As many of our clients are kicking off their internal audit and control programs for the year, we wanted to share some light about a tool we swear by: the bird’s eye diagram. It’s a diagramming technique we use with our clients to see the big picture without getting lost in a vortex (or rabbit hole) of details. You can use this technique on projects like internal controls, audits, SOX, CSOX, ICFR programs or process design or system implementations too.
A bird’s eye diagram gives your process owners, auditors, and leaders a clear, aerial view of your processes. It’s a supercharged version of the more familiar swim lane diagram which is about visually representing a process, workflow, or system using parallel lanes. We’ve been using, testing, and improving our bird’s eye method with clients for over a decade.
What separates a bird’s eye diagram from more technical or procedural techniques, is that it is more of an art, rather than a science. While accuracy matters, what’s more important is that bird’s eye diagrams are engaging, easy to understand, and resonate with your audience. They are designed to give a high-level, panoramic view of your processes.
Getting Started with Your Bird’s Eye Diagram
Based on our extensive experience in creating these diagrams for clients, here are the basic steps that we recommend:
1. Start with the big picture. First, start with filling in the “big stuff” like your stakeholders and players, key controls, key process steps, and key systems.
2. Fill in the finer details. Next, fill-in the finer details like system inputs and outputs, sub steps, interfaces, data flows and then connect the dots or arrows to show their relationships.
3. Use your diagram to ask probing questions. Whenever we do this exercise for clients, I always learn something new about our clients’ processes – even for clients I have worked with for a long time. No diagram is perfect on the first try—use workshops and discussions and feedback loops to capture discussions and feedback and refine your diagram over time.
4. Focus on the message, rather than form. Familiarize yourself with basic flowchart symbols and standards like BPMN for consistency. However, don’t get too caught up in the rules. Consistent layout, fonts, colors, and shapes matter, but the substance of your message counts more. It’s more important that your diagram communicate the process and interconnections effectively than to get caught-up in minutia.
Bird’s Eye Benefits
While bird’s eye diagrams do take some skill and mostly practice, their benefits are cosmic for internal control and internal audit professionals. These benefits include:
- Strong visual appeal – Stakeholders love (and we don’t think this is too strong) these diagrams. People want to look at them and this will increase the level of engagement in your internal control work or internal audit program.
- Comprehensive without the overwhelm – Bird’s eye diagrams communicate a lot of information in small spaces. This brings substantial efficiencies to your design or process review work.
- Great conversation starters – Every time we have performed these diagrams for clients, they always generate new ideas, solutions, and areas of learning for teams and Leadership.
If you need any help with your diagramming projects or internal control or internal audit programs, we’d love to discuss or provide you with guidance further!