Creating and Configuring Compensation Plans and Route Maps

The worksheet represents all the elements which are configured in the plan.

• Planning Sheet tabs: Salary, Stock, Summary

• Configured Budget calculation

• Approval or Route Map steps

• Form instructions

• Currency Views enabled

Every configuration should be checked thoroughly against the worksheet to see if the behavior is as expected.

There are some elements in the worksheet that can be displayed according to the user’s preference.

• Local number format – Planners can change their number format by going to the Options→Compensation Number Format menu.

  
• Show/ Hide columns – Planners can choose to show or hide columns or a group of columns while planning. They can also apply filters. This is a sticky feature which will be applied every time the same worksheet is opened.

Advanced filtering capabilities can be created on worksheets for compensation, variable pay, and total compensation plans. You can have up to 30 criteria per filter spread across one or multiple conditions. The advanced filtering capabilities on the executive review are available on the worksheets.

Advanced Mass Actions

Planners can use enhanced Mass Action in Executive Review to adjust compensation values across filtered employee populations.

When you open the Mass Action dialog, the Program dropdown list includes custom fields as well as standard fields that are editable and permitted with field-based permissions. After selecting a program, you also have options such as Guideline or Pay Range to use depending on the field. You also have the option of Fixed amount or percent that was available in legacy Mass Action. The Preview includes budget amounts before and after the Mass Action.

The Salary sheet is used to allocate salary increases for the planner’s group. The sheets are configurable but typical fields you see on a Salary sheet include:

• Employee information

• Current and final salary information

• Merit guidelines

• Lump sum

Additional employee information can be viewed from the worksheet, if enabled:

• Compensation Profile

• Continuous Performance Management (see note below)

• Promote link (if Employee Central is integrated)

• Compensation Statement (from completed forms)

• Custom Views

Data Export: Executive Review and Hierarchy Based Approval (HBA)

Within the Compensation and Total Compensation Templates > Salary Tab, data can be exported from selected fields. This is available for both Executive Review and Hierarchy Based Approval. The exported file only includes the specific data to be viewed.

• Hierarchy

  • Determines form creation

  • Determines the employees included in the form

• Compensation planner

  • Is the person designated to enter compensation recommendations

  • Can be the direct manager, second level manager, or anyone assigned to do so. The compensation planner depends on how the customer’s hierarchy is set up.

SAP SuccessFactors Compensation supports different hierarchy methods and each one has its own advantages and disadvantages. The method is set up at the plan level. In the compensation home interface, choose a plan, navigate to Plan Setup→Define Planners. The three options are:

• Standard Suite Hierarchy

• Rollup Hierarchy

• Compensation Hierarchy (Second Manager)

• Designates every employee that has at least one direct report as a compensation planner.

• The line manager (direct manager) becomes the planner of the team.

• Hierarchy follows the organizational structure defined by the Manager column in the user data file. If an employee has at least one direct report, the system will create a compensation form for that employee.

• Advantages:

  • Simplest method of planning

  • No additional configuration

  • Dynamic

• Disadvantages:

  • Creates too many forms

  • Since the planner is also the people manager, this hierarchy is susceptible to organizational changes

  • Planning is impacted in case of reorganizations

• Also referred to as Designated Hierarchy or Second Manager Hierarchy

• The compensation planner can be customized using the SECOND_MANAGER column in the user data file. The system creates a separate hierarchy from the organizational structure for compensation planning purposes. This does not affect the hierarchy structure of other solutions.

  • The second manager column in the user data file is designed for compensation where compensation planning hierarchy is different from reporting relationships.
    • In the example below, the planner in green is responsible for a group that they do not directly manage.

Advantages include:

Compensation planners are different from people managers, hence they are not generally impacted by organizational changes

Disadvantages include:

• Requires administrative work to maintain and it is easier to break than the other two methods.
• To identify head of the hierarchy, the second manager column must be blank.
• When creating a route map, be mindful of custom roles (EA, EAA) when assigning steps to planners. Additional configuration is required such as route map roles (EA, EAA, and so on).

• Compensation form created for each associate with direct report ONLY if designated as compensation planner

• Who has direct reports is based on the Manager (or Second Manager) column of the user data file

• Designation can be set in the user data file or on the Define Planners page

• Not every manager or supervisor needs to be a planner

  • In the example below, the manager marked with the X is not a planner.

  • The employee responsibility rolls up to the planner at the next level up.

Advantages

• Can be used in combination with Standard or Compensation Manager Hierarchy

• Can reduce complexity/number of forms in use

Disadvantages

• Remove inactive users, add, move, and user to manager form functions will not work since it is not using any manager from logic

• Rollup reports will not function properly

• Requires defined communication

Rollup hierarchy can be configured in the user data file or on the Define Planners page of the admin interface. To define in the user data file, observe the following steps:

• In the user data file, add a column, COMPENSATION_PLANNER_XXX, where XXX is the Form Template ID (can be verified in Provisioning→Form Template Administration).

• Only those flagged as TRUE in the COMPENSATION_PLANNER_XXX column will have forms created for them.

• The system can intelligently determine all the people who should be on the planners form by using the information you have defined in your MANAGER or SECOND_MANAGER columns.

The type of hierarchy and rollup is also indicated in the XML plan.

When the Rollup option is selected in the admin interface (Define Planners), the system uses the Standard Hierarchy as the point of reference.

Put a check beside the standard manager name to indicate if that manager will be a compensation planner. This is the same as flagging the employee TRUE in the COMPENSATION_PLANNER_XXX column.

As a compensation planner you can review field change history on your compensation, variable pay, and total compensation worksheets.

