All Salesforce Editions have an out-of-box field on the Account object called “Parent Account” that can be used to link child Account records to their parent. This functionality has some benefits and limitations Salesforce Administrators should be aware of, so we thought we would highlight a few of the major ones for your reference:
Benefits:
- Easy linking of child Account records to parent Accounts
- Built in functionality – no code or customization needed
- Parent Account field is supported in standard Account reports
- Supported in list views and filter criteria
- Quick access to the hierarchy from the “View Hierarchy” link next to the Account Name
- Can be used in workflow rules, validation rules, and formulas
Limitations:
- Salesforce Parent Accounts are not supported for Person Accounts
- The “View Hierarchy” page only displays up to 500 child Accounts
- A Custom Report Type will be needed to report on hierarchies more than one level deep
- The “View Hierarchy” page is not editable
- A strict one parent-to-multiple children record relationship structure exists
Depending on your individualized business requirements, the Salesforce Parent Account field may or may not meet your business needs right out-of-the-box. If not, there are alternative solution options such as a custom linking object or packages on the AppExchange. If you perform an AppExchange search for “Account Hierarchy,” you will find that there are many pre-built solutions that can give you increased functionality when dealing with your Account hierarchy needs.
Depending on your individualized business requirements, the Salesforce Parent Account field may or may not meet your business needs right out-of-the-box. If not, there are alternative solution options such as a custom linking object or packages on the AppExchange. If you perform an AppExchange search for “Account Hierarchy,” you will find that there are many pre-built solutions that can give you increased functionality when dealing with your Account hierarchy needs.
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