What this article covers: How to configure BrizoConsol based on your group structure — understanding the hierarchy, how entities connect, the role of the CCOA, and how consolidation nodes work.
Before connecting entities and running consolidations, it is important to understand how BrizoConsol handles your group structure. The key concepts are: how entities connect to data sources, what the Common Chart of Accounts (CCOA) is, and how consolidation nodes work in the hierarchy.
Key Concepts
Entity Types in the Hierarchy
Entity Type
Description
Connected entity
An entity with its own accounting book connected to BrizoConsol via Xero, QuickBooks, MYOB, or Zoho Books. Trial balance data is pulled automatically each period.
Manual entity
An entity whose trial balance is uploaded as Excel / CSV each period. Used for entities not on a supported accounting system.
Consolidation node (Con)
A group-level entity in the hierarchy that has no accounting book of its own. It consolidates the results of its child entities. BrizoConsol shows it as Connected via consol in the hierarchy. A consolidation node does not need account mapping — it has no accounts of its own to map.
🛈 Important — consolidation nodes: BrizoConsol does not connect consolidation nodes (group-level entities) to third-party accounting systems. The Group node consolidates its children — it does not pull its own trial balance from Xero or any other system. Even if the Group has its own holding company book in Xero, that book is used only as the source for the CCOA, not as a connected data source.
The Common Chart of Accounts (CCOA)
The CCOA is the standardised account structure that all entities map their accounts to. Every entity's accounts must be mapped to a CCOA account before its balances appear in consolidated reports.
If Group has a holding book
Use the Group's chart of accounts as the anchor for the CCOA. Import it from Xero/QB/MYOB/Zoho Books when setting up the CCOA — but do not connect the Group as a data source. Only the account structure is used.
If no Group book
Create the CCOA in BrizoConsol directly, or use AI Suggest to derive a structure from the connected subsidiaries' accounts.
Consolidation nodes
Do not need account mapping. They have no accounts of their own — their consolidated figures are derived from their child entities' mapped accounts.
Setup Questionnaire
Answer each question in order to identify your scenario.
#
Question
Routing
Q1
Does your group have a holding company book (in Xero, QuickBooks, MYOB, or Zoho Books)?
Yes → Q2
No → Scenario B
Q2
Does the holding book contain only holding entries (investments, intercompany loans, dividends) — or does it already contain consolidated results?
Holding only → Scenario A
Already consolidated → Scenario C
Q3
Does any subsidiary own another subsidiary (not directly owned by the top group)?
Yes → Scenario D
No → continue
Q4
Are some entities on accounting systems BrizoConsol cannot connect to directly?
Yes → Scenario E
No → Scenario A or B
Q5
Are you migrating from another consolidation tool with historical data?
Yes → Scenario F
No → use above
Scenario A — Group has a holding-only book
When this applies
The Group entity has its own accounting book containing holding entries only — investments in subsidiaries, intercompany loans, dividend income, cash. It does not contain consolidated results. Subsidiaries each have their own books.
Example Structure
Group Book (Xero — CCOA source only, not a connected data source)
├── Sub1 (Xero — connected)
├── Sub2 (QuickBooks — connected)
└── Con1 (consolidation node — no book, no account mapping needed)
Recommended Setup
Item
Detail
Hierarchy
Create the Group entity in Global Settings → Organisation Hierarchy as a consolidation node — it will show Connected via consol. Connect Sub1, Sub2 (and any other subsidiary entities) to their respective accounting systems. Add Con1 as a consolidation node beneath the Group if needed.
CCOA
Use the Group's chart of accounts as the anchor. When setting up the CCOA in Global Settings → Common COA, import the account structure from the Group's Xero/QB/MYOB/Zoho Books file. The Group is used as a CCOA source only — it does not contribute trial balance data.
Account mapping
Map Sub1 and Sub2 accounts to the CCOA. Con1 and the Group node do not require account mapping — they are consolidation nodes with no accounts of their own.
