Utilizing Workforce Analytics Investigate

SAP SuccessFactors delivers the capability to accelerate the process that HR Analysts go through to analyze issues by surfacing relevant metrics and analysis dimensions and recommending compelling visualizations to clearly communicate the findings.

Investigate is a query and presentation tool available to analyze WFA data. It combines a clean and modern look with improved usability based on SAP Fiori design principles and our comprehensive analytical library to make interactive analytics simple and readily accessible.

Perform the following steps to enable Investigate using Upgrade Center:

1. Go to Admin Center → Upgrade Center.

2. Under Optional Upgrades, select Investigate.

3. Select Upgrade Now.

4. Select Yes to the confirmation message.

5. Select OK to close the update message.

Once you enable Investigate, the Investigate icon appears in the Tools panel in place of Query Workspace.

After you have enabled Investigate, it becomes the default framework for querying and investigating data.

Investigate queries are not available in Query Workspace (QWS). However, you can open a QWS query in Investigate. Custom Calculations and Custom Members and Sets created in Query Workspace will be available in Investigate.

For instructions on navigating to Investigate, go to the previous lesson on basic navigation. Once you launch the investigate tool, you will see the Investigate Home Page.

You can change your display preference to large icons by selecting the grid icon.

When an investigation is saved, it is only accessible and visible to the user who created the investigation (author). The share function provides the ability to share an investigation with other permissioned users.

1. Rename will rename an investigation. The investigate checkbox must be enabled for the rename option to be enabled.

2. Move will move an investigation or folder to a different directory in Investigate. One or more items can be moved at a time.

3. Share will share an investigation and you can enter the names or email addresses of the recipients to share the investigation with. Once an investigation has been shared, the Shared icon is displayed and hovering on the icon displays the recipients.

4. Delete will delete an investigation or folder. Deleting a folder will delete the folder and their contents.

5. New starts a new investigation. To open previously saved investigations, select the investigation title in list view or the investigation title in grid view. To open a query created in Query Workspace, select New → Open Query from Query Workspace.

6. Add New Folder will create a new folder. Folder structures help manage and organize your investigations

Investigate supports the ability to open a query that was originally developed in Query Workspace. This functionality supports backward compatibility allowing users to reuse queries so they can resume and refine their analysis in Investigate.

To create a new investigation from a saved query in Query Workspace:

1. From Investigate, select New.

   

2. Select Open Query from Query Workspace.

   

3. Select the Query Workspace query from the Query List.

4. Select Open.

   The query opens in Investigate. You can either resume or refine your analysis in Investigate.

   

5. SelectSave to include the query as an investigation. Select Cancel to close the query without saving.

To create a new empty investigation:

1. From Investigate, select New.

2. Select Start New Investigation. A new empty investigation window opens.

3. Conduct your analysis as described in later sections.

4. Select Save to include the query as an investigation.

5. Select Cancel to close the query without saving.

You can select metrics from Recommended for Analysis or from the Metrics category in the right hand panel, under the Data tab. You can also use the new search capability to easily filter and find metrics or dimensions from the comprehensive analytic suite.

The Search capability removes the need to know and navigate the old navigation hierarchy tree. From the right hand panel the user can also select dimensions, custom dimensions and time models.

To add metrics to investigations, select a Metric to analyze.

Investigate will display a trend analysis chart with future projection and the data table

1. Select Filter from the quick ribbon to open the filter panel. Select Manage Filters to display and select dimensions to add to the panel. The user can then apply the required filters by selecting the nodes from a dropdown menu

   Note

   This feature enhances the filter panel to allow multiple selections per dimension.

2. Select or Deselect Chart or Table from the quick ribbon to enable or disable the view as required.

3. Select Chart Library to display and select chart visualizations available to best fit your data. Charts are grouped in Recommended and Other categories. Select Recommended Views.

4. Select Swap Axis from the quick ribbon to swap the values on X and Y axis (column and row).

5. Select Chart Styling to turn on or off Axis Titles, Axis Labels, Data Labels or the option to Always Start at Zero (0), or to change Color Themes. The icon has options to control the display of the following:

   • Axis Titles (default: OFF)

   • Axis Labels (default: ON)

   • Data Labels (default: OFF)

   • Axis Always Starts at Zero (default: OFF)

   • Color themes (Default, High Contrast Black and High Contrast White)

   • Select Add to Collections to save your insight to Collections.

     Note

     Collections is an easy way to collect, export or send a quick email to initiate a conversation about a result. See Metric Explanation, Collections and Saving Investigations.

