Business Process Swim Lanes

A few days ago I posed an open question on the use of MindManager for mapping business processes - see here.  Shaun Penny wrote to ask about ideas on how to incorporate the swim lane style of process mapping.  My original thought was to use floating topics and relationships for the process flows however there are other ways. 

I've experimented with several approaches and one which seems to work very well is to use the 'organisation chart' style for the main topic.  This style allows topics to be repositioned 'up and down' - in this case they can be slid up or down into the appropriate swim lane position.  The normal lines linking the topics are hidden by selecting 'Format Topic' for the central topic and clicking on 'No Line'

Let me know what you think.

Technorati Tags: mind map, mind mapping software, process mapping, visual mapping, MindManager

Right-Sided Map

Here is a simple map from my journal.  It seemed appropriate to draw the map as a 'right-sided' map, a style which is in common use on some web-based mapping software.

 

 

Technorati Tags: mind map, web-based mind mapping, visual mapping

Saved Views in MindManager 7

I've just discovered this feature of MindManager.  I had a map that was too detailed/large to print on the available printer.  I printed the map over several pages, each page with a different topic selected and expanded to the full level of detail.  Then I found I had to reprint several times as the document was reviewed and revised.

The 'Map Views' feature came to the rescue at this point.  I was able to save each view of the map I wanted to print/reprint and then return to that view of the map at any time.  A real saver in time and energy.

You can find the option from the 'Views' tab on the ribbon

Overview

 

1st Topic

 

2nd Topic

Technorati Tags: MindManager, mind mapping software, mind map, mind mapping

Map2Table

I found this great MM macro at ActivityOwner.Com.  It converts a MM map into an html table which can be displayed or imported into MS Word and MS Excel.

See the introduction to the macro here and access to the macro source code is here.  I copied and pasted the source code into the macro editor in MM7, saved it and added it to the list of available macros.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Activity.Owner.Com provides a forum for sharing notes, discussion, and solutions for using the Gyronix ResultsManager, GyroQ, and GryoActivator add-ins for Mindjet MindManager for Getting Things Done (GTD) for personal and professional project management.

Technorati Tags: mind mapping software, MindManager, macro, ActivityOwner.Com, MS Word, MS Excel

10 Tips for Highly Effective Mind Mapping Sessions

Geoff R has posted ten tips here.  He says:

"Mindmapping is a wonderful brainstorming technique that can yield great results, and show you ideas that you hadn’t previously imagined. Most people are familiar with mindmapping and its problem-solving potential, but many people do it inefficiently. If you follow these 10 simple tips, you should find your mindmapping sessions to me radically improved."

The original source is credited as Gear Fire and can be seen here.

Thanks to Andrew Wilcox of Cabre.

Technorati Tags: mind mapping, mind map, mind mapping software, Andrew Wilcox, Cabre

Process Mapping

Recently I have been using MindManager to capture business processes.  My original idea was use the software to do the initial capture and review before exporting the output to something else, such as MS Word.  However having started in MindManager I decided I liked the results and have completed all the processes this way.

What are your experiences in documenting any aspect of a business process using mind maps and/or Mindmanager?  Do drop me a line and share your examples.

Technorati Tags: mind map, mind mapping software, MindManager, MS Word, business process mapping, visual mapping