Configuring Succession Data Model and Configure People Profile

Objectives

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:
  • Modify the Extensible Markup Language (XML) files
  • Validate the Extensible Markup Language (XML) file with a Document Type Definition (DTD) file
  • Verify that the Extensible Markup Language (XML) file is well-formed
  • Define the key Extensible Markup Language (XML) terms
  • Configure the Succession Data Model to Make Changes in SAP SuccessFactors
  • Import and Export the Succession Data Model XML in Provisioning
  • Download the Succession Data Model from Admin Center
  • Navigate in the Different Elements of the Succession Data Model
  • Use Admin Center and Succession Data Model to configure People Profile
  • Configure standard elements in People Profile
  • Configure Custom Fields
  • Manage the People Profile using the Configure People Profile tool
  • Maintain the People Profile using Header Settings
  • Hide, show, and upload a photo into People Profile
  • Run Batch Upload and Batch Export processes

XML

XML is an abbreviation for eXtensible Markup Language which is one of many markup languages devised for different purposes. It was designed primarily to transmit data between disparate computer systems that would normally not be able to interact. It is sometimes described as a bridge language because it can be used as a common language that two computer systems can use to communicate with each other. XML is special because it does not contain predefined tags. XML tags are defined only by the user and this is what makes it an extensible language.

A further advantage of XML as a language is that it is fairly easy for humans to read and understand.

HTML is another markup language that is widely known since it is used for building web pages. While XML and HTML have some similarities in the syntax they use, they are designed to meet different business needs. HTML is designed to display data in a Web browser whereas XML’s objective is to store and transmit data. But they are both forms of SGML, or Standardized Generalized Markup Language, which is itself a standard.

XML is widely used and there are several resources on the web to help people learn basics about the language. One particularly helpful website, W3 Schools, has an excellent tutorial on XML:

W3 Schools XML Tutorial

XML Tree

XML is structured into a tree where the family members are called elements. An element describes the data that it contains. The first element in an XML document is called the root element. Elements can contain sub-elements and can also have attributes. Sub-elements are often referred to as child elements. Child elements are always nested inside of parent elements.

An XML tree always starts with a root element. As in a family, XML has parents and children.

Sample XML

Two other topics that are crucial to working with XML are tags and attributes.

Tags

Tags are used to identify elements not only to humans but to computers that must read XML. The easiest way to understand tags is to see some examples. The following is an example taken from W3Schools:

  • <note>
  • <to>Jane</to>
  • <from>John</from>
  • <heading>Reminder</heading>
  • <body>Let's get together for dinner!</body>
  • </note>

In the code above there are several pairs of tags. Each starting tag has a matching ending tag. For example,<note> is a starting or opening tag and </note> is an ending or closing tag. The difference is that the closing tag has a / in it whereas the opening tag does not. So this example has 10 tags. Those 10 tags also help define 5 elements (note, to, from, heading and body). The <note> element is a parent that contains 4 child elements (to, from, heading and body). We can see this because the note opening and closing tags surround our encapsulate all of the other elements.

Attributes

Attributes can be added to elements to help better describe them or make them more flexible. For example, if we want to have different types of notes that are different colors, we can modify the code of the earlier example and add an attribute for color:

  • <note color="blue">
  • <to>Jane</to>
  • <from>John</from>
  • <heading>Reminder</heading>
  • <body>Let's get together for dinner!</body>
  • </note>

In the example above, color is an attribute of the element<note> and blue is the value of that attribute. Attributes are always surrounded by quotation marks.

Document Type Definition (DTD)

A DTD is a file that declares the elements and attributes that can appear in an XML document and where those items can appear.

