Importing a User Roster Manually

After you’ve prepared your employee data for import, you can import your roster. Manual importing involves uploading then importing your roster file into Emtrain. You can use this method to update user data or add new users to your Emtrain roster at any time, depending on your account type.  

Importing a user roster is a key part of administering an Emtrain-hosted account. If you have an LMS-Connected account, you'll use your LMS to manage your users. You will only use the roster import tool to add demographic data to existing users for Segmentation with Intelligence.

Why Do a Manual Roster Import? 

As an admin, you might regularly import your user roster manually because it’s your main method for maintaining your user data. Alternatively, if you’re set up for automated updates via SFTP or an Emtrain HRIS integration, you might do manual imports occasionally or as a backup method.  

Navigating the CSV Import Screen

Access the CSV Import screen via the Import Roster button in Users. 

This screen provides options to start a new import or review past imports, along with actions buttons and a file upload area:  

Action Buttons

• Upload File—to import the user roster you prepared and uploaded
• Download CSV—to export the entire roster in correct column order
• Download Template—to get the template for your roster import

File Upload Area

Use the file upload area to add your user roster data by either dragging and dropping a CSV file directly into this upload area, or by selecting the Choose file button to locate files on your computer.

Learn about how to Prepare your Roster for Import.

Uploading Your File

Start the roster import process by uploading your file to Emtrain.

1. In Users, select the Import Roster button to reach the CSV Import screen.
2. Select the Choose File button to upload your .CSV file. Select the file from your computer or local network.
3. Select the Upload File button to complete your file upload to Emtrain. The system will immediately prompt you to Configure your import, or map your roster data column headers to Emtrain’s fields.

Mapping Your Roster Data

When you map your roster’s data fields, you tell the system where each piece of information belongs in Emtrain. Correct field mapping ensures that your roster successfully syncs and your employee data is accurate.

Each time you import a roster file, double-check that your column headers match the corresponding Emtrain fields.

If any field is mapped to “Do not import,” you can choose the appropriate field from the dropdown. This will be the case when a new column is added to the roster upload file. Keep “Do not import” for any fields you do not want included in the import. All columns will have “Do not import” if you are uploading data for the very first time.

In some cases, your columns and our fields may become mis-matched. For example, you must re-map your fields if you or another admin on your team previously imported a roster file with fewer (or additional) columns, which changes the column order.

To adjust the mapping for any of your fields, select the matching field for each of your column headers. (For example,  “hiredate” should be mapped to Hire Date from the dropdown menu.)

Ensure that you have mapped at least the minimum columns required for import:

• First Name
• Last Name
• CSV Sync Field: For Emtrain-hosted accounts, this will be either Email address or Employee ID, depending upon which you use to sync your data. For LMS-connected accounts, this will always be SCORM ID.

Configuring Your Settings

Configure these settings before finalizing your import:

1. First row contains column names: Enable this if your spreadsheet has headers in the first row (most do). This tells the system not to import that row as user data. Disable this if your first row contains user profile data.
2. Override edits to Emtrain user table with CSV Data: We recommend leaving this option checked (enabled). When enabled, the import adds new users and updates existing user information with the data in your import file. When disabled, the system only adds new users. It ignores any user that is already in the system.
3. Ignore blank fields: Enable this to maintain existing data when your import file has empty fields. If disabled, existing data will be replaced by empty values (a blank space). We recommend leaving this option checked (enabled) unless you want to use the import to clear out existing user data.
4. CSV Sync Field: Choose one of the following as the unique identifier for your users—Email or Employee ID for Emtrain-hosted accounts, or SCORM ID for LMS-connected accounts. Learn about considerations for selecting your sync field in the CSV Sync Field article.

Finalize the Import

After mapping your fields and configuring your import settings, you’re ready to import your roster. Select the Start the import button to import your roster.

If your import contains more than 1,000 records, the button will read Schedule the import, which schedules it for processing rather than handling it immediately. Learn more about this below.

Not ready to import your file? Select the Cancel the import button. This will take you back to the CSV Import screen so that you can select an alternate file or abort the import process altogether.

As soon as you select Start or Schedule, the Import Status screen appears with information about your current import.

Scheduled Imports

When your import file contains more than 1,000 records, it will be queued for overnight processing. The status shows "scheduled" until processing begins, then updates to "importing." Check the Import Status screen the next day to confirm success and review any errors.

If you need to process the file immediately, cancel the scheduled import, divide your roster file into smaller files with fewer than 1,000 records each, and import them one at a time.

The Import List

Your import details are automatically recorded in the Import List, which shows your ten most recent roster imports.

The Import List displays:

1. Records processed: The number of rows of data imported. Compare this to your original file’s row count—if fewer rows were processed, some may have contained errors.
2. Original filename: The name of your imported file. This helps you identify which file was used, making it easier to reference your records for past imports.
3. Started at: Date and timestamp (Pacific time). “Not started” indicates the import was cancelled by an admin.  
4. Finished at: Date and timestamp (Pacific time). “Not finished” means the import is still processing or never started.  

Each import in the Import List has a Status button that opens the Import Status screen, where you can review detailed information about that import and any errors. Learn more about this screen in Monitoring Import Status.