---
title: Choosing a BDESE’s structure and designating contributors
description: Choose the default model or declare the company agreement, customise themes and indicators, designate contributors, open fiscal years and purge those whose retention period has ended.
url: "http://illizeo.com/en/centre-aide/bdese-content-structure/"
updated: "2026-11-11"
category: BDESE
---

# Choosing a BDESE’s structure and designating contributors

A BDESE’s structure sets its content: the themes, sections and indicators the employer makes available to the works council (CSE). It follows either the default model of the French Labour Code or a company agreement that customises it (art. L2312-21). This article explains the **Structure** tab: choosing the model or the agreement, customising the tree under an agreement, designating contributors, opening fiscal years and purging a fiscal year whose retention period has ended. It is aimed at HR and administrators; CSE members and contributors see the structure read-only.

## Before you start

- The BDESE module is installed and at least one database is declared in the [BDESE databases](https://illizeo.com/en/centre-aide/bdese-databases/) tab. Without a database, the tab shows “No BDESE is open to you: declare a database first.”
- To read the structure, any one of the BDESE read rights is enough.
- To choose the model, customise the tree, open or purge a fiscal year and designate contributors, you need the **BDESE structure** right at **Execute** level. The **Contributors** card is shown from this right’s **Access** level.
- Scope: you see only the databases of the entities your role covers.
- A BDESE law pack must have been published by Illizeo. Without one, the card states “No BDESE law pack has been published yet: the structure cannot be chosen yet.”

## Choosing the database

Open **BDESE › Structure**. If several databases are open to you, a drop-down list at the top of the tab lets you choose the one you are configuring. Otherwise, the tab opens your only database directly.

## Choosing the default model

The **Model and agreement** card shows as its subtitle the law pack version used by the database, for example “Law pack 0.1.0”.

1. In the **Default model** group, choose **Entreprises de moins de 300 salariés** (companies with fewer than 300 employees, art. R2312-8) or **Entreprises d’au moins 300 salariés** (companies with at least 300 employees, art. R2312-9). The model names come from the French law pack: like the themes, sections and indicators, this legal content is shown in French.
2. The **Suggested by headcount** badge marks the model that matches the database’s headcount. It commits you to nothing: the choice remains your responsibility.
3. Click **Save**. The message “Structure saved.” confirms.

![Model and agreement card with the subtitle Law pack 0.1.0: the two default model radio buttons, Entreprises de moins de 300 salariés (R2312-8), selected and marked with the Suggested by headcount badge, and Entreprises d’au moins 300 salariés (R2312-9), the unticked Content defined by a company agreement (art. L2312-21) checkbox and the Save button.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/bdese-structure-01.en_-scaled.png?resize=800%2C181&quality=80&ssl=1)
The model suggested by headcount is flagged, never imposed.

As long as nothing has been saved, the pre-selected model is the suggestion. The first save sets the law pack version the database follows.

## Defining the content by a company agreement

If a company agreement organises your BDESE (art. L2312-21), declare it here. This is the condition for customising the tree.

1. First choose the default model that serves as the starting point.
2. Tick **Content defined by a company agreement (art. L2312-21)**.
3. Fill in the **Agreement title** (mandatory) and the **Agreement date**.
4. If the agreement sets a retention period, enter it in **Retention period set by the agreement (years)**: a whole number from 1 to 50. This field is optional; without a value, the period is 15 years, the legal period.
5. Click **Save**.
6. Then click **Attach the agreement** and choose the file (PDF, DOC, DOCX or ODT, 20 MB at most). The message “Agreement attached.” confirms; the file appears as a button bearing its name, which lets you download it.

A new upload replaces the previous agreement. All readers of the database can download the attached agreement. If you switch back to the default model, the agreement’s retention period no longer applies; the title and date are kept.

## Customising themes, sections and indicators

The **Themes, sections and indicators** card shows the database’s tree. Its subtitle reads “Under agreement:” followed by the title, or “Default content of the French Labour Code, without customisation.”

![Themes, sections and indicators card with the subtitle Default content of the French Labour Code, without customisation: the ten themes of the model for companies with fewer than 300 employees, numbered 1° to 10°, in French, each with its legal source (R2312-8); two expanded themes show their section; no customisation actions, as the structure is not defined by an agreement.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/bdese-structure-02.en_-scaled.png?resize=800%2C398&quality=80&ssl=1)
The database’s tree, here on the default model, without customisation.

Each item shows its number, label and legal source (for example “R2312-9, 1°”), or the agreement’s name for an added item. A padlock marks a **Minimum theme (L2312-21)**. A renamed item keeps its original label in italics, in brackets.

The actions appear only if the structure is defined by an agreement and you have Execute level:

- **Move up** and **Move down**: change an item’s position.
- Pencil: rename the item. Enter the new **Label**, then click **Save**.
- Bin: remove the item. A minimum theme cannot be removed.
- **Add a theme** (at the top of the card), **Add a section** or **Add an indicator** (at the bottom of an expanded theme or section).

Changes apply at once: the tree updates. If a change is refused, the message “The change was refused.” gives the reason.

### Adding an indicator

1. Expand the section, then click **Add an indicator**.
2. Enter the **Label**.
3. Choose the **Type**: Number, Amount, Percentage, Text, Table or Attachment. Specify the **Unit** if needed.
4. Choose the **Source of data**: **Entered** or **Imported**. Automatic calculation remains reserved for the law pack’s indicators.
5. Click **Save**.

### Restoring a removed item

Removed items move to the **Removed by the agreement** list, struck through. Click **Restore** to put them back in the tree. An item added by the agreement, on the other hand, is deleted permanently.

