Innovation in Global Power - Parsons Brinckerhoff

Networking
8. Dash Style. You can use the “Dash Style” button to
change the type of line that you are using in the diagram.
This is useful when you are differentiating between
process steps and electronic data transfers.
9. Arrow Style. The “Arrow Style” feature allows you to
set the arrow head location on your lines to help your
readers understand the direction the process is flowing.
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Creating Your Diagram. With your specific process in mind
that you want to map and Visio ® started, your next steps are:
1. When you are asked to “Choose a Drawing Type,” select
“Business Process” to see the set of templates available to you.
2. Select the “Cross Functional Flowchart” template by clicking
on the appropriate icon for your geographic region (Figure 3):
Now that you have a good grasp on the tools available to you,
you can begin using them to create your swim lane diagram.
Template Available for PB Staff. For the benefit of
readers, I have created a pre-made PowerPoint ® swim
lane diagram template (Figure 2) that can be downloaded
from PB WorldNet at the following address:
http://www.pbworldnet.com/launcher.asp?action=5&v=3&w=
3765526&x=-1&y=563&z=3765526
Figure 2:
Sample
Swim Lane
Diagram
Template.
Figure 3: The “Cross Functional Flowchart” Icons.
3. This will bring up the “Cross-functional flowchart” wizard
screen (Figure 4):
This template can be modified easily using PowerPoint ® to
meet the needs of your actual process.
Pros and Cons of Using PowerPoint ® . Using
PowerPoint ® to create a swim lane diagram provides
the following benefits over Visio ® :
• It comes with most versions of Microsoft Office ® , so other
team members can readily modify and enhance the diagram.
• It provides a greater freedom for customizing the layout
and design.
PowerPoint ® does have a few drawbacks though:
• There is no automated method for diagram creation.
• It takes a greater effort to configure the diagram as needed.
Visio ®
If you have Visio ® available, you may prefer to create your
swim lane diagram using its “Cross Functional Flowchart”
template, which is another name for the swim lane type
of diagram. You will still need to add your actual process
steps, however, and to modify the drawing to identify your
process needs.
Figure 4: The “Crossfunctional
flowchart”
Wizard Screen.
4. From here, you can tell Visio ® whether you want to create
a “Horizontal” or “Vertical” flow. I prefer vertical for most
situations, but choose the one that best fits your need.
5. You can select the number of “bands” (“swim lanes”) that
you want to create. I usually use one swim lane for each
person (“actor”) involved in the process.
Note: The Visio ® template allows no more than five
“Function bands” in a single diagram. I believe that this is
a drawback to using Visio ® because even though it is rare
to need more than five, it is not unheard of.
6. If you wish to add an area for a title bar at the top of the
chart, be sure to select the “Include title bar” option:
7. Once you are happy with your selections, click the “OK”
button and Visio ® will provide you with a pre-made layout
for your Swim Lane Diagram (Figure 5 on the following
page)
97 PB Network #68 / August 2008