Welcome

This guide walks organization owners and administrators through setting up a new FTE Tree organization. Each section covers one step in the recommended setup order and links to the full help article for detailed instructions.

If you are new to FTE Tree, we recommend reading Our Software first for an overview of position control concepts.

Creating Your Organization

After signing up and confirming your email address, you will be directed to a welcome page where you can create your first organization. On this page you will:

  • Review the available subscription plan and pricing.
  • Enter your Organization Name, which will be used throughout the application.
  • Confirm your first and last name for your user profile.
  • Choose the number of positions your organization needs.
  • Agree to the terms of service.

Once you submit the form, your organization is created with a free trial and you are taken directly to your new organization's dashboard. A welcome message on your dashboard will link to this setup guide.

Step 1: Configure Your Organization

After creating your organization, start by configuring the basics under Settings > Organization.

  • Organization Name and Subdomain identify your organization and determine your URL (e.g., yourorg.ftetree.com).
  • Time Zone controls how dates and times are displayed across the application.
  • Settings Message lets you display a banner message visible to all users on the settings page.

For full details, see Organization Settings and Users.

Step 2: Enable Security Settings

Before inviting users, configure your security requirements under Settings > Organization > Security Settings.

  • Require Two-Factor Authentication to enforce MFA for all users in your organization.
  • Single Sign-On (SSO) providers can be enabled (Google, Microsoft, LinkedIn) with optional domain restrictions.
  • Email Domain Restrictions limit which email domains can accept invitations.

For full details, see Authentication and Security.

Step 3: Build Your Department Structure

The department tree is the foundation of your organization in FTE Tree. Positions, users, approval workflows, and GL strings are all organized through departments.

  • Plan your hierarchy before creating departments. FTE Tree supports both shallow and deep structures.
  • For each department, configure the Name, Parent Department, and whether it is Available to Assign Positions.
  • Child departments can inherit settings from their parent, including approval workflows and GL values.

For full details, see Department Tree.

Step 4: Set Up Permissions and Roles

Roles define what users can do in your organization. FTE Tree uses 15 permission codes across five families: Position, Approval, Requisition, Employee, and Administration.

  • Create roles that match your organizational structure (e.g., Director, Manager, Coordinator).
  • Six permissions support department scoping, allowing you to restrict access to specific parts of the department tree.
  • GL Segment Filters can further restrict which data a user sees based on accounting segments.
  • Define Organization Approval Roles and assign Escalation Roles for backup approvers.

For full details, see Permissions and Roles.

Step 5: Invite Users

With roles defined, invite users to your organization under Settings > Organization > Users.

  • Invitations are sent by email. Users must create an account (or sign in with an existing one) and accept the invitation.
  • Assign roles and department-scoped permissions when inviting users.
  • Configure Invitation Settings to control reminder frequency, back-off behavior, and business-day-only delivery.

For full details, see Organization Settings and Users.

Step 6: Configure Position Settings

Before creating job codes or positions, configure your position settings under Settings > Position > General.

  • Job Code Label lets you customize what job codes are called in your organization.
  • FTE Standard Hours defines the number of weekly hours that equal 1.0 FTE. This value supports historical records with effective dates.
  • Annual Hours per FTE sets the total annual hours used in cost calculations (typically 2,080). This also supports historical records.
  • Headcount FTE Amount sets the minimum FTE for a position to be counted in headcount totals.
  • Department Filters control which position statuses are visible in the position list (Current Approved, Future Approved, Current Draft, Future Draft).

For full details, see Position Settings.

Step 7: Create Job Codes and Pay Grades

Job codes classify positions by type and form a tree structure similar to the department tree.

  • Plan your job code hierarchy before creating entries. Parent job codes must exist before their children.
  • Each job code has static attributes (Name, Parent, Breadcrumb) and historical attributes (Effective Start Date, Adjustments, Department Mapping, Pay Grade).
  • Department Mapping is a 1:1 explicit mapping between job codes and departments. Unlike other settings, it does not cascade from parent to child.
  • Pay Grades define minimum and maximum wage ranges with historical effective dates.

For full details, see Job Codes and Pay Grades.

Step 8: Set Up Attribute Types

Attributes capture additional data on positions, employees, job codes, departments, and requisitions. FTE Tree includes built-in system attributes and supports custom attributes.

  • Create custom attributes under Settings > [Entity Type] > Attribute Settings.
  • Choose a field type (Character, Decimal, Choice, Boolean, Date, etc.). Field type cannot be changed after creation.
  • Set the Approval Level for each attribute. Level 0 changes are auto-approved; level 1 and above require an approval workflow.
  • Choice Groups define dropdown options and can be shared across multiple attributes.

For full details, see Attribute Types.

Step 9: Create Schedules

Schedules define work time blocks and drive FTE calculations. FTE is calculated as Schedule Paid Hours divided by FTE Standard Hours.

  • Navigate to Settings > Position > Schedules to create schedule templates.
  • Choose between Full Schedule (day-by-day entries with start/end times) or Hours-Only (paid hours override without specific time blocks).
  • Full schedules support multi-week cycles, split shifts, and overnight shifts.
  • Assign schedules to positions through the Schedule attribute.

For full details, see Schedules and Coverage.

Step 10: Configure Position Adjustments

Adjustments modify FTE, wage rate, or annual wage amounts on positions. They can be defined at the position level or inherited from job codes.

  • FTE Tree supports nine adjustment types across three categories: FTE, Wage Rate, and Annual Wage.
  • Adjustments are applied in a defined priority order. Use the Priority field to control the sequence.
  • Max Basis Amount and Max Total Amount set caps on how adjustments are applied.
  • Scenario-Only Adjustments are available for planning purposes and are cleared when a scenario is promoted.

For full details, see Position Adjustments.

Step 11: Add Positions

With your foundation in place, you can begin creating positions.

  • Navigate to the Position List and create new positions.
  • Each position is assigned a unique position number and linked to a department and job code.
  • Set the schedule, wage rate, and any custom attributes.
  • Use Funding Sources to allocate position costs across multiple sources (percentages must total 100%).
  • The Position Summary view provides aggregated totals for FTE, costs, and headcount.

For full details, see Positions.

Step 12: Set Up Approval Workflows

Approval workflows route position change requests through defined approval steps.

  • Define Approval Levels that correspond to the levels set on your attribute types.
  • Create workflows for each level and request type: Position Change, New Position, Replacement Position, and Position Elimination.
  • Add steps to each workflow specifying approvers (individual users or organization roles), required approval count, and allowed denial count.
  • Configure FTE Impact Levels and Cost Impact Levels to route requests to different approval levels based on the magnitude of the change.
  • Assign workflows to departments. Workflow assignments cascade down the department tree.
  • Configure Escalation settings to automatically add backup approvers after a defined period.

For full details, see Approval Settings and Workflows.

Step 13: Configure Requisition Settings

Requisitions are automatically generated when approval requests are fully approved.

  • Under Settings > Requisitions, configure the Label Prefix and Padding Digits for requisition numbering.
  • Configure requisition attributes to capture additional information about staffing actions.

For full details, see Requisitions.

Step 14: Import Existing Data (Optional)

If you have existing position, employee, or job code data, use the batch import feature to load it in bulk.

  • Download the import template for the data type you need.
  • Prepare your file following the required column format.
  • Upload the file, review validation results, and confirm the import.
  • Choose Approval Mode: "Enter as Approved" applies changes immediately; "Enter as Draft" requires approval workflow routing.

For full details, see Batch Import and Export.

Step 15: Configure Audit and Notifications

Set up audit tracking and notification preferences to keep your team informed.

  • Under Settings > [Entity Type] > Audit Events, configure event note fields for each audit event type.
  • Configure Messages and Notifications to control how comments, mentions, and system messages are delivered.
  • Users can manage their own email notification preferences from their profile.

For full details, see Audit and Data Integrity and Messages and Notifications.

Step 16: Set Up Your Subscription

Configure your subscription under Settings > Billing.

  • Select a subscription plan and complete checkout.
  • Manage your subscription, payment method, and invoices through the Customer Portal.

For full details, see Billing and Subscriptions.

Next Steps

With your organization set up, here are some areas to explore: