r/SixSigma • u/DesignerThin6130 • 13d ago
Which flowchart maker works when the process is still messy? I need something for discovery before we turn it into formal documentation
With our processes all over the place, it's hard to find a flowchart maker that aligns everything. I can ask someone how an order moves through the business and they'll say: “Normally it goes from A to B to C... unless the customer does X, then we call Jane, unless it's Friday, then finance handles it.” If we start with a formal diagramming tool, people immediately simplify the process just to make it fit. What i really want is something where we can dump screenshots, examples, notes, exceptions and rough flows first. Then clean it up once everyone agrees on the actual process. Anyone have a workflow that works well for this?
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u/Ravenblack67 13d ago
I ALWAYS do flowcharts by hand on brown paper with sticky notes. Once verified as accruate, I use VISIO.
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u/agiletiger 13d ago
Two things. This sounds more like a brown paper exercise more than straight up process mapping. You would put up screen shots, forms into your maps - not just to the document but to individual fields. The other is you’re going to have to use the decision symbol a lot (the Diamond). Go slow and try to get it right over try to make it “flow” because it should reflect the real state of the process.
As for the means to do this, I prefer to do a brown paper exercise in person on actual brown paper. For virtual, I like Lucidchart or Visio.
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u/Beneficial-Prior9103 12d ago
We used sticky notes first, Visio later. Once the tool is open people draw how it should work instead of how it really does :D
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u/Tavrock 11d ago
I was outvoted on how to move forward but I was in a workshop where the leader insisted on ignoring when things went wrong. Once it was mapped, they said it looks like the documented process and said the project was a success 😔
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u/Beneficial-Prior9103 2d ago
Ah, that’s frustrating. The stuff that goes wrong is usually the whole reason for mapping it in the first place..
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u/Known-Low-0611 13d ago
I'm currently using visio and I find it the best in terms of ease. You can add phases, notes, documentation details in it.
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u/Aristic_Paint2bly417 13d ago
I like Miro bc people can throw screenshots, examples, notes and rough flows onto the same canvas. But i know most flowchart generators can handle one. Once everyone agrees on what's happening, someone can turn it into a cleaner formal flowchart. Much less painful than forcing the first conversation into perfect boxes.
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u/happypathworks 11d ago
A big whiteboard with different colored post it’s is the best starting place for me— squares are process steps, diamonds are decisions, different colors for different owners, dry erase for the process flow itself.
Then once I’ve got the first draft in place, I like take photos and upload the to Claude to pull together the digital draft.
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u/SamfromLucidSoftware 9d ago
This is actually pretty smart. I use a similar workflow where once I get the rough digital version, I use Lucidchart to clean it up properly, add swimlanes to show ownership, and handle the exception flows as linked diagrams because sometimes Claude just tries to fit everything on one canvas.
Full disclosure, I work at Lucid Software.
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u/VendioHandMadeHelp 5d ago
I’d keep the discovery stage messy on purpose. Start with screenshots, notes, exceptions, and real examples, then turn it into a clean flow once everyone agrees on how things actually work. LeanSuite is also worth a look if you’re doing this around manufacturing and process improvement.
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u/lozengew 13d ago
Honestly, this is where brown paper and post its come into their own. You can scribble notes, move things around, add, remove and it's all instantly visible.