Since XML tags are custom and can be different for every document, a DTD is like a dictionary that humans and computer systems can use to create and interpret XML documents. XML documents with the proper syntax are well formed and XML documents that adhere to a particular DTD are also valid. The following DTD can be used to describe a note:

  • <!DOCTYPE note
  • [
  • <!ELEMENT note (to,from,heading,body)>
  • <!ATTLIST note type (personal|business) personal>
  • <!ELEMENT to (#PCDATA)>
  • <!ELEMENT from (#PCDATA)>
  • <!ELEMENT heading (#PCDATA)>
  • <!ELEMENT body (#PCDATA)>
  • ]>

The above DTD can be referenced by an XML document intended to be used as a note. A note based on this definition has a root element <note>and it must have 4 additional elements defined (to, from, heading and body). Additionally, the <note>element has an attribute called type that will allow it to be either a personal or business note. The following XML document references this DTD and is well formed and valid:

  • <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  • <!DOCTYPE note SYSTEM "Note.dtd">
  • <note type="personal">
  • <to>John</to>
  • <from>Jane</from>
  • <heading>Reminder</heading>
  • <body>Let's get together for dinner!</body>
  • </note>

XML Validation

When working with XML, it is also important to understand the two kinds of XML validation. Well-formed XML means that the document follows the correct XML syntax. There are some rules to XML, and you can see these five conditions in the figure, XML Validation.

Valid XML is more rigorous. Valid XML is both well-formed and follows all of the rules that you set out in your DTD. The good news is that your XML editor checks for this automatically when you choose Validate.

XML Vocabulary

Review the following terms used in XML throughout People Profile.

XML Vocabulary

TermDefinition
Tree Structure

The model for XML formation. XML starts with a root element and branches like a family tree with parent and child elements.

ElementAn element describes the data that it contains. Elements may also have attributes and contain sub-elements.
AttributeNamed, simple-type definitions that cannot contain other elements. The values are always contained in quotation marks.
Document Type Definition (DTD)

A document that declares the allowed elements and attributes of an XML document.

ValidationXML that does not contain errors. Well-formed XML has correct syntax. Valid XML has correct syntax and follows the DTD.

The Succession Data Model in SAP SuccessFactors

Overview

Data Models describe how data elements are structured in a database. They also define the properties these elements possess and their relationships to each other.

SAP SuccessFactors defines its data using several data models. These data elements have an impact on all the modules of the application as well as on the company and employee data stored in the system. Initial setup of the data models is done through Provisioning.

The SAP SuccessFactors Data Models use XML. You can download these XML files from Provisioning. You then work with the files in an XML editor of your choice and edit them offline. You upload these modified files back to the company instance you are working with in provisioning.

Once the initial implementation is complete, you can also modify the data model files from Admin Center using the Manage Business Configuration.

Succession Data Model

SAP SuccessFactors defines this data using the following Data Models: Corporate Data Model, Country Specific Corporate Data Model, Succession Data Model, and Country Specific Succession Data Model.

The Succession Data Model (SDM) is thus named because it was first created to support the succession module. It was used to display data related to an employee including data needed for Succession planning.

This data model is now at the core of SAP SuccessFactors. Several modules use elements defined in the Succession Data Model including Employee Central, Succession and, Performance Management.

The Succession Data Model has the field definitions of elements that pertain to a person of the employee. You can then display these fields in the People Profile based on the field level and/or Role-Based Permissions.

The fields are grouped on the People Profile in blocks. You will need to have the fields associated with these blocks declared in the data model as a prerequisite. You may then need to make additional configuration as well as permission changes to these elements to get the block to work.

Working with the Succession Data Model in Provisioning

All SAP SuccessFactors instances are created as clones of a source instance and have basic data models. The data model can be downloaded and modified with an XML editor.

Note

Even if you have already downloaded a file from an instance, before beginning work on a data model xml file, always download a new version of the file. It is possible that there have been changes to the file since you last worked on it, especially if other consultants work for the same customer or if the customer uses Manage Business Configuration.

Data Model Version Control in Provisioning

It is possible to back up multiple versions of the Succession Data Model in Provisioning and restore a version for the instance. This feature helps protect the configuration and track data model changes. In case any issues occur, the backup can speed up the instance recovery.

