Automatic Type Matching for XPM Structures

When you pull or sync clients from Xero Practice Manager (XPM), StructureGram (SG) needs to know which SG entity type — and, for trusts, which trust type — each XPM client should become. XPM lets every practice invent its own business structure labels, so those labels rarely match SG's vocabulary exactly.

Rather than stopping to ask you about every custom label, SG now reads keywords in the XPM business-structure label and matches it automatically where it safely can. When it makes a match, the type is applied for you and the item is flagged so you can double-check it. When the label is genuinely unclear, SG still asks you to choose.

This article explains exactly what SG looks for and how each outcome behaves. For the broader picture on custom structures and the saved rules that remember your manual choices, see Custom Business Structures from XPM.

Why This Helps

• Less repetitive clicking — common labels like "ABC Pty Ltd" or "Smith Family Trust" classify themselves.
• Nothing is hidden — every auto-match is flagged for review, so you can confirm or override it.
• Safe by design — SG only auto-matches when the keywords point to a single clear answer. Anything ambiguous is left for you.

What Gets Matched First

SG resolves each XPM structure in order, using the first method that succeeds:

1. Standard structures — the built-in XPM types SG already knows (Individual, Company, Trust, Unit Trust, Partnership, SMSF, and so on) map with no prompt and no review flag.
2. Saved mapping rules — a custom structure you (or a colleague) previously classified is resolved from your organisation's saved rule, with no prompt. See Custom Business Structures from XPM.
3. Keyword matching — described here. Used only when the label isn't a standard structure and has no saved rule.
4. Ask you to choose — if keywords can't resolve it (or point to conflicting answers), the item is held for your selection.

Note — field precedence. Keyword matching reads two fields, in strict order: the XPM Business Structure (the client's type label) first, and the client Name only to fill a gap the structure left open. A recognised or keyword-matched structure always wins — the name can never overturn it (so a company whose structure is Company but is named "ABC Trust Services Pty Ltd" stays a company). The name is used only when: the structure is a generic Trust and needs a subtype, or a custom structure has no recognisable keyword. See Using the client name below.

Entity Keywords

If the business-structure label contains any of these whole words, SG matches the SG entity type shown:

The XPM business-structure field is a type descriptor, so the plain type words in it are reliable signals — a structure labelled "Individual Trustee" matches Individual, and "Family Company" matches Company.

estate and deceased resolve straight to a Deceased Estate trust — even when the word "trust" isn't present — so a label like "Estate of the Late John Smith" is matched without further input.

Trust Subtype Keywords

When the entity resolves to a Trust, SG then looks for a trust subtype:

So "Smith Family Discretionary Trust" resolves to a Discretionary Trust, and "ABC Unit Trust Scheme" resolves to a Unit Trust.

Note: A Family Trust now auto-matches to Discretionary (the standard Australian meaning). If you use "family trust" to mean something else, override it during review.

Using the client name

The Business Structure is always tried first. The client Name is only consulted to fill a gap it leaves — and never to overrule it:

• Trust subtype. When XPM gives the generic Trust (no subtype), SG scans the name for a subtype keyword. So "AA Demo Discretionary Trust Ind Trustee" with structure Trust auto-matches to Discretionary Trust, instead of asking you to pick. A conflicting name (e.g. contains both unit and family) falls back to a manual choice.
• Custom entity type. When a custom structure has no recognisable keyword, SG scans the name for an entity-type keyword. So structure Statutory Authority with a client named "Riverside Holdings Pty Ltd" auto-matches to Company.

Both are flagged Auto-matched and are fully overridable, exactly like a structure match.

What gets remembered differs by kind (see Custom Business Structures):

• A name-derived entity type is saved as a structure → type rule — a custom structure maps to one SG type consistently, so once identified it's remembered for every future client with that structure.
• A name-derived trust subtype is never saved as a rule. A generic Trust covers many subtypes, so the subtype is decided per client from its own name each time (only an explicit choice you make is remembered).

How a Match Behaves

A single clear match — auto-matched, still applies

When the keywords point to exactly one answer, SG applies that type automatically and flags the item "Auto-matched" for review:

• In the Sync Data review, the entity shows an amber Auto-matched badge with a short note such as "Matched to Company from 'ABC Pty Ltd' — it will apply automatically, please review." The type is pre-filled and the item counts as ready, so it's included when you Apply recommended actions.
• In the pull review, the entity is imported automatically with the matched type and listed with the same Auto-matched badge so you can double-check or skip it.

You don't have to do anything for an auto-matched item — but the flag is there so you can catch the rare wrong guess.

Multiple keywords, same answer — resolves

If several keywords all point to the same type, that's not a conflict — SG resolves it. For example, "Family Discretionary Trust" contains both family and discretionary, which both mean Discretionary, so it resolves cleanly.

Conflicting keywords — no suggestion, you choose

If the keywords point to different answers, SG makes no suggestion and asks you to choose:

• "ABC Trust Pty Ltd" contains trust (→ Trust) and pty ltd (→ Company) — two different entity types — so SG asks you to pick the SG entity type.
• "Smith Unit Testamentary Trust" resolves to a Trust, but unit and testamentary disagree on the subtype, so SG asks you to pick the trust type (offering the detected candidates).

No keyword at all — you choose

A label with no recognisable keyword (for example a custom "Statutory Authority" structure) is held for your entity-type selection, exactly as before.

Reviewing and Overriding an Auto-Match

An auto-match is a starting point, not a lock-in. To change it:

• In the Sync Data review, open the item and pick a different entity type or trust type. Your explicit choice replaces the auto-match.
• In the pull review, change the type on the flagged row, or set it to skip if it shouldn't import.

When you make a manual choice for a custom structure, SG can remember it as a saved mapping rule for next time — turning a per-run auto-match into a permanent, review-free mapping.

Note: Keyword matches are not saved as rules on their own. They're re-evaluated every run so a keyword-list change or a corrected label takes effect immediately. Only your explicit manual classifications are remembered.

Tips

• Scan the Auto-matched items first. They apply automatically, so a quick pass over the amber-badged rows is the fastest way to catch a mis-match.
• Fix the source when you can. If a practice's XPM business-structure label is genuinely ambiguous, tidying it in XPM makes future pulls resolve cleanly.
• Conflicts are a feature. When SG declines to guess, it's because the label truly points two ways — your choice there is the safe one.

Related Topics

• Custom Business Structures from XPM — saved mapping rules and manual selection
• Reviewing and Applying XPM Changes — the Sync Data review experience
• How to Pull Data from XPM — the pull workflow
• XPM Reconciliation — comparing SG and XPM
• Xero Practice Manager Sync — how the sync engine works