Import and Update Users in Bulk - Article
Summary
User import is useful for launching an audience, maintaining an approved list, or adding learning participation where the import supports it. It can create new users and update existing accounts, so the file is an administrative instruction—not just a list of names.
Use this article to:
- Prepare a file that matches your platform’s current configuration.
- Understand which account an imported row will affect.
- Protect existing information when adding roles, organizations, or activities.
- Reconcile the result before repeating or expanding the import.
Start with the business change
Decide whether the import is intended to create a population, enrich existing profiles, add organizational membership, or assign training. Combining these changes may be efficient, but it also makes an unexpected result harder to diagnose.
For example, a partner launch might require 300 accounts, partner membership, and one onboarding activity. An existing partner’s monthly update may need only new members and a few profile changes. The second operation should not silently replace established organizational relationships or elevate roles.
Importing accounts is not the same as importing historic learning results. Completion, attendance, and certification evidence need their own supported processes.
Obtain the current template
Open Users → Import and download the example file offered by the platform. Read the instructions on that page before preparing the upload.
The template reflects enabled profile fields, translated column labels, required/optional settings, permitted roles, and additional import capabilities. A file retained from an earlier configuration—or another platform—is not a dependable starting point.
The Username field also depends on the Profile configuration: disabling it removes the column from the import template. Keep it enabled when the platform permits non-unique email addresses, because Username provides the unique account identity.
Keep the supplied headings and column structure. Remove example people before importing real records, and preserve identifiers such as employee codes or usernames as text where spreadsheet formatting could remove leading zeros.
Establish how users are matched
| Identity configuration | What to understand | Practical safeguard |
|---|---|---|
| Email is unique | Matching email information can identify an existing account for update. Username uniqueness still matters where that field is used. | Compare the proposed population with existing users and resolve reused or changed addresses before import. |
| Non-unique emails are permitted | Username becomes the unique user identifier. Different usernames can represent different accounts sharing an email address. | Keep Username enabled and use the approved identity convention consistently. |
| Existing connected identities | The integration may use its own matching and mapping arrangement. | Agree identifiers and ownership with the integration owner before importing a parallel population. |
Do not assume duplicate rows are harmless. Depending on identifiers and configuration, a repeated row may update an account, be skipped, or represent a different account. Clean the file before upload and review result messages afterward.
Understand existing-user updates
The import page describes how existing users will be handled. In the standard merge-oriented behavior, existing activity relationships are preserved, new activities can be added, and new organization membership is added rather than automatically replacing all existing membership.
Some platforms have a specifically configured replacement behavior for profile data and organizations. This is not a general invitation to assume that every import replaces everything. Roles, blank fields, and individual field types can have additional rules.
Before a production update, test representative existing records and compare the intended fields and relationships. Do not interpret an empty cell as a universal “clear this value” command, and do not assume that omitting a person from the file blocks or deletes their account.
Prepare the important fields
| Field or group | Preparation guidance | Dependency or consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Identity and required fields | Use the current template and approved identifiers. Populate every required value. | Invalid or conflicting identifiers can update the wrong intended population or prevent a row from being processed. |
| Roles | Use only roles permitted for your import and your administrative responsibility. | A lower-level administrator cannot use import to create a role beyond their permitted creation scope. |
| Organizations and suborganizations | Use the intended existing structure and exact supported values. | Automatic creation of missing organizations is configurable. A spelling variation can create an unintended structure when that capability is enabled. |
| Immediate manager | Use the expected manager email values; multiple values can be comma-separated where supported. | This establishes a staff relationship, not simply a descriptive manager name. Confirm the intended accounts and enabled feature. |
| Dates | Follow the platform’s short-date format for fields such as Birthday and Hire date. | A spreadsheet’s display format is not proof that the imported value will be interpreted as intended. |
| Time zone | Use the valid values linked from the import instructions. | An invalid or empty value uses the platform default for a new user; for an existing user, the previously set time zone is retained. |
| Interests | Use existing Category tags, separated as specified by the template. | Tags that do not exist are ignored; this is not a general tag-creation mechanism. |
| Activity, where available | Supply the intended activity values in the supported format. | An empty activity cell does not assign training. Existing learning relationships are not a substitute for checking the new enrollment result. |
| Status or Skills, where available | Use only the supported columns and values shown for your platform. | These capabilities depend on configuration; do not add a guessed column to force them. |
Organization-specific tags may also depend on the user’s organizational relationship. Resolve that relationship before concluding that a tag value was lost or ignored.
