The operating problem
Start with a business onboarding questionnaire. A successful handoff produces a reviewed entity and ownership map for the engagement. Define the accountable owner before connecting systems. Do not infer tax elections, beneficial ownership obligations, or legal relationships. A source event is a request to evaluate the current state; it is not permission to make an irreversible change.
Use your own working copy
The free workbook for this process opens in a browser and works offline after download. It includes editable checks and notes, a text export, and a print view. It is a planning resource: it does not send messages, read account data, or run actions in business systems. No vendor account is needed to use the workbook.
Map the process
1. Collect scoped entity facts
Request legal names, jurisdictions, entity references, and authorized contacts through the approved channel.
2. Normalize without merging
Keep registered names and trading names distinct. Preserve the original answers.
3. Build a candidate relationship map
Link supplied parent, subsidiary, and owner references with an explicit unverified status.
4. Review supporting records
Staff checks the relevant formation and engagement documents and resolves conflicting identities.
5. Publish the approved map
Use stable entity IDs for downstream document requests and reporting permissions.
Information to check
These reference fields describe the process. Use invented values while planning. Keep real records in an appropriate private system; the public website does not need them.
| Reference field | Working record | Check before progressing |
|---|---|---|
| entity_id | entity_id | Resolve the stable source reference in the correct client, entity, and engagement. |
| registered_name | registered_name | Resolve the stable source reference in the correct client, entity, and engagement. |
| relationship_type | relationship_type | Resolve the stable source reference in the correct client, entity, and engagement. |
| verification_ref | verification_ref | Resolve the stable source reference in the correct client, entity, and engagement. |
Acceptance checks
- Two similarly named entities remain separate.
- A disputed ownership relationship enters review.
- A repeated source event creates only one current review task.
- A changed source version invalidates an earlier approval.
Walk through a successful example, a duplicate, a missing item, an incorrect match, and an interrupted handoff with synthetic records. Record the expected result, observed result, owner, and recovery action. Checklists record your work; checking a box does not establish that an external action happened.
Ownership and review
Name the person responsible for the process and the person who can resolve an exception. Define which decisions require qualified professional review. Use stable references, limit access to private records, and document when work must stop. Educational material does not establish legal, accounting, tax, security, or regulatory compliance.
Run a measured pilot
Choose a small, reversible sample. Measure handling time, waiting time, review, rework, and errors before changing the process. Include the effort of maintaining the new method. Expand only when the observed result meets your acceptance criteria; a longer checklist is not proof of improved performance.
Use the free workflow planner to define your next step, or compare the assumptions in the opportunity calculator.