Once enabled your planners can view and download the Planner Audit change history from the worksheet as well as the Executive Review. Use the Change History icon in the background image and the popup window in the foreground image shows the Change History. Use the Export icon to download the Change History for offline use. Planners are able to download a file with details of field values that have been modified by other planners. The Planner Audit feature can be enabled for up to 25 fields for a template. Some standard fields and all custom fields can be selected to be auditable. See a link to the list of standard fields that aren’t supported for auditing in the Related Information. Also, you can’t enable the feature or add additional fields for Planner Audit if worksheets have been created for a template.

Compensation planners can be given permission to grant/revoke planning privileges if the plan uses Rollup Hierarchy.

Breaks in hierarchy can cause forms not to be created or launched. To check for breaks in hierarchy, you can use the following methods:

• By exporting troubleshooting information

• By using the Check Tool

To export troubleshooting information from the Compensation admin interface, proceed as follows:

1. Go to Compensation Home→Select the template→Plan Setup→Define Planners.

2. Search for the planner.

3. In the Troubleshooting Information area, select Export Users without Manager and then do the same for ineligible users.

Compensation planning normally requires an approval process and a route map is the tool which configures the approval process for SAP SuccessFactors Compensation and other form-based solutions. It determines the workflow a worksheet follows through the system. A route map is defined at the plan level.

When you route a compensation worksheet, you’re electronically passing the worksheet around. The worksheet continues to transfer from employee to employee, until all work on the worksheet is complete.

Route maps for compensation use the "E" role specifically for users identified as compensation planners, unlike in Performance Management where "E" refers to individual contributor. The roles in a route map may differ depending on the hierarchy method used. In the image, Route Maps – Roles, we are using Standard Suite Hierarchy.

• The Staging Step is assigned to "U step" or User step. This is typically used as a final comp admin check before forms are routed to managers.

• Recommendation Step is assigned to Employee (E) and Manager (EM) roles in an iterative type. E role refers to first level managers while EM refers to second level managers in a Standard Suite Hierarchy.

• HR review is assigned to HR Rep (EH) role.

• Holding Step is assigned to "U Step". This step in the route map is used to hold all compensation forms in the comp admin’s inbox, while Executive Review is ongoing.

An alternative to using an iterative step type is using the Enable form routing to previous step setting in Plan Setup→Advanced Settings.

Worksheets can be configured to allow them to be sent back on the route map so that the owner can make changes.

To mass route the form backward, the administrator also must enable the permission in RBP Administrator Permissions→Manage Documents.

When you have to route all or a large number of compensation forms in the Inbox, you can route them a step forward or backward using the new Route All Forms button. The forms that you wish to move must belong to the same compensation, variable pay, or total compensation template.

Compensation worksheets can be mass routed forward a step while skipping validation. This allows the administrator to mass route all forms to the next step and ignore validations.

• Workflow refers to two main components:

  1. Who conducts initial planning recommendations.

  2. What types of review occur following the initial recommendation.

• General principles:

  • Only include those that would alter a decision, not simply review.

  • Use reporting and Executive Review for reviewing trends and aggregate budgets.

  • Don’t over-complicate by including too many levels of approval. For example, the CEO does not need to personally review every individual recommendation.

• Signature Stage is not used in SAP SuccessFactors Compensation.

• Collaborative steps are supported but not recommended.

• The Staging Step is used for Comp admin accounts to verify forms.

• The Holding Step is used for Comp admins to do final review and approvals. Executive Review during this time is open for all to read, none to write.

• The use of "Get Feedback" edit and comments is not recommended.

• When using Second Manager Hierarchy, take note of the following role code convention:

  • E = Comp planner, as uploaded in the Second Manager column in the user data file.

  • EA = Second level manager of Comp planner, as designed in secondary hierarchy.

  • EAA = Third level manager of Comp planner, as designed in secondary hierarchy.

• When the trigger occurs, the bubble icon displays. Hovering the mouse over the icon will give a message to the planner.
• At this time, the planner can still save the form if the bubble is red or in violation.
• If the planner tries to send the form, the system will perform a hard stop and a message will display below the route map.
• To enter a comment, the planner simply clicks the comment icon.

Comments can be edited and deleted. When combined with the "return to previous route map step", this allows comments to be updated or removed to reflect changes to recommendations.

There are no rules on the content or minimum size of the comments.

Force Comments can also be configured in the admin interface by navigating to Plan Setup→Design Worksheet→Define Standard Validation Rules.

A number format rule determines how numbers will be displayed based on the type of field the number is used for. These field types include:

• Money

• Percent

• Amount

• Rating

• Ratio Value (applicable to comp-ratio display)

• Proration (applicable to date-based proration)

Configuration of number format rules can be performed by navigating to Plan Setup→Settings→Set Number Format Rules.

• Display Budget: Determines if the budget panel will be displayed. If not selected, the budget panel will not display, even if there is budget calculation configured in the plan.

• Display Total: Setting which determines if the column total will be displayed or not. If not selected, even custom fields configured to show the column total will not be displayed.

• Rating Label Format: Determines how performance ratings will be displayed – text, numeric, or number-text. Leading practice recommends using text to have more meaningful impact at steering rewards than simply numeric.

• Pay Guide Format: Determines Pay Guide pattern. You can only use the following keywords: min, def, and max. (Def refers to midpoint.)

• Salary Guideline Pattern: Determines guideline display pattern on the Salary tab. You can use the following keywords: min, low, def, high, max.

• Stock Guideline Pattern: Determines guideline display pattern on the Stock tab. You can use the following keywords: min, low, def, high, max.

• Default Sorting: Administrator sets the default sorting options for employee names on worksheets. The choices are First Name, Last Name, and by Ascending or Descending order.

Benchmarks (compa-ratio and range penetration) may be color coded based on the percentages of where an employee’s current pay sits.