Position control overview

Overview

Position control is where FTE Tree tracks the approved staffing plan your organization is operating from today and the proposed position changes that may become approved later. Each position represents a staffing slot with a department, job code, FTE, wage source, funding allocation, assigned employee information, and cost math.

The product is intentionally focused on live position control. It helps HR, finance, and department leaders answer practical questions: which positions exist, where they sit, what they cost, who is assigned, what changes are pending, and what the financial impact will be before a request is approved.

Position control works best when position records are treated as durable staffing slots, not as temporary copies of employee records. Employees can move between assignments, leave the organization, or fill more than one position over time. The position remains the budgeted staffing place that carries department, job code, FTE, funding, wage source, and approval history.

Access needed

Where to start

• Positions: Create and maintain position records, review approved and proposed values, manage assignments, view funding, use the org chart, and inspect Activity history.
• Effective-dated changes: Understand how one position can have different approved values on different dates and how proposed values are prepared before approval.
• Position cost math and examples: Review the FTE, wage, adjustment, funding, and report allocation math behind totals.
• Position settings: Configure position numbering, labels, headcount thresholds, funding source behavior, external position IDs, and position comments.
• Compensation settings: Configure annual hours per FTE, wage ranges, and pay-grade comparison.
• Approval settings and workflows: Define how proposed position changes move through review.

If you are new to the area, start with Positions, then read Effective-dated changes and Position cost math and examples before configuring approvals or imports. Those three articles explain the everyday record, the date behavior, and the numbers users will see.

How the pieces connect

Positions belong to departments and usually carry a job code, FTE, base wage rate, adjustments, funding sources, custom details, and optional assigned employee information. Values that can change over time are effective-dated, so FTE Tree can show the approved state as of today, a past date, or a future date.

Proposed changes are prepared separately from approved values. This lets users update draft position data, review the approved-versus-proposed difference, and then request approval when the change set is ready. An active approval request locks the affected position data so the review details, FTE and cost impact, approval path, and approval history stay consistent while approvers decide.

Reports use the same position math as the position detail and department totals. Point-in-time views show annualized run-rate values for a selected date. Period reports allocate those annualized values across the selected date range and can include line-level calculation detail for audit review.

Readiness checklist

Before rolling out position control broadly, confirm:

1. Departments are organized the way users need to view, approve, and report.
2. Position statuses clearly identify which positions count as active.
3. Required position details, custom details, and status values are configured.
4. Job codes, pay grades, annual hours per FTE, and default wages are ready where your organization uses them.
5. Funding sources and allocation rules match finance expectations.
6. Position adjustment types are configured before users start relying on cost output.
7. Approval workflows, request reasons, required attachments, approver groups, and impact levels are tested with sample requests.
8. Reports and saved views produce the totals finance and operations users expect.

This setup order reduces later rework because each layer depends on the previous one.

Daily operating pattern

Most teams use position control in a repeating cycle:

1. Review current positions, assignments, vacancies, and costs.
2. Prepare proposed changes when a staffing decision needs review.
3. Submit the request with the right effective dates, notes, and attachments.
4. Approvers review impact, funding, and evidence before deciding.
5. Approved changes become the official position values for their effective dates.
6. Reports and Activity history provide the evidence needed for review.

Direct edits may be appropriate for users with administrative responsibility, but approval-based changes give organizations a clearer review trail for staffing decisions.

What to check when numbers look wrong

Start with the selected effective date. Then check position status, FTE, department, job code, wage source, annual hours per FTE, adjustments, funding allocation, assignment rows, employee wage information, and whether the value is approved or only proposed.

For period reports, also check the report date range and allocation method. A period report can differ from a single position page because the report may split a period across multiple effective-dated values.

Common questions this section answers

• Which positions are active right now?
• What changed on a position and when does that change take effect?
• What is the approved value, what is proposed, and what is the variance?
• Which department, job code, funding source, or employee assignment is driving a total?
• How was FTE or cost calculated?
• Which approval workflow will review a requested change?
• Which permissions are needed to view, update, approve, import, or report on position data?