What Is A Swimlane Diagram? Swimlane Diagram In A Nutshell

Swimlane diagrams are a type of cross-functional flowchart developed by organizational consultants Geary Rummler and Alan Brache in 1990. The pair built on pre-existing multi-column process charts to better illustrate processes involving more than one unit or department. A swimlane diagram is used in process flowcharts to clarify job sharing and job responsibility.

Element	Description	Implications	Key Characteristics	Examples	Applications
Diagram Structure	A Swimlane Diagram is a visual representation of a process, workflow, or system, where distinct “lanes” or “swimlanes” are used to group related activities, tasks, or participants. Each lane typically represents a specific role, department, or entity involved in the process.	– Provides a clear and organized view of process steps and responsibilities. – Visualizes interactions and handoffs between different participants or departments. – Enhances transparency and understanding of complex processes.	– Multiple parallel lanes representing different entities (e.g., departments, teams). – Sequential flow of activities within each lane. – Arrows or connectors indicating the direction of flow and handoffs.	– A Swimlane Diagram for an order processing system may include lanes for Sales, Inventory, and Shipping. – In a software development process, lanes can represent Development, Testing, and Quality Assurance teams. – A healthcare workflow diagram may feature lanes for Registration, Nursing, and Billing departments.	– Visualize and document complex processes involving multiple participants or departments. – Analyze and optimize workflows to identify bottlenecks or inefficiencies. – Communicate process steps and responsibilities clearly to team members or stakeholders.
Roles and Responsibilities	Within each swimlane, specific roles or responsible parties are identified, along with their associated tasks or activities. This clarifies who is accountable for each step in the process.	– Defines clear ownership and accountability for process activities. – Facilitates coordination and collaboration among participants. – Helps prevent duplication of effort and reduces misunderstandings.	– Role labels within each lane (e.g., Manager, Customer Support, Marketing). – Task descriptions or labels associated with each role. – Arrows or lines indicating task sequences and dependencies.	– In a procurement process, the Purchasing department may be responsible for “Vendor Selection,” while the Finance department handles “Invoice Verification.” – Software development: “Design” tasks may fall under the Development team’s responsibility, while “Testing” is owned by Quality Assurance. – In an HR onboarding process, HR may be responsible for “Employee Documentation,” while IT handles “Account Setup.”	– Define and clarify roles and responsibilities within a process. – Assign ownership of specific tasks to individuals or departments. – Enhance cross-functional collaboration by visualizing handoffs and dependencies.
Process Flow	The Swimlane Diagram illustrates the sequential flow of activities within each lane and shows how tasks or information move from one participant or department to another.	– Reveals the order and progression of tasks in a process. – Identifies dependencies and handoffs between different roles or entities. – Highlights potential bottlenecks or delays in the workflow.	– Sequential arrangement of tasks or activities within each lane. – Arrows or connectors indicating the flow of tasks from one lane to another. – Decision points or branches in the flow when different paths are possible.	– In an order fulfillment process, the flow may start with “Customer Order” in the Sales lane, followed by “Inventory Check” in the Inventory lane, and “Shipping” in the Shipping lane. – In a customer support workflow, the flow could include “Issue Identification” in the Customer Support lane, “Escalation” to the Technical Support lane, and “Resolution” back in the Customer Support lane. – In a project management context, the flow might encompass “Project Planning” in the Project Manager’s lane, “Development” in the Development team’s lane, and “Testing” in the Quality Assurance team’s lane.	– Visualize and document the step-by-step progression of tasks or activities. – Identify potential points of coordination or handoffs between roles or departments. – Analyze the overall flow to optimize efficiency and reduce delays.
Visual Clarity	Swimlane Diagrams are designed for visual clarity, using clear labels, shapes, and connectors to make the process and responsibilities easily understandable.	– Enhances comprehension of complex processes. – Minimizes the risk of misinterpretation or confusion. – Facilitates effective communication with stakeholders.	– Lane labels clearly indicating the roles or departments involved. – Task descriptions or labels within each lane. – Standardized symbols and shapes for activities, decisions, and connectors.	– Shapes like rectangles for tasks, diamonds for decision points, and arrows for connectors are used consistently for clarity. – Fonts, colors, and line styles are chosen to differentiate elements and enhance readability. – Diagrams are organized and aligned logically to aid in following the flow.	– Create visual representations of processes that are easy to interpret by various stakeholders. – Use standardized symbols and styles to maintain consistency and clarity in the diagram. – Ensure that the layout and design enhance understanding and minimize the potential for miscommunication.

