How to Turn Interview Notes into a Flowchart in Visio (4 Simple Rules)
You've interviewed a stakeholder and have a page of notes. Learn four simple rules to turn those notes into a clean flowchart in Visio: triggers, verbs, ifs and endings, with a refund request as the example.
Step by step
- Notes to flowchart. You've just interviewed a stakeholder, and you have a page of notes. How do you turn them into a flowchart? Four simple rules. Let's do it in Visio.
- The notes. The notes say: a customer emails a refund request. The agent finds the order. If it's older than thirty days, the agent declines it. Otherwise, finance refunds the card.
- Rule 1 - Trigger = start. Rule one. The trigger becomes the start shape. What kicks this off? The customer's email.
- Rule 2 - Verbs = processes. Rule two. Every verb that someone does becomes a process box. The agent finds the order. Connect them.
- Rule 3 - If = decision. Rule three. Every if becomes a decision. Listen for words like if, otherwise and unless. Connect it. If it's not too old, finance refunds the card. That's the happy path, so keep it straight down. Connect it and label the line no. If it is too old, the agent declines. Put it to the side. Connect it and label it yes.
- Rule 4 - Every path ends. Rule four. Every path must end. The notes don't say how, and that's a question for your stakeholder. Here, the customer is told the outcome. Connect the refund path. And the decline path.
- Done. Click away to see the flowchart.
- The 4 rules. So, the trigger is the start, verbs are processes, every if is a decision, and every path ends. Anything the notes don't tell you becomes a question for the next interview.
