Introduction

Positions are the central element of FTE Tree. Each position represents a staffing slot within your organization, identified by a unique position number. Positions are grouped by job code, assigned to departments, and carry FTE amounts, wage rates, and cost calculations that form the foundation of your position control.

Position List

The position list provides a table of all positions in your organization. From this view, you can create new positions, search and filter positions, and navigate to individual position detail pages. The position list is accessible from the main navigation under "Positions."

Position Summary

The Summary tab on the position list page provides a high-level overview of your position data. Summary reports can be configured to aggregate FTE, cost, and headcount totals across your organization, grouped by department, job code, or other criteria.

Summary reports are created and managed from the Summary Reports section under Reports. See Reports for details on creating and configuring summary reports.

Org Chart

The Org Chart tab on the position list page provides a visual, hierarchical view of your organization's position structure. The org chart displays positions as a tree, with parent-child relationships forming the hierarchy.

Viewing the Org Chart

Navigate to the position list and select the Org Chart tab. The chart loads with root positions (those with no parent) displayed at the top level. Each position node shows:

  • Position label with a link to the position detail page
  • Position name, if one has been set
  • Incumbent name, or "Vacant" if the position has no current incumbent
  • Job code, if assigned
  • Department, if assigned

Nodes are color-coded to indicate status:

  • Green border: The position is filled by an active incumbent.
  • Gray border: The position is vacant.
  • Yellow border: The position has draft (unapproved) changes.

Expanding and Collapsing Nodes

Positions that have child positions display an expand/collapse control. Click the chevron to expand a node and load its children. Children are loaded on demand, so the chart remains responsive even for large organizations. Click the chevron again to collapse a branch.

Historical Org Charts

Use the Effective Date picker at the top of the org chart to view the organization hierarchy as it existed on a specific past date. When you select a date earlier than today, the chart automatically switches to a historical snapshot of the position tree. This is useful for reviewing past organizational structures, comparing changes over time, or auditing historical reporting relationships.

If no snapshot is available for the selected date, the chart will indicate that no historical data is available.

Position Hierarchy and Parent Changes

Positions can be arranged in a parent-child hierarchy to represent reporting relationships. When a position's parent is changed, the org chart reflects the updated structure.

Parent changes can be submitted through the approval workflow as a position attribute change. The system validates that proposed parent changes will not create circular references in the hierarchy. For example, a position cannot be set as a child of one of its own descendants. If a circular reference is detected, the change is blocked with a clear error message.

If a parent change was approved but the hierarchy changed before it could be applied (making the change circular), the system blocks the change and notifies the requester with a dashboard message explaining the issue. The requester can then review the current hierarchy and submit a new parent change request if needed.

Position Detail

Each position has a detail page showing its attributes, financial summaries, and history. From the detail page you can update position attributes, view comments, and navigate to related records such as the assigned employee, job code, or department.

Position Comments

Each position detail page includes a Comments tab for conversations about the position. See Position Settings for details on comments.

Need Help?

If you have questions about working with positions, please contact us or email us at support@ftetree.com.