Group hierarchy use case: franchise and cooperative stores
Group independent or franchised stores under a regional group. Each owner manages their own store, while the network keeps a view of every store below it.
Group hierarchy
What group hierarchy does
Group hierarchy turns a flat list of groups into a tree. Anything attached to a parent group reaches every group below it, so you set things up once at the right level instead of repeating them on every team.
Structure
A group has one parent and as many child groups as needed, up to 6 levels deep. Both are set in the Hierarchy section of the group form.
Inherit
Members of a child group become indirect members of its parent. Courses, learning paths and catalogue visibility linked to the parent reach everyone below it.
Follow
A manager of the parent manages all its sub-groups — never upper levels or sibling branches. In reports and the Data Lab, filtering on the parent includes every sub-group.
Use case 2 · Franchise and cooperative stores
Is this use case for you?
In this use case, a network of independent stores uses two levels: a regional group above its stores, or a store above its teams. Owners manage their store; the network follows the regions.
How it works
The owner is appointed on their own store, never on the regional group. Each owner’s scope stays limited to their staff, while regional managers follow every store below them.
- Regional group: a distributor or region above the stores it supplies.
- Store: one group per store, with its owner or HR person as group manager.
- Teams: optionally, the store’s teams as child groups.
What you need
- One group per store, named consistently (for example by town and store code).
- The owner or HR contact for each store.
- A decision on which courses each owner can manage.
- Administrator access.
Customer example
A cooperative of independent stores: region → store
A cooperative of independently owned supermarkets uses two levels. Some trees start from a regional distributor and list its stores; others start from a store and list its teams.
822
groups sit in the tree
2
levels
91
of the 93 top groups have a manager
143
stores under the largest regional group
The tree
| Level | Example groups | What sits at this level |
|---|---|---|
| 1 · Region or store | Regional distributor · Store – <town> – <code> | A regional manager, or the store owner / HR person as group manager |
| 2 · Store or team | Store – <town> – <code> · the store’s teams | Store or team courses |
What they get
- The independent owner or HR person activates and follows their own staff.
- The regional group follows every store it supplies.
Based on a real customer configuration. Customer and group names have been changed.
Set-up
From store network to owner-managed stores in 5 steps
Design
Choose the two levels
Region → store, or store → team. Pick one pattern per tree.
Create
Create the top groups
Regional groups, or the stores themselves when the tree starts there.
Attach
Attach stores or teams
Select the regional group (or the store) as Parent group.
Appoint
Appoint each owner
Add the owner or HR person as group manager of their store only.
Limit
Set course permissions
List of permitted courses or List of permitted categories limits what each owner can register their staff to.
Expected result
Each owner manages their own store from day one; the network follows every store from the regional group.
In the platform
Build the hierarchy
The hierarchy is set on the group form, in the Hierarchy section. You can attach a group to its parent, or attach several child groups at once from the parent.
- On the Groups page, click Create a group — or click the pencil icon of an existing group to edit it.
- Under General information, enter the Name, choose the Perimeter (Internal or Partner) and add an image if needed.
- In Hierarchy, select the Parent group. From a parent, add one or more Child groups instead; click × on a child group to detach it.
- In Configuration, set the group options and choose which courses and learning paths the group managers will be allowed to manage.
- Click Save.
› Groups › Edit group
Name
Perimeter
Group members of a child group will become indirect members of their parent group.
Parent group
Child groups
Allowed IP address range
Illustration · editing “Store – Vannes – 0412”: its parent is “Regional distributor – West”.
Managers in a hierarchy
- Group managers follow and manage the members of this group and of its sub-groups.
- Course permissions set which courses they can register members to and follow: None, All courses, Only visible courses (courses visible to the manager), List of permitted courses, or List of permitted categories (every course in these categories).
- Learning path permissions work the same way: None, All learning paths, or List of permitted learning paths.
- Emails about a member go only to the managers of the group the member belongs to directly, and only when their course permissions cover the course. Managers of parent groups follow these members but do not receive the emails.
