Flowchart
Definition
A flowchart is a diagram that represents a process as a sequence of steps, using standardized shapes for actions, decisions, inputs, and outputs, connected by directional arrows.
Flowcharts have been a standard engineering and business tool since the 1920s. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and ISO formalized the shape vocabulary: rectangles for process steps, diamonds for decisions (yes/no branches), ovals for start/end, parallelograms for inputs and outputs, cylinders for data stores.
In practice, teams draw flowcharts to map onboarding flows, support ticket routing, software logic, approval chains, and manufacturing steps. The value is in making implicit logic explicit — once you see a process drawn out, bottlenecks and redundant steps become obvious.
Flowcharts drawn on whiteboards often mix formal symbols with informal boxes and arrows. BoardSnap AI reads both — it picks up on the structural intent (sequence, branch, loop) regardless of whether the presenter used strict ANSI symbols or hand-drawn approximations. The result is a readable summary of the process logic, ready to share or drop into documentation.
Examples
- User signup flow: Start → Enter email → Email valid? → Yes: create account / No: show error → End
- Bug triage flowchart: Bug reported → Reproducible? → Yes: assign severity → No: close as can't reproduce
- Expense approval process: Submit receipt → Amount > $500? → Yes: manager + finance sign-off / No: auto-approve
- CI/CD pipeline flowchart: Push code → Run tests → Tests pass? → Yes: deploy to staging / No: notify developer
Related terms
Snap a flowchart. Ship its actions.
BoardSnap turns any whiteboard — including this one — into a summary and action plan.