Client mapping
Turn client records into a business structure diagram
Build a business structure diagram from the client records you already keep, and it stays accurate as the group changes. Edits in the diagram update the client, and a proposed structure never touches live data until you accept it.
Included in the base subscription
- Type:
- Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr Family Trust [1000]
- Type:
- Trustee Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr, Dean [1]
Schurr, Melissa [1]
- Type:
- Trust - Discretionary
- Appointor:
- Schurr, Dean
- Beneficiary:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr, Dean
- Type:
- Self Managed Superannuation Fund
- Member:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr Super Fund Pty Ltd
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Georgie
Schurr, Isla
Schurr, Melissa
Illustrative view. Sample client group.
What goes wrong today
The structure lives in someone’s head
Knowing one company is not the same as understanding the group. A new team member needs to see how the people, companies and trusts fit together.
The diagram is separate from the client record
When details change, a standalone diagram is another document to remember to update.
Boxes and lines don’t explain the money
A structure chart shows who owns what. It doesn’t show the client where the dividends, distributions and rent actually go.
Inside the client map
A diagram that keeps up with the client
Clients forget how their structures work, new team members need to see the order to do the work in, and lawyers need the whole group for estate planning. Every one of those needs a diagram that’s right today. This is a sample view, not a live client group.
Build the diagram from the clients you already have
Start a current map for the group and its entities are already there, coloured by type in colours you can change, with the relationships from each client record. Add anyone who isn’t a client, like the children here, then let Auto Build lay it all out. Press Build whole diagram to try it.
Check each entity and its relationships
Select an entity to see its directors, shareholders, trustees and beneficiaries, and choose which ones show on the diagram. On a current map, an edit here updates the client record, so the diagram and the client list never disagree. Click another entity to see it.
Show how money moves through the group
A structure shows who owns what. Add the flows and it shows how the group works: dividends from the company to the family trust, distributions on to the family, and rent from the company to the super fund for the business premises.
Send it out with the financials
Export the diagram as a PDF or image, in colour or black and white, to your computer or straight to the client’s folder in your DMS. It goes with the financials as a reminder, to the lawyer for estate planning, or to the team member picking up the tax work.
- Build the diagram from the clients you already have
- Check each entity and its relationships
- Show how money moves through the group
- Send it out with the financials
Build the diagram from the clients you already have
Start a current map for the group and its entities are already there, coloured by type in colours you can change, with the relationships from each client record. Add anyone who isn’t a client, like the children here, then let Auto Build lay it all out. Press Build whole diagram to try it.
- Type:
- Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr Family Trust [1000]
- Type:
- Trustee Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr, Dean [1]
Schurr, Melissa [1]
- Type:
- Trust - Discretionary
- Appointor:
- Schurr, Dean
- Beneficiary:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr, Dean
- Type:
- Self Managed Superannuation Fund
- Member:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr Super Fund Pty Ltd
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Georgie
Schurr, Isla
Schurr, Melissa
Drag entities onto the canvas, or use Auto Build
Illustrative AccountKit Client Map. Sample client group and sample details, not live client records.
Check each entity and its relationships
Select an entity to see its directors, shareholders, trustees and beneficiaries, and choose which ones show on the diagram. On a current map, an edit here updates the client record, so the diagram and the client list never disagree. Click another entity to see it.
Illustrative AccountKit Client Map. Sample client group and sample details, not live client records.
Show how money moves through the group
A structure shows who owns what. Add the flows and it shows how the group works: dividends from the company to the family trust, distributions on to the family, and rent from the company to the super fund for the business premises.
- Type:
- Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr Family Trust [1000]
- Type:
- Trustee Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr, Dean [1]
Schurr, Melissa [1]
- Type:
- Trust - Discretionary
- Appointor:
- Schurr, Dean
- Beneficiary:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr, Dean
- Type:
- Self Managed Superannuation Fund
- Member:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr Super Fund Pty Ltd
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Georgie
Schurr, Isla
Schurr, Melissa
Illustrative AccountKit Client Map. Sample client group and sample details, not live client records.
Send it out with the financials
Export the diagram as a PDF or image, in colour or black and white, to your computer or straight to the client’s folder in your DMS. It goes with the financials as a reminder, to the lawyer for estate planning, or to the team member picking up the tax work.
- Type:
- Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr Family Trust [1000]
- Type:
- Trustee Company
- Director:
- Schurr, Dean
- Secretary:
- Schurr, Dean
- Shareholder:
- Schurr, Dean [1]
Schurr, Melissa [1]
- Type:
- Trust - Discretionary
- Appointor:
- Schurr, Dean
- Beneficiary:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr, Dean
- Type:
- Self Managed Superannuation Fund
- Member:
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Melissa - Trustee:
- Schurr Super Fund Pty Ltd
- Schurr, Dean
Schurr, Georgie
Schurr, Isla
Schurr, Melissa
Illustrative AccountKit Client Map. Sample client group and sample details, not live client records.
Not just business structures
Map a process or an app stack the same way
The same canvas has shapes, icons and app logos, so you can map how work moves through a client’s business, or the apps a practice runs on and how they connect.
Who it’s for
For the conversations that need the whole picture
Accounting and advisory practices looking after clients with multiple people, companies and trusts. Use a visual diagram to support internal handovers and client discussions.
For what to include, and how to lay out a group so a bank or the ATO can read it, see how to draw a family group structure diagram.
How often it comes round
When onboarding a client, reviewing a group or talking through a possible change.
- Onboarding
- Bring the client group into one shared picture.
- Team handovers
- Help the next person understand the relationships.
- Client meetings
- Explore a proposed diagram alongside the current structure.
Connected client information
A diagram that stays close to the client record
AccountKit syncs client details both ways with Xero Practice Manager. Proposed diagrams stay separate from the current client record.
The maps above use a sample client group. They aren’t a live AccountKit session or business-structure advice.
Xero App Store reviews
What practices say about it
★★★★★
…Client Maps make it much easier to walk clients through Structure Diagrams…
★★★★★
…The client mapping for complex structures is great…
AccountKit is rated 5.0 out of 5 from 83 reviews on the Xero App Store.
Questions
What practices ask about client mapping
Does editing a client map change the client record?
Only on a current map. Changes saved on a current diagram flow back to your client data and connected software such as XPM. Historical and proposed diagrams are separate, so nothing changes until you convert one to current.
What can I map besides a business structure?
You can also build software maps, showing how information flows between a client’s systems, and process maps of how their business runs.
Can I share or print a client map?
Yes. Export a map to PDF or PNG, in colour or black and white, or copy a link to share it. A PDF can go straight into a proposal or a set of financials.
Do I need Xero Practice Manager to use client mapping?
No. Without XPM, enter the relationships and client details manually or by import. With XPM connected, client details sync both ways.
Related tools
Tools that sit beside this one
- Compliance
Inter-entity loan tool
Loans between entities matched automatically, with one-sided entries posted to the other file in bulk.Watch the ledgers match - Compliance
Division 7A tool
Interest and minimum yearly repayments calculated across every loan, with a forecast for dividend planning.Follow a year end
Read the guideHow to draw a family group structure diagram
The heart of your firm
Put your next client conversation on the map
Start a free 14-day trial, or book a demo to see Client Mapping with the AccountKit team.
