I was present at a company meeting in which quite a few Japanese people
started to seriously consider if the order of things prescribed in 手順書 can be
freely changed. Namely 手順の順番を変えるのは大丈夫か -like questions.

For me as a foreigner the 順 determines the order of things and I listened in
consternation. Most dictionaries define 手順 as 順序 or
段取り[*](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%89%8B%E9%A0%86-575858). In either case
they sound to me like following a path in chronological / planned order.

Doesn't the etymology limit the meaning here to the steps performed in a
predetermined order? From a linguistic point of view doesn't 手順 determine the
order of things?

If no, how shall the 順 part be interpreted?
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2016-06-23T13:24:41.953
36117
2016-08-04T15:31:33.253
2016-06-23T16:12:31.983
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meaning
From a linguistic point of view - can the order of steps in 手順 be changed?
I think there's a difference between "what should be done" and "what the word
implies it is doing". 手順 simply means a process or protocol and can be implied
to be an ordered set of steps, in the same manner as the English terms
"operational manual" or "step-by-step guide" would be. Now just because this
is the meaning doesn't imply that the order is always correct or the best
order by default. I think that's up to the opinions of whoever created/has to
deal with this process.
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2016-07-05T15:18:29.637
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2016-07-05T15:18:29.637
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answer