Note: At SmartDraw Software, we practice what we
preach. In fact, most of us use the latest version of SmartDraw VP every
day. We’ve been asked by customers who have yet to experience the software, how
various positions in their company would use SmartDraw VP. What better way to
answer our customers than to ask our own employees? This post is the first in
our continuing blog series featuring SmartDraw employees.
Jon Cecilio is a Market Research Analyst here at
SmartDraw. This is an important role for us because he helps the company
understand our customers and how we can better help them solve their pains in
business. Being a Market Research Analyst means understanding and condensing
large amounts of complex information about markets, companies, and new
potential functionalities of SmartDraw. This means Jon needs to be extremely
organized and be able to clearly communicate his findings to our Product
Manager. These findings help us determine what functionality SmartDraw should
have and where we should market our products. Below, learn why mind maps are
critical to Jon’s job:
How do you use
SmartDraw and how often?
I use SmartDraw’s mind maps daily, primarily to put structure to my thought processes. I often use org charts
to understand our customers and their relation to other customers and
stakeholders. I generally use flowcharts or storyboards when trying to
understand how a business currently functions.
How does SmartDraw
help you communicate better with your team?
Mind maps often, if not always, drive
my weekly one-on-one meetings with my manager and most team meetings I have
been in. Because I’m often presenting research, the mind maps are usually a
summary of all the research I have done on a particular topic and drive the
meeting. Charts and graphs, flowcharts, and org charts are close seconds in
driving our meetings. Key elements such as decisions, next action items, and
workflows are made so much clearer with visuals.
How does SmartDraw
help you complete your daily tasks more efficiently?
A visual such as a mind map, chart, or
flowchart provides me keen visual knowledge and insight.
Generally, I find when handling a new
assignment or problem, a mind map really does clarify the elements of the task.
It allows me to create a visual checklist that points out areas I need to focus
on or resources I need to do further work with. For instance, if we’re
conducting market analysis for a new vertical market such as healthcare, a mind map helps to
cross-reference and organize all the industry segments of healthcare. It lets
the team prioritize our efforts toward those that are ideal candidates and
eliminate those that would be a waste of resources. Additionally, you can
visualize all sides to an issue during a meeting, preventing tunnel vision or
groupthink. It also lets you capture all of the small, but important details of
the problem, while keeping your focus on the big picture. By simply counting
the elements beneath each segment of a vertical market, you can visually gauge
where to focus or reduce concentrated efforts.
Using an org chart lets me visually
deconstruct organizations to the lowest levels, which helps me understand what
I should research. For instance, the Department of Defense (DoD) is a
gargantuan organization. Let’s say I see a subcomponent of an agency is using
SmartDraw. I also find another subcomponent of the same or different agency is
using SmartDraw. This then frees me to start building a targeting strategy to
others within the DoD, using the current subcomponent customers as a reference.
Charts and graphs enable me to formulate
better decisions based on data and not insight alone.
Flowcharts or storyboards let me see the big
picture process and capture sub processes on a granular level. Seeing the big
picture helps my team get on the same page and seeing the granular processes
ensures our objectives can be clearly defined and action items can be
appropriately assigned.
What is your favorite
SmartDraw visual to make?
Mind maps, hands down – they are the ideal thought
organization tool. You see the problem, you visualize solutions, and you fill
in the gaps and details. For example, I can fill in this competitive company profile mind map and easily identify which areas I need to fill in.
What is your favorite
SmartDraw VP feature?
I most appreciate how I can check out a
collaborative SmartDraw file online, via our internal SharePoint site; I can fix the
visual locally while preventing others from editing it. Once I finish, I can
simply save the visual. At this point, SmartDraw knows to check my file into
SharePoint, ensuring all stakeholders know which the latest file is. Plus,
SharePoint keeps a history of all the revisions made.
I also appreciate the flexible manner in
which I can move topics and subtopics around, and SmartDraw VP automatically
links and reformats my shapes for me. This keeps my visuals looking sharp and,
more importantly, keeps my work organized in a structure that lets me smartly
problem-solve and prioritize my workflow.
Do you have any questions for Jon and how he
uses visuals to effectively complete his tasks? If you use SmartDraw today, how
would you answer these questions? Let us know in the comments below!