You can enable or disable comparison options from the right hand panel under the Analyze tab.

The Forecasting function returns a predicted value(s) in the chart and data table using a best fit linear regression.

By default, the forecast switch is OFF.

Consider the following:

• Time period can be forecast up to +5.

• Calculation is based on the Forecast function in https://support.office.com/en-us/article/FORECAST-function-50ca49c9-7b40-4892-94e4-7ad38bbeda99

From the right hand panel, under the Analyze tab, recommended views are suggested to visualize data in different ways. Views are suggested based on the underlying data query.

To manage tokens:

1. Drag and drop the Token to swap the axis position. For example, from X (Column) axis to Y (Row) axis/from column to row. This updates the visualization and data table.

2. Toggle to display parent or child data. Select the down arrow to display the selected dimension only (parent value). Select the left arrow to display the nodes directly under the selected dimension (children or distance to 1). This is the default behavior when selecting a dimension.

3. Select X to remove the Token (metric or dimension) from the query.

This is the before view when North America is on the X Axis.

This is the after view when North America is on the Y Axis.

Drilldown capabilities add interactive drilling through visualizations by selecting the chart component or the data table (column or row header) in Investigate.

1. Select the chart column bar or the table row header, for example, South to quickly drill down to the next level. This displays the next level in the hierarchy, for example, Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, North Carolina etc.

2. Select Back to drill back the hierarchy.

Select a value in the data table to drill down to employee level details, to quickly identify and review the transactional details.

You can create custom metrics or custom dimensions in Investigate.

Select + from the Custom Metrics or Custom Dimensions category from the right hand panel under the Data tab.

Users can create and save their own custom metrics for use within Investigate.

To create a custom Metric:

1. In the Investigate tool, open an existing query, or create a new one.

2. On the right pane, under the Data tab, choose + (add) next to Custom Measures.

3. Choose the function you want to use to calculate the custom metric.

4. Define the calculation for the custom metric and choose Next.

5. Enter the Name and set the visibility of the metric to private or public.

6. Select a unit for the custom metric and set the number of decimal places that the value of your custom metric displays.

7. Select the relevant Measure Category and the Measure Sub Category to correctly align the custom metric within the Metrics hierarchy.

8. Choose Create.

Users can create and save their own custom dimensions in Investigate.

Custom dimensions can be used to analyze data that predefined dimensions don't automatically track or can be especially useful where there is a requirement to view and/or aggregate parts of analysis dimensions on an ongoing basis.

Users with Custom Metric and Dimension Admin functional permission can view, edit, and delete all public and private custom metrics and custom dimensions. This saves custom metrics and dimensions from becoming orphaned when a person leaves the organization.

Users granted this permission can:

• View all public and private custom metrics and custom dimensions.

• Make any private custom metric or custom dimension public.

• Edit any custom metric or custom dimension.

• Delete any custom metric or custom dimension.

To assign the permission:

1. If permissions are maintained using SAP SuccessFactors HCM Role Based Permission (RBP), you can grant the Custom Metric and Dimension Admin from Admin Center> Manage Permission Roles> [Role]> Edit Button > Next button to Permission> Analytics permissions> Custom Metric and Dimension Admin > Next Button to Preview > Save button.

   

2. If permissions are maintained within Workforce Analytics, you can grant the new Custom Metric and Dimension Admin from Admin> Roles Maintenance> [Role]> Permissions – add Custom Metric and Dimension Admin to Action Restrictions group

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1. Select Switch to Classic View to go to Query Workspace. Query tables or visualizations created in Investigate you won’t be able to be retrieved in Query Workspace. However, Custom Calculations and Custom Members and Sets created in Query Workspace will be available in Investigate.

2. Select the ? icon get an explanation of the metrics being analyzed.

3. Select Collections to see previously collected insights and research. Collections are a new and engaging way to export and share key research and insights. Collected insights can be exported (PDF, PPT, Word, Excel) or emailed to initiate a conversation or quickly share results.

4. Select Save and enter a name for your investigation (if you do not want to use the default name) or select Save As if you have previously saved the investigation and want to keep multiple versions. Select Cancel to exit the current investigation and return to the Investigate home page. You will be prompted to save your work with a different name, for example, copy.

Investigate supports Internationalization so that specific languages and cultures can easily be adapted.

If you select a language that reads from right to left, such as Arabic, a mirrored version of the application is displayed.

To change the preferred language:

1. On Investigate page, go to Options > Change Language.

2. Select the language you want to switch to.