### Minimum themes

Under an agreement, the database includes at least the themes listed in article L2312-21, as set out in the law pack: investments, gender equality at work, equity, debt and taxes, remuneration of employees and executives, social and cultural activities, remuneration of financiers, financial flows to the company, and the environment. These themes carry a padlock and cannot be removed.

## Adopting a new law pack version

When Illizeo publishes a new version of the law pack, a banner announces it at the top of the tab: “Law pack … is published”, with the number of indicators added, removed and changed. The new version is never applied without you.

1. Read the banner.
2. Click **Adopt …** (followed by the version number). The banner disappears and the tree moves to the new version.

Your customisation is replayed on the new version. If a customisation no longer finds its item, a notice says so: “N customisation(s) no longer find their item in this pack version”. Nothing is deleted silently.

## Designating contributors

A contributor (CFO, CSR manager…) only sees and completes the sections entrusted to them. The designation grants them the **BDESE contributor** role and notifies them. Designating on a theme covers all its sections.

1. In the **Contributors** card, expand the theme you want. Each theme shows the number of sections assigned and the designated people.
2. Click **Designate** next to the theme or section.
3. In the “Contributors — …” dialog, choose a person from the **Add a person…** list. Repeat to add others.
4. To remove someone, click the cross next to their name.
5. Click **Save**. The message “Contributors saved.” confirms.

![At the top, the Contributors card: the ten themes, two of them expanded with the mention 1 section(s) assigned and a badge with the name of the person designated on their section, a Designate button on each theme and each section; below, the Contributors — Fonds propres, endettement et impôts dialog, with the Add a person… list, one person added with a cross to remove them, and the Cancel and Save buttons.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/bdese-structure-03.en_-scaled.png?resize=800%2C593&quality=80&ssl=1)
A designation on a theme covers all its sections.

The saved list replaces the previous one: emptying it removes everyone from that theme or section. Newly designated people receive a notification and an email, with a link to the database’s [Data](https://illizeo.com/en/centre-aide/bdese-data-entry-and-publication/) tab. When you remove a person’s last designation, they lose the BDESE contributor role.

## Opening a fiscal year

The **Fiscal years** card recalls that a fiscal year presents two previous years, the current year and three outlook years (art. R2312-10). It appears once the structure has been chosen.

1. In the **Year** field, keep the current year or enter another one (4 digits).
2. Click **Open the fiscal year**. The message “Fiscal year opened.” confirms.

![Fiscal years card: the sentence on the retention period, two fiscal years listed, 2026 in Published status with Version 1 published and Kept until followed by a date, 2025 in Open status with a bin; each shows its year columns as previous, current and outlook badges; at the bottom, the Year field and the Open the fiscal year button.](https://i0.wp.com/illizeo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/bdese-structure-04.en_-scaled.png?resize=800%2C231&quality=80&ssl=1)
Each fiscal year shows its years, status and retention.

Each database has only one fiscal year per year. Each fiscal year shows:

- its year columns, for example “2024 · previous”, “2026 · current”, “2027 · outlook”;
- its status: **Open**, **Submitted for validation**, **Published** or **Update in progress**;
- the number of the latest published version, if any;
- its retention end date: “Kept until …” or “Retention ended on …”.

Values are entered, validated and published in the [Data](https://illizeo.com/en/centre-aide/bdese-data-entry-and-publication/) tab.

### Deleting a fiscal year

An unpublished fiscal year is deleted with the bin icon on its row; its values and data entry go with it. A published fiscal year cannot be deleted: it is purged at the end of its retention period.

## Purging a fiscal year whose retention has ended

Each published fiscal year is kept for 15 years from its last publication (legal period, absent an agreement), or for the period set by the agreement. Three months before the deadline, the people who administer the database receive a notification and an email. Purging is never automatic.

1. Once the retention period has ended, click **Purge** followed by the year.
2. Read the warning: the values, every published version and the consultation log of the fiscal year will be permanently deleted.
3. Copy the year into the **Type … to confirm** field.
4. Click **Purge permanently**. The message “Fiscal year … purged.” confirms.

As long as the retention period has not ended, purging is refused.

## What CSE members and contributors see

Readers who do not have the right to manage the structure see the **Model and agreement** card read-only (options greyed out, no **Save** button), the tree without actions and the list of fiscal years. They do not see the Contributors card. They can download the attached agreement.

## Good to know

- The model suggested by headcount is only a suggestion: the choice is yours.
- Only a structure defined by an agreement can be customised; minimum themes cannot be removed.
- A published fiscal year keeps the structure of its first publication: changing the structure afterwards does not rewrite what CSE members received.
- A new law pack version applies only after you click “Adopt”; your customisation is replayed.
- Purging is irreversible and never automatic; you are notified three months before the deadline.
- The legal content (models, themes, articles cited) follows the law pack published by Illizeo; the screen indicates when that pack is awaiting review.

## Frequently asked questions

### I can neither rename nor remove a theme. Why?

Customisation exists only under an agreement. Tick “Content defined by a company agreement (art. L2312-21)”, fill in the title and save. If the bin is missing on a single theme, it is a minimum theme.

### Why has the bin disappeared on a fiscal year?

It has been published. A published fiscal year cannot be deleted; it is purged at the end of its retention period.

### Does my contributor see the whole BDESE?

No. They see only the database and the sections where they are designated, or all the sections of a theme if they are designated on the theme.

### Can I open two fiscal years for the same year?

No: a database has one fiscal year per year. For an update after publication, use the Data tab, which publishes a new version of the same fiscal year.

### *Similaire*