Department

Represents an organizational unit, division, or subdivision within an organization. Department serves as the foundational entity for organizational structure management across all industries - from corporate divisions (Sales, Marketing, IT) to hospital departments (Emergency, Radiology), government agencies (Parks, Public Works), fleet management divisions (Maintenance, Operations, Dispatch), and any structured organization. The entity supports hierarchical structures enabling nested departments, allowing organizations to model their complete org chart at any granularity. Each department can track its leadership, location, and operational status. Departments serve as organizing units for employees, resources, permissions, and workflows. The entity integrates with Organization for ownership, Person for leadership, and Location for workspace allocation. This universal department model enables comprehensive organizational management across corporate enterprises, healthcare systems, government bodies, logistics companies, and any structured organization.

20 properties

Schema

Properties

Property	Type	Mode	Description	Required
name	string	stored	Official name of the department Example: `"Operations"`	Required
shortName	string	stored	Abbreviated or short name for the department Example: `"Ops"`	Optional
code	string	stored	Unique identifier or code for the department used in systems and reporting Example: `"OPS-001"`	Optional
description	string	stored	Detailed description of the department's purpose and functions	Optional
type	string	stored	Classification or category of the department Example: `"operational"`	Optional
status	string	stored	Current operational status of the department Values: `active, inactive, reorganizing, closed` Example: `"active"`	Required
organization	Organization	stored	Reference to the Organization that this department belongs to	Required
parentDepartment	Department	stored	Reference to the parent department for hierarchical structures (null for top-level departments)	Optional
head	Person	stored	Reference to the Person who leads or manages this department	Optional
headTitle	string	stored	Title of the department head Example: `"Director of Operations"`	Optional
location	Location	stored	Primary location where this department operates	Optional
contacts	ContactPoint[]	stored	Contact points for the department	Optional
tags	string[]	stored	Searchable tags for categorization and filtering	Optional
metadata	json	stored	Additional department-specific data for extensibility	Optional
isTopLevel	boolean	calculated	Whether this is a top-level department (has no parent)	Optional
isActive	boolean	calculated	Whether the department is currently active	Optional
hasHead	boolean	calculated	Whether a department head has been assigned	Optional
departmentPath	string	calculated	Complete hierarchical path (e.g., 'Corporate > Operations > Logistics')	Optional
departmentLevel	number	calculated	Depth level in the hierarchy (0 for top-level)	Optional
subDepartments	Department[]	calculated	All direct child departments under this department	Optional

Examples

Example 1

{
  "@type": "Department",
  "name": "Operations",
  "shortName": "Ops",
  "code": "OPS-001",
  "description": "Oversees all operational activities including logistics, maintenance, and daily business functions",
  "type": "operational",
  "status": "active",
  "organization": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Acme Logistics"
  },
  "head": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "givenName": "Sarah",
    "familyName": "Johnson"
  },
  "headTitle": "VP of Operations",
  "location": {
    "@type": "Location",
    "name": "Operations Center",
    "type": "physical"
  },
  "contacts": [
    {
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "system": "email",
      "value": "operations@acmelogistics.com",
      "use": "work"
    }
  ],
  "tags": [
    "operations",
    "logistics",
    "core"
  ]
}

Example 2

{
  "@type": "Department",
  "name": "Fleet Maintenance",
  "shortName": "Maintenance",
  "code": "OPS-MAINT-001",
  "description": "Responsible for vehicle maintenance, repairs, inspections, and fleet upkeep",
  "type": "operational",
  "status": "active",
  "organization": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Acme Logistics"
  },
  "parentDepartment": {
    "@type": "Department",
    "name": "Operations",
    "code": "OPS-001"
  },
  "head": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "givenName": "Mike",
    "familyName": "Chen"
  },
  "headTitle": "Fleet Maintenance Manager",
  "location": {
    "@type": "Location",
    "name": "Main Garage",
    "type": "physical"
  },
  "contacts": [
    {
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "system": "phone",
      "value": "+1-555-0150",
      "use": "work",
      "label": "Maintenance Desk"
    }
  ],
  "tags": [
    "maintenance",
    "fleet",
    "vehicles"
  ]
}

Example 3

{
  "@type": "Department",
  "name": "Emergency Department",
  "shortName": "ED",
  "code": "MED-ED-001",
  "description": "24/7 emergency medical services providing immediate care for acute illnesses and injuries",
  "type": "clinical",
  "status": "active",
  "organization": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "City General Hospital"
  },
  "head": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "givenName": "Michael",
    "familyName": "Chen",
    "prefix": "Dr."
  },
  "headTitle": "Medical Director",
  "location": {
    "@type": "Location",
    "name": "Emergency Department - Ground Floor",
    "type": "physical"
  },
  "contacts": [
    {
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "system": "phone",
      "value": "+1-555-0911",
      "use": "work",
      "label": "Emergency Line"
    }
  ],
  "tags": [
    "medical",
    "emergency",
    "24-7"
  ]
}

Example 4

{
  "@type": "Department",
  "name": "Parks and Recreation",
  "shortName": "Parks",
  "code": "GOV-PR-100",
  "description": "Manages public parks, recreational facilities, and community programs",
  "type": "public-services",
  "status": "active",
  "organization": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "City of Springfield"
  },
  "head": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "givenName": "Leslie",
    "familyName": "Knope"
  },
  "headTitle": "Director",
  "location": {
    "@type": "Location",
    "name": "City Hall - Parks Office",
    "type": "physical"
  },
  "contacts": [
    {
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "system": "email",
      "value": "parks@springfield.gov",
      "use": "work"
    }
  ],
  "tags": [
    "government",
    "public-services",
    "recreation"
  ]
}

Example 5

{
  "@type": "Department",
  "name": "Customer Experience",
  "shortName": "CX",
  "code": "RET-CX-200",
  "description": "Manages customer service, returns, satisfaction programs, and support across all retail channels",
  "type": "support",
  "status": "active",
  "organization": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "RetailCorp"
  },
  "head": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "givenName": "Amanda",
    "familyName": "Rodriguez"
  },
  "headTitle": "Director of Customer Experience",
  "location": {
    "@type": "Location",
    "name": "Corporate HQ - 5th Floor",
    "type": "physical"
  },
  "contacts": [
    {
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "system": "email",
      "value": "cx@retailcorp.com",
      "use": "work"
    }
  ],
  "tags": [
    "customer-service",
    "retail",
    "support"
  ],
  "metadata": {
    "costCenter": "CC-4500",
    "budgetCategory": "operational-support"
  }
}