Decide how new users will receive access
Review Let users create password and the related options offered by your platform. Where selected, the intended registration communication lets new local-account users establish their password.
Keep the notification choices separate. Let users create password controls registration communication for new local accounts. Notify about profile update concerns existing users; Notify about enrollment concerns learning participation. Where offered, Schedule when new users are notified sets the timing of their account and activity communication, while Send me confirmation of enrollment provides confirmation to the administrator. Choose these options for the intended audience before importing.
Importing without registration communication requires an approved first-access plan. Do not use a shared batch password as a production onboarding shortcut or circulate credentials in the same spreadsheet as personal information.
For SSO-managed users, coordinate the import with the intended connected-login route. Account creation and communication should not send contradictory instructions.
Run a controlled import
- Prepare the current template for the approved population.
- Review identifiers, required fields, organizational relationships, roles, and communication options.
- Process a small representative batch containing both new and existing users where relevant.
- Read the result and inspect the affected accounts and any activity signups.
- Correct the file or process where needed, then process the remaining controlled batches.
- Reconcile successes and exceptions against the source list.
A pilot import is a real change, not a dry run. Use approved test accounts or an authorized small production batch. If processing appears incomplete, establish the result before uploading the entire file again.
Manager imports
Where enabled, a Manager can import users through their organization context. Permitted roles and creation capabilities are restricted by the platform’s settings and the Manager’s scope.
The same care is required for profile-update behavior, suborganization assignment, and activity selection. An organization-scoped import is not permission to reorganize unrelated customers or grant broader administrative roles.
Verify the outcome
| Scenario or check | Expected result or evidence |
|---|---|
| A new user | Correct identity, role, required data, membership, and first-access arrangement. |
| An existing user | Only the intended changes, with existing relationships and values preserved or replaced according to the approved configuration. |
| An activity assignment | The correct delivery contains the intended signup and state. |
| A completed batch | Every source row is accounted for as successful, rejected, or requiring follow-up. |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | What to check |
|---|---|
| A column is missing | Download a fresh template and check whether the related profile field or optional import capability is enabled. |
| Existing information changed unexpectedly | Compare the import page’s update explanation, the file values, and the platform’s configured merge/replacement behavior. |
| Unexpected organizations were created | Check exact names and whether automatic creation of missing organizations is enabled. |
| Users were created but not enrolled | Check whether Activity is supported, populated correctly, and refers to the intended delivery; inspect the activity’s participant records. |
| A role cannot be imported | Check both the configured import roles and the importing administrator’s permitted role-creation scope. |
| Only some records succeeded | Reconcile the result messages by identifier and correct the failed subset instead of blindly repeating the whole file. |
FAQ
-
Will an empty import cell clear the user's existing value?
Do not assume so. Update behavior depends on the platform configuration and field. Read the import page's explanation and test representative existing records before using an import to clear or replace information.
-
What happens if I leave someone out of the next import file?
Do not treat omission as a command to block or delete the account. A user import processes the supplied records; departure handling should use the approved account or integration process.
-
Can a user import update existing accounts as well as create new ones?
Yes, when the imported identifiers match the supported update behavior. Use the current template, preserve stable identifiers, test a small representative batch, and verify the affected fields and relationships afterward. Incorrect matching can create duplicate accounts or update the wrong identity.