At this years OHUG conference we had the opportunity to hear from some organizations who have been through the Fusion HCM implementation process. These may still be few and far between, but their experiences are really useful for those of us currently involved in implementations.
This blog entry summarises a number of those experiences.
The HR2HR process for maintaining data synchronization between the 'system of record' and the Fusion Apps co-existence environment is now being replaced by File Based Loaders (FBL). FBL is a much more flexible solution which allows data to be mapped from any system, not just EBS or PeopleSoft. FBL deals with a wider range of fields than HR2HR did, but still has some shortcomnings - extensible flexfields, for example, are not catered for.
Some people have implemented compensation management. This seems to be a very robust product, but there are some methods you need to follow to get the best results. For example, compensation allocation worksheets can contain calculated fields - make sure that any dynamic calls are done in the right sequence to ensure the calculations are correct. Monetary fields must be defined as 'monetary' otherwise exchange conversions will not work. If values are global, write a global fast formula because default values can only be managed by one fast formula.
Many organizations who had implemented emphasized the need to be realistic on timescales. They recommended limiting the scope and implementing in phases - walking before you run. Also, don't be afraid of pulling the plug on functionality that doesn't work well. In the long term this will save time.
The question of 'Read Only' roles came up frequently. This is a common requirement, but there is no out of the box role whichdelivers this functionality. Much debate has been had as to whether you can or can't do this and different ways to 'work round' the issue. We know you can create read-only roles, but it's complicated.
Things to watch out for:
Seeded roles have lots of functions you probably won't want. If you create custom roles these will need to be monitored carefully when patches and upgrades are applied. Oracle may well change the underlying roles and privileges you based your custom roles on.
Transfers between legal entities in the same country can be problematic.
Be cautious about the number of RDS you have. The more you have, the bigger the maintenance overhead.
Pending worker functionality was introduced to fill the gap when there was no Fusion recruitment solution. In the future this will be filled by Taleo integration. But in the meantime, there are gaps in the pending worker functionality - e.g. salary is not carried forward into the hire.
OTBI is great when using a single folder, but there are problems if you try to create reports from multiple folders. Remember, BIP is available and is a good solution for more complex reports.
Workflow notifications can be controlled via FSM and BPM, but the content is fairly locked down - you can't change the wording. Also, many people reported workflow notifications as being 'buggy'. Recommendation is to test notifications early in the cycle.
FBL was seen as a useful loading tool. But, the business rules (validation) doesn't always work the same as the application.
Some key issues which were identified at upgrade time:
Watch out for approval rules changing!
Pages change, so make sure you check your personalizations work. Take screen shots of personalised pages before an upgrade so you have a reference back to the original.
Keep a note of patches applied. Sometimes these patches are not available after upgrades.
Wednesday 19 June 2013
Taleo Product Roadmap
I recently attended the OHUG conference in Dallas, TX. The following notes came from a presentation on the roadmap for Oracle Taleo products.
The recruiting process benefits enormously from social media. "Social sourcing" is a new phrase which we'll be hearing lots of in the future. The acquisition of Select Minds adds to the arsenal of the Taleo social products.
Some facts:
1 in 7 of all humans are on Facebook. 1 in every 7 minutes online is spent on Facebook. Every one of these users is a potential candidate for a job.
Employees are great sources of referrals. Consider 100 employees each with 100 contacts and 2 degrees of separation.... that's a lot of connections.
15% of all US hires are made through Taleo systems.
In future releases of Taleo Recruitment, we will start to see the same social networking capabilities as we see in Fusion Apps.
We will also see more mobile capability. Watch out for demonstrations of the new mobile capability at Oracle OpenWorld in September.
Taleo Recruitment will soon be integrated with Fusion Apps. We will most likely see a convergence of UX and reporting will move to being based on OBI and BI Publisher (BIP).
The recruiting process benefits enormously from social media. "Social sourcing" is a new phrase which we'll be hearing lots of in the future. The acquisition of Select Minds adds to the arsenal of the Taleo social products.
Some facts:
1 in 7 of all humans are on Facebook. 1 in every 7 minutes online is spent on Facebook. Every one of these users is a potential candidate for a job.
Employees are great sources of referrals. Consider 100 employees each with 100 contacts and 2 degrees of separation.... that's a lot of connections.
15% of all US hires are made through Taleo systems.
In future releases of Taleo Recruitment, we will start to see the same social networking capabilities as we see in Fusion Apps.
We will also see more mobile capability. Watch out for demonstrations of the new mobile capability at Oracle OpenWorld in September.
Taleo Recruitment will soon be integrated with Fusion Apps. We will most likely see a convergence of UX and reporting will move to being based on OBI and BI Publisher (BIP).
Friday 7 June 2013
Integrating Taleo Business Edition with Fusion Tap
Regular readers will know I'm a great enthusiast of Fusion Tap. Recently, I've been working on a number of Taleo projects and so I was really impressed when I found out that Taleo now integrates with Fusion Tap!
It's really simple. First, download Fusion Tap. You can get it free from iTunes, just follow this link:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/oracle-fusion-tap/id529345370
Then, get a Taleo Business Edition. OK, you'll have to pay Oracle for that.
On your iPad, go to settings for Fusion Tap and enter the URL of the integrator. You can find the instructions from within your TBE system. It will even email you the details.
Then when you log into Fusion Tap, it will ask for the login of you TBE account. Enter the details and you're off....
Here's a list of candidates for a requisition on the TBE system:
... and here's the same data automaticaly synchronized on Fusion Tap:
Changes made in TBE automatically update on Fusion Tap and vice-versa.
