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How to Create a BPMN Process Overview and Table of Contents in Visio

Maira Mehtab Sep 30, 2026 868 views

Question details

The user needs to create a structured table of contents or process overview page to navigate between multiple BPMN process pages.

How to Create a BPMN Process Overview and Table of Contents in Visio

Product: Microsoft Visio
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Organizing and navigating multiple BPMN process pages that were imported into Visio from Bizagi.
Observed behavior: Visio does not automatically generate a structured table of contents for imported BPMN process pages.

Before you start

Ensure all your imported BPMN process pages are clearly renamed so you can easily identify the correct target pages when setting up your overview links.

Solution 1Recommended

Manually Create an Overview Page with Hyperlinked Shapes

Since Visio does not auto-generate a table of contents, you can build a dedicated overview page using linked shapes to serve as an interactive navigation menu.

This method involves creating a central hub page and using Visio's internal linking feature. It is highly customizable, allowing you to organize links by department, company, or process phase.

Create a new overview page

Add a new blank page at the beginning of your Visio document and rename it to 'Overview' or 'Table of Contents'.

Add shapes and labels

Drag and drop basic shapes onto the overview page to represent the different companies, departments, or specific BPMN processes. Add descriptive text to each shape.

Link shapes to process pages

Select one of the shapes. Navigate to the Insert tab, click Link (or press Ctrl+K), and select 'Page in this file'. Choose the corresponding BPMN process page from the list and click OK.

Add return links for easy navigation

Go to each individual process page, insert a 'Back' or 'Home' shape, and link it back to your main Overview page using the same Insert > Link method.

Manually Create an Overview Page with Hyperlinked Shapes

Testing your links: You can test the functionality of your newly created table of contents by entering Presentation Mode in Visio, where the links will be fully active and clickable.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can Visio automatically generate a Table of Contents?

No, Visio does not have a built-in feature to automatically generate a table of contents for pages. You must create it manually by inserting shapes and adding hyperlinks to other pages in the document.

How do I click a hyperlink in Visio's editing mode?

While editing a Visio document, you can follow a hyperlink by holding down the Ctrl key and clicking on the linked shape. The links behave like standard web links only when you switch to Presentation Mode.

Will my links break if I rename a process page?

If you use the 'Page in this file' option to create your links, Visio typically updates the internal references automatically when you rename a destination page, keeping your table of contents intact.

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