Tutorials

Visuals for Presenting Strategies and Ideas

1. Brainstorming and Organizing Ideas: Mind Maps
2. Formalizing Decision Making: Decision Trees
3. Analyzing Problems and Solutions: Cause & Effect Diagrams

1. Brainstorming and Organizing Ideas with Mind Maps

Mind maps are used dynamically, when brainstorming, note-taking, and planning, to record and organize ideas as part of a creative process. Using a mind map is a great first step in creating a presentation, for example. You think of all the topics, related subtopic, audience concerns, etc. Then organize them into clusters to help you think through everything you need to include.

Once completed, mind maps also make great visuals for communicating the results of your brainstorming session.

Often, you will have to present ideas, tasks, and initiatives supporting a central project or concept. Mind maps are an excellent way to visualize and communicate such relationships. A mind map, or a series of mind maps that drill down on major topics, helps you present details while keeping the complete context or structure in view. This aids audience comprehension and increases interaction compared to a text or bullet list.

See how more effectively a completed mind expresses all the thinking that goes into this project than the same information in a simple list of text:

How to Create a Mind Map

Creating a mind map is simple. Just start with a central topic or idea. Let's use the example of presenting a marketing communications plan.

Place a box in the center of your page and label it with the idea. Then add the main topics connected around the central idea. These are the next level of hierarchy or outline.

Then, refine each major topic with specific subtopics. Again, radiate out from each major topic. The completed mind map will look something like this:

To watch a video on how to create mind maps with SmartDraw, click here.

2. Formalizing the Decision Making Process with Decision Trees

Mind maps are great for free-form thinking. But sometimes decisions need to be made in a more formalized way. For this we have the decision tree. Decision trees are used in the context of identifying a strategy most likely to reach a goal, by modeling decisions and probable outcomes. In presentations, decision trees can be used to display the rationale behind a decision in a way that lets the audience better see where the factors come to play. For presentation purposes, decision trees are easy to understand and interpret. Even without data, decision trees can help describe decision situations and their probabilities or desired outcomes.

In a presentation, describing the rationale behind certain decisions without the benefit of a decision tree diagram, would look something like this:

• Extend or Consolidate
  • Extend
    Traditional or rapid development
    • Traditional
      • Cost is $150,000
      • Revenue $500,000
      • Profit = $350,000
    • Rapid
      • Cost $80,000
      • Revenue $100,000
      • Profit = $20,000
  • Consolidate
    • Enhance or maintain
      • Make Enhancements
        • Cost $30,000
        • Revenue $60,000
        • Profit = $30,000
      • Maintain products
        • Cost $0
        • Revenue $60,000
        • Profit = $10,000

The same factors shown in a decision tree diagram, however, are much easier to follow:

How to Create a Decision Tree Diagram

Start by structuring the problem—consider the alternatives and consider the outcomes for each alternative. To create the tree, follow some rules: outcomes flow from left-to-right or from top-to-bottom. There are three types of nodes: leaf or terminal node, chance node and decision nodes. It helps to use different shapes for each type of node, but it is not required.

Start with a box at the top or left of the diagram. Enter the trigger event ('Patient presents with sore throat') or decision statement ('Extend or consolidate product line'). Let's look at the product line decision as an example. The following is the text version of the decision:

• Extend or Consolidate
  • Extend
    Traditional or rapid development
    • Traditional
      • Cost is $150,000
      • Revenue $500,000
      • Profit = $350,000
    • Rapid
      • Cost $80,000
      • Revenue $100,000
      • Profit = $20,000
  • Consolidate
    • Enhance or maintain
      • Make Enhancements
        • Cost $30,000
        • Revenue $60,000
        • Profit = $30,000
      • Maintain products
        • Cost $0
        • Revenue $60,000
        • Profit = $10,000

This is surely not easy to follow or interpret and it's not easy to see where decision points are made. Let's turn this into a visual with a decision tree graphic.

Start with a box labeled 'Extend or consolidate.' From here there are two paths, so draw two lines fanning out. One arm is the 'Extend' product line arm; the other is the 'Consolidate' arm.

Now each of these paths hits a decision point. Again, draw lines to fan out all the choices on each. In this case, there are two choices for each subsequent decision. In the leaf or terminating nodes, we can put the results (in this case, what the profit is for each complete path). That's it.

Here are some more decision tree examples:

To watch a video on how to make a decision tree diagram with SmartDraw, click here

3. Analyzing Problems and Solutions: Cause & Effect Diagrams

When analyzing a problem, a cause-and-effect diagram helps analysts think through and organize all the factors leading to an effect. For presentation of methodology, considerations, and results, the cause-and-effect diagram helps the audience better visualize the context of the problem and solution. It also aids discussion of issues and remedies.

In a presentation, without the benefit of a cause and effect diagram, you'd be stuck with several slides of bullets, but a cause and effect diagram allows you and your audience to visualize all the facets of the problem you are examining.

How to Create a Cause-and-Effect Diagram

Structurally, a cause-and-effect diagram has a spine that runs left to right with the effect (the result or the issue) labeled at the right. Major causes or categories of causes fan out from the spine to the upper left or lower left. The individual details of each cause are listed on individual lines extending from each factor. Visually, the diagram has a 'fishbone' appearance (fishbone diagram is another common name for the cause-and-effect diagram).

As noted, these diagrams are constructed as part of a problem analysis. In presentations, they can be used to discuss or present the analysis—the methodology, the results, and the corrective actions.

Since a cause-and-effect diagram visually presents a hierarchy of items, it can also be used to organize and present the factors leading to, say, a decision.

To draw a cause-and-effect diagram, start with the spine and label the result on the right.

Next add the major causes or factors, fanning out from the spine. Name the cause and specify the details.

To watch a video on how to make a cause-and-effect diagram with SmartDraw, click here