Before you can manage tasks, send emails, or track payroll for a client, you need a company record. The company is the foundational object in CX — everything else (plans, contacts, projects, files, portal access) connects back to it. This guide walks you through creating your first one so you can see how the pieces fit together.
Before You Begin
You need the Create Clients permission to create companies. If the New button described below is not visible, ask your administrator to check your permission group.
Have the following information ready for the company you want to add: company name, EIN (optional but recommended), primary contact name and email, and the company's website domain.
Create the Company Record
Click Companies in the left sidebar.
Click the New button in the top-right corner of the Companies page.
Enter the company name in the input field and press Enter.
You should now see: the new company appear in your company list on the left side. CX automatically opens the company record so you can start filling in details.
Tip: New companies default to Prospect status. You can change this to Onboarding or Active once you're ready to begin managing work for them. Only companies with Active, Onboarding, or Terminating status are eligible for client portal access.
Fill In Company Details
With the company record open on the Overview tab, fill in the core fields:
EIN — the Employer Identification Number. This is optional but strongly recommended because it helps prevent duplicate records and is used in plan-level integrations.
Address — the company's primary business address.
Phone — main contact phone number.
Website — the company's domain (e.g., greenfield-mfg.com). CX uses this to automatically match inbound emails to the company record, so getting this right matters.
Tags — add tags to categorize the company (e.g., by plan type, region, or service tier). Tags make filtering and reporting easier as your book of business grows.
If your team has configured custom data fields (like "First Withholding Date" or "Plan Effective Date"), you'll see these in the Data tab. Your administrator defines which custom fields are available — fill in any that apply to this client.
Add Your First Contact
Click the People tab at the bottom of the company record.
Under Internal, add yourself (or the team member who will own this client relationship). Assignees are internal staff responsible for the account.
Under Contacts, click Add+ and enter the primary contact at the client company — typically the HR director or plan sponsor. Include their name, email, and role.
You should now see: at least one assignee and one company contact listed under the People tab.
Tip: You can also add External Contacts here — financial advisors, CPAs, or other third parties involved in the plan. Keeping all stakeholders on the company record ensures your team knows exactly who is involved.
Set the Company Status
Now that your company has basic details and a contact, update the status to reflect where the client is in their lifecycle:
On the Overview tab, locate the Status field near the top of the record.
Click the status and select the appropriate value:
Prospect — not yet a client (default)
Onboarding — actively being set up (portal-eligible)
Active — a live, managed client (portal-eligible)
For your first company, Onboarding is usually the right choice if you plan to start managing work for them immediately.
Verify Your Work
Before moving on, confirm these items are in place:
The company appears in your Companies list with the correct name
EIN and website domain are filled in
At least one internal assignee and one client contact are added under People
The status reflects the client's current stage
You should now see: a complete company record ready to support plans, projects, files, and communication. The company will appear in your dashboard's Pulse view once email interaction data begins accumulating.
What Success Looks Like
You've created a company record that serves as the anchor point for a client relationship in CX. From here, your team can add retirement plans, launch onboarding projects, connect payroll, upload files, and eventually invite the client to the portal — all linked back to this single company record.
What to Do Next
Add a retirement plan — open the company record and use the Plans card to create the client's first plan with its provisions and plan year details.
Launch an onboarding project — go to To Do and create a project linked to this company to track setup tasks.
Set up the client file directory — navigate to the Files tab and create a folder structure (or apply a template) for organizing this client's documents.
Related Articles
Understanding Companies and Plans — learn how companies and plans relate to each other in CX
Managing Your Book of Business — bulk operations, filtering, and exporting across your company list
Working with Projects and Tasks — create and manage work for your companies
Inviting Clients to the Portal — set up portal access once the company is ready for external collaboration