Visio Reviews

As process improvement professional I map out current state processes either at the value stream or swim lane level, at times both. With current state I identify pain points and bottlenecks do root cause analysis, identify possible solutions, and make recommendations on which ones I think would be the most effective. Then incorporate them into a proposed future state. 

Once we developed custom templates and shape libraries it provided a common look and feel that our stakeholders have come to understand, which is helping them to develop a continuous improvement mindset. 

We are all familiar with it, and it is easy to use. There is a lot of flexibility, and you can create custom templates with standard shapes. 

It would be nice if we could develop a custom database. We have looked into this functionality, but all of the other solutions that have a database are very locked down, and you have to use them their way. You can't define your own systems, tools, and inputs etc. For example, if we have systems that are used in multiple processes, and we want to know what processes use those systems we should be able to query the database for processes that include a specific system. A uses case could be system X being phased out so we need to know what processes will be impacted, so that we can ensure that those processes are all taken into account in any decisions to replace that system.

Additionally, Visio should have the ability to capture metrics such as demand, work time, cycle time, .. for each step in the process. Then those metrics should be able to be linked to a spreadsheet to enable data analysis that remains aligned with the process map so that changes remain aligned between Visio and Excel. Other systems attempt to provide this functionality, but the spreadsheet functionality is not as robust as Excel. 

I have been using Visio for six years.

It is stable.

There are no scalability issues. We are a nationwide company, and there are around 5,000 users.

I never had to contact them.

I never used another solution long-term, but I have evaluated various and continue to see Visio as the best option. 

The initial setup was easy. It has been around for so long. All of us have used it before, so it is not like it was new to us. 

Good. 

Most other tools are expensive.  

I was already using Visio for years before evaluating other options.

I advise standardizing the file naming conventions so it is easier to find what you need when you need it. 

We primarily use the solution for business process design.

The simplicity of the solution is great. It doesn't have a lot of menus, so it's easy to navigate. 

The fact that it's on-premises allows you to get fantastic speed. It's got a faster response rate, it doesn't lag, and it doesn't have any latency when you're working on it.

The solution has a very comprehensive set of icons. It has a BPMN location and a lot of other different locations you can use at the same time.

Microsoft offers great documentation of the product.

The reason we're moving from Visio to another program is the fact that you can link the library on ARIS or Signavio. These you have to save them on the save drive which as a collaboration. It's not working for us.  There needs to be better configuration at this point. We need something a bit more flexible in that sense.

The scalability is limited.

If you look at ARIS, for example, or Signavio, the flowchart combines all the details and with the click of a button I can create a process manager. That would be something that Visio could add. It would cut my workload in half. Currently, once I'm done with drawing the flowchart, I need to take it and put it in that document and then explain what the flowchart is.

We've been using the solution for four to five years at this point.

The stability is good. It's reliable. It doesn't crash on us, or freeze. I don't recall any bugs or glitches.

The scalability is average. It's not as scalable as other options. Organizations that need to expand it may run into issues.

We have about five to ten users on the solution at our company.

I've never required technical support. I can't speak to the level of service they provide.

That said, there is great documentation, so it's pretty easy to troubleshoot by referencing those if you need to.

We've tried ARIS and Signavio. We're still looking for a solution that can replace Visio for us. We're looking for something that can link our library.

In our organization, the IT department takes care of the initial setup. I wasn't part of the deployment process.

We're just a customer. We don't have a business relationship with Microsoft.

We're using either the 2015 or 2016 version of the solution.

The first question a company needs to determine how complex the processes are and how much depth, how much detail they want to document. If it's simpler and they want to get away from the flow chart and then present it somewhere else (such as on a PowerPoint or a report) Visio is a great option.

However, if you want to actually manage your processor, simulator, have a database, or have workflows in order to get approval within different departments or, for example, create documents after a flowchart, then I'd recommend other programs.

Overall, I'd rate the solution seven out of ten.

I primarily use Visio for creating mind maps and other visualizations.

I also use it for process modeling, but we are searching for a specific business process modeler because Visio doesn't have the full scope of capability that we need.

The most valuable feature is the set of diagramming tools.

It is quite flexible and easy to use.

The big downside to Visio is that it's very difficult to push the design through to Power Automate, to become a workflow that you can use.

The process modeling capability would benefit from a quick modeler tool, such as one where you use a table that is populated using the BPMN 2.0 format.

In the future, I would like to see a connection with the workflow so that you can create your model and then execute it.

I have been using Visio for about ten years.

The stability is good.

Scalability is something that needs to be improved.

The models are not linked together, so unless you're using SharePoint or you've defined your own workflow, there is no version control. This makes it more difficult to collaborate, link models, and make sure that everybody is using the latest version. Essentially, you have to build your own framework from scratch in order to do that.

We have about 100 users, most of which are end-users. It requires minimal administration.

We have not had to contact the vendor for support.

This was the first proper diagramming tool that we have used.

The initial setup is straightforward. Our IT department installed it, and I think that it took a couple of hours to deploy.

Our in-house team is responsible for the deployment, maintenance, and providing support.

Our license for Visio is including with the Office 365 subscription.

This is a product that I can recommend, albeit for limited use. If you just want to draw basic models and create systems diagrams, and not do anything too clever and link it together, then it will work well because it's quite flexible and easy to use.

I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.

We use the product for business modeling and workflow design.

The product only functions well professionally, with adding additional software for configuration.

We have been Visio for more than 20 years.

The product is stable.

The product is only scalable if utilized with additional software.

The initial setup is straightforward. However, it only fits a professional approach if you add additional software. It can be deployed on-premises and on the cloud.

I rate Visio a seven out of ten. I recommend it for beginners. However, I advise others to use it along with additional software.

I am using Visio for migration and application development. Additionally, we did a Microsoft Azure landing zone for companies to implement CICD pipelines. 

We typically do hybrid deployments because of the data security issues that can arise. However, there is a lot of opportunity coming for native cloud deployments.

The most valuable feature of Visio is the credential management, endpoint manager, and active directory for Microsoft Azure for our hybrid infrastructure. Additionally, there are plenty of features available.

Visio could improve by simplifying the application to allow the business user more understanding. This will allow us to bring the solution deeper into the organization for use. It can be difficult to navigate and some users tend to rely on third-party applications for auditing, compliance, and policy configuration.

I have used Visio for approximately four years.

I rate the stability of Visio an eight out of ten.

We have approximately 10 people using this solution in solution.

I rate the scalability of Visio a nine out of ten.

The support from Microsft has been great. I receive direct calls from support to resolve our issues. They have been responsive and helpful.

I do not have experience with other solutions in the same category.

The initial setup is easy. I have been doing it for many years.

I rate the price of Visio a six out of ten.

My advice is this solution is scalable and easy to deploy. It is an asset for an organization, which is looking for an immediate infrastructure to be built on a project.

I rate Visio a nine out of ten.

My primary use case of Visio is diagramming. It's useful for diagramming any type of process you would want to describe. 

The valuable feature about Visio is it has all the basic tools for creating processes. 

Visio's scalability could be improved. I had a license through my school and it would have been great to be able to collaborate with more people. 

As for additional features, all these tools differ and Visio has the basics. I don't think it needs to be something more because it's Visio, it's a Microsoft product. 

I have been using Visio for two years. 

The stability is okay. 

The scalability could be improved. When I was in school, it wasn't possible to collaborate with others. 

I have never contacted Microsoft's technical support. 

The installation was straightforward and I had no problems. It's the same installation process as other Microsoft software: you pay for it, a few clicks, and you're there. 

I implemented this solution myself. 

Visio is the cheapest solution because it has the basics. Everyone starts with Visio for designing processes because doing it in PowerPoint is a mess. I'm still a student, so I don't pay for licensing. 

I rate Visio a five out of ten. When I need to do something simple, Visio is okay. I would recommend this solution to others. 

My primary use case for Visio is network diagrams to document our local and wide area networks. We also use it from time to time to document business processes and logical systematic processes. 

Visio has helped streamline our documentation.

The most valuable feature of this product is its versatility.

An area for improvement would be the product's footprint - it's a very large install that uses many gigabytes. There are also sometimes bugs when working with documents on a network drive.

I've been using Visio for about twenty years.

Visio is very stable, and very few staff are needed for maintenance.

I don't think scalability is particularly relevant to this product as I use it.

Microsoft's basic support is very difficult to work with. However, we have recently invested in the premier support package, which is a lot more money but is actually very good.

The initial setup was fairly straightforward.

I used an in-house team for implementation.

I would rate this solution as eight out of ten.

Visio is easy to use.

The solution could improve by having more integration.

I have been using Visio for approximately one year.

Visio is stable.

I have found Visio to be scalable.

The support for Visio is very good. Microsoft always fixes bugs or problems quickly.

The installation is easy.

The solution could be less expensive.

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate Visio a ten out of ten.