Investment in subs
Exists in the Group's holding book, but since the Group is not a connected data source, it is not pulled into BrizoConsol. Post the intercompany investment elimination as a consolidation entry via Adjustments → Elimination Entries.
Goodwill
Posted as a consolidation-only journal entry in Adjustments → Journal Entries.
CTA
Calculated and posted by BrizoConsol at fiscal year end for foreign subsidiaries. Configured in Adjustments → CTA.
🌟 Most common setup: The Group's holding book provides a clean anchor for the CCOA. Sub1, Sub2 and any other subsidiaries connect directly. Consolidation nodes like Con1 require no mapping and no data connection — BrizoConsol aggregates their children automatically.
Scenario B — No group book
When this applies
There is no Group entity with its own accounting book. The Group exists only as a consolidation construct — not a legal entity that files its own accounts. All operating entities have their own books.
Example Structure
Group (consolidation node — no book)
├── Sub1 (Xero — connected)
└── Sub2 (QuickBooks — connected)
Recommended Setup
Item
Detail
Hierarchy
Create the Group as a consolidation node in Global Settings → Organisation Hierarchy. It will appear as Connected via consol. Connect Sub1 and Sub2 to their accounting systems.
CCOA
Create the CCOA in BrizoConsol directly, or use AI Suggest in Global Settings → Common COA to derive a structure from Sub1 and Sub2's imported accounts.
Account mapping
Map Sub1 and Sub2 accounts to the CCOA via Global Settings → Account Mapping. The Group node does not require mapping.
Investment in subs
Does not exist in any entity's book. Post as a consolidation entry via Adjustments → Elimination Entries.
Goodwill
Post as a consolidation-only journal entry in Adjustments → Journal Entries.
CTA
Calculated and posted by BrizoConsol at fiscal year end for foreign subsidiaries.
🌟 Common for SME groups: Use AI Suggest to minimise the effort of building the CCOA from scratch. Once Sub1 and Sub2 are connected, the AI generates a suggested CCOA from their imported accounts — review and save.
Scenario C — Group book contains consolidated results
⚠️ Risk of double-counting
The Group's book already contains rolled-up results from the subsidiaries. If you were to use this book as a CCOA source alongside Sub1 and Sub2's data, every figure would be counted twice. The Group book cannot be used in BrizoConsol in this scenario.
Example Structure
Group (book contains consolidated results — do NOT use)
├── Sub1 (own book)
└── Sub2 (own book)
Recommended Setup
Item
Detail
Hierarchy
Create the Group as a consolidation node. Connect Sub1 and Sub2 to their accounting systems. Do not use the Group's consolidated book as a CCOA source or data source.
CCOA
Create the CCOA from Sub1 and Sub2's accounts using AI Suggest, or build manually. The Group's consolidated book cannot be used as the CCOA anchor.
Account mapping
Map Sub1 and Sub2 accounts to the CCOA only. The Group node requires no mapping.
Everything else
Same as Scenario B — investment, goodwill, and CTA all handled as consolidation-only entries.
Treat the Group book as reference only. It can be useful for manually verifying your consolidated outputs match your existing reports, but it cannot be connected to BrizoConsol as a data source in this scenario.
Scenario D — Multi-level hierarchy (sub-subsidiary)
When this applies
One subsidiary owns another. Ownership passes through an intermediate entity rather than directly from the top Group. The effective group interest is the product of the ownership percentages cascaded up the chain.
Example Structure
Group (consolidation node)
├── Sub1 (Xero — connected, owns Sub2)
│ └── Sub2 (QuickBooks — connected, nested under Sub1)
└── Con1 (consolidation node — no book, no mapping needed)
Group effective interest in Sub2 = Group % in Sub1 × Sub1 % in Sub2
Example: 80% × 75% = 60% effective interest
Recommended Setup
Item
Detail
Hierarchy tree
In Global Settings → Organisation Hierarchy, select Sub1 in the tree then click + Add Organisation to nest Sub2 directly beneath it. Do not place Sub2 under the Group — Sub1 is the direct parent. Con1 sits under Group as a consolidation node with no data source.
