Data Import Tools
FiscFlow can load data from spreadsheets instead of hand-entry - for onboarding a new district and for ongoing bulk updates. This page covers the Excel-template import, the onboarding Implementation Template, the SFTP fetch importer, and the bulk assignment and hours tools.
Only roles with the Can Import Data permission see the import action - typically administrators. Bulk tools instead require permission to create the records they produce.
Onboarding a new district Admin / champion
For a brand-new district, the fastest path is to provide your data as spreadsheets - the FiscFlow team reviews them and loads them for you. Each import sheet includes a short description of every column, so the templates double as a field reference while you fill them in.
Information is gathered in dependency order, roughly:
- Accounts & sites
Your budget structure and school sites.
- Classifications, titles & pay cycles
The kinds of position, their job titles, and how often each is paid.
- Workflows
Who approves what, and in what order - this is where the pieces get tied together.
- Submission types, hours types & other lookups
The remaining configuration and lookup values.
- Fiscal year & the approval PR
Set up last - after which staff can start creating requisitions and assignments.
Implementations go smoothest when the district has a champion who understands both how FiscFlow's pieces fit together and their own district's people and structure, and who can turn questions around quickly. That one role is the biggest predictor of a smooth rollout.
Importing isn't only for go-live - expect the heaviest activity during initial implementation and again at the start of each new fiscal year.
The Excel-template import
Every importable record type ships with a matching Excel template. Fill it in and upload it, and FiscFlow reads it row by row.
- Open the list for what you're importing
The Import Data action lives under Tools on list views (not on a single record).
- Pick the record type and choose your file
Select the type you're importing and upload the filled-in template.
- Import and review the results
FiscFlow imports the rows and shows you exactly what landed, so you can confirm the result before moving on.
The importer reads a sheet named Import (or the first sheet), treats the
first row as headers, and accepts .xlsx or .csv. Start
from the shipped template and keep its header row intact.
How matching works - it's an upsert
Import doesn't blindly add duplicates. For each row FiscFlow tries to find an existing record, and only creates a new one if it can't:
- Match on the Import ID column if present (the stable key to reuse across imports).
- Otherwise match on the record's natural key (e.g. a name or code).
- If nothing matches, insert a new record.
So re-importing an updated file updates the same records rather than duplicating them - as long as you keep the Import ID (or key column) consistent.
- Referenced items are auto-created. If a row points at, say, a Fund that doesn't exist yet, FiscFlow creates it - unless that field can't be created automatically, which stops the import with a clear message.
- Duplicate rows within one file are skipped.
- List columns add, not replace. A single Sites cell becomes a one-item list on the record.
- Dotted columns set sub-fields - e.g.
Fund.Descriptionfills the description on the referenced fund.
Rows the importer can't resolve are silently skipped; the results list shows only what imported successfully. Always compare the result count to your file, and remember that normal validation still applies on save (a PR's accounts must total 100%, an assignment needs a site, and so on).
What you can import
| Template | Loads |
|---|---|
| Employees | Employee records. |
| Employee Assignments | Positions. |
| Roles / Classifications / Titles | Assignment roles, classifications, titles. |
| Approval Filters | Approver Allow/Deny filters (finds or creates the parent position). |
| Personnel Requisitions | PRs - a single Account column becomes a 100% funding line. |
| Source of Funds | Funding-source list. |
| Sites | Sites. |
| Account Details & Accounting Parts | Accounts and the six segment lists. |
| Workflows | A comma-separated list of role names becomes ordered steps (missing roles are created). |
| Submission Categories & Types | Submission configuration. |
| Submission Schedules & Windows | Pay-period schedules. |
| Hours Entry Types | Worked/absence types. |
| Excluded Dates | Holidays/closures. |
| Integration Crosswalks | HCM crosswalk entries (finds or creates the parent crosswalk). |
The employee roster import is a replace: employees not in the uploaded file are deactivated (except system/admin accounts), and those in it are reactivated. Upload a complete roster, not a partial one, unless you intend that effect.
The Implementation Template (onboarding)
The FiscFlow Implementation Template is a single multi-tab workbook that stands up a new district's core configuration in one pass. Its tabs are imported in dependency order:
- Roles
Assignment roles and their capability switches.
- Workflows
Each workflow's ordered steps (as columns Step 1, Step 2, …).
- Schedules
Submission schedules and their windows.
- Submission Categories
Categories and their hours/document requirements.
- Submission Types
Types wired to their category, schedule, and workflow.
Every tab matches records by name and reports each as Created or Updated, so you can re-run it safely as you refine the configuration. The individual templates above remain the tools for targeted, ongoing imports.
The SFTP fetch importer
Instead of uploading a file by hand, an SFTP Importer (under Setup) pulls a file from an SFTP server on demand and runs it through the same import pipeline.
| Setting | Purpose |
|---|---|
| URL / Port / Username / Password | The SFTP connection (the password is stored encrypted). |
| File Name | The remote file to download. |
| Headers / Insert Header Row | Supply column headers when the source file doesn't include them. |
| Data Type & Import Type | Which record type to load and which importer to use. |
| Record Audit Data | Whether to write audit-trail entries during the import. |
Run it with the Run Import action on the importer record; results appear the same way as a file upload.
Bulk tools
These are targeted actions for creating many records at once - separate from the template import.
Bulk import employee assignments
On the assignments list, upload a simple employee list and choose a requisition, site, role, and date range. FiscFlow creates one assignment per employee (upserting, so re-running is safe), and reports Created / Updated / Total counts.
Copy an assignment to other employees
Select one assignment and Copy To a set of employees - FiscFlow clones it for each. All clones are validated together; if any is invalid, nothing is saved.
Carry forward assignments (year rollover)
Select several assignments and carry them into a target requisition - typically next year's - with new dates. Sites that the target requisition doesn't offer are dropped; if a position would be left with no site, the requisition's originator site is added so it stays valid. This is the fiscal-year rollover tool.
Bulk hours entry
Entering a batch of hours at once is being reworked into a matrix editor and isn't available in the current build. For now, log hours the day-to-day way - see Log your hours.
Safety & what to check
- Back your key columns. Consistent Import IDs (or names) make re-imports update instead of duplicate.
- Verify the counts. Because unresolved rows are skipped silently, compare results to your file.
- Watch the roster-replace behavior on the employee import.
- Normal validation still runs - imported records must satisfy the same rules as hand-entered ones. See Field rules.