A Beginner’s Guide to Data Flow Diagrams

Processes are mission-critical for companies, particularly when it’s time to doc and scale a confirmed course of.

In my expertise, whether or not a course of is digital or human-driven, it’s essential to map it out so it’s simpler to refine, optimize, and finally repeat.

That’s the place information movement diagrams are available.

They assist me get a visible understanding of the steps concerned, their dependencies, and the way every contributes to the top purpose. Why does all this matter?

Whether or not I’m defining workflows for venture administration or making a venture ticketing system, data flow diagrams (DFDs) supply simple visuals that illustrate the contact factors and alternatives for efficiencies or enchancment.

As visible representations of the system, they make it simpler to grasp and refine enterprise processes, retaining them as easy and efficient as attainable.

Let’s dig into the main points of what DFDs are, how one can leverage them, and how one can create your personal.

Desk of Contents

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DFDs grew to become well-liked within the Nineteen Seventies and have maintained their widespread use by being simple to grasp.

There are two varieties of DFDs — logical and bodily.

Logical DFD

Logical diagrams show the theoretical strategy of transferring info via a system, like the place the information comes from, the place it goes, the way it adjustments, and the place it finally ends up.

Bodily DFD

Bodily diagrams present you the sensible strategy of transferring info via a system. It might probably present how your system’s particular software program, {hardware}, recordsdata, staff, and prospects affect the movement of knowledge.

You’ll be able to both use logical or bodily diagrams to explain that movement of knowledge. You can even use them in conjunction to grasp a course of or system on a extra granular degree.

Knowledge Circulate Diagram vs. Unified Modeling Language (UML)

Whereas these two varieties of diagrams have some similarities, let me make clear what makes every distinct.

Knowledge movement diagrams are designed to supply a map for the way your information will movement via a system. Unified Modeling Language (UML) takes it additional, offering significantly extra element.

DFDs and UML will not be mutually unique — you would possibly use a DFD for individuals who want a high-level abstract after which flip your DFD into UML diagrams when it comes time to really create your system, offering adequate element for builders who must know how one can create the specifics.

To proceed the roadmap analogy, DFD would possibly present the top-level overview and doubtlessly even turn-by-turn instructions, however UML affords the street-level view with all of the context of constructing shade, tree location, and visitors patterns.

The Advantages of Knowledge Circulate Diagrams

DFDs are visible representations that may assist virtually anybody grasp a system’s or course of’s logic and features. Apart from being accessible, I discover they supply much-needed readability and enhance productiveness. Here is how.

Accessibility

As a result of visible info is less complicated to digest, DFDs usually clarify advanced ideas higher than blocks of textual content can.

Visible displays of how a course of works also can maintain individuals’s consideration longer — making it simpler to retain the data.

Readability

DFDs make clear the programs and processes crucial on your workforce to do their finest work. Whether or not implementing a brand new company-wide system or refining a division’s present course of, a DFD will get you and your workforce on the identical web page.

Creating DFDs offers you readability about enterprise operations, too. I believe a clearer understanding lets you refine and observe your small business processes with much less friction.

Productiveness

The accessibility and readability created with DFDs will depart much less room for error. Your workforce will higher grasp programs and processes as a result of they perceive them.

Larger understanding — paired with a repeatable course of — will seemingly increase workforce effectiveness and productiveness.

On a broader degree, DFDs can assist you streamline your small business operations. When mapping out your processes, you’ll achieve insights into what does and doesn’t work.

These insights assist increase you and your workforce’s productiveness. As a bonus, you’ll be able to share any finest practices throughout departments.

Knowledge Circulate Diagram Symbols

Earlier than utilizing a DFD, let me share the symbols it’s worthwhile to describe it.

Knowledge movement diagram symbols are standardized notations, like rectangles, circles, arrows, and short-text labels. These symbols symbolize a system’s information movement course, inputs, outputs, storage factors, and sub-processes.

4 frequent strategies of notation are utilized in DFDs: Yourdon & De Marco, Gene & Sarson, SSADM, and Unified.

All use the identical labels and comparable shapes to symbolize the 4 important parts of a DFD — exterior entity, course of, information retailer, and information movement — so I’ll give attention to explaining these, no matter which notation technique you select.

1. Exterior Entity

Exterior entities — that are often known as terminators, sources, sinks, or actors — are exterior programs that ship or obtain information to and from the diagrammed system.

They’re both the sources or locations of knowledge, in order that they’re normally positioned on the diagram’s edges.

Exterior entity symbols are comparable throughout fashions aside from Unified, which makes use of a stick-figure drawing as a substitute of a rectangle, circle, or sq..

