The process of setting up a reporting hierarchy uses the field customization features of the underlying Salesforce platform. See the Salesforce Help for more information.
In outline, to set up a reporting hierarchy, you must carry out the following steps.
Step 1: Create a custom field on the General Ledger Account object for each level of the hierarchy
The data type for these fields is "Picklist". When you create the fields, you also define the contents of the picklist. For example, you might create the following three custom fields to represent sections of your balance sheet.
Picklist Contents
| Balance Sheet 1 | Balance Sheet 2 | Balance Sheet 3 |
| Balance Sheet | Current Assets | Bank and Cash |
| Accounts Receivable | ||
| Provisions | ||
| Inventory | ||
| Prepayments and Accrued Income | ||
| Fixed Assets | Fixtures Fittings and Equipment | |
| Land and Buildings | ||
| Intangible Assets | Intangible Assets | |
| Current Liabilities | Accounts Payable | |
| Accruals and Deferred Income | ||
| Employment Payables | ||
| Tax Liability | ||
| Long Term Liabilities | Payables After 1 Year | |
| Shareholders Funds | Capital and Reserves |
See the Salesforce Help topic "Adding Fields" for further guidance on adding custom fields to objects.
Step 2: Create dependent relationships between fields
These relationships dynamically filter the available values in a picklist based on the value selected in the controlling field.
See the Salesforce Help topic "Defining Field Dependencies" for more information.
Step 3: Select the appropriate picklist values when you create each new general ledger account
For a general ledger account called:
- "Bank Account – Current", you might select "Balance Sheet", then "Current Assets", and then "Bank and Cash".
- "Accounts Payable Control", you might select "Balance Sheet", then "Current Liabilities", and then "Accounts Payable".
- "Bank Loan", you might select "Balance Sheet", then "Long Term Liabilities", and then "Payable After 1 Year".
- "Share Capital", you might select "Balance Sheet", then "Shareholders Funds", and then "Capital and Reserves".
FinancialForce applications have sample reporting hierarchies already set up. These are examples on which you can base your own customized reporting hierarchies to reflect your own business environment.