
- How you talk to each other
- Logos, colours, typography
- Important formatting info, if applicable
Conclusion
The best Field Manual isn’t the prettiest one — it’s the one that’s dog-eared and coffee-stained from regular use. Make it easy for people to carry around and reference. We recommend having it printed, leaving extra pages intentionally blank for note-taking.
Just as military success depends on a shared strategy, clear conventions, and disciplined execution, business victories come from the alignment of values, decisions, and actions. A great Field Manual ensures that everyone on your team moves with purpose, understands their role, and contributes to a culture that’s effective and resilient. It’s the rallying point around which the organization operates. The best teams, whether in battle or business, win because they know exactly what they stand for and how to move forward together.
Interested to see our 2025 Field Manual?
