The blank canvas can be intimidating. Do you start with a shape? A line? A line with arrows? A dashed line with arrows?
No one should have to face this kind of stress. That’s why we have a comprehensive library of Lucid templates.
Lucid templates are designed to defeat writer’s block and crush procrastination. Like Robin is to Batman, Lucid templates are the loyal sidekick to your visual project. The intuitive designs and pre-built frameworks provide a strong starting point for your masterpiece.
So unless you want to create your visuals from scratch—by all means, let that creativity flow!—our templates enable you to focus on what matters most: bringing your ideas to life.
Lucid Champions’ Favorite Templates
We recently asked our Lucid Champions which templates they like the most and how they use them in their workflows.
Here are the templates that received high praise for their ease of use and versatility.
Activity diagram with swimlanes
I use this template almost daily, as we are currently revamping the company’s documentation process. The template is easy to use, practical and customizable. It’s perfect for clarification of roles and responsibilities for critical work activities. I use swimlane diagrams to accompany work procedures and work instructions, as it is a perfect diagrammatic representation that depicts who is responsible for what areas. It promotes accountability and efficiency.
Ria S., Governance Risk Compliance Leader
Algorithm flowchart
Based on this template, I can create conversation flows for IVR and chatbot.
API flowchart
I am better at starting on my own when it comes to architecture diagrams, but for something more around interactions, I find it helpful to have the gates/options laid out for me already. It’s my favorite specifically because it’s so straightforward, but it’s not how most of my charts end up. Our architecture diagrams can get (too!) busy!
Business process flow
I really like this business process flowchart because I often process map at my work. This template helps me to outline swimlanes for which positions at my job need to complete procedures in order to remain complaint with my organization’s policies and with regulatory bodies that evaluate the efficiency of my organization’s processes.
Campus strategy: 9-month plan
I work in the communications department of an independent school and most of our projects need to be oriented to a 9-month schedule. This is a great template to map out projects, share communications plans, and gather scheduling information from colleagues.
In my role as an information designer, I most often use this template to map out website projects throughout the school year. I work with a number of different teams, and being able to visualize my overall project schedule across departments is very helpful for balancing my workload and communicating organization-wide priorities.
Flowchart with swimlanes
As a business analyst, I use the flowchart with swimlanes template to set up a flowchart so we can map out processes with staff. It helps convey what the process is and who is responsible for each step of the process. It’s given me several ideas for how to start mapping out process flows.
It’s a good starting point whenever mapping out a flow with multiple owners of each subprocess. As a product manager, I use the flowchart template to model the end-to-end process of a product. I use it to visualize the handoffs and demonstrate the ownership of each department. A working version of this is used to help understand clearly who owns what.
As a business process owner, I use the flowchart with swimlanes to establish how teams will work together to participate in a process. This flowchart is such a great way to talk about accountability for process activities. I use it with cross-functional teams to establish who will be responsible for getting work done.
Gantt chart with milestones
This template always helps me put the thoughts on paper and identify the sequence of events along with the timelines, which in turn helps immensely when sharing with collaborators and to be used in conversations. I use this template for any of the project planning and stakeholder alignment tasks.
HR org chart
The ability to link to data for a dynamic update is powerful. As the head of IAM, it’s important to understand the employee-manager relationships. This template helps me do just that!
IT audit flowchart
Versatile… I can use it for several different swimlane designs. I use it to show the flow of responsibilities for service touchpoints.
Kanban board with prioritization
Kanban is a standard visualization approach and easy to onboard new people. As a consultant, I use this board in coordination with for software implementation projects. Recently we divided projects into two teams: business and tech. Although different priorities and approaches, we need to know what the other hand is doing because our workflows cross over and intertwine often.
Mind map with colored groups
Graphic organizers, such as mind maps, the Frayer Model, and Venn diagrams, help students organize the information they are learning for better retention, comprehension, and to facilitate making new connections. The collaboration features available in Lucidchart also make these templates ideal for brainstorming and planning.
Production flowchart
As a product manager, I need to ensure that I’m sizing stories correctly. Instead of having my engineers guess, we can use this template to break out and visualize the solution from end-to-end. This also helps alert us of dependencies and gotcha before we start work. The engineers love it because they can easily work through the solutioning, while I can work on facilitating a good conversation and help them always understand the customer needs.
It’s pretty and easy to see the sequence of events. As a project manager, I often use this document to map out our workflows and processes to better understand how our cross-functional teams collaborate.
Service blueprint with timeline
Suits a lot of cases in my work. I often have to visualize complex systems, so this kind of diagram helps to depict how the data flows.
User story map with swimlanes
Can be used in a variety of ways – we’ve gone into deep brainstorming sessions as well as used it more high-level while keeping everything organized and everyone focused. As a PM, I work with our UX team to facilitate in brainstorming sessions (I’m a big ideas person - Big Ideas and big ideas) and ensure we’re keeping focused on the various players (e.g., we can’t tailor our system to just one single user type).
Value proposition canvas
I use this in early meetings with the clients. It really helps get everyone on the same page and working collaboratively from the very first meeting. It helps us get over that initial discussion which can be tricky and sometimes hard to get group focus on the problem to solve.
Web application hosting diagram
As a network engineer, I do a lot of current and proposed diagrams illustrating device connectivity. I utilize this template to illustrate my intent to my clients.
These templates not only aid in clarifying roles and responsibilities but also enhance communication, streamline processes, and promote accountability and efficiency. Whether you’re a consultant, a software engineer, or an HR manager, Lucid’s vast library of templates has something for everyone, making it easier than ever to bring your ideas to life!
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