1. One tenant or several
One tenant with multiple legal entities gives consolidation, shared master data and one security model. Separate tenants give isolation at the cost of reporting effort. For most groups one tenant with entity-level security is right; data-residency law decides the exceptions.
2. Group chart, local mapping
Design one group chart and map each country's statutory chart to it, rather than forcing a local chart into a group shape.
3. Dimensions
Decide which analysis belongs in dimensions (department, project, product, region) before any transaction is posted. Retrofitting dimensions is expensive.
4. Where the tax authority sits in the process
Where an authority requires real-time submission, decide whether the invoice posts before or after acceptance. We recommend that an unaccepted invoice does not become a ledger fact.
5. Payroll per country
Statutory payroll is local. Choose a payroll solution per country and post each pay run to the ledger through a defined journal.
6. Currency policy
Decide functional and reporting currencies per entity, the rate source and the revaluation process. Make exposure visible weekly, not at month end.
7. Banking and payments
Local bank formats and the need for maker-checker control mean payments are a design topic. Standardise approval limits and separation of duties, then implement each bank file.
8. Who owns the template
Assign a template owner at group and a controller in each country for local rules. Changes to the template go through the owner; local changes are explicit exceptions.
Frequently asked questions
In what order should we roll out?
Prove the template in the most demanding country first, then roll out entity by entity in waves grouped by regulator and bank.
Where does the blueprint help?
The multi-country blueprint sets these out in more detail. Request the PDF with a company email.
Last reviewed 2026-10-12