Account mapping
Map Sub1 and Sub2 accounts to the CCOA. Con1 does not require account mapping — it is a consolidation node.
Investment in Sub2
Exists in Sub1's book (Sub1 paid for Sub2). Eliminated at the Sub1–Sub2 consolidation level via Adjustments → Elimination Entries.
Goodwill on Sub2
Posted as a consolidation entry at the Sub1–Sub2 level, not at Group level.
CTA
Calculated per entity. Sub2's CTA is calculated in Sub2's functional currency → Sub1's presentation currency, then again Sub1 → Group if currencies differ at that level.
🛈 Two separate configurations: Sub2 must be nested under Sub1 in both the Organisation Hierarchy tree (structural position) and in the Ownerships section (ownership %). These are separate — setting one does not set the other.
Scenario E — Mixed: some entities on manual upload
When this applies
Some subsidiaries are on Xero, QuickBooks, MYOB, or Zoho Books and connect directly. Others are not — their trial balances must be uploaded as Excel / CSV each period.
Example Structure
Group (consolidation node)
├── Sub1 (Xero — connected)
└── Sub2 (spreadsheet — manual Excel / CSV upload each period)
Recommended Setup
Item
Detail
Hierarchy
Connect Sub1 via integration. Add Sub2 as a manual entity using Upload via Excel / CSV.
Manual TB upload
Each reporting period, export Sub2's trial balance and upload it to BrizoConsol via Organisation Settings → Data Loading. BrizoConsol does not pull data automatically for manual entities.
Account mapping
Map Sub2's manually uploaded accounts to the CCOA the same way as connected entities.
Goodwill, CTA
Same approach as Scenario A or B depending on whether the Group has its own holding book.
💡 Set a reminder: Manual entities must have an updated trial balance uploaded before each consolidation run. BrizoConsol will not flag stale data automatically for manual entities — upload Sub2's TB first, then run consolidation.
Scenario F — Migrating from another consolidation tool
When this applies
Your group has been using a different consolidation tool and is switching to BrizoConsol. Historical consolidated data exists in the old tool and opening balances must be seeded into BrizoConsol before it can produce correct reports from day one.
Recommended Setup
Item
Detail
Connect entities
Set up the hierarchy and connect all entities as in Scenario A or B. Do not import historical consolidated figures from the old tool — treat BrizoConsol as live from the migration date.
Opening balances
Import the consolidated trial balance from the old tool as at the migration date as opening balances in BrizoConsol. This seeds the starting position.
CTA seeding
Manually enter the historical CTA balance as the opening CTA balance in Adjustments → CTA. This cannot be auto-calculated from periods not processed in BrizoConsol.
Goodwill seeding
Enter the goodwill balance as at migration date via Adjustments → Journal Entries. BrizoConsol tracks movements from migration date forward.
Parallel run
Run BrizoConsol in parallel with the old tool for one to two reporting periods to validate consolidated outputs match before fully switching over.
💡 Migration tip: The most critical seeding items are CTA and goodwill opening balances. Without these the consolidated balance sheet will not foot correctly from day one. Contact BrizoConsol support to assist with the seeding process.
Scenario Summary
Scenario
Group book?
Group as data source?
CCOA source
Con node mapping?
A
Yes — holding only
No — CCOA only
Group's COA (imported, not connected)
Not required
B
No
N/A
AI Suggest or manual
Not required
C
Yes — consolidated
No — do not use
AI Suggest or manual from subsidiaries
Not required
D
Optional
No
As per A or B
Not required
E
Optional
No
As per A or B
Not required
F
As per A or B
No
Existing CCOA
Not required
