Process Swimlane Designer
Place each action in the role responsible for it and connect actions with directed transitions. A decision can have named outcomes; a cross-lane transition records a handoff. The diagram, structural warnings and enumerated paths update together as you edit. This helps review a process before sharing it; it does not execute the work or prove that real-world conditions can be met.
Key features
- Editable role lanes and start, task, decision and end steps
- Labeled directed branches and visible cross-role handoffs
- Checks for open branches, unreachable steps, dead ends and missing end paths
- Bounded route enumeration including loops and handoff counts
- SVG picture, text path list and strict editable JSON round trip
How to use
- Load the publication example or start a blank project, then edit its title and role lanes.
- Add steps in the responsible lanes and choose whether each is a start, task, decision or end.
- Connect steps in their execution direction; name each decision outcome and inspect handoffs.
- Review warnings and structural paths. Fix missing transitions or unreachable work before sharing.
- Download the SVG and path list for review; save the JSON project to continue editing later.
Use cases
- Review who writes, approves and publishes an article
- Spot a decision outcome that has no destination
- Count handoffs across support, operations and finance
- Share an SVG process map while retaining an editable project file
Frequently asked questions
What makes a branch incomplete?
A decision should have at least two outgoing transitions with distinct nonempty labels. A task or start normally has one outgoing transition, while an end should have none. The checker flags departures from those structural rules; it cannot decide whether an outcome is likely or correct.
How are unreachable work and dead ends found?
The checker walks directed transitions from every start to find reachable steps, then walks backward from end steps to find steps that can reach an end. A missing outgoing transition is a dead end. These are graph checks, not a simulation of staff, permissions or business conditions.
How do loops and path limits work?
A route stops and is marked as a cycle when it revisits a step. The list shows at most 40 structural paths and warns when more were omitted. It does not unroll a repeat loop indefinitely or claim all possible executions were listed.
Can I edit the exported diagram?
The SVG is a picture for review. Save the version 1 JSON project for further editing here. A valid import replaces the current in-memory project; an invalid or non-UTF-8 file leaves it unchanged.
Is this a service blueprint or a state-machine tester?
This tool maps accountable roles and their handoffs across a directed business process. It does not model customer evidence, frontstage/backstage/support gaps of a service blueprint. The state-machine tester instead analyzes state/event/guard coverage and runs event sequences.
Does the process stay private and save automatically?
Editing, path analysis and file creation happen in this browser tab without a project upload. There is no automatic save or collaboration account. Download the project JSON before leaving; the file may contain sensitive names and notes.
Privacy
The process project is held in this page's browser memory and is not submitted to a server API. There is no automatic save; download JSON before closing. Its role names, step notes and branch labels may contain sensitive workflow details.
Comments & questions