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Quick answers
When should I pick Org chart?
When the story is: reporting lines, committee structure, project roles.
When should I avoid Org chart?
Skip it in cases like: work actually flows sideways across a matrix.
Who invented or popularised it?
Daniel McCallum’s 1854 New York & Erie railroad diagram
What does it encode?
parent-child placement of nodes in a tree
Is it OK in ads?
Yes if one claim is visible at a glance in Meta, Google and retail print; otherwise link to a full figure.
Will a teacher accept it?
Yes for lab reports and poster boards if axes, units and a source line are present.
Org chart encodes values as parent-child placement of nodes in a tree. Daniel McCallum’s 1854 New York & Erie railroad diagram.
In reports, ads and assignments it fits reporting lines, committee structure, project roles. Skip it when work actually flows sideways across a matrix.
Use when
- Use when 1 — Use Org chart when the story is reporting lines, committee structure, project roles.
- Use when 2 — Build the first draft in Excel or Google Sheets, then restyle — do not screenshot.
- Use when 3 — In PowerPoint, one Org chart per slide, claim in the title.
- Use when 4 — For lab reports and poster boards, this form works when the question is comparison or process.
- Use when 5 — In Meta, Google and retail print, keep one number visible at thumbnail size.
Avoid when
- Avoid when 1 — Skip Org chart in cases like: work actually flows sideways across a matrix.
- Avoid when 2 — 3-D, dual axes, rainbow scales
- Avoid when 3 — Undated numbers, undated time series
- Avoid when 4 — Four charts on one slide
Audiences
- Work — PowerPoint
- Ads — Meta, Google and retail print
- School — lab reports and poster boards
Org chart: honour parent-child placement of nodes in a tree, and switch when work actually flows sideways across a matrix.