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Tuesday, May 17th, 2011 Absence quotas or leave balances are tracked in SAP Time Management using Infotype 2006. Different quota types are linked to different absence types. For example, Vacation quota is linked to vacation time off and sick quota is linked to sick time off. Absences are recorded in Infotype 2001. Infotype 2006 keeps track of all balances (increases and decreases). This blog will explain how you can generate one simple quota entitlement based on employees seniority and another quota type using time evaluation based on number of hours employee works. 1 Generate quota entitlement using standard SAP program: We will generate Vacation balance for all salaried employees every calendar year (01/01/XXXX to 12/31/XXXX) based on seniority. Here are the business rules: Seniority one to two years gets 40 hours per year:

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Seniority two to four years gets 80 hours per year:

Select quota type 03 as vacation quota for employee ES grouping for time quota 3 and PS grouping for time quota 10 and PS grouping for time recording 01. The first step is to create base entitlement. Use IMG to get to Set Base Entitlement task. Next, set validity and deduction period for absence quota type, in our case we can use Calendar year for valid from and valid to and Deduction from and Deduction to. It sets the dates to 01/01/XXXX to 12/31/XXXX of every year. It uses IT0000 date if employee was hired in the middle of the year. Define generation rule for quota type selection. The highlighted rule below has been created for generating vacation quota.

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The information highlighted in the red box below is the combination of ESG, PSG, etc. to create a unique rule for these kinds of employees.

To use custom seniority date, feature HDATE must be changed to reflect date type from IT0041.

Y8 is seniority date for country US in this SAP test system. This date type is used below where key date for determining seniority is selected.

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In this step we need to setup the method of Quota Accrual. The radio button below indicates if quota generation is done using time evaluation or manual generation using provided SAP program. In our case since we are using No Generation. To use time evaluation we need to select Increase option.

Report RPTQUOTA_CHECK can be run to check quota generation rule.

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Now we are ready to run quota generation program. Use transaction PT_QTA00.

Selection period should be 01/01/XXXX to 12/31/XXXX for each calendar year. Use quota type you want to generate either in batch or direct. In the next blog well discuss how to generate absence quota based on the number of hours an employee works.

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Tuesday, May 3rd, 2011 Our previous leave donation blog entry discussed the high level functionality and configuration requirements. This blog entry will expand on the configuration a bit more and provide limited screen shots. A comprehensive and complete illustration will be presented during our webinar on May 18th. Registration details can be found at the end of this entry. Due to the multitude combination of business rules, this blog will limit the business rules to the following assumptions: A. Donation and Withdrawal are in Hours B. Absence Pools setup is Home Pool balance is refreshed each year by the party responsible. No employee donation to the Home Pool is required. C. Employees must have infotype 2006 (Absence Quota) setup D. Employees must have infotype 0696 (Absence Pools) setup E. Donation is for employee to employee F. Withdrawal is from an Absence Pools Home Pool With the above assumptions, we will focus on the configuration requirements: 1. Absence Pools Home Pool Configuration 2. Time Quota Compensation Methods Configuration (for infotype 0416) 3. Absence Pools (infotype 0696) setup 4. Absence Donation Administration (infotype 0613) setup for Home Pool Withdrawal 5. Absence Donation Administration (infotype 0613) setup for Employee to Employee Donation 6. Reporting and BADI Step by step configuration requirements: 1. Absence Pools Home Pool Configuration

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2. Time Quota Compensation Methods Configuration (for infotype 0416)

3. Absence Pools (infotype 0696) setup Participating employees must have infotype 0696 assigned to the employee. An employee can only belong to one Home Pool. Via PA30, select the Personnel no., specify the Period, Infotype = 696, and Subtype (Sty) = H for Home Pool. Then press the Create icon or PF5 key.

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Determine the naming convention of the Home Pool, and fill out the relevant information. 4. Absence Donation Administration (infotype 0613) setup for Home Pool Withdrawal Via PA30, do the steps highlighted in Yellow. Then press the Create icon or PF5 key.

Upon a successful Save action, Infotype 2013 can be viewed via PA30. 5. Absence Donation Administration (infotype 0613) setup for Employee to Employee Donation Via PA30, enter the values as highlighted in Yellow, then press the Create icon or PF5 key.