Table of Contents

Understanding swimlane diagrams

Swimlane diagrams differ from conventional flowcharts in that processes and decisions are visually grouped into lanes using parallel lines. Each lane in turn represents a single person, group, sub-process, department, or information system.

Directional arrows then cross swimlanes to depict how information or materials move through the various sub-processes, providing clarity on the departments or employees responsible for a particular set of actions.

Like a conventional flowchart, however, swimlane diagrams use directional arrows to represent the sequence of events in an overall process from start to finish.

Businesses use swimlane diagrams to:

Identify bottlenecks, delays, redundancies, and extraneous steps to streamline processes.
Standardize work processes and then document them in a format that is easily shared and simple to understand.
Ensure all necessary parties are involved in a process, and
Increase operational transparency and collaboration between departments

Creating a swimlane diagram

Creating a swimlane diagram is a matter of following a few simple steps:

Determine the goal – this enables the business to identify what process or processes need to be analyzed. What level of detail is required for there to be a sufficient level of understanding?
Segment the work – break the process down into its constituent parts and clearly identify the boundaries of the process to be studied.
Designate swimlanes – as noted earlier, these may be departments, groups, employees, or information systems.
Research the process steps – this is achieved by laying out the interconnectedness between each lane. It’s important to start by documenting the process as it exists and then looking for process gaps, redundancies, or duplicated steps. Swimlane diagrams can be hand-drawn or created using software such as Microsoft Word and Microsoft PowerPoint. Whatever the method chosen, use standard symbols to depict each process step sequentially in its associated swimlane.
Confirm the diagram – consult with individuals who are familiar with the process, and make adjustments where necessary.
Implement the diagram – this may involve incorporating the diagram into a new standard operating procedure or as a reference tool for quality or training purposes. Alternatively, new diagrams can be devised for the same process to compare various approaches and choose the best way forward.

Swim lane diagram examples

The application of swimlane diagrams is almost limitless, but we have provided some examples below that are most relevant to an organizational context.

Let’s dive straight into them.

Labor contract management

This example can help organizations better understand the management process of new employees. It may contain the following swimlanes and process steps:

Employee – new employee registration, probation expired, sign the agreement of contract modification, contract expired.
Employee department – performance appraisal.
Human resources department – employee dismissal (if not qualified), sign labor contract, determine contract modification, archive file, invoke separation procedure.
Documents – labor contract, modified contact, letter to end labor contract, contract modification agreement.

Inventory management

Swimlane diagrams can also capture the entire process of inventory management from shipping to accounts payable. Inventory swimlanes and their associated process steps include:

Sales department – shipping customer order.
Production department – stock request, stock inquiry, production.
Quality control department – quality inspection.
Purchasing department – material purchasing, purchasing invoice.
Warehouse – stock in, stock out, order settlement.
Financial department – accounts payable.

Software service

This swimlane diagram deals specifically with the processing of customer requests while using software, including error detection and the distribution of an error-free product back to the customer. The following swimlanes and process steps are applicable:

Customer – customer request for help or error reporting, post-service feedback.
Sales – sales issue, resolve the issue and respond to customer, confirm the issue has been resolved.
Technical support – new technical issue, determine solution, report solution to sales, resolve the issue identified by the tester, ask the customer to clarify the issue if it cannot be reproduced.
Tester – test the presence of the issue, determine repeatability of issue, test issues resolved by the development team.
Development team – report errors, undertake technical analysis, fix issue.