Comments can be added during the import. It is then easy to download a certain version.

The system keeps up to 100 versions of the Succession Data Model backup. Earlier versions are deleted when the limit is reached.

Note

The version control does not record changes made from Manage Business Configuration, but only pertains to data model loaded via Provisioning.

Download the Succession Data Model from Admin Center

It is possible to download the Succession Data Model from Admin Center.

Some customers want to download the complete Succession Data Model XML for backups prior to a release, as a security requirement for monthly backups or for other integration purposes.

Users need to have the permission Export Succession Data Model available in Manage Permission Role under the Admin Center Permissions category.

Elements in the Succession Data Model

Different kinds of elements can be defined in Succession Data Model (SDM):

  • Standard Elements: Define the fields that are seen in People Profile in SAP SuccessFactors. Some of these fields are also available in the User Directory and in review forms. These are fields where there is a one-to-one relationship between the field and the data. Examples of standard elements include department, division, location, custom 01 to 15, and so on.

    Standard Elements in the Succession Data Model define the fields that are seen in People Profile in SAP SuccessFactors. These are fields where there is a one to one relationship between the field and the data.

    Defining these fields in the xml will allow the users to modify their default behavior such as making it a picklist or modifying its label. Some of the Standard elements are also those where data can be imported/exported via the User Data File.

    There are several predefined fields. It is possible to modify the label. It is even possible to use a field for a purpose other than that intended by SAP SuccessFactors. However, it is not recommended, so do it only after careful consideration. The length or type of the field may be restricted and may not suit its new purpose. Also, while the use may seem to work now, it can have consequences downstream that may not be correctable. There are 15 custom Standard Elements available to you besides the predefined ones and those should suffice for most requirements.

  • Userinfo Elements: Define Succession data model custom user information fields and fields for integration to the Recruitment module. This data can be imported from Import Extended User Information -> Personal Information.Userinfo Elements can be used in the Profile and other areas like Recruiting.

    Userinfo elements can be associated with a picklist and if the attribute reportable is defined, they can be made reportable.

  • Background Elements: These are elements where a one-to-many relationships exists between the field and the data it can store. Examples of background elements include Previous Work Experiences, Language Skills and Certificates, and so on.

  • Tab Elements: Define the Employee Central tabs available with People Profile as sections.

  • HRIS Elements: Define Employee Central Personal or Employment Information fields.

  • Custom Filters: Custom filters can be added so that you can use custom fields as filters for search screens in different places of the application, for example, when you mass create forms.

People Profile

SAP SuccessFactorsPeople Profile is a tool that can be used to view and edit a person's entire profile on one simple, consolidated page, enabling you to quickly find the information you need and take immediate action when needed.

Note

Since the Update 02H 2024 the Full People Profile for the latest People Profile is available:

This Full People Profile gets enabled on Company System and Logo Settings:

If the Full Profile for the latest People Profile is activated, the tool Configure People Profile changes accordingly:

Since the modules you have implemented and Role based permissions you have set are not 100% respected with what users can see in the UI of the Full Profile for the lastest People Profile, the descriptions in this training refer to the previous People Profil and its customization.

With People Profile, you can view and edit a person's entire profile on one simple, consolidated page and take immediate action. You can quickly find the most important or most recent information and drill down to see more detail when needed. The responsive SAP Fiori design means that People Profile adjusts to fit your device, for optimal viewing on desktop, tablet, or smartphone.

Administrators can use a convenient drag-and-drop configuration tool to set up People Profile for your company. You can select which data fields to highlight at the top of the page and control the layout and organization of profile content for your company. Visibility of employee data on the profile is controlled by Role-Based Permissions.

The People Profile page is organized into sections, subsections, and blocks. Related information is grouped together in "blocks" and appears directly on the page background. Details are hidden at first view, to reduce clutter and make the page easier to scan quickly. You can expand or collapse subsections and blocks to show or hide details as needed.

