Importing Data from Excel to Create Organizational Charts

Organizational charts are essential for effective workforce planning, enabling everyone within an organization to visualize roles, relationships, and key metrics. While Excel is a popular tool for storing data, it falls short when it comes to creating dynamic and visually intuitive organizational charts. Challenges like limited customization options and a lack of real-time updates make for a time-consuming and inefficient workflow. Excel’s limitations become further apparent when managing HR-related KPIs, such as performance scores, salary data, or span of control, and their impact on the organization as a whole. Unlike static tables, an organizational chart software provides a dynamic way to visualize and communicate both the structure and key metrics of your workforce. 

Excel vs. Alternatives for Creating Org Charts

The type of organizational chart each company needs varies based on the size, industry, data complexity, and specific unique needs. Excel can sometimes be a sufficient tool for smaller organizations or those with straightforward reporting structures. However, many companies find tools like OrgChart are better suited for their complex needs.

When to Use Excel for Org Charts

Excel can be a reasonable choice for creating organizational charts for certain companies and in certain scenarios, such as:

• Small Companies: For organizations with fewer than 20 employees, the simplicity of Excel may suffice to create basic charts.
• Static Structures: If your organizational structure doesn’t require frequent updates or adjustments (e.g., consistent team with low turnover), Excel’s manual workflows could be manageable.
• Basic Visual Needs: For simple, non-dynamic presentations, Excel offers basic formatting and charting tools to outline an organization’s hierarchy.

When to Use Professional Tools

Professional digital org chart tools are better equipped to handle complex organizational needs. Tools like OrgChart are a better fit for certain companies and situations, such as:

• Mid-size and Large Companies: For organizations with more than 20 employees, managing extensive staff data becomes increasingly challenging. Larger organizations typically find automated org charts essential for enhancing accuracy and saving valuable time.
• Frequently Shifting Structures: Businesses with dynamic structures that require frequent adjustments need an org chart system that can sync with HR data sources to ensure data is always up to date. 
• Advanced Metrics: When key metrics, like salary, performance scores, and span of control are important to convey, professional org chart tools offer these deeper insights. 
• Customizability: For businesses that need customizable visualizations, digital org charts allow for more interactive visuals tailored to specific stakeholders.  

Pain Points When Creating Org Charts in Excel—and How to Solve Them

Building org charts from Excel data can be a tedious and inefficient process. This is especially true as businesses grow and HR needs become more complex. Excel’s limitations often lead to challenges, from manual data entry to dull visuals and collaboration barriers. 

Manual Data Entry Is Time-Consuming

Manually inputting data and formatting charts takes precious time away from more pressing organizational tasks. Not to mention, manual data entry is prone to human error. This can cause declined productivity and impact an organization’s bottom line. OrgChart automates this process by generating org charts from excel data and other sources, cultivating complete and accurate charts in a fraction of the time.

Limited Customization Options

While Excel offers simple formatting, it leaves much to be desired. OrgChart provides comprehensive customization features, allowing for individualized layouts, color schemes, and designs that align with your organization’s branding and presentation needs. Personalized views also allow for different views to communicate various information to individual stakeholders.

Difficulty Maintaining Accuracy with Updates

When building org charts from Excel data, manually updating them to ensure accuracy can be a highly time-consuming process. This often leads to outdated or inaccurate information that can impact business decisions. Conversely, OrgChart syncs directly with data sources, including Excel, to ensure updates are automatically reflected. With OrgChart, organizations can feel confident that their charts are always accurate and up-to-date.

Lack of Visual Appeal

Excel’s visual limitations can make it difficult to display organizational structure in an engaging way. OrgChart offers professional templates with full customization that transform data into visually compelling charts. This allows for an ability to communicate key insights effectively. 

Challenges with Sharing and Collaboration

While Excel offers sharing capabilities, sharing static charts can hinder collaboration. A better solution is OrgChart, which enables seamless sharing in a number of formats, including interactive web pages, PDF, and PowerPoint. Digital org charts foster collaboration and ensure decision-makers can easily access and manage key data metrics. 

OrgChart is purpose-built to overcome these and other issues, offering seamless integration, advanced customization, and efficient data management to simplify the creation of impactful organizational charts.

How to Make Org Charts from Excel Data

Adding data from an Excel spreadsheet into OrgChart is easy. Simply follow the steps below to create an organizational chart from excel data. 

Step 1. Sign in to your OrgChart account. 

Step 2. Open the Data Sources dialog box. Browse and select the Excel files you wish to use to create the org chart. If your organization uses an HRIS, you can select it at this stage as an alternative or supplementary source.

Step 3. Configure the mapping of the required fields. If the source file already contains the required fields, OrgChart automates the mapping. Refresh and the chart is complete!

Step 4. After creating the chart, customize it with colors, fonts, border styles, and your company logo. You can also view, export, and share it as a PDF, PowerPoint, or internal link. 

For more detailed guidance, review the full documentation on using OrgChart with Excel.

While creating organizational charts within Excel can work for some organizations, there are many limitations to doing so. Excel spreadsheets create cumbersome, time-consuming, and inefficient workflows. OrgChart offers a more efficient and professional experience. Want an easier way to build an org chart from Excel data?
Book a demo today!