Oval: start and end. Rectangle: a step. Diamond: a decision with yes and no. A red dashed line goes back to an earlier step.
Steps, in order
Take another look at this
- One decision sends the work back to an earlier step (the red dashed line). That is rework: how often does it happen, and what is the cause?
Three symbols
- Oval: the start and the end of the process (the terminators).
- Rectangle: an activity, a process step. Log incoming mail, review a file, mill panels.
- Diamond: a decision point, often a check. Has the file been reviewed correctly? Does the request meet our criteria? Yes or no, and the process branches.
The arrows connect the symbols and show the direction. That is all you need.
Why draw it?
Visualising the process creates insight, and that is the starting point for change. In the case study from our e-book, the person drawing asked why every file went past Legal Affairs. "Required by law", the staff said. Legal Affairs itself: "It used to be, but the law changed years ago." One process step removed, a faster process. So ask at every check and every branch: why do we do this, and what does it deliver?
A flowchart also helps when training staff: attach work and system instructions to the steps and a new colleague is taken through the process step by step.
Tips
- Draw with the people who do the work. They know where reality differs from the instruction and will rescue you from the swamp of exceptions.
- Keep asking with open questions and no judgement; jargon often hides what actually happens.
- Several departments? Then use the swimlane diagram, the same drawing with a lane per department.
More background is in the knowledge-base article on the flowchart.