Navigate to People Profile

To navigate to the Employee Profile, proceed as follows:

  1. In the upper left-hand corner of your instance, choose the Main Menu and choose My Employee File.

  2. This takes you to your People Profile.

  3. You can see your personal information, such as name, e-mail, location, and so on. The fields listed in this portlet vary depending on your company’s configuration as well as your permission level.

Profile header

The People Profile includes a configurable page header that displays the profile photo and basic information about an employee.

As you scroll down the page, the header then reduces into a collapsed state and sticks to the top of the page, for easier navigation, as shown here.

Information blocks

The People Profile page is made up of the ‘profile header’ and one or more profile ‘sections’. Each section consists of one or more ‘subsections.’ Each subsection, in turn, consists of either one or two ‘blocks.’

Some blocks are predefined and are not configurable, such as the Succession block, while other blocks are customizable and allow you to configure which data to display, such as User Info or Background blocks.

Most blocks take up one column of a two-column subsection. So, in most cases, you can fit two blocks in each subsection. Some blocks, such as Badges or Skills, take up the full width of the subsection.

People Profile Configuration

People Profile is configured using both Admin Center and the Succession Data Model. The Succession Data Model is an XML file. If you do not have prior experience working with XML, please review the previous lesson, Describing the Basics of Extensible Markup Language (XML).

The configuration process

Both Admin Center and the Succession Data Model are required to configure People Profile. The following table details the capabilities of each tool in relation to the configuration of the People Profile.

Admin Center

Arranges the layout

Data Model

  • Defines the Standard Elements used in the People Profile

  • Defines custom filtering fields (if applicable)

The Standard Elements are the fields that you see in your instance, such as name, hire date, address, phone number, and so on. Defining the fields can include changing the labels as well as determining if a field is required. You will then configure the permissions for the Standard Elements. This helps the system determine who has access to each field and the level of access, read or write. For example, an employee may be able to see, but not edit his or her hire date.

If you want custom-filtering fields, these are maintained in the data model as well.

Once you have made the appropriate changes to the data model and imported the file, you can change the field order within the tool: Configure People Profile.

XML Data Model use

Note

To make updates to the data model, you must open the XML file with an XML editor. Oxygen and Notepad++ are very popular throughout the industry. XMLPad is a Windows only software and is available for download online using CNET.

When reviewing the XML Data Model, you will see three primary elements:

  • Standard Elements: Used to define the fields and labels used in the Employee Profile.

  • Background Elements: Used to define data field mappings to the SM_Background table (no updates to this element will be made in this course).

  • Custom Filters: Used to turn one or more of the 15 custom fields into a filter that can be used in the system for tasks, such as reporting.

File management of the Data Model

When working with data models in SAP SuccessFactors, there are some file management considerations. First, we have created a folder specifically for the versions of the data model. In the figure, File Management of the Data Model, file A is our original data model. This is the backup and should never be edited. Files B and C are version one and version two of the data model file. Using Save As and creating file versions is a best practice when working with SAP SuccessFactors data models and should always be followed.

Download the Data Model

The Succession Data Model is located in Provisioning under the header Succession Management. It is very important to note that the data model is a single file that overwrites upon upload. When downloading and making changes to a data model, it is crucial that you back up the original data model and use very strict version control to avoid time-consuming or critical errors, particularly when working in a customer environment. To download the Succession Data Model from your instance, proceed as follows:

  1. Log into Provisioning and select your instance.

  2. Scroll down to Succession Management and select Import/Export Data Model.

  3. Select Export File and then Save As.

Data Model version control in Provisioning

It is possible to back up multiple versions of the Succession Data Model in Provisioning and restore a version for the instance. This feature helps protect the configuration and track data model changes. In case of issue, it can speed up the instance recovery.

Comments can be added during the import. It is then easy to download a certain version.

The system keeps up to 100 versions of the Succession Data Model backup. Earlier versions are deleted when the limit is reached.

Note

The version control does not record changes made from Manage Business Configuration, but only pertains to data model loaded via Provisioning.

Standard Elements

The Standard Elements are where we define the standard, single value fields that are seen in the Personal Information section of the People Profile. Each of the fields that we see in the Personal Information portlet relates to a Standard Element in the data model. For example, the Last Name field is controlled by the Standard Element that begins on line 13 in this sample data model. The order of the elements, however, is not defined within this data model.

Standard Elements configuration

Many elements (fields) already exist in the data model downloaded from Provisioning. You can search for these elements using the search functionality of your XML editor. One of the first and most common tasks requested is to change the label of a standard element. For example, if the default label for the first element is Username but you would like it to read Login, proceed as follows:

  1. Locate the Standard Element, Username.

  2. Look for the<label>tags and update the text in between those tags to say Login.

Further Configuration of Standard Elements

When configuring a Standard Element, other common changes include the following:

  • Making a field a required field, by setting the required attribute to "true".

  • Changing labels to reflect multiple languages.

  • Adding a picklist to a field.

Configuration Testing

To see the changes reflected in your instance, you must save a new version of your data model and then import the file into Provisioning. Follow the same instructions as when you downloaded the file; however, this time, simply chooseImport File. Once you receive the message that your template has successfully uploaded, you can log onto your instance to see the updates.

Custom fields configuration

As mentioned before, there are 15 custom fields available. To use these fields on a People Profile requires the following two steps:

  1. In your data model, change the label to meet the customer’s requirements.

  2. In Admin Center, configure the People Profile to include the new custom field.

People Profile layout configuration

The following image illustrates how the above profile is configured in the Configure People Profile admin tool.

Note

Although a new section called "Section 2" has been added, it currently does not contain any information blocks and, therefore, does not yet appear in the profile UI above.

People Profile configuration tool

You can manage the content and layout of the People Profile using the Configure People Profile admin tool.

With it, you can add and configure the sections, subsections, and blocks you want to include on the People Profile and adjust the way these are laid out on the page. You can also configure the information that appears in the profile header, set the data source and date range for ratings data, and add localized translations of custom labels.

To access the configuration tool, you can use search or go to Admin Center → Employee Files → Configure People Profile.

Granting Permission to Configure People Profile

To use the Configure People Profile admin tool, you must be granted the Manage Employee Files permission. To grant this permission, complete the following steps:

  1. Go Manage Permission Rolesand select the role to which you want to grant these permissions
  2. Click on Edit and Next.
  3. Select the Manage System Properties tab, in the Administrator Permissions section.
  4. Select Manage Employee Files.
  5. Click on Next and Save.

People Profile header settings

Header settings enable you to configure the appearance and functionality of the profile header.

You can also enable or disable the profile completion feature within the header settings.

Finally, in People Profile, you can configure which employee data fields appear in the profile header, using the Configure Header Fields dialog. You can also access this dialog within the header settings.

Procedure:

  1. Go to Admin Center, Configure People Profile → General Settings → Header Settings

  2. Select the desired settings. For a description of each setting, see the link below.

  3. Save your changes.

Description of header settings

The following table describes the available header settings in the People Profile.

SettingDescription
Configure Header FieldsOpens a dialog that allows you to configure which data fields are displayed in the profile header. See Configuring Header Fields for details.
Allow employees to edit background imageIf checked, users can upload their own background "cover" image to their profile header.
Disable background image uploading by employeesIf you check both this option and the Allow employees to edit background image option, users change their background image only by choosing one from the image library.
Manage background image libraryOpens the existing Manage Background Image Library dialog, which allows you to manage the images from which users can select a background "cover" image for use in their profile header.
Allow employees to upload an audio file for name pronunciation

Enable the "My Name" feature, allowing users to upload a short audio clip or enter a phonetic spelling to show how their names are pronounced. To enable this feature, admins are also required to accept a user agreement acknowledging that all media content is stored in the SAP data-center in Germany. Users aren't presented with this agreement.