Change management

Swimlanes can also be used in change management processes that are sometimes complex and require the status quo to be upset. Let’s take a look at an example with six different swimlanes and their process steps:

Change indicator – request the change.
Emergency change advisory board – evaluate emergency change, approve or deny the emergency change.
Change advisory board – evaluate change, approve or deny the change.
Change manager – assess the change, determine the type of change (emergency or non-emergency), authorize deployment, notify relevant business departments.
Change builder – build the change with data store, backout plan, and implementation plan, test the change, review the change post-implementation.
Implementor – schedule the date of change implementation, implement the change, determine whether implementation was successful, back out of the change if necessary.

Production processes

The final example consists of a swimlane diagram that can be used to improve business production efficiency from the acquiring of raw materials to the distribution of the finished product:

Sales department – receive order, vet order, place order, collect payment, release for delivery.
Research and development – make a new technology file.
Production planning – order review, create production schedule, confirm materials, assembly process, maintain pace of production.
Workshop – produce products, store products.
Purchasing department – define material needs, place purchasing orders, follow-up and confirm orders.

Key takeaways:

A swimlane diagram is used in process flowcharts to clarify job sharing and job responsibility. These flowcharts were developed by organizational consultants Geary Rummler and Alan Brache in 1990.
A swimlane diagram is used to streamline processes, delineate roles and responsibilities, and increase transparency and collaboration between related departments.
A swimlane diagram can be hand-drawn or created using flowchart software. Businesses must first determine a goal and work backward to identify the process steps required to achieve it. Those familiar with the process should be consulted before it is accepted into standard operating procedures or training.

Key Highlights

Introduction to Swimlane Diagrams:
- Swimlane diagrams are a specialized type of cross-functional flowchart developed by Geary Rummler and Alan Brache in 1990.
- These diagrams build upon multi-column process charts to effectively visualize processes involving multiple units or departments within an organization.
- Swimlane diagrams are particularly useful for illustrating job sharing, job responsibilities, and the flow of information in complex processes.
Understanding Swimlane Diagrams:
- Swimlane diagrams differentiate from traditional flowcharts by visually grouping processes and decisions into lanes using parallel lines.
- Each lane represents a distinct entity, such as a person, group, sub-process, department, or information system.
- Directional arrows traverse these swimlanes, showing the movement of information or materials between sub-processes and indicating responsibility.
Purpose and Benefits of Swimlane Diagrams:
- Swimlane diagrams serve various purposes within organizations:
  - Identify bottlenecks, delays, redundancies, and unnecessary steps to streamline processes.
  - Standardize work processes and document them in a format that is easily shareable and comprehensible.
  - Ensure the involvement of all relevant parties in a process.
  - Enhance operational transparency and foster collaboration between different departments.
Creating a Swimlane Diagram:
- The process of creating a swimlane diagram involves several steps:
  - Determine the goal: Clarify the specific process or processes to be analyzed and define the desired level of detail.
  - Segment the work: Break down the process into its constituent parts and establish clear boundaries for analysis.
  - Designate swimlanes: Assign swimlanes to departments, groups, employees, or information systems.
  - Research the process steps: Map out the connections between each swimlane, documenting the existing process and identifying gaps or redundancies.
  - Confirm the diagram: Seek input from individuals familiar with the process and make necessary adjustments.
  - Implement the diagram: Incorporate the diagram into standard operating procedures or use it as a reference tool for quality control and training purposes.
Examples of Swimlane Diagrams:
- Swimlane diagrams find application in various organizational contexts:
  - Labor Contract Management: Illustrates the process of managing new employee contracts, involving departments like Human Resources, Employee Department, and Documents.
  - Inventory Management: Visualizes the inventory management process, covering departments such as Sales, Production, Quality Control, and Financial.
  - Software Service: Represents the process of addressing customer requests for software support, involving Customer, Sales, Technical Support, Tester, and Development.
  - Change Management: Demonstrates the steps in change management, involving different entities like Change Indicator, Advisory Boards, Change Manager, and Implementor.
  - Production Processes: Maps the production process from order placement to distribution, including Sales, Research and Development, Production Planning, Workshop, and Purchasing.