Organizational charts, or org charts, are an essential part to helping employees navigate their organizations. Now you might think: How can a static chart of boxes and lines possibly be that important? But you might be thinking of the org chart of the past.
The org chart of today
As organizations become more agile and distributed, maintaining an accurate view of where your people fit in becomes increasingly challenging. So the question becomes, how do we maintain an accurate and visually appealing representation of our organization that brings value at the same time?
In many organizations, the org chart is a document posted on an intranet page as a reference. Often created by the HR or internal communications team in PowerPoint or Visio. But with new pressures on organizations to become more collaborative and faster, the need for employees to quickly and effortlessly understand the organization structure has outstripped static org charts. The org chart of today should be used and provide value for everyone at your organization.
Reimagine the purpose of an org chart
Think beyond the traditional use case of an org chart that we just outlined. The org chart of today is automatic customizable, exportable, easily allows for integrations, and is accessible by everyone at your organization. And when paired with deep, employee profiles that go beyond name and job title, org charts are a powerful way to let everyone at your organization learn more about each other — skills, interests, competencies, and more.
Take it from one of our users, Leah Foreman, Director of Information Technology at Rocket Mortgage, who says, “ Sift’s org chart is so helpful for me. Whenever I need to talk to somebody from a certain team, I browse in the org chart and search from there. In a small organization where everyone is just down the hall, it’s easy to figure out who does what. But for a company my size, and especially in the new world of remote work, that option simply doesn’t exist. Fortunately, we have Sift, and Sift will always help me find the answer.” Check out her full review.
Organization charts, in short, help employees do their jobs. They help in onboarding, when someone is looking for a resource, and to better understand the organization as a whole. In fact, an org chart can be one of the most utilized tools that a company provides. The Sift Data Reportshowed that users access Sift’s org chart an average of 4 times per week!
Key use cases for an org chart
Here are just some of the ways that your organization can benefit from an org chart:
Onboarding new hires
When a new employee starts work they are instantly overwhelmed. In fact, without a good onboarding process, nearly one-third of all new hires quit their jobs within the first six months. New hires often feel overwhelmed by the fact that they have no idea what their place is in the organization. They need to have a way to:
- Discover who reports to who
- See how big the teams are that they’ll be working with
- Find where their colleagues are located
- Put names to faces
- Explore a career path
Engaging remote employees
Now that most organizations are partially or fully remote, it’s even more critical that remote employees have access to an org chart. In fact, according to Slack’s Remote Work Report, forty-five percent of newly remote workers report that their sense of belonging suffers at home. They need to have a way to:
- Find where their colleagues are located
- Put names to faces
- Connect to other known/unknown colleagues based on skills or interests
- Discover a mentor or advocate
Understanding the organization
Organizations continue to evolve and even the most senior employees need to understand the changes and who makes up each team. Employees need to see:
- Changes in team structure
- Direct and indirect report counts
- New titles and promotions
- New job responsibilities
Finding known (and unknown) colleagues
We’ve all had situations where we need to reach out to a colleague but we can only remember who they report to or their job function. Or you’re looking for someone based on a skills/job title criteria to help you out. Users need a way to:
- Quickly access the org chart
- Utilize search functionality that can search on skills, interests, or any other information
- Access deeper information to determine which of the employees they should contact
- Understand the role and reporting structure of the employee to determine the best way to get connected
Allocating resources and facilitating collaboration
Initiatives and their priorities change quickly. Leaders need to understand what skills their employees have and how they are being utilized in order to be successfully agile. Leaders need to:
- Understand the number of resources in each team
- Evaluate the skills and experience of resources and identify any skills gaps
- Identify personal development opportunities for team members
- Make connections with other leaders to discover untapped potential
The larger the organization, the more important it is to have modern org chart software that can help your people feel connected to their colleagues and improve their work experience. Here are just some ways that key players in your organization would benefit from an org chart:
See what learnings you find in the ebook
Want to learn more about the importance of an org chart, and how to shop for one if you’re ready? Download the eBook.
Want access to more quality thought pieces? Subscribe to our newsletter, here.
Note: This article originally appeared on Sift’s Blog