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In screen for infotype 0613, fill out the recipient employee number, quota type, and other relevant information. Upon a successful Save, the Donor will have infotype 0416 automatically created, and his quota reduced by the number of hours donated. Infotype 0416 will be processed in Payroll without any monetary compensation. The Recipient will have infotype 2013 created, and his target quota type balance increased by the number of hours donated by the donor after Time Evaluation Run. 6. Reporting and BADI Unfortunately, there is no standard reporting to reflect Absence Pools balance or anything related to hours donated or received. Reporting will have to be customized. There is also BADI (HRPBSUSAD01) for custom enhancement for business rules validation. Leave Donation/Catastrophic Leave is not just limited to public sector. Other industries can implement this functionality to accommodate this business rule. Attend Symphonys Catastrophic Leave Donation webinar to learn more about leave donation and have your questions answered by a Symphony HCM Expert.

Monday, April 18th, 2011 In addition to the functionality facilitated by the different dynamic action commands, it is also possible to perform certain processes or trigger certain actions using ABAP code. Creating a custom subroutine and calling it via a dynamic action using command F will trigger this process. Details on how to call a function can be found at the bottom of this document
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can be found at the bottom of this document. The subroutine must be included in a program type 1 (executable). This routine is called by the sample dynamic action seen below. The values calculated by the subroutine should then be stored in structure RP50D. Lastly, these values can be used by a Dynamic Action.

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To Call A Function (SAP Library http://help.sap.com/saphelp_nw2004s/helpdata/en/9f/db98ef35c111d1829f0000e829fbfe /content.htm ) The recommended and easiest way to call a function module is to use the Insert statement function in the ABAP Editor. If you select Call Function and specify the name of the function module (F4 help is available), the system inserts a CALL FUNCTION statements with all of the options of that function module in the source code.

Optional parts of the function call are inserted as comments. In the above example, STRING and POSare obligatory parameters. LANGU, on the other hand, is optional. It has the default value sy-langu (the system field for the logon language). Handling export parameters is optional. Handling exceptions is also theoretically optional. However, you should always do so. That is why the EXCEPTIONS lines are not commented out. You can trigger exceptions in the function module using either the RAISE or the MESSAGE RAISING statement. If the calling program handles the exception, both statements return control to the program. The MESSAGE.. RAISING statement does not display a message in this case. Instead, it sets the following system fields:

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You can use the system fields to trigger the message from the calling program. To ensure that you use the right data types for the actual parameters, you must refer to the function module interface. If you double-click the name of a function module in the source code of your program, the system navigates to its source code in the Function Builder. You can then display the interface by choosing Goto > Interface. For example, in the above case:

The function module splits an input field into two output fields at a specified position. If the content of position is in the interval [4,6], the function module is executed without any exceptions being raised. For the intervals [1,3] and [7,9], the system triggers the exceptions string1_too_small and string2_too_small respectively. For all other values of position, the exception pos_not_valid is triggered.

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Wednesday, April 6th, 2011 Having problems building the perfect Dynamic Action? Here are some hints to make them easier to create. Keep these simple rules in mind when working with Dynamic Actions: 1. Ensure you have no typing errors. Your spelling must be exact, along with your field names. 2. When using a date constant, use the date format YYYYMMDD (YYYY Year, MM Month, DD Day). 3. Enter all letters in upper caseALWAYS. 4. Make sure to always enter leading zeroes or spaces. 5. When numbering your Dynamic Actions, make sure to skip at least a couple of numbers between each sequential number so as to allow for additional lines to be added later. 6. Remove any spaces between field names or variables within your statement. For example:

7. When creating consecutive OR statements, you must follow each statement by adding /X at the end, EVEN on the very last statement that is not going to be followed by an OR statement. For example:

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8. When creating or editing data via a batch input session, keep in mind Dynamic Actions are bypassed and not processed during these activities. In batch input, you must specify the exact sequence of the screens. To ensure this is the case, you must have already programmed the dynamic action checks before you create the batch input session. Infotypes that usually only appear in the system as a result of a dynamic action should be updated by calling up the transaction separately. 9. Use Excel to track and document Dynamic Action configuration. Always take a snapshot of current configuration BEFORE making changes. Excel is a great tool for building and reviewing detailed Dynamic Actions to ensure there is no typing or syntax errors before transferring your code into to SAP. Need more information? Register for Symphonys free webinar on Dynamic Actions on Wednesday, April 20th at 2PM EST. Find out how to use SAP dynamic actions to enhance HR data entry, improve data consistency and simulate workflow. For more information and registration details, click here. Tags: Chemicals, Configuration, Dynamic Actions, HCM, higher education, how to, k-12, Manufacturing, PA, Pharmaceuticals, Retail, sap, SAP HCM, SAP HCM Blog, sap hcm help, SAP HCM Tips and Tricks, SAP HR, state/local, symphony, Symphony Blog, Symphony Consulting, Symphony Consulting Blog, Symphony Management Consulting, Tips and Tricks, Utilities, Workflow Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments

Monday, March 28th, 2011 Regardless of size, projects may be entered into with the best of intentions; however, best intentions dont necessarily yield successful project outcomes. This can often be the case for SAP projects as well. Once an organization determines that it has the need to improve efficiency, reduce costs and streamline processes, they seek out a software solution that meets their needs. They are then faced with selecting a services partner to assist with the software implementation. At this stage, many organizations make a fundamental error by diminishing the importance of researching and selecting the best partner for the specific job. This is especially true in the SAP HCM space where complexity abounds and the dependence on accuracy and confidentiality is paramount. Over the past few years we have seen a growing number of SAP HCM clients come to Symphony with issues that are now surfacing as they add new functionality or enhance their system. With more users touching the SAP system through Employee Self Service, accuracy and confidentiality is critical. When Symphony assesses these issues we normally find that the problem is the result of fundamental configuration errors
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assesses these issues, we normally find that the problem is the result of fundamental configuration errors and/or the security authorizations area. The problems can be fixed but requires rework and additional cost. Most clients who are able to avoid these types of scenarios do so because they took the time upfront to do their due diligence. They selected the proper partner based not only their immediate project objectives, but also their long-term plan. The following represents some of the key factors that these types of clients take into consideration: Develop a roadmap strategy for implementation based on short and long-term strategy Have executive level sponsorship and participation in executing the plan Have a realistic budgetary expectations based on the plan Having engaged a qualified consulting services firm to assist in developing and validate the plan Understand that there will be unforeseen circumstances that may alter the project schedule and build this into the plan Committing more time and attention to researching the right partner upfront will pay dividends down the road and help you get your project done right the first time! For more SAP HCM Tips & Tricks, visit www.symphonyhcmexperts.com. Get connected to Symphony on a one-to-one level. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Tags: Chemicals, Consumer Products, HCM, HCM roadmap, HCM roadmap strategy, higher education, how to, k-12, Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals, Retail, sap, SAP HCM, sap hcm help, SAP HCM implementation, SAP HCM Services Partner, SAP HCM Tips & Tricks, SAP HCM Tips and Tricks, SAP HR, state/local, Successful HCM Projects, Symphony Blog, Symphony Consulting, Symphony Consulting Blog, Symphony Management Consulting, Tips and Tricks, Utilities Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011 Determining the appropriate strategy to train your user community is a major part of your Change Management plan. Over the course of several blog entries, we will educate you on an approach that you can apply to your next project. We will begin this series with project plan and deployment timeline. There are three phases to base your project plan on: Course Materials Development Phase, Deployment Preparation Phase, and the Learning Program Deployment Phase. The chart below lists each phase and what they entail:

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With these three phases in mind, the following project plan can be used as a guide to accommodate your companys needs. This plan will accommodate a pilot go-live approach.

Its important to work closely with your Change Management team to determine an approach that will provide your team with a firm base to begin on your training strategy. The next entry within the Training your SAP HCM User Community series will discuss the deployment of a learning program when you must train individuals in multiple locations. Have an SAP HCM question? Visit www.symphonyhcmexperts.com to Ask an Expert! Simply fill out the form and submit your question. Our SAP HCM Experts will provide you with an answer via our blog. T
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Tags: change management, Chemicals, Consumer Products, course materials development, deployment preparation, deployment timeline, documentation tools, HCM, higher education, how to, k-12, learning management system, learning program deployment, Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals, pilot go-live approach, project approach, project plan, prototype classes, Retail, sap, SAP HCM, SAP HCM Blog, sap hcm help, SAP HCM training strategy, SAP HCM Users, SAP HR, state/local, Symphony Blog, Symphony Consulting, Symphony Consulting Blog, Symphony Management Consulting, team mobilization, Tips and Tricks, virtual classroom Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments

Monday, February 21st, 2011 Tracking changes in your HCM database where the old value and new value can be seen is helpful for monitoring overall activity and maintaining data integrity. Many organizations will activate audit logging for Personnel Administration (PA) infotypes perhaps for Actions (0000), Basic Pay (0008) or Address (0006). This same type of audit logging can be set up for Organization Management (OM) infotypes. Audit logging for OM can be set up via the IMG by going to SPRO => Personnel Management => Organization Management => Basic Settings => Activate Change Document.

For standard delivered SAP, the table is empty. In the example below, the table has been updated to now create an audit log for any changes on the relationship of infotype 1008 Account Assignment Features to the object type O for Organization Unit.

Maintenance was then performed adding 1008 information where there had been none.

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Once you configure what infotype and subtype you are interested in tracking, you could use the program RHCDOC_DISPLAY to access the audit log. The infotype changes made to infotype 1008 are now displayed in the log.

NOTE: If the activation of creation of change documents for all infotypes was done, system performance would suffer. Therefore, activate the creation of change documents specifically for the combination of plan version, object type, and infotype/subtype that are needed. For more SAP HCM Tips & Tricks, visit www.symphonyhcmexperts.com. If you have a specific SAP HCM question, visit the Ask the Experts tab here: http://www.symphonyhcmexperts.com/?cat=4. Tags: Actions (0000), Address (0006), Audit Log, audit logging, Basic Pay (0008), Chemicals, Consumer Products, HCM, higher education, how to, Infotypes, k-12, Manufacturing, OM, Organization Management, organizational management, Organizational Structure, PA, personnel administration, Pharmaceuticals, sap, SAP HCM, SAP HCM Audit Log, SAP HCM Blog, sap hcm help, SAP HCM Tips and Tricks, SAP HR, SAP OM, SAP Organization Management, state/local, symphony, Symphony Blog, Symphony Consulting, Symphony Consulting Blog, Symphony Management Consulting, Tips and Tricks, Utilities Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments

Wednesday, February 9th, 2011 Features are another way that SAP allows flexibility. Some features in the Benefits module are used quite commonly to set up the system. These features are common because everyone must set them up to determine the screens that will be seen by each country. Different countries have different screen setups delivered by SAP. These are set up with the country grouping or MOLGA setting. The following infotypes each have a feature created for it that determines the screen control for the countries: Infotype 0167 Infotype 0168 Infotype 0169 Infotype 0170 Infotype 0171 Infotype 0172 Infotype 0375 Infotype 0376 Infotype 0377
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Health Plans Insurance Plans Savings Plans Flexible Spending Accounts General Benefits Information FSA Claims HCE Information Medical Benefits Information Miscellaneous Plans

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Infotype 0377 Infotype 0378

Miscellaneous Plans Adjustment Reasons

Below is an example of one of these infotype screen control features:

Each country is defined and set to its country grouping. If you use a different countrys MOLGA you will receive their screen when you access the infotype. This could cause you to receive fields that you wouldnt normally see for your country. Some countries have specific regulations imposed by the government that SAP has provided so using a different countrys MOLGA may cause those fields to not be available. For more Tips & Tricks on SAP HCM, visit www.symphonyhcmexperts.com Tags: Benefits, Features in Benefits, HCM, Infotype 0167, Infotype 0168, Infotype 0170, Infotype 0171, Infotype 0172, Infotype 0375, Infotype 0376, Infotype 0377, Infotype 0378, Molga, sap, SAP Benefits, SAP HCM, SAP HCM Blog, SAP HR, symphony, Symphony Blog, Symphony Consulting, Symphony Consulting Blog, Symphony Management Consulting, Tips and Tricks Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments

Monday, January 24th, 2011 The implementation of ERP software, such as SAP, can be an extensive process that often takes years to complete. Virtually every individual in the organization is involved, whether they are a part of the technical team or the actual end-users of the software. The end results of the implementation are intended to achieve high level goals such as improved productivity and alignment of strategies. Successful software implementations are a direct result of the proven methodology used during the implementation. In software, the term methodology is used to describe a specific series of stages or procedures which govern the activities of analysis and design. While there are several SAP implementation methodologies available, a company should choose one that has been proven and consists of the following standard phases: Preparation for the project Design Document Configuration of the product
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g p Preparation prior to go live Go Live and Support Symphony has developed a proven SAP HCM implementation methodology, Harmony, that includes these five phases and also incorporates change management and knowledge transfer. Harmony is an alignment of Symphonys SAP knowledge, experience and dedication to quality. With this proven roadmap, Symphony is able to guide clients through the challenging implementation of an SAP HCM project. For an overview of Symphonys Harmony methodology click here: http://www.symphony-consulting.com /Methodology.pdf. For questions regarding Symphonys methodology or to pose a question to one of our HCM Experts, click here: http://www.symphonyhcmexperts.com/?cat=4. Tags: BN, Business Objects, change management, Chemicals, Consumer Products, ECM Performance Management, eRec, ERP software, ESS/MSS, Harmony Methodology, HCM, higher education, HR ABAP, k-12, knowledge transfer, LSO, Manufacturing, methodology, OM, PA, Payroll, Personnel Development, Pharmaceuticals, Retail, sap, SAP HCM, SAP HCM Blog, sap hcm help, SAP HCM implementation, SAP HCM methodology, SAP HCM Tips and Tricks, SAP HR, SAP implementation, SAP methodology, SAP Tips and Tricks, Securities, state/local, symphony, Symphony Blog, Symphony Consulting, Symphony Consulting Blog, Symphony Harmony Methodology, Symphony Management Consulting, Time, Tips and Tricks, Utilities, Workflow Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments

Wednesday, January 12th, 2011 Welcome to the third part of our E-Recruiting Series. Since you have completed the basic setup for E-Recruiting, its now time to discuss the E-Recruiting Data Objects that you will be using in the implementation. These are the following E-Recruiting Data Objects: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Candidate (NA) Requisition (NB) Job Posting (NC) Candidacy (NE) Application (ND)

Candidate (Object NA) This object is about any person who registers in the talent warehouse of the organization. This person is interested in applying for an open position for which the candidate can apply. This object is created when the following events occur. The person registers in the talent warehouse The person applies to a job posting The person applies to a job posting by mail These candidates are distinguished between internal and external applicant. When you convert your employees they will have candidate objects created. It may be assumed that your employees maybe your first resource for finding a candidate for your internal position.
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Internal candidates can always apply for an open position within the organization via Employee Self Service. External Candidates can also be created via the Career Website page of the company. This Career website can be created using standard URLs for External Candidates. A person would have to register at the company career website so that a Candidate Object would be created. This object like any other object within SAP HR will have infotypes assigned to them. Here is a sample of what infotypes are being used by this object: Candidate Information Infotype (IT5102) Work Experience Infotype (IT5103) Education Infotype (IT504) Qualifications Infotype ( IT5105) Desired Employment Infotype (IT5106) Desired Location Infotype (IT5107) Availability Infotype (IT5108) Licenses/Certifications Infotype (IT5111) Attachments Infotype (IT5135) Correspondence Infotype (IT5136) Qualifying Event Infotype (IT5137) Invitation Infotype (IT5138) Status Change (IT5139) Questionnaires Infotype (IT5140) Classification Infotype (IT5142) Confirmation Infotype (IT5143) These infotypes cannot be maintained directly in R/3, it must be maintained through the portal via a transaction coming from either an internal or external candidate. All data entered via the portal for this particular object will be stored in some of the infotypes mentioned. When this object is created it will also have relationships to the following objects: Application (ND) A candidate can be linked to multiple applications Candidacy (NE) When a candidate is created a relationship, this object is created in the system. Business Partner (NE) Data such as the candidates name is linked to the Business Partner object. Talent Group (TF) These relationships will be vital across the system, as it will move the recruitment process within the system. This object is just one of the important data objects being used in the system. Later on you will see how this interacts with the objects in our next blog. Lastly, the candidate object forms one of the foundations of E-Recruiting as this system uses this object as its main drivers for the recruitment process which is the candidate. Knowing more about the candidate object and its relationships with the other objects will help you understand how candidate information is stored and used
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