2. Course of

Course of is a process that manipulates the information and its movement by taking incoming information, altering it, and producing an output. A course of can do that by performing computations and utilizing logic to type the information or change its movement of course.

Processes normally begin from the highest left of the DFD and end on the underside proper of the diagram.

3. Knowledge Retailer

Knowledge shops maintain info for later use, like a file of paperwork ready to be processed. Knowledge inputs movement via a course of after which via a knowledge retailer, whereas information outputs movement out of a knowledge retailer after which via a course of.

4. Knowledge Circulate

Knowledge movement is the trail the system’s info takes from exterior entities via processes and information shops. With arrows and succinct labels, the DFD can present you the course of the information movement.

DFD Ranges

DFDs can vary from easy overviews to advanced, granular representations of a system or course of with a number of ranges, beginning with degree 0.

The commonest and intuitive DFDs are degree 0 DFDs, additionally known as context diagrams. They’re digestible, high-level overviews of the movement of knowledge via a system or course of, so virtually anybody can perceive it.

On the opposite excessive, degree 3+ diagrams comprise a number of element and complexity.

Stage 0: Context Diagram

This DFD degree focuses on high-level system processes or features and the information sources that movement to or from them. Stage 0 diagrams are designed to be easy, simple overviews of a course of or system.

Stage 1: Course of Decomposition

Whereas degree 1 DFDs are nonetheless broad overviews of a system or course of, they’re additionally extra detailed — they break down the system’s single course of node into subprocesses.

Stage 2: Deeper Dives

The subsequent degree of DFDs dives even deeper into element by breaking down every degree 1 course of into granular subprocesses.

Stage 3: Rising Complexity

Stage 3 and higher-numbered DFDs are unusual. That is largely because of the quantity of element required, which defeats its authentic objective of being simple to grasp.

Knowledge Circulate Diagram Examples

Professionals in varied industries, like software program engineering, IT, ecommerce, and product administration & design, can use DFDs to higher perceive, refine, or implement a brand new system or course of.

However what does a knowledge movement diagram appear like in apply — and the way does it assist your small business? I’ll share three examples that will help you contextualize DFDs’ impression.

1. Stage 0 DFD

This Stage 0 DFD offers a contextual map of a securities buying and selling platform.

Knowledge flows in a single course from the customer support assistant and the dealer to the platform. It additionally flows in two instructions from prospects to the platform and again once more.

As you’ll be able to see, it’s exceedingly easy and easy.

2. Stage 1 DFD

This Stage 1 DFD breaks down the client course of in additional element, increasing it to incorporate account creation, money withdrawals, and eventual securities transactions.

As you’ll be able to see, it breaks down the client interactions into extra particular actions, permitting viewers to know what the entire course of seems to be like.

3. Stage 2 DFD

This Stage 2 DFD decomposes the “Place Order” course of to contextualize the steps required to position an order — both by a buyer or by a dealer.

It even accounts for a third-party inventory alternate middle the place transaction particulars are forwarded after an order is positioned. This offers a extra granular depiction of a selected course of.

1. Know the fundamentals.

Earlier than you begin mapping out information movement diagrams, it’s worthwhile to comply with 4 finest practices to create a legitimate DFD.

1. Every course of ought to have a minimum of one enter and one output.
2. Every information retailer ought to have a minimum of one information movement in, and information movement out.
3. A system’s saved information should undergo a course of.
4. All processes in a DFD should hyperlink to a different course of or information retailer.

2. Choose a system or course of.

Start by choosing a selected system or course of you wish to analyze. Whereas any system or course of may be become a DFD, the bigger the method, the extra sophisticated the diagram and the harder it is going to be to contextualize.

Wherever attainable, I like to recommend beginning with a small operate or course of you’re trying to enhance.

3. Categorize associated enterprise actions.

Subsequent, categorize all actions associated to this course of into exterior entities, information flows, processes, and information shops.

Think about a restaurant food ordering system. Clients are exterior entities, the meals ordering system is a course of, and the interplay between prospects and the system (which works in each instructions) is the movement.

Additionally price noting? The ordering system doubles as a knowledge retailer, so for an SSADA mannequin, this implies drawing it as a rectangle with rounded corners and two horizontal traces inside to symbolize its twin operate.

4. Draw a context DFD.

Now, it’s time to start out drawing. DFDs may be created by hand, utilizing free templates obtainable on-line, or by way of browser extensions.

I like beginning with a easy, Stage 0 DFD. Start together with your course of or system, then map all fundamental connections and flows.