- A manager’s permissions add up across every group they manage: All courses on one group applies to every member they manage, sub-groups included. To limit a manager, appoint them only on the sub-group, with a list.
- Platform-wide rights, such as creating and editing users or groups, are set in Settings › Permissions › Group managers.
Learn more
Choose which courses the group managers will be allowed to manage
Choose which learning paths group managers will be allowed to manage
Illustration · the managers of “Store – Vannes – 0412” can manage List of permitted courses and None.
Roles and visibility
Who sees what in the tree
The group a learner is a direct member of decides who receives emails about them. The tree decides who can see them: every manager above that group follows the learner as an indirect member.
Illustration · part of the tree, with each group’s manager.
Administrator or group manager
| Action | Administrator | Group manager |
|---|---|---|
| Sees | The whole structure | Their group and every group below it — not upper levels or sibling branches |
| Creates groups | Anywhere | Under their own group, if allowed |
| Moves groups to another parent | Anywhere | Within their scope, if allowed |
| Creates and edits users | Any user | Members of their groups, if allowed |
| Enrols learners | In any course or learning path | In the courses and learning paths their permissions cover |
| Receives emails about a learner | — | Only for the direct members of the groups they manage |
What group managers can be allowed to do
Platform-wide manager rights are set in Settings › Permissions › Group managers. Each right applies to the group where the manager is appointed and to every group below it, and the rights add up.
| Right | What it changes |
|---|---|
| Allow creation/modification of groups | The manager can add groups to their branch and edit them. |
| Allow management of managed groups | The manager can open the follow-up screens of their groups: members, statistics, export, smart rules and filters. |
| Allow creation/modification of users in the group | The manager can create accounts locally. New members also count as indirect members of every parent group. |
| Allow modification (without creation) | The manager can edit existing users but not create new ones. |
| Allow confirmation of their own course enrollments | The manager confirms their own enrolments without an administrator. |
Moving or deleting a group
- Moving a group to another parent recalculates indirect memberships: its members become indirect members of the new parent and disappear from the former parent’s view.
- Managers of the former parent no longer follow those members; managers of the new parent do.
- The new parent’s automatic enrolments are applied again, including for people removed from a course by hand.
- Deleting a group leaves its child groups without a parent. Re-attach them and check their smart rules and linked content afterwards.
In the platform
Check the tree and its members
Three places show the hierarchy once it is built: the Groups page, the organisational chart and the Manage group page.
On the Groups page
A hierarchy icon and a number appear next to every parent group: the number counts all the groups below it. Under each name, the list shows the perimeter and, for smart groups, the number of smart rule conditions. Use the Hierarchy filter in the right-hand panel to narrow the list to one tree.
› Groups
| Group ↑ | Hierarchy | Number of users ↑ | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
Regional distributor – West (143)
Internal |
- | 4,210 | |
Regional distributor – North (96)
Internal |
- | 2,950 | |
Store – Brest – 0175 (3)
Internal |
- | 52 |
Search
Hierarchy
Perimeter
Creation date
Custom fields
User - Department
User - Job
User - Location
Illustration · the Groups page. The hierarchy icon shows how many groups sit below “Regional distributor – West”; the right-hand panel holds the filters.
Open a parent to list its child groups. The breadcrumb names the parent, and the Hierarchy column repeats it on every row. A child group with its own sub-groups shows the hierarchy icon too.
› Groups › Regional distributor – West
| Group ↑ | Hierarchy | Number of users ↑ | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
Store – Vannes – 0412
Internal |
Regional distributor – West | 38 | |
Store – Lorient – 0388
Internal |
Regional distributor – West | 45 | |
Store – Quimper – 0291
Internal |
Regional distributor – West | 29 |
Illustration · the child groups of “Regional distributor – West” (first rows). The Hierarchy column shows each group’s parent.
Illustration · the 3-dot menu of “Regional distributor – West” in the list.
