Territory Priority Basics

A territory is a name given to a group of branches. Eclipse's branch hierarchy allows you to define branch-specific settings at the territory level, rather than entering the same setting, for example sell package quantity, branch by branch. The branch hierarchy eliminates the need for complicated mass load operations when setting branch parameters.

Territory priorities create the organization for branches that are in multiple territories. Plan your territory and branch structure before creating territories and assigning branches to them. Create categories for your branches when the branches have similar settings, or reporting needs. Branch categories can reflect regions, states, and products, for example. This process helps you create a branch hierarchy that the system can use to efficiently maintain branch-specific options in many areas of the system.

Throughout the system you can add and view only branches and territories to which you have access. Branch and territory access is defined in User Maintenance. To view or edit the Territory Maintenance screen, where you define territory priorities, you must be assigned the TERRITORY.MAINTauthorization key.

When you change territory priorities, the system requires that you rebuild the territory list. We recommend that you schedule the rebuild for after normal business hours to ensure that the process does not interfere with daily transactions.

Defining Territories

Use the Territory Maintenance screen to create as many territories as you need to maintain the system's branch-specific settings. Create territories to organize branches into geographic locations, or types of products sold. For example, you might run reports on regions, such as South and East, or you might run a report focused on two states, for example Alabama and Georgia. If your branches sell different types of products, you might categorize territories as plumbing and HVAC to accurately report sales at those branches.

If your company has only one branch or multiple branches, use the ALL territory to maintain branch settings throughout the system. That way, if you ever add a branch, the new branch can inherit all of the properties of other branches through the ALL territory. You can also set different parameters for the new branch, if necessary, because individual branch settings always override territory settings.

Note: You do not have to create the ALL territory, it was created as part of the Eclipse system.

If a Control territory displays, you cannot change these settings. Control indicates the default system settings. This display helps you compare your territory settings with the settings automatically assigned by the system.

Assigning Territory Priorities

A branch can belong to more than one territory. The branches in these territories may need different settings for reporting purposes, tax purposes, pricing setup, inventory, and products. How does the system know what settings to use for branches maintained in multiple territories? You give each territory a priority for product and entity settings that the system uses to determine which parameter to use, such as package quantity for products and branch-specific overrides for entities. You can always override territory settings at the branch level.

Set territory priorities, from 1-99, according to the specificity of each territory, giving more specific territories a higher priority than less specific territories. You cannot maintain data on a territory that does not have a priority number; such territories can be used only for reporting purposes.

In this example, a higher priority is assigned to a territory focusing on automation products than to a territory containing all of the Southeastern branches, as shown in the following table. You will determine the correct priority for doing business at our own company.

Territory	Product Priority
AUTO	90
ELECGRP	80
GEORGIA	75
SOEAST	50

For example, you have ten branches in the Southeast, five in Georgia, and five in Alabama, and sell electrical products at all of your branches, and automation products at 6 of those ten branches. Your state branches have equal priority, and are more specific than the regional, SOEAST territory, and less specific than the ELECGRP territory. Product and entity priority settings do not need to be the same for a territory, but should remain equal between like territories. The following table shows the priority distribution for state, regional, and product-specific territories:

Territory Name	Number of Branches	Product Priority	Entity Priority
AUTO	6	90	95
ELECGRP	10	80	85
ALABAMA	5	75	70
GEORGIA	5	75	70
SOEAST	10	50	40

You purchase a Midwestern company that has five branches, two in MICHIGAN, and three in OHIO. All five branches sell electrical products, but none sell automation products. Now you have two regional territories and four state territories. Give both regions equal priority, and give all of the states equal priority. The number of branches in the ELECGRP territory jumped to 15 because all of your branches fall into that category. The following table shows how the addition of branches and territories can change the branch hierarchy:

Territory Name	Number of Branches	Product Priority	Entity Priority
AUTO	6	90	95
ELECGRP	15	80	85
ALABAMA	5	75	70
GEORGIA	5	75	70
OHIO	3	75	70
MICHIGAN	2	75	70
MIDWEST	5	50	40
SOEAST	10	50	40

To determine which territories have priority within the branch hierarchy, set territory priorities in Territory Maintenance.

If you change the priority settings, you must rebuild the authorized territory list, exit the Eclipse program you are in and then re-enter a branch-specific screen to see the change in priority. We recommend scheduling these rebuilds for after work hours to avoid interfering with normal business transactions.