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📊 How-To: Project management and process planning

The InfoRapid KnowledgeBase Builder is not just a tool for research, but also an extremely powerful platform for project managers, developers, and teams. By combining hierarchical structures, cross connections, and automatic layouts, even highly complex projects, workflows, and work breakdown structures can be visually tamed.

This How-To shows you how to optimally use the app for planning and controlling your projects.

1. Modeling workflows and processes (Flowcharts)

Flowcharts are essential for planning software projects, business processes, or decision trees.

  • Automation via pseudocode: Instead of painstakingly drawing every box by hand, you can simply write workflows as text! Go to "Edit Diagram" -> "Insert" -> "Pseudocode". Enter simple commands there (like if, while, switch). The program generates a finished, logically linked flowchart from this in fractions of a second.
  • Choosing the right layout: In the "Adjust View" menu, switch to "Flowchart (top -> bottom)" or "Flowchart (left -> right)" in the "Layout" section to force the process into a strict, linear flow direction.

2. Structuring and prioritizing tasks (WBS & Table View)

A project often begins with a work breakdown structure (WBS).

  • Hierarchical layout: Under "Adjust View" -> "Layout", select the "Hierarchical" or "Hierarchical Grouped" option. This is ideal for breaking down the overall project into individual milestones and underlying work packages (tasks).
  • Set priorities via Table View: To prioritize tasks or bring them into a specific processing order, switch to the "Show Table View" via the toolbar at the top right. Here you can see your structure as a clear list and can easily drag and drop the tasks to the desired position.

3. Creating schedules and timelines

Projects are time-critical. You can link items in the diagram directly to time-related data.

  • Insert appointments: Select an item (e.g., a milestone) and choose "Edit Diagram" -> "Insert" -> "Appointment". Here you can store the start and end date as well as an exact time for the task.
  • The Timeline view: Pro tip: Use the "1-Column Grouped" layout in the "Adjust View" menu. This arrangement is ideally suited for displaying chronological sequences (timelines) in a visually appealing way, one below the other.

4. Managing dependencies and responsibilities

In complex projects, tasks often depend on each other, even if they belong to completely different project phases.

  • Visualize dependencies (Cross-Links): Simply drag and drop a relation line between two tasks that depend on each other. Using the "Show Cross Connections" option (in the "Adjust View" menu), you can flexibly show or hide these dependencies at any time to maintain a clear overview.
  • Status and responsibilities via categories: Assign categories to your items in a targeted manner (e.g., "To-Do", "In Progress", "Done" or the names of the responsible team members).
  • Filter categories: Using the "Item Category Filter", you can then quickly display only the tasks that are currently "In Progress", for example, while all completed tasks are hidden from the visible diagram.

5. Comprehensive project documentation

A project node can hold much more than just a short task title.

  • Detailed briefings (Notes): Use the "Notes on Item" menu to store detailed task descriptions, checklists, or minutes in HTML format (including tables and lists) directly on the item.
  • Documents & Weblinks: Add external internet addresses or local file links in the editor via the hyperlink symbol. This turns your mind map into a central dashboard from which you can access all relevant project files (like Google Docs, SharePoint links, or reference pages) with a single click.
  • Presentation mode for team meetings: If you want to present the current project status to the team, switch to the "Navigate in Diagram" menu and click on "Start Presentation". The app will then guide you and your team smoothly, professionally, and automatically through the most important nodes of your project.