In the organisational chart
The chart opens on the parent group, with the number of groups it contains. Each card carries the group’s counters and a badge with its number of child groups: click the badge to expand or collapse that level. Use Fit view, Compact view and the + / − buttons to move around, the right-hand panel to search by group name or filter by creation date and custom fields, and Download organisational chart to keep a copy.
› Groups › Organisational chart
Internal • Contains 143 groups
Regional distributor – West
Store – Vannes – 0412
Store – Lorient – 0388
Store – Quimper – 0291
Search
Creation date
Custom fields
User - Department
User - Job
User - Location
See all custom fields ▾
Illustration · the organisational chart of “Regional distributor – West” with its first level expanded (first cards shown).
On the Manage group page
The page of a parent group sums up its whole tree: Child groups counts every group below it, and General statistics cover direct and indirect members. The member list has three tabs.
› Groups › Manage group
Edit group configuration
Configuration
Type: Visible
Smart rule conditions: 0
Child groups: 143
See organisational chart
Linked to group
3 courses
0 learning paths
0 goals
User activities
5,400 ongoing courses
14 pending corrections
General statistics
4,210
Group members
1,260
Completed courses
22m
Average time spent
81 %
Average score
| User ↑ | Connection time ↑ | Progress ↑ | Score ↑ | Last login date ↑ | Actions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGPaul Girard▲▲ | 3 h 20 | 04/11/2026 | ||||
| ARAnne Riou | 1 h 15 | 30/10/2026 | ||||
| SLSophie Le Gall | 2 h 05 | 03/11/2026 | ||||
| LBLéa Bernard | 20m | 29/10/2026 |
Child groups
User status
Minimum time spent
Progress
Score
Illustration · the Manage group page of “Regional distributor – West” on the All members tab.
| User ↑ | Connection time ↑ | Progress ↑ | Score ↑ | Last login date ↑ | Actions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGPaul Girard▲▲ | 3 h 20 | 04/11/2026 | ||||
| ARAnne Riou | 1 h 15 | 30/10/2026 |
Illustration · the same list on the Direct members tab: only people added to “Regional distributor – West” itself.
| Tab | Who it lists |
|---|---|
| All members | Direct and indirect members together |
| Direct members | People added to this group itself |
| Indirect members | Members of the groups below it |
Use the Child groups filter to narrow the list to one branch, and the Group managers filter to list the managers, marked with a badge.
Troubleshooting
Common pitfalls and fixes
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| An owner can manage courses outside their store’s scope | The owner is also a manager of another group set to All courses | Remove them from the other group, or give every group they manage a list of permitted courses |
| A manager cannot see users from another branch | Visibility follows the tree: managers see their group and the groups below it only | Appoint the manager at the right level, or on each group they need to follow |
| After a move, members no longer appear in the former parent | Indirect memberships are recalculated when a group changes parent | Expected behaviour — check the new position in the organisational chart |
| Child groups have lost their parent | Their parent group was deleted | Edit each child group, select a new Parent group and check its smart rules |
| Learners removed from a course by hand are enrolled again | Their group was attached to a new parent, which re-applies the automatic enrolments | Check enrolments after moving a group and remove them again if needed |
| The group page shows only direct members | The previous group dashboard lists direct members only | Ask Support to turn on the new group dashboard, which shows indirect members too |
| A parent-group manager does not receive emails about a learner | Emails go only to managers of the learner’s direct group, when their course permissions cover the course | Also appoint that manager on the learner’s direct group if they need the emails |
| A manager can manage more courses than expected | Permissions add up across every group they manage | Appoint the manager only on the sub-group, with a list of permitted courses or categories |
| A manager’s Data Lab does not load | Their tree contains hundreds of groups | Contact Support |
| A group cannot be attached to a second parent | A group has only one parent | Choose one tree; create a separate group for the other use |
| No level can be added under the deepest group | A tree is limited to 6 levels | Merge or remove intermediate levels |
Start from an outcome, not a setting.
Want help setting up this use case on your platform? Our team can review your group tree with you.
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