Multiple Entities

Entities are typically used to represent different units within an organization, such as business units, subsidiaries, divisions, etc. that help to structure the organization’s operations and management hierarchies.

 

In this document, we'll guide you through a scenario with step-by-step instructions to help you learn how to create and manage multiple entities within the platform. We'll also cover how to associate entities with accounts and quotes, as well as how to generate invoices grouped by entities for streamlined billing and reporting.

 

Let's get started!

 

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SCENARIO   VROOM Inc. offers VROOM Video Conference in two different currencies: USD 15 for US dollars and EUR 12 for euros, across three different regions: the US, France, and Germany.   Typically, each Sales Account is linked to a single entity and currency. However, there are instances where a European account may have different line items associated with different entities. VROOM wants to group products by entity when generating invoices to ensure clear billing and revenue recognition.   In our scenario, "Pinnacle" is a sales account linked to the US entity, representing a clear alignment with its regional operations. On the other hand, "NovaLink" is a sales account currently without any entity association.

Before implementing the scenario, we assume the following has been configured properly: 

• The Nue tenant and Salesforce org are set up to support multiple currencies. However, please note that multi-currency is not required for configuring multiple entities.
• The VROOM Video Conference product has been created with two price book entries, one for each currency - USD and EUR.

To implement this scenario, we will take the following steps:

1. Create three entities: US, France, and Germany.
2. Create an account "Pinnacle" associated with the US entity, and another account "NovaLink" in euros, without any entity association.
3. Create a quote for Pinnacle and another for NovaLink. The NovaLink quote will include line items associated with different entities.
4. Enable the Billing Groups feature to ensure that product line items from different entities are invoiced separately.
5. Create a billing schedule and observe the invoices generated, with one invoice per entity.

Create Entities

PERMISSIONS REQUIRED   The following permission is required to create and manage entities:    Entity Management Manage Entities Admin users can grant the following View Entities and Manage Entities functional permissions to different roles.  By default, all system roles receive View Entities permission, while only the System Administrator user role receives Manage Entities permission.   Once the user is granted with any of these permissions, she will see a new menu item “Entities” in the Revenue Manager menu.

 

A user can follow these steps to create a new entity:

1. Go to the Entities menu under Revenue Manager.
2. Click the New Entity button and complete the required fields as shown in the screenshot below.

 

3. Click 'Save and Create New' and continue to create 2 other entities: France and Germany. 

4. Once all entities are created, activate them by using the "Activate" action on the entity list page.  

 

Please note the following: 

• The currency field will only be displayed when Multi-Currency is enabled. 
• When an entity is created or updated, an entity record will be created or updated directly in Salesforce. 
• The Entity name must be unique. 
• When the user clicks the “Edit’ icon on the Entity List page to edit the entity, 
  • If the entity is in Draft status, all fields can be changed, including the Currency.
  • If the entity is in Active status, the Currency field cannot be changed.
• Once an entity is activated, it can be associated with accounts.
• When an entity is deactivated, it can still be associated with existing accounts and transactions, but it can no longer be used for new associations with accounts or transactions.

Associate Entities with Accounts

Users can associate an entity with an account in Salesforce. If multi-currency is enabled and the account already has a currency assigned, you can only associate an entity that shares the same currency as the account.

 

In our scenario, we will create two accounts: Pinnacle and NovaLink. When creating the account "Pinnacle," select "US Dollars" as the currency. In the "Entity" field, you will see three options: US, France, and Germany. Choose "US" and save the account. If you select a different entity, you will encounter an error message: "The currency and entity values are not compatible. Please choose a different currency or entity."

 

For the account "NovaLink," select "Euro" as the currency, but leave the Entity field empty.

Create Quotes

When a quote is created for an account linked to an entity, upon saving the quote, all quote line items will be populated with the entity ID of the associated entity.

 

In our scenario, we create a quote for the "Pinnacle" account and add the product "VROOM Video Conference" to the quote. The quote line item will automatically be assigned with the entity ID of the US entity.

 

When a quote is created for an account not linked to an entity, users have the option to assign an entity value to each quote line item. Nue allows flexibility in assigning entities, as long as the entity's currency matches the quote's currency.

 

In our scenario, we create a quote for the "NovaLink" account, which is in Euro. We add the product "VROOM Video Conference" twice to the quote. We then assign the first line item to the France entity by editing its entity value and assign the second line item to the Germany entity by doing the same.

 

When a quote is finalized into an order, the entity value of each quote line item is automatically transferred to the corresponding order product. Upon activation of the order, this entity value is then carried over to the provisioned subscription, asset, and entitlement.

 

The following screenshot shows the entity value of the order products for the order placed and activated for NovaLink: 

Invoice Multiple Entities

When customers with order transactions across different entities are invoiced, options are available to invoice transactions from each entity separately. By default, transactions in different currencies are billed separately. However, users can enable the Entity as a billing group to ensure transactions from each entity are billed separately.

 

To enable Entity as a billing group, please follow the instructions here. 

 

In our scenario, we want to generate invoices for each individual entity. After enabling Entity as a billing group, we run a billing schedule for the customers Pinnacle and NovaLink. Once the billing job is complete, we see that three invoices are generated, one for each entity.

 

Putting It Altogether

In summary, the Multiple Entities feature provides a mechanism for businesses to manage transactions across different entities within the platform. This feature enables users to create and associate entities with accounts, quotes, and transactions.

 

By leveraging entity-based billing groups, users can generate invoices that are grouped by entity, ensuring that transactions are accurately billed according to their respective entities. This functionality is particularly useful for businesses operating in multiple regions or currencies, providing flexibility and control over how financial data is organized and reported.