Understanding how Users, Departments, and SubAccounts interact is key to maintaining security and operational efficiency, especially if you're a multi-departmental enterprise or a wholesaler on-charging for services.
What is a "User"?
In the TNZ ecosystem, a User refers specifically to a team member who has credentials to log into the TNZ Dashboard or TNZ API or send messages.
✅ User ≠ Contact
A User is not the recipient of your messages. Users are the staff members, developers, or administrators within your organisation who manage your SMS, Email, and Voice messaging and campaigns.
You can send to unlimited contacts/recipients (provided your account credit limit allows!)
Users can be assigned different permission levels, ensuring that only authorised personnel can change account settings or view sensitive billing data.
Organising with SubAccounts and Departments
For organisations that require internal separation (such as different branches, cost centers, or clients) TNZ offers SubAccounts and Departments.
These structures allow you to categorise activity and manage "Cost Centres" effectively.
| Cost Centre |
Description |
| Main Account |
The primary entity responsible for the overall contract and master billing. This entity receives the invoice. |
| SubAccount |
A secondary account level used for major divisions or external clients (common in Wholesaler/Reseller models). |
| Department |
A granular level within a SubAccount used to track specific team usage. For example, a university with one SubAccount might create Departments for Admissions and Student Services. |
Data Segregation and Ownership
TNZ supports multi-tenancy through the "Ownership" field. This is critical for data privacy and security. You can restrict access to specific assets so they are only visible to certain SubAccounts or Users.
- Contacts: Restrict Address Book contacts to specific SubAccounts to prevent access between departments.
- Templates: Ensure that one department’s messaging templates are not edited or used by another.
- Apps & Tools: Limit API keys and integrations to specific SubAccount environments.
This ensures that while your Main Account has oversight, each SubAccount operates in a secure, isolated "silo."
Permissions and Security
Each user can be assigned a permission level that controls what they can see and change:
| Permission Level |
What this user can do |
| Administrator |
Full access - change account settings, view billing and invoices, and create or remove other users. |
| Standard User |
Send and receive messages, and view their own message history. Cannot change account settings or view billing. |
| SubAccount/Department User |
Restrict the user to specific SubAccounts or Departments. For example, limit Auckland staff to see Auckland's contacts and message history. |
| Custom Permissions |
Bespoke permissions, for example, display 'Invoicing' or 'SMS Messaging' only, or limit to read-only access. |
Billing and Activity Monitoring
The TNZ Dashboard provides tools to track spend and volume across your entire structure:
- For General Users: Activity and message history can be viewed under the View Messages tab. This provides real-time delivery status, replies and click-through rates on links. Users can optionally be restricted to view only their SubAccount or Department's activity.
- For Administrators: Detailed billing data and SubAccount usage reports are located under Account -> Messaging Invoices. Here, admins can break down costs by SubAccount for internal charging or client invoicing, and download usage reports.
Example Account Structures
How you set up your account depends on your business model. Here are three common configurations:
1. Single Business, Multiple Staff
Example: A medical clinic where the practice manager and 3 reception staff all log in to send appointment reminders and see replies. Everyone can see everyone else's activity, contacts and history.
Billing: One invoice arrives at the end of each month.
2. The Enterprise Model (Internal Departments)
Example: A corporation separates activity by internal functions:
Human Resources (SubAccount) with a Recruitment Team (Department) and Internal Staff Comms (Department).
Operations (SubAccount) with Logistics & Shipping (Department) and Staff Rostering (Department).
Billing: One invoice arrives at the end of each month. The finance team separate activity by SubAccount (but not Department) and on-charge.
3. The Agency/Wholesaler Model (Multi-Tenancy)
Example: A marketing agency manages communications for multiple external clients:
- SubAccount 1: Customer "ABC Ltd"
- SubAccount 2: Customer "XYZ Ltd"
Billing: One invoice arrives at the end of each month. The Agency can rebill manually from the invoice, or the agency can use TNZ supplied billing data (CDRs and/or SubAccount Usage reports) to easily rebill each client.
How to Decide What You Need
- Just one account, no SubAccounts: One business with multiple staff sharing contacts, templates, and a single invoice.
- Add SubAccounts: If you operate multiple locations needing separate data, manage messaging for external clients, or need to track and bill different divisions separately.
- Add Departments: If you have SubAccounts but want to segregate access (typical for large organisations where data must be siloed).
Need help structuring your account? Our support team can assist in configuring your SubAccounts to match your organisational chart. Contact TNZ Support today.