Chapter 8. Creating Organization Charts

Organization charts are special layouts available in the Hierarchical category. They offer two main improvements over traditional hierarchical charts:

• Organization charts can specify that any branch of the chart should be arranged vertically instead of horizontally. This allows a wide organization to fit on the chart. There are three styles of vertical arrangements for a branch.
• Organization charts offer the assistant shape. An assistant appears between levels of the organization chart.

Creating an Organization Chart

Typically, an organization chart starts with a single entry of Level 1 text, representing the person responsible for the organization. Then you add Level 2 entries for each direct report below the Level 1 entry and, for each Level 2 shape, you add Level 3 shapes for any direct reports.

Figure 8.1 shows a simple organization chart with three levels.

Figure 8.1 This simple organization chart has three levels. Theme: Office, Style: Subtle Effect, Color: Colorful Range – Accent Colors 4 to 5.

As you add additional reporting relationships, the organization chart becomes very wide. Figure 8.2 shows a small company with 52 employees. If you use the Standard style, it is impossible to make out any of the text on a PowerPoint slide.

Figure 8.2 As you add boxes to the organization chart, the typical layout becomes too wide. Theme: Office, Style: Subtle Effect, Color: Colorful Range – Accent Colors 4 to 5.

In Figure 8.2, the last level in each branch is arranged vertically. Another strategy is to move the organization chart to Excel, where you now have 16,000 columns of width to fit any size organization chart. However, the most practical example is to break the chart into functional areas. Show one top-level chart with the president and the head of each functional department. Then produce new charts with the head of each functional department as the Level 1 box.

Changing the Branch Layout

The Organization Chart is the only SmartArt layout where the branch orientation choices are available. You can find these choices on the SmartArt Tools, Design tab of the ribbon. In the Create Graphic group, use the Org Chart drop-down to access choices for Standard, Left Hanging, Right Hanging, and Both.

To change the orientation for a branch, you must first select the manager shape above the branch. Access the SmartArt Tools Design tab and choose a branch style from the Org Chart drop-down, as shown in Figure 8.3.

Figure 8.3 You must first select the manager of the branch and then access the Org Chart drop-down on the ribbon.

Figure 8.4 illustrates the four hanging styles available in the Org Chart drop-down.

Figure 8.4 This diagram illustrates the four available hanging styles for branches. Theme: Office, Style: Moderate Effect, Color: Colorful Range – Accent Colors 2 to 3.

• On the left, VP1’s direct reports are shown in a Left Hanging style. A vertical line drops from the right side of VP1, and the direct reports are stacked to the left of the line.
• Next, VP2’s direct reports are shown in a Right Hanging style. A vertical line drops from the left side of VP2, and the direct reports are stacked to the right of the line.
• Because VP3 has twice as many direct reports as the other VPs, VP3’s direct reports are shown in a Both hanging style. A vertical line drops from the center of VP3, and the direct reports alternately appears on the left and right side of the line. This style takes up more horizontal width than the previous styles, but it prevents the chart from becoming overly tall.
• VP4 is shown in the Standard style. In this style, each direct report is arranged horizontally on the same level.

When you use a combination of hanging styles, you can condense the wide diagram in Figure 8.2 horizontally to fit on a single PowerPoint slide, as shown in Figure 8.5.

Figure 8.5 When you use various hanging styles, the diagram fits on a single slide. Theme: Office, Style: Intense Effect, Color: Colored Fill – Accent 5.

Using a Vertical Hanging Style for Middle Levels

Office can handle a case in which you assign a vertical hanging style to a middle level. For example, on the right side of Figure 8.5, the Materials Manager displays a Right Hanging style for his direct reports. The VP of Manufacturing displays a Left Hanging style for her direct reports. This layout produces a tall but slender rendering of this department.

Adding an Assistant

The assistant shape is unique to organization charts. Anyone reading this book knows that an excellent assistant is actually responsible for making sure the organization runs smoothly. Consequently, an assistant shape appears above all the direct reports for the manager.

Although you can completely manage most SmartArt graphics in the text pane, there does not appear to be a method for adding the first assistant box in the text pane. You have to use the icons on the ribbon to add the first assistant.

Note

If a manager has two assistants, you can add the second assistant in the text pane.

If you use Insert, SmartArt and choose an organization chart, the default layout always includes one assistant. This alleviates the problem of not being able to add the first assistant in the text pane. However, if you convert an existing hierarchical chart to an organization chart, you have to use the ribbon to insert the assistant.

Follow these steps to add two assistants to the President shape on an organization chart:

1. Click on the shape for the individual who manages the assistant. In this example, we’ll use the company president.
2. From the ribbon, click on the SmartArt Tools, Design tab.
3. In the Create Graphic group, click the Add Shape drop-down. Be sure to click the lower half of this button. If you click the top half, Office adds a shape to a diagram, in a seemingly random fashion. In reality, if the current branch has one or two nodes, the new shape is added as a peer to the selected shape. With three or more nodes, the Add Shape button adds a child to the selected shape.
4. As shown in Figure 8.6, a new shape is added below the President and above the second level of the diagram. In the text pane, the assistant is considered Level 2 text but appears at the end of the list, with an Assistant icon shown next to the text.

   

   Figure 8.6 Assistant shapes appear at the end of the text pane but are drawn in between levels on the diagram. Theme: Office, Style: Subtle Effect, Color: Colorful Range – Accent Colors 4 to 5.

5. To add a second assistant at the same level, click on the first assistant in the text pane. Press the Enter key to add another assistant at this level. Type the text for this assistant.

The completed chart is shown in Figure 8.7.

Figure 8.7 The president has two assistants reporting to him. Theme: Office, Style: Subtle Effect, Color: Colorful Range – Accent Colors 4 to 5.

Using the Organization Chart layout, you can add subordinates to the assistant shape. Any subordinates to the assistant are automatically drawn using a hanging style of Both, as shown in Figure 8.8.

Figure 8.8 This office manager has quite an empire. Theme: Office, Style: Subtle Effect, Color: Colorful Range – Accent Colors.

Showing Dotted Line Reporting Relationships

The SmartArt Graphics engine cannot automatically create dotted line reporting relationships. However, you can manually add a line to a diagram.

Note

You should get your graphic as close to being done as possible before adding manual shapes. Any subsequent changes to the text pane require manual repositioning of the lines.

To add a dotted line, follow these steps:

1. Prepare the organization chart using the SmartArt tools.
2. On the Insert ribbon, choose the Shapes drop-down.
3. Click on the Elbow Connector.
4. Draw the line connecting two boxes on the organization chart. Don’t worry that the line is the wrong weight and style.
5. Click on the line to select it.
6. In the Drawing Tools, Format tab, choose the Shape Outline drop-down. In the Weight flyout menu, choose a thicker line style, such as 3 pt.
7. Access the Shape Outline drop-down again. In the Dashes flyout menu, choose one of the dotted line styles.

Figure 8.9 shows a diagram with a dotted line connecting two shapes.

Figure 8.9 A dotted line connects two shapes. Theme: Office, Style: Intense Effect, Color: Colored Fill – Accent 5.

Next Steps

In Chapter 9, “Adding New SmartArt Graphics Layouts,” you learn how to add new SmartArt graphics for use on your computer.