Constituent update rules

To manage how the program resolves conflicting data on matched constituents, you can set constituent update rules on the Global data entry settings page. To access this page, go to Administration and select Global data entry settings under Data. On the Global data entry settings page, select Constituent updates.

Constituent update rules apply when an incoming constituent matches an existing constituent, but their names or contact information are different. For example, two records are very similar but the first name is "Dave" on the existing constituent and "David" on the incoming constituent. Update rules allow you to choose how the program handles this conflict for you. You can set the program to update the existing name, add the incoming name as an alias, ignore the incoming name, or require users to compare the constituents on the duplicate resolution screen to determine which action to take. You can specify rules for names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, and birth dates.

When Do Rules Apply?

Constituent update rules are applied when data conflicts under these circumstances:

When you add a new constituent using the Add an individual screen or the Add an organization screen and it matches an existing constituent according to your defined constituent matching settings.
When you add a constituent through manual Constituent Update and Enhanced Revenue batches and it matches an existing constituent according to your defined constituent matching settings.
When you add a constituent through imported Constituent Update and Enhanced Revenue batches and it matches an existing constituent according to your defined constituent matching settings and you exclude the constituent ID.

Constituent update rules do NOT apply when data conflicts under these circumstances:

When you edit a constituent using the Edit an individual screen or the Edit an organization screen.
When you add a constituent through manual Constituent Update and Enhanced Revenue batches and include the constituent ID.
When you edit a constituent through imported Constituent Update and Enhanced Revenue batches and you include the constituent ID.

Note: When you add the constituent through manual Constituent Update or Enhanced Revenue batches, and you enter the Constituent ID for an existing constituent, the program assumes you intend to update the existing constituent manually and does not apply any constituent update rules to avoid overwriting the values you enter.

Constituent update rules apply only to Constituent Update and Enhanced Revenue Batch batches, as well as the import processes that use those types of batch templates. For additional flexibility, you can set different constituent update rules for individual batch templates and import processes. From the Add/Edit a batch template screen, select the Constituent updates tab under Configure options. From the Add/Edit import process screen, select the Constituent updates tab under Set options.

Automated or Hands-on Control?

Constituent update rules are intended to automate the update process so that data is handled for you according to your defined rules. When matching constituents in a batch or import qualify for automatic updates (their match confidence score is above the top threshold), the program applies constituent update rules automatically. For example, if you select the Update name rule, the program automatically replaces the name on the existing constituent with the name from the incoming constituent when the batch is committed. However, if you prefer to be more "hands-on" with your data, you can select Require manual review (generate exception) to ensure that each matching record is evaluated by a user on the Possible duplicate matches screen before the program makes any updates.

When matching constituents qualify for manual review (their match confidence score falls in the middle range), the program prompts you to resolve data conflicts on the duplicates resolution screen. To automate updates, you can select Use my organization's rules to resolve conflicting fields automatically according to your rules. For example, if you selected the Update name rule, when you select Use my organization's rules, the program automatically moves the name from the incoming constituent column to the existing constituent column. For any fields that require manual review, or if you need to update fields differently than your rules specify, you can use options to manually add, update, or ignore the incoming data. For more information about the duplicate resolution screen for batches, see the Batch and Import Guide.

When you add a potential duplicate from the Add an individual screen or the Add an organization screen, you are also prompted to resolve the conflicts on the duplicate resolution screen. Like batches, you can select Use my organization's rules to resolve conflicting fields automatically according to your rules. Also, for any fields that require manual review, or if you need to override the applied rules, you can use options to manually add, update, or ignore the incoming data. For more information about the duplicate resolution screen for individual constituents, see the Constituents Guide.