Jonathan Blocker asked:


If it is the end of a quarter, that typically means that it is time for you to produce various reports if you work at or own a company. If you are a department head or in charge of a business project, then reports are crucial to help you make important decisions regarding system optimization, streamlining of business processes, as well as project tracking and the related record keeping to ensure that your project is moving forward in a productive manner.

However, if you have been in business for any length of time, you know that that amount of time you have at work is limited, and many people do not take the time to read information-dense reports as thoroughly as they should. One way to improve the readability of your business reports, documents and presentations is to incorporate Microsoft Visio into your arsenal of tools for document preparation. You will find that there are several easy ways to get started using Visio, so that your reports will contain easy-to-understand flowcharts, diagrams, models, charts and shapes for improved communication of your important ideas.
If you search the Microsoft Office Visio website, you will discover that you can take a Visio tutorial to help you get up and running quickly. There are many online Visio tutorials that you can fit into your schedule at your convenience. You can learn the basics about positioning shapes on your Visio templates, or adding text to your Visio diagram. You will discover the secrets to connecting the shapes in a Visio template. One really handy feature of Visio 2007 is its capability to link up to information stored in Excel files, for instance, so all of the numerical data can be transformed into a graphic representation of the information. There are courses that will teach you how to link up data to the diagrams you create using Visio. You will also discover tutorials that give you ideas for using Visio pictures in your business documents and presentations, and tips for customizing frequently used menus and toolbars.

In addition to the many fine Microsoft Visio tutorials available, there are also excellent Visio demonstrations that are ready for you to see on your office computer with Internet access. If you learn best by seeing how something is done, then a demonstration could easily be the best way for you to learn about Visio and how it can help you at work. There are demos that show you how to connect information from other Office programs, such as Excel, to your Visio template. You can learn how to create the ever-popular flow chart via a Visio demonstration. Visio 2007 has a thematic capability that unifies all of the documentation you produce, and you can see how it works on a Visio demo.

Your reports, documents and presentations will reach a new level of excellence and professionalism when you apply the tools offered by Visio to them.