The Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) is a centralized accounting hierarchy that lets franchisors define one unified chart of accounts for the entire organization. Instead of relying solely on each unit's individual QBO structure, SCOA creates a standardized layer that maps all unit accounts into a consistent format — making consolidated P&L reports reliable and uniform across every location.
Your existing mapping setup is not affected. SCOA is an optional layer you turn on when you're ready. Both systems work side by side.
Every franchise unit may have a slightly different QuickBooks chart of accounts — different account names, different nesting, different categories. This makes consolidated financial reporting messy. SCOA solves this by giving you a single, organization-wide hierarchy that all unit accounts map into.
For example, one unit might have "Advertising Expense" while another has "Marketing — Digital Ads." With SCOA, both can map to a standard "Marketing Expenses" line in your consolidated P&L.
SCOA adds a new layer between your unit-level QBO accounts and your reports:
Traditional flow: Unit QBO Account → Data Point → Reports
SCOA flow: Unit QBO Account → SCOA Account → Data Point → Reports (with P&L rendered in COA hierarchy)
The SCOA feature has three tabs in Organization Settings, each handling a different part of the setup.
This is where you define your standard chart of accounts.
Import via CSV: Upload a CSV file with your standardized account hierarchy. The CSV should include columns for account name (using colons to show hierarchy, e.g., Expenses : Marketing : Digital Ads), account number, account type, detail type, and description. Fran Metrics will build the parent-child tree automatically.
Manual entry: You can also add accounts one at a time using the Add Account form — set the name, parent account, account number, type, and description.
Feature toggles: Two checkboxes control how SCOA is used: