NEW - You can now search by Aliases with our improved search tools! Learn more in our Release Notes
Employer records can be created on university sites by multiple sources from manual entry to data uploads; this can sometimes lead to the creation of multiple records for the same employer that all have slightly different names. For example 12twenty, 12twenty, Inc., and 12twenty Inc would all be considered separate employer records even though the users who entered those employer names may be referring to the same business entity.
To help manage duplicate records like this 12twenty provides the ability to merge employers, combining multiple instances of the same employer under a single record. When merging records in this way users can create employer aliases that automatically map future records with similar names under the merged employer. Read below to find out more.
Sections
Merging Employers
Merging employers combines one employer record into another employer record. Merging employers like this removes the employer you selected and migrates all of its data under the record you merge it into. This action is permanent and the data cannot be retrieved, the original record will have to be recreated manually.
For example, if we merge Company A into Company B, Company A will be permanently removed from your site. All of Company A's data will be migrated under the record for Company B. This action will be recorded in the audit log for Company B, however the action can never be undone.
There are two ways to merge employers, either via the Employers Notifications page or directly under the Employer Profile.
Employer Notifications
- In the left-hand navigation menu select Notifications and Employers.
On the Pending Employers page, find the employer you would like to merge into another record and click the gray merge button.
*Note: you can see how an employer record was added to your site in the "Added By" and "Source" columns.
On the new window that appears enter the name of the employer you would like to merge the pending employer into. Select merge to confirm.
Employer Profile
- Select Employers from the left-hand navigation menu and search for then select the employer that you want to merge into another record.
- Use the 3-dot action button to the top-right of the page and select merge from the drop-down menu.
- On the new window that appears enter the name of the employer you would like to merge the pending employer into. Select merge to confirm.
Employer Aliases
When merging two employer records together users will see the a checkbox at the bottom of the confirmation window to Create employer alias. If checked, this box will create a rule under the Employer Aliases section of your site that automatically merges any future employer records created with that name under the target company.
Consider the previous example when Company A, 12twenty Business Jobs, was merged into Company B, 12twenty, Inc. If we create an alias when merging these two companies then all future employers created with the name 12twenty Business Jobs will automatically merge under 12twenty, Inc. It will not be possible to have an employer record on your site with the name 12twenty Business Jobs unless the alias is removed.
To manage Employer Aliases use the left-hand navigation menu and select Notifications and Employers, then click the Employer Aliases button on the top-right of the page.
From the Employer Aliases page, you can search by employer name or by the alias, add a new employer alias via the + New Employer Alias Button, or delete existing aliases via the 3-dot action button to the right of the alias. Use the checkboxes to the left of each alias to manage multiples aliases at once.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can we tell which Employer is going to be removed and which is going to be kept when merging employer records?
The first employer you select the merge action on is employer that will be removed; the employer you type into the confirmation window is the target employer that will be maintained, data from the first employer will be migrated there.
I created an Alias, where did it go?
Select the Employer Aliases button from the Pending Employers page under Notifications > Employers.
Will job postings be lost when you merge two employers?
When merging two employers the active job openings associated with those employers will not be lost. The job postings will appear under the merged employer after the data migration process from the merge is complete.
When I save an employer record with a new company name it automatically updates to a different value, why is that?
This likely indicates there is an employer alias set up for one of the two company names under Notifications > Employers > Employer Aliases. Search for the company names or employers with the issue and remove any aliases, then try again. If the issue persists please contact support@12twenty.com with links to the employer records for more assistance.