Creating an Organisation Chart in Visio using Excel data

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You can automatically generate a chart using the Visio Organization Chart Wizard if you have personnel data stored in an electronic data file.

Formats the Organization Chart Wizard can read

The Organization Chart Wizard can read data in a variety of formats, including:

• Microsoft Office Excel® (.xls).
• Microsoft Exchange Server Directory (the data in the Microsoft Exchange e-mail Address Book).
• Tab- or Comma-delimited text (.txt).
• Org Plus (.txt).
• The file format for a database created in an Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)-compliant database application, such as Microsoft Office Access®.

Structure your data files

Required data

To generate an organization chart from your personnel data file, the Organization Chart Wizard must be able to identify:

• Each employee's name - (If no employee have the same name - if they do a middle initial must be added or some data that makes them unique)
• Who each employee reports to -(Must contain managers' unique identifiers)
• Leave the Reports To field blank for the person at the top of the chart.

Creating the organisation chart

1. Start Visio.
2. From the File menu select New4Organisation Chart4Organisation Chart Wizard.
   
   
    
3. Select Information that's already stored in a file or database.
4. Click Next.
   
   
    
5. Select A text, Org Plus (*.txt), or Microsoft Excel File.
6. Click Next.
   
   
    
7. Click on the Browse button and select the Excel file.
8. Click Next.
   
   
   
   The Name column (field) contains data that identifies the person.
   
   The Reports to: column contains data that identifies the person's manager.
   
   The First Name (optional) column contains the person's first name. The data in this column is combined with the data in the Name column to make the person's full name.
    
9. Select the columns from the Excel spreadsheet that match the first two options, Name and Reports to.
10. Click Next.
    
    
     
11. Click on the Data File columns that you want to display in the organisation chart by selecting them and clicking on the Add button.
    
    Use the Up or Down button to organise the order to display them in.  On the left hand side of the dialog box it displays one of the boxes.
    
    
12. Click Next.
    
    
    
    You may wish to add fields such as Phone Numbers as a custom property.
13. Click Next.
    
    
     
14. Click Finish.
    
    The Organisation Chart is created:
    

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