Activities
Activities are actions and can always be described using a verb, for example: Define job role. The steps in a Recruitment Process could be:
- Define job role
- Obtain sign-off
- Prepare advert
- Attract candidates
- Process applicants
- Hold interviews
- Assess candidates
- Hold second interviews
- Make formal offer
Note how each of the Activities begins with a verb. This is a good indicator that you have an Activity. Breaking down an Activity in this way (sometimes referred to as Activity decomposition) is achieved using Activity drill-down. There are two special types of Activity:
- External Activity
Used to show an Activity that is performed outside the organisation. Often used when the Activity is brief and the Output Deliverable returns immediately back to the organisation. - Decision
A special kind of Activity which has multiple, mutually exclusive outputs.
Naming an Activity
An activity can be named as it is dropped, using the Tip Window:
or you can press F2 and add or edit the activity name.
Activity Right Click Menu
Right click on an Activity and the following will appear:
The top six items are Process Navigator-specific; the rest are provided by Visio.
| Menu item | Description |
|---|---|
| Properties... | Provides access to the Activity Properties window. |
| Decision | When ticked, it indicates the shape is a Decision. Click to change between the Decision and Activity. |
| External | When ticked, it indicates the shape is an External Activity. Click to change between the External Activity and Activity. |
| Shadow | When ticked, it indicates the shape has a shadow. Click to change to/from a shadow |
| Auto-size Vertical | When ticked, the Activity will adjust its size vertically as the amount of text increases. |
| Activity Help | Provides context-sensitive help on the Activity. |