---
sourceDocument: Brazil Governance, Risk, and Compliance
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/governance-risk-compliance

 Release :

    - brazil

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Brazil Governance, Risk, and Compliance

ft:clusterId :

    - grc

bundleId :

    - grc

workflow :

    - Technology


---

# Create a hierarchy relationship

# Add relationships to a hierarchy for a processing activity {#ariaid-title1}

Release version: Brazil  
Updated September 10, 2026  
![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 2 minutes to read  
Define new relationships in a hierarchy directly on a processing activity to record how it connects to vendors, applications, systems, and other processing activities across regions. This enables you to track cross-border
data transfers and generate a lineage map to visualize data consumption, sharing, and the associated risks for a processing activity.

## Before you begin

The processing activity must be in Discover state or later. If the processing activity is in New state, move it to Discover before proceeding.

Role required: Privacy analyst, Privacy manager

## About this task

Each processing activity involves multiple information objects classified as personal information. These objects exchange data with various other entities, making it essential to establish a hierarchy that describes how those
entities interact and track where personal data is shared. Privacy Management then uses the relationships in a hierarchy to generate a data lineage map that visualizes how data moves across the processing activity. This helps mitigate privacy-related risks.

Adding hierarchy relationships is a two-step flow. In the first step you define the relationship, and in the second step you provide the relationship details.

A business user can also define such relationships as part of a privacy assessment. For details, see [Respond to privacy impact assessment](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/t8q7gkeT1SK_18Xf_08BWA "Respond to an impact assessment from the Assessment Workspace to help privacy teams understand the potential privacy risks and their mitigation measures.").

## Procedure

1. Navigate to WorkspacesPrivacy Workspace.
2. Select the List icon ![]().
3. In the Lists tab, select Processing activitiesAll processing activities.
4. Open a processing activity that is in the Discover state.
5. Create new relationships in one the following ways.

   | Choice | Path |
   | From Hierarchy tab | 1. Navigate to Processing data inventoryHierarchy. 2. Select Add. {#create-a-data-lineage-for-a-processing-activity__ol_sbq_vzp_hkc} |
   | From Data lineage map | 1. Select View lineage map. 2. Select the Primary record card. 3. In the record panel, select Add relationship. {#create-a-data-lineage-for-a-processing-activity__ol_o3f_nzp_hkc} |
   |-|-|

   {#create-a-data-lineage-for-a-processing-activity__choicetable_y5d_d1q_hkc}  
   The New relationship dialog box opens to the Define relationships step.
6. In the Define relationships form, fill in the fields.  
   For detailed description of the fields, see [Define relationships form](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/tEP9G67al5Vbbsi63s1ApQ#new-relationship-forms__define-relationships-form).
7. Select Next.
8. For each Related node in the Relationship details form, fill in the fields.  
   For detailed description of the fields, see [Relationship details form](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/tEP9G67al5Vbbsi63s1ApQ#new-relationship-forms__relationship-details-form).
9. **Optional:** To automatically apply the same relationship details to every related node, select Copy details to all.
10. Select Add.

## Result

The new relationship appears in the Hierarchy tab.

To view a graphical representation of the relationships, select View lineage map. If a related node is a processing activity with existing relationships, those connections also appear in the map.

When the hierarchy relationship involves sending or receiving personal data from one node to another, data transfer records are automatically generated to capture each movement. For more information, see [Manage data transfers](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/Vjw1ckLxa8mguiuiUXJWNw "Organizations often transfer personal data between applications, vendors, business units, and regions, which are subject to privacy regulations. Privacy Management captures each movement as a data transfer record on the processing activity to help you comply with privacy regulations.").

## What to do next

Manage relationships from the Processing data inventoryHierarchy tab of the processing activity.

* To edit a relationship, select the record, and select Edit.
* To delete a relationship, select the record, and select Remove.
{#create-a-data-lineage-for-a-processing-activity__ul_yry_w2p_hkc}
* **[Hierarchy relationship forms in Privacy Management](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/tEP9G67al5Vbbsi63s1ApQ)**   
  When you create a new hierarchy relationship in Privacy Management, you first define how a node is related to another, and then provide details for each related node.

*[\>]: and then