SmartDraw lets you import your org chart data to generate an organizational chart automatically.
If you keep a list of employees in Excel or if you can get one from the HR software (Workday, BambooHR, etc) you used to manage employees, you can generate an organizational chart without any drawing at all.
Before Importing a Local File, Prepare Your Data
Before you can import your data, the list must be formatted with the fields you want to show for each employee as columns and the values for an employee as rows.
Here are some basic rules for making sure your data is going to be readable:
- Each row must represent a unique employee. No duplicates.
- One of the columns must identify the supervisor of that employee.
- All of the rows must have a supervisor (a person that employee reports to) except for the top position in the org chart.
- Ensure all employees, including the top manager are represented in the data you want visualized.
- Make sure your name formatting is consistent across columns. The formatting of the supervisor's name or identification must match the formatting of the identification for the same person in the employee column. This is easiest if you're using numerical employee IDs. If you're using names, make sure that the names are spelled the same and the order of the first or last name is the same in both columns.
The table can be in CSV, XLS, or XLSX file format. Here is a template you can use to format data.
Note: if you have issues generating a visual, try reducing the complexity of the data you're trying to import. SmartDraw will work best with charts that show less than 200 employees. If your entire company has more employees, consider rendering the org chart for each department separately to keep the visual a manageable size.
Import Your Data
Once you have your data set up, select Local File in the Organization Chart Data Visualizer modal.
As the final step before importing, make sure your data is labeled correctly and choose whether to include it in your visual.
When SmartDraw parsed your file, it identified matching columns and guessed which columns were the name and title fields. The preview shown in this dialog is how SmartDraw sees your data. If it's off, you can make some changes if necessary.
Each row in the table will add a shape to the org chart.
Specify Special Column Types
SmartDraw styles and builds your org chart using rules given to each data type. Data identified as Name will be shown centered inside a single org chart shape, while anything identified as a Hyperlink will trigger a hyperlink icon with a link to be added to the shape, and so forth.
The data type is displayed in the first menu above each column. You can change this type by selecting another option from the drop-down menu.
The Rules for Data Types
Name: Data from this column is set to Show in Shape as the first row of text. If you have first and last names in separate columns, you'll have to join them or just choose only one to display as the name in the org chart.
Title: This will show up as the second row of text inside the shape.
Hyperlink: This will add a hyperlink to the specified URL inside the shape. You use this to add links to employee records, for example.
Other: These columns are set to appear in the data layer (Show in Data) by default and not inside the shape itself. You can change this using the display menu. Once the org chart is built, you can find this information by hovering over the blue "i" icon in the lower right corner of an org chart shape. Other columns are added to the shape after the Name and Title in left to right order.
Choose Display Options
For each column in your data, you have three choices presented in the display menu at the top of each column (this is the second drop-down menu):
- You can show the value in the shape by choosing "Show in Shape". This might be appropriate for someone's name, title, or telephone number.
- Move the value to a data layer shown only on hover by choosing "Show in Data". This might be appropriate for data like a hire date or employee ID.
- Hide this value completely by choosing "Don't show".
If you leave the defaults as they are, two rows, one for Name and one for Title, will show in each shape. All other data in columns will be moved to the data layer and shown as shape data. You can customize this using the display options listed above.
Build the Chart
When you're ready, click Import to generate your Org Chart automatically.
Once you imported your data, you can edit your org chart diagram like any other SmartDraw diagram.
Go to the Import and Export control palette in the SmartPanel to the left of your workspace and click on Import from File.