Information flow diagram

An information flow diagram (IFD) is an illustration of information flow throughout an organisation. An IFD shows the relationship between external and internal information flows between an organisation. It also shows the relationship between the internal departments and sub-systems.

An Information Flow Diagram is information about a system laid out in diagramatic form. An IFD usually uses "blobs" to decompose the system and sub-systems into elemental parts. Lines then indicate how the information travels from one system to another. IFDs are used in businesses, government agencies, television and cinematic processes.

Overview

Peter Checkland, a British management scientist, described information flows between the different elements that compose various systems. He also defined a system as a 'community situated within an environment'.

IFDs are useful for specifying the boundaries and scope of the system. An IFD shows the boundaries and scope of the system, its interactions with its external entities, and the main flows of information within the system and within any complex subsystems.

The Information Flow Diagram (IFD) is one of the simplest tools used to document findings from the requirements determination process. They are used for a number of purposes: 1. to document the main flows of information around the organization; 2. for the analyst to check that he/she has understood those flows and that none has been omitted; 3. the analyst may use them during the fact-finding process itself as an accurate and efficient way to document findings as they are identified; 4. as a high-level (not detailed) tool to document information flows within the organization as a whole or a lower-level tool to document an individual functional area of the business.

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