Importing Ragged Hierarchies

kaitchura

Hello -

I have a 2 level ragged hierarchy (yes, it's a chart of accounts), that for reporting purposes is used in 4 different models (yes, it's a P&L).

What is the best way set this to allow one to be the "source of truth" and then import between the four models without creating actions that include ignores?

It seems like it has to be list-to-list in order to get the ragged design… but it creates ignores with some top levels.

Dheeraj09

Great question — managing ragged hierarchies (like a 2-level Chart of Accounts) across multiple models can be tricky, especially when you want a single source of truth without messy imports full of ignores.

Here are some best practices and approaches you can consider:

1. Use a Centralized “Source of Truth” Model with a Master List

• Create a dedicated model that holds the master version of the ragged hierarchy as a single list (e.g., COA Master List).
• This list should fully represent the ragged structure, including parent-child relationships.
• This model acts as your “source of truth” for the Chart of Accounts.

2. Importing Between Models: List-to-List Imports

• When importing the hierarchy into other models, use list-to-list imports, which preserve the hierarchy structure (parent-child links).
• This avoids importing line items with ignore flags, since the import directly maps list items.
• For ragged hierarchies, the parent property should be maintained in the source list to import correctly.

3. Handling Top-Level Ignored Items

• If you see “ignores” happening at top levels, it usually means:
  • The target model’s list has items with no matching parents in the source.
  • Or the import mapping is mismatched.

To avoid this:

• Ensure all parent items exist in the source list you’re importing from.
• Import the full hierarchy top-down—parents before children.
• Consider creating a “dummy” top-level parent if needed to anchor ragged branches consistently.

4. Synchronize Lists via Import Actions Without Ignored Items

• Use import actions that map list items by their unique codes or names (ideally unique codes).
• Avoid importing properties unrelated to the hierarchy structure in the same import to minimize ignore flags.
• Use separate import actions for list metadata (names, codes) and hierarchy (parent links).

Hope this helps!

Best regards,
Dheeraj Dubey