Departments

Overview

Departments are the main organizational structure behind position control. They organize positions, users, approval-stage assignments, the job codes positions can use, GL strings, and report filters.

Your organization begins with a top-level department. Add each division, location, cost center, or team beneath it to match the way your organization works. Keeping one top level makes department access, approval-stage assignments, GL values, and reporting easier to review and maintain.

Note: You can customize the default name of “Department” to match your organization, such as cost centers, locations, or business units. This article uses “Department” for consistency.

Access needed

Department tree settings

To edit your department tree, open Settings > Departments > Department tree.

• Department name: The department name displayed in FTE Tree. The name must be unique across your organization.
• Department placement: Choose the department directly above the selected department. Give a placement change the date when the new structure begins. A department cannot be placed beneath one of the departments already below it.
• Include in breadcrumb label: Includes the department name in lower-level breadcrumb labels for easier identification.

A department hierarchy can contain up to 25 levels, counting the top level as level 1. At level 25, the Create lower-level department action is unavailable. FTE Tree also leaves out placement choices that would move the selected department, or the departments beneath it, below level 25.

Make a department unavailable

Availability is not an editable field on the standard department form. Open the department and choose Actions > Make unavailable, then enter the effective date when it should stop being offered for new position assignments. The department stays in its hierarchy, and existing positions, employees, reports, comments, approval requests, decisions, and history remain unchanged.

Choose Actions > Make available and enter an effective date when the same department should accept new assignments again. Each action records when that availability change begins instead of rewriting the earlier period.

Departments are not deleted through standard settings. This avoids erasing dated structure and later history such as requests, reports, comments, or access decisions. Unavailable departments remain in historical report filters and are labeled Unavailable. A department name can be used again only for a later period that does not overlap the earlier department’s available period.

Approval-stage approvers by department

Each stage in each approval workflow can have one or more assigned approvers for a department. The person may work anywhere in the organization; the department and request-type stage together determine which requests the assignment covers. The same department can therefore use different approvers for new position and position replacement requests.

For each selected stage, FTE Tree starts with the request Department’s pool. If that Department has no approvers selected directly for the stage, FTE Tree uses the nearest higher-level Department with a pool for that exact stage. A direct pool replaces the inherited pool for that stage. It does not affect another request type.

At each active stage, any one assigned approver for the request’s department can decide the stage. When one person acts, the other assigned approvers no longer need to act. There is no setting to require every assigned approver or unanimous agreement.

Job codes available in a department

Choose which job codes can be used on positions in each department. This keeps users from selecting a job code that the department does not use.

A choice made for a higher-level department also applies to the departments beneath it. Choosing a higher-level job code includes the job codes beneath it. The department page shows choices made for that department as well as choices inherited from above. Use a batch import when you need to update many departments at once.

Open the department’s Job code availability tab. Under Availability date, choose View and edit on, enter the date you want to review or change, and select Change date. Edit and save the direct job code choices for that date. The results identify choices made directly and choices inherited from higher levels.

When choosing a department for a position, enter the position’s Effective date first. The department choice stays empty and explains that requirement until a date is present. Changing the date clears the earlier choice and shows the departments available on the new date. When adding a position, it also clears the job code so you can choose one available for the new department and date.

GL strings

GL strings associate accounting values with departments. You define the segments that compose your GL string, create the allowed values for each segment, and assign values to individual departments.

General ledger (GL) strings are accounting values; they do not determine which department is responsible for a position or employee. More than one department may share the same GL string when your finance structure needs separate department views under the same account coding.

Managing GL segments

GL segments define the component parts of your GL string. Each segment represents a category such as Fund, Cost Center, or Account Code. Segments have a display order, separator, and required setting. Use the move controls on the segment list to change the order in which segments appear.

General ledger (GL) segments are kept in history. Make a segment unavailable when it should no longer be used for new department coding.

Managing segment values

Each GL segment has a list of allowed values that can be assigned to departments. You can create values one at a time or load them with the GL code import. Mark a value unavailable when you want to hide it from new assignments while preserving existing department assignments.

GL segment values are not deleted through standard settings. Make a value unavailable when it should no longer be offered for new department assignments. Earlier department assignments and history remain.

Assigning GL values

Navigate to a department and select the GL string tab to view and update assignments. Each direct assignment begins on its effective date and can have an end date, so a department’s accounting values can change over time without rewriting an earlier period. End an assignment when a different value should take over, or void the exact dated assignment when it was entered in error. Departments can inherit GL values from the departments above them when a direct value is not assigned. For bulk setup, import GL codes first, then import department GL assignments.

Department totals

Department totals can show approved and draft position counts, position FTE, position holder counts, annualized position cost, and assigned cost for the selected date. Staffing coverage separately shows staffed and vacant positions, assigned FTE, and unfilled FTE. Reports can summarize related measures over a selected period. Users see only departments and positions they have permission to view.

Select a Department name to review its Positions or Job code totals. Use reports when you need date-range amounts, GL grouping, exports, or detailed calculations.

Example department trees

Simple flat department tree

A smaller organization might place each working department directly beneath the same top-level department:

• Community Health Center
  • Administration
  • Finance
  • Operations
  • Clinical Services

This works well when the four departments can share settings from Community Health Center and users need access, approvals, and reports separated only at the department level.

Complex department tree

A larger organization might use divisions and cost centers that match the boundaries people already use:

• Atlas Manufacturing
  • Operations
    • Manufacturing
      • Plant 100
      • Plant 200
    • Distribution
      • East Warehouse
      • West Warehouse

In this example, organization-wide choices can begin at Atlas Manufacturing, Operations-wide choices can begin at Operations, and a plant or warehouse can have its own access or approvers when needed.

Use deeper trees when they match real approval, reporting, or access boundaries. Avoid adding levels that do not help users filter, approve, or report on positions.