Allow employees to upload an About Me video

Enable the "About Me" feature, allowing users to upload a short video about themselves. To enable the "About Me" feature, admins are also required to accept a user agreement acknowledging that all media content is stored in the SAP data-center in Germany. Users aren't presented with this agreement.

Allow employees to enter an introductory textIf checked, users can enter a short text about themselves, of up to 500 characters, which is visible in the profile header.
Set all fields as expanded by defaultIf checked, when employees access the People Profile page, all the content that they have permission to access on the page is displayed. Employees can choose to show less or more content in blocks as needed.
Choose the name format displayed on the profile.You can select one of the name formats configured in SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central to display in the profile header.

Configuring header fields

You can use header settings to configure what employee data fields are displayed in the profile header.

The Configure Header Fields dialog is used to configure the appearance of the profile header only. You can select the fields which are most useful and most relevant to your company and display them more prominently, at the top of the profile page.

By default, the profile header contains the following basic employee information: photo, display name, username, title, department, division, location, time zone, local time, e-mail, two selected phone numbers, and links to Facebook or LinkedIn. You can also add up to three other custom fields.

Remember, all of this employee data is also controlled by Role-Based Permissions. If the logged-in user doesn't have permission to view a particular field on a particular profile, it does not appear in the header. If you want to hide a particular field everywhere in the system, or if you want a particular field to be visible only to certain users and not to others, you can do that using Role-Based Permissions.

Adding custom header fields

You can add up to three custom data fields to the profile header.

A custom header field can be any of the basic user information fields defined in the data model for your system. You are not limited to only the fifteen ‘customizable fields’ in the data model but can select any of the defined ‘standard’ and ‘userinfo’ fields as well. These are the same fields that are available in custom ‘user information’ blocks (and portlets) on the profile and that are present in your basic employee data CSV export.

Procedure:

  1. Go to Admin Center → Configure People Profile → General Settings.
  2. Select the Configure Header Fields link.
  3. In the Configure Header Fields dialog, select one of the Custom Field checkboxes.
  4. In the dropdown menu, select the desired field.
  5. Choose Save to save your changes.

Photo in the Profile

In order for you to be able to control who can see the photo and for whom in RBP, the photo standard element must exist in the Succession Data Model.

You can decide whether to hide or show the employee profile photo in the header of the People Profile.

The profile photo is treated like any other employee data field in the header, such as the employee's job title or location. As with other data fields, you can control visibility of the profile photo in the header in two ways as follows:

  • If you want to remove the photo from the header entirely for all users, uncheck the Photo checkbox in the Configure Header Fields dialog box.

  • If you want the photo to be visible to some users of your system, but not to others, check the Photo checkbox in the Configure Header Fields dialog box, and then control the visibility of the photo with Role-Based Permissions.

Uploading the photo in People Profile as an end user

From the main navigation menu, users can navigate to My Employee File. From the header, they have two options:

  • They can choose Header, associated with a pen icon, and then select Edit Profile Picture.
  • Users can also hover over the place where the photo should be.

With either option, users will be able to select an image stored on their computer or drag and drop an image. The following file formats are supported: JPG, JPEG or PNG. The file size should not be larger than 2MB and an aspect ratio 3:4 is recommended.

Batch upload and batch export of Profile photos

You can batch upload and batch export Profile photos by scheduling a Batch Upload Employee Photos or a Batch Export Employee Photos job in Provisioning.

The photos should conform to these guidelines:

  • Maximum file size: 2MB

  • File format: JPEG

  • Dimension Ratio: 3 wide by 4 high preferred

Batch upload

  • The photos should be uploaded to a directory on the ftp site configured by SuccessFactors operations for use with your instance. It will typically be /photos.

    As with all other photos, JPEG file format is recommended, and should adhere to the same size and dimension guidelines described above.

