Impact Map CLI (ipmc)

Impact maps as code: versionable, diffable, renderable.

ipmc is a CLI tool that turns Impact Maps from a structured KDL file into high-quality, color-coded graphs. Instead of maintaining mind maps in whiteboard tools, you describe goals, metrics, actors, impacts, and deliverables as code and generate SVG, PNG, or DOT files from them.

KDL file  →  Parser  →  Graphviz DOT  →  SVG / PNG

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Why impact maps as code?

Impact mapping connects business goals with measurable metrics, actors, their behavior (impacts), and concrete deliverables. Classic mind map tools are hard to version and difficult to review collaboratively.

With ipmc you get:

• Git-friendly impact maps as text files, diffable and reviewable
• Automatable via CI/CD, scripts, and batch rendering
• Consistent layout and color scheme per goal
• Visible prioritization with priority and story points shown directly on nodes

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Features

Feature	Description
KDL parser	Declarative format for goals, metrics, actors, impacts, deliverables
Multi-goal	One file, many goals: render individually or all at once
Formats	SVG (default), PNG, raw DOT
Styled output	Color-coded HTML labels with legend, metrics, and priorities
Auto-open	Open the generated map in your default viewer
Cross-platform	Linux, macOS, Windows with prebuilt binaries via GitHub Releases

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Prerequisites

Dependency	When needed	Installation
Rust (1.70+)	Build from source	rustup.rs
Graphviz (dot)	SVG/PNG export	sudo dnf install graphviz (Fedora) · brew install graphviz (macOS) · graphviz.org

Only --format dot requires no Graphviz. The .dot file is written directly.

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Installation

Prebuilt binary (recommended)

Download the appropriate binary from GitHub Releases (triggered by v* tags):

# Example: Linux x86_64
curl -LO https://github.com/Coditary/Ipmc/releases/latest/download/ipmc-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu
chmod +x ipmc-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu
sudo mv ipmc-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu /usr/local/bin/ipmc

Available targets: x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu, aarch64-unknown-linux-gnu, x86_64-apple-darwin, aarch64-apple-darwin, x86_64-pc-windows-msvc

From source

git clone https://github.com/Coditary/Ipmc.git
cd Ipmc
cargo build --release
# Binary: target/release/impact-map-cli

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Quick start

# Render all goals from example.kdl as SVG
cargo run --release -- example.kdl

# A specific goal
cargo run --release -- example.kdl -g GOAL-02

# As PNG, with auto-open and verbose logging
cargo run --release -- example.kdl -g GOAL-02 -f png --open -v

Output: GOAL-02.svg (or GOAL-02.png) in the current directory.

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CLI reference

ipmc <INPUT> [OPTIONS]

Flag	Short	Default	Description
--goal	-g	(none)	Render only this goal (e.g. GOAL-02)
--out	-o	.	Output directory or exact filename (without extension) when using -g
--format	-f	svg	svg · png · dot
--keep-dot		false	Keep intermediate .dot file after compilation
--open		false	Open result in default viewer
--verbose	-v	false	Verbose logging

Output paths

Scenario	Result
ipmc map.kdl	./GOAL-01.svg, ./GOAL-02.svg, …
ipmc map.kdl -g GOAL-02	./GOAL-02.svg
ipmc map.kdl -g GOAL-02 -o reports/q3	reports/q3.svg (exact name)
ipmc map.kdl -o output/	output/GOAL-01.svg, …

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KDL format

Impact maps follow a fixed hierarchy:

Goal
├── Metric(s)      measurable success criteria
└── Actor(s)       who influences the goal?
    └── Impact(s)  what behavior does the actor change?
        └── Deliverable(s) what do we build for that?

Schema

goal "<Name>" id="<GOAL-ID>" {
    metric "<name>" target="<target value>" desc="<description>"

    actor "<Name>" id="<optional>" prio=<1-5> {
        impact "<Name>" id="<optional>" targets="<metric-name>" prio=<n> sp=<story-points> {
            deliverable "<Name>" id="<DEL-ID>" prio=<n> sp=<n>
        }
    }
}

Attributes

Node	Required	Optional
goal	id
metric	target, desc
actor	prio	id
impact	targets, prio, sp	id
deliverable	id, prio, sp

• targets links an impact to a metric (by name)
• prio: lower number = higher priority
• sp: story points (effort estimate)

Example

See example.kdl:

goal "40% revenue growth with good Steam reviews in Q3/Q4" id="GOAL-02" {
    metric "mrr_growth" target="+40%" desc="Monthly gross revenue"
    metric "steam_rating" target=">=85%" desc="Positive Steam reviews (guardrail)"

    actor "Whale" id="whale" prio=1 {
        impact "Spends money on prestigious items" id="IP-3" targets="mrr_growth" prio=1 sp=13 {
            deliverable "Limited animated skill effects" id="DEL-201" prio=1 sp=5
        }
    }
}

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Output

Generated graphs use a consistent color scheme:

Element	Color	Content
Goal	Purple	Name + all metrics with target values
Actor	Blue	Name + priority
Impact	Green	Name + target metric + prio/SP
Deliverable	Orange	Name + prio/SP

Layout: left-to-right (rankdir=LR), with legend at the top.

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Development

# Build
cargo build

# Release build
cargo build --release

# Test with example file (DOT only, no Graphviz needed)
cargo run -- example.kdl -f dot --keep-dot -v

Project structure

src/
├── main.rs      # CLI entry, argument parsing, Graphviz invocation
├── parser.rs    # KDL → data model
├── models.rs    # Goal, Actor, Impact, Deliverable, Metric
└── graphviz.rs  # Data model → DOT with HTML labels

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Releases

Tags in the format v* (e.g. v0.1.0) trigger the release workflow:

• Cross-compilation for 5 platforms
• Automatic GitHub release with all binaries
• Generated release notes

git tag v0.1.0
git push origin v0.1.0

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Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Could not start 'dot'	Install Graphviz, verify with dot -V
Goal 'X' not found	Check goal ID in KDL (id="...")
Graphviz syntax error	Inspect the .dot file with --keep-dot
Empty SVG	Validate KDL structure: are all required attributes set?

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License

MIT. See LICENSE.

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Further reading

• Impact Mapping by Gojko Adzic
• KDL Document Language
• Graphviz