5. Examine your work.

Earlier than diving into extra advanced DFDs, test the work you’ve already finished to ensure it’s correct and full.

Should you’ve missed (or added) a course of, entity, or movement, your next-level DFDs could not make sense, and you could be pressured to start out over. Belief me, it’s price double-checking your work after every step.

6. Create youngster diagrams.

For every course of or system described in your Stage 0 DFD, create a brand new youngster diagram with its personal entities and flows. Finally, you should use these youngster diagrams to attach processes collectively.

7. Broaden processes into Stage 1 DFDs.

Utilizing your youngster diagrams, you’ll be able to map extra in-depth connections between every course of. I discover beginning with the massive image, then systematically digging into the main points ensures I don’t have any lacking gaps.

Within the case of our restaurant instance, this might imply digging deeper into the meals ordering system and its connection to suppliers, managers, prospects, and kitchen workers.

8. Repeat as wanted.

Every course of — regardless of how giant or small — may be reimagined as a Stage 0 context diagram, and the cycle can start once more.

Repeat these steps as wanted to create as many DFDs as required, or break processes down additional to develop Stage 2, 3, and many others. DFDs.

Knowledge Circulate Diagram Ideas

Once I created a new retainer service for shoppers that blended advertising and marketing technique with copywriting and tactical help, I wanted a solution to create a system that will assist me handle all of the initiatives whereas additionally automating the time-consuming points.

Since it’s not a typical large-scale copywriting facet with outlined deliverables, I knew there can be extra transferring elements to handle and that I wouldn’t wish to do it manually. So, I created a DFD to assist me get clear on how the method would work. Right here’s what I realized alongside the best way.

1. Select a platform you want.

Positive, you’ll be able to draw a diagram out by hand (and you could wish to begin there), however my finest recommendation is to decide on software program you’re considerably conversant in.

My go-to selections are Canva and Miro as a result of their whiteboards increase in any course and make it simple to edit or replace.

Miro has a bit extra performance with several types of fields and back-end notes, however my consolation degree is highest in Canva.

2. Begin firstly.

As a result of it’s essential to grasp each facet of the method you’re defining.

In my case, the gross sales would already be full, so my first motion is to get shoppers into the system for onboarding.

3. Outline your present course of.

Begin with the fundamentals. How do issues at present work? Or, for those who’re defining a brand new course of like I used to be, begin with the minimal viable actions.

Why? I’ve discovered there’s nothing worse than an overcomplicated course of that requires an excessive amount of work or too many guide actions.

My preliminary DFD began with how I outline and arrange initiatives, how I handle the preliminary work, and how one can do revisions — aka the fundamentals.

4. Establish next-level updates or adjustments.

When you outline your present course of, you should use your DFD to indicate alternatives for enchancment.

Personally, guide emails and updates may be overwhelming. These parts are the place I’m more than likely to drop the occasional ball, so I recognized alternatives for automation, particularly round notifications.

You’ll be able to see within the purple objects above the place I famous alternatives for enchancment and arrange some preliminary automation in my venture administration software program (ClickUp).

5. Take a look at and replace.

Now that you simply’ve dialed in your course of and adjustments (and hopefully, put it into motion), it’s time to see the way it all works. The place are there holes? What’s lacking? What may very well be working higher?

I discovered creating and establishing paperwork to be extremely time-consuming, so I added in an automation to create them for me utilizing a mix of ClickUp, Google Docs, and Zapier.

Take into account as your small business, know-how, and market adjustments, there will probably be new updates to your course of. Your DFD is rarely 100% full.

6. Establish ancillary processes.

Along with the processes you define in your DFD, you could uncover areas the place it’s worthwhile to go deeper. For instance, within the DFD I shared above, there are further processes that I can outline and doubtlessly streamline:

• Gross sales
• Contracting
• Onboarding

And whereas my DFD covers that after a venture is full, the method begins over. There are further shopper touchpoints that aren’t associated to the precise venture administration.

Perfecting Your Course of

Whereas there’s no such factor as a “good” information movement diagram, continued apply can assist streamline the method and supply crucial perception into what’s working, what isn’t, and the place your small business could make impactful enhancements.

My instance is significantly easy in contrast with DFDs I’ve created for a lot bigger shoppers as we outline their advertising and marketing and reporting processes to create programs the place issues don’t fall via the cracks.

In any case, the extra transferring elements, the extra essential it’s to dial in your processes so nothing will get dropped or missed.

Your finest guess? Bear in mind the rule: Hold it easy. Begin with context, construct out related processes, and repeat as wanted to map key connections, flows, and entities throughout your group.

Editor’s observe: This put up was initially printed in September 2018 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.