Clearly this is a great example of how the mobile apps are developing. Well done Oracle! What's going to be really interesting is to see what happens when Taleo Recruit is integrated fully into Fusion Apps. First integration should be in version 7, so not far off now.
It's really simple. First, download Fusion Tap. You can get it free from iTunes, just follow this link:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/oracle-fusion-tap/id529345370
Then, get a Taleo Business Edition. OK, you'll have to pay Oracle for that.
On your iPad, go to settings for Fusion Tap and enter the URL of the integrator. You can find the instructions from within your TBE system. It will even email you the details.
Then when you log into Fusion Tap, it will ask for the login of you TBE account. Enter the details and you're off....
Here's a list of candidates for a requisition on the TBE system:
 |
| Taleo Recruit Candidates for Junior Consultant A Job |
... and here's the same data automaticaly synchronized on Fusion Tap:
 | |||
| Fusion Tap |
Changes made in TBE automatically update on Fusion Tap and vice-versa.
Clearly this is a great example of how the mobile apps are developing. Well done Oracle! What's going to be really interesting is to see what happens when Taleo Recruit is integrated fully into Fusion Apps. First integration should be in version 7, so not far off now.
Thursday 6 June 2013
Fusion HCM Enterprise Structure Configurator
One of features of Fusion HCM is the wide vaiety of 'wizard' processes which help guide you through transactions. Some of these wizards are available during the functional setup process, one of the key processes being the Enterprise Structure Configurator (ESC).
ESC guides you through the process of defining your enterprise, legal entities, business units and reference data sets and allows you to prototype different designs. It does this by storing the data in a different schema to the mainline database.
At the end of the process a report is generated - the inappropriately named "Technical Summary Report". We use this report to validate the design with the customer. Once agreed, there is a final 'load' process in which ESC loads the prototype design into the mainline database tables.
The process really streamlines the setup and saves a lot of manual, repetitve work.
But, (there's always a 'but') having worked on implementations, we've learned that there are a few 'gotchas' in this process.
First, if the load process fails (for whatever reason), there is no rollback. This means that you now have incomplete setup and that you may have to complete the load manually.
Secondly, if you can restart the load process, it will most likely continue to fail. So, you are back to square one.
The solution is to get it right first time! If your ESC prototype setup is 100% correct, the load will work. This information is brought to you courtesy of my colleague Richard who really has been using ESC 'in anger' - and he's been very angry sometimes!
This article is based on Version 5 and we do understand that Oracle are developing some enhancements (fixes to you an me) in this area. Please hurry up, Richard can't take much more!
ESC guides you through the process of defining your enterprise, legal entities, business units and reference data sets and allows you to prototype different designs. It does this by storing the data in a different schema to the mainline database.
At the end of the process a report is generated - the inappropriately named "Technical Summary Report". We use this report to validate the design with the customer. Once agreed, there is a final 'load' process in which ESC loads the prototype design into the mainline database tables.
The process really streamlines the setup and saves a lot of manual, repetitve work.
But, (there's always a 'but') having worked on implementations, we've learned that there are a few 'gotchas' in this process.
First, if the load process fails (for whatever reason), there is no rollback. This means that you now have incomplete setup and that you may have to complete the load manually.
Secondly, if you can restart the load process, it will most likely continue to fail. So, you are back to square one.
The solution is to get it right first time! If your ESC prototype setup is 100% correct, the load will work. This information is brought to you courtesy of my colleague Richard who really has been using ESC 'in anger' - and he's been very angry sometimes!
This article is based on Version 5 and we do understand that Oracle are developing some enhancements (fixes to you an me) in this area. Please hurry up, Richard can't take much more!
Conference Season
As many of my readers will know, I am somewhat of a conference junkie! Based in the UK, I try to go to 2 or 3 US conferences, and 2 or 3 European conferences each year.
The conferences are a great source for networking but also for information gathering. I try to speak at the conferences I go to, and this year I'm very pleased to have been chosen to speak at Collaborate in Denver (already done), UKOUG in London and DOAG in Berlin. Next week I'll be at OHUG in Dallas and I'm also hoping to be able to present at OpenWorld, although the competition for presentation slots is always fierce.
Because I work on Fusion HCM projects, and because Fusion Applications is still the 'new kid on the block', I think it's really important to share knowledge with other prople on the same journey. Hence, my presentations are about real life experiences of implementing Fusion HCM (good and bad). I also look for similar presentations from other people who have also done implementations and have experience to share.
What disappoints me though, is the large number of presentations at these events about 'internal' projects. Implementing Fusion HCM for youself is NOT the same as doing it for a customer! Let's have more 'real' stories and less 'vapourware'.
Rant over!
The conferences are a great source for networking but also for information gathering. I try to speak at the conferences I go to, and this year I'm very pleased to have been chosen to speak at Collaborate in Denver (already done), UKOUG in London and DOAG in Berlin. Next week I'll be at OHUG in Dallas and I'm also hoping to be able to present at OpenWorld, although the competition for presentation slots is always fierce.
Because I work on Fusion HCM projects, and because Fusion Applications is still the 'new kid on the block', I think it's really important to share knowledge with other prople on the same journey. Hence, my presentations are about real life experiences of implementing Fusion HCM (good and bad). I also look for similar presentations from other people who have also done implementations and have experience to share.
What disappoints me though, is the large number of presentations at these events about 'internal' projects. Implementing Fusion HCM for youself is NOT the same as doing it for a customer! Let's have more 'real' stories and less 'vapourware'.
Rant over!
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