  • In addition, a csv file must accompany the photos to map the photo filenames to the username of the employee they correspond to.

    Load the csv file into the same /photos folder as the images. The csv file should be named "employee_photos_yymmdd.csv", where yymmdd is the year, month, and day that the file is loaded.

    The csv file should include a header of "Username" followed by "Filename". The following figure shows an example.

  • You can upload employee photos in ZIP files. This option is off by default.
  • There is also an option to delete each photo file from the FTP site immediately after it is imported, including ZIP files. Always select this option if using a SuccessFactors FTP server.

  • After the upload completes an e-mail will be sent to the administrator named in the scheduled task.

  • Important: at this time there is a limit of 5,000 photo files that can be processed in a single pass. If you have more than 5,000 photos to upload, make sure that they are separated into different CSV files and different scheduled uploads.

Note

We no longer support the upload of photos hosted at an external URL.

Batch export

With the export, the exported files include a csv file with two columns the username and the file name and the related employee photos.

The exported files will be stored on and FTP server according to the job configuration.

Note

If the user does not have photo, it will not be included in the exported files. The exported files could be reused for batch with the upload employee photos job in Provisioning.

FTP account creation for customers

  • Every customer is entitled to have two SFTP accounts for Bizx, One for Test/Preview and one for Production.

  • In order to have an SFTP account created for themselves, customers can contact customer support. Credentials can only be shared to an e-mail address from within the Company Domain.

Working with the Data Model

Business example

You are required to make changes to People Profile. You must first download the data model from Provisioning and then download the DTD file from Course Files.

Note

In this step, you create an XML file that is required for subsequent exercises in the course.

Use the sf-form.dtd available in the Course Files you downloaded at the beginning of this training.

ExerciseStart Exercise

Task 1: Download the Data Model from Provisioning

Steps

  1. Log into Provisioning.

  2. Select your company instance, download and save the data file.

    1. Choose your Company Name.

    2. Scroll down to Succession Management and Choose Import/Export Data Model.

    3. On the Import/Export Data Model screen, select theExport file (Select ‘Save’, not Open’) radio button.

    4. Choose Submit.

    5. In the File Download dialog box, Choose Save.

    6. In the Save As dialog box, specify where you want to save your file.

    7. Choose Save.

      The file is saved as an XML file. Make a note of the file location, you will need it in the next exercise.

Task 2: Open the Data Model in an XML Editor

You are required to change the DTD file path in your employee profile data model.

Steps

  1. Make sure the sf-form.dtd file is in the same folder as your XML file.

  2. Open the XML editor.

  3. Open the file you saved in the previous task, change the DTD file path. You must change the DTD file path to refer to a DTD in your local folder instead of referring to the internal svn repository for SAP SuccessFactors since you cannot access that location. Validate the XML after the change.

    1. In the XML editor, choose File → Open.

    2. Navigate to the location where you previously saved the data file.

    3. In line 004, change the line http://svn/viewvc/svn/V4/trunk/src/com/sf/dtd/sf-form.dtd?view=co to sf-form.dtd.

      Note

      The link points to an internal SAP SF repository built in Apache Subversion (abbreviation svn) that external users cannot access.

    4. To validate the XML code, from the menu, choose XML → Validate.

Task 3: Change the label of a Standard Element

Next you will have to change a field Country in their employee profile into Country of Residence. You will then include two customizable fields "Region" and "Marital Status". In order to make this change, you will change the label of the standard element in your xml file.

Steps

  1. Open the data model file and change the Country label to Country of Residence.

    1. Open the data file you saved in a previous exercise.

    2. Search the XML document for the standard element with the ID country.

    3. Change the label for this element from Country to Country of Residence.

  2. Search for the standard element ID custom01, and change the label from Customizable Field 1 to Region.

    1. Search the XML document for the standard element ID custom01.

    2. Change the label for custom01 from Customizable Field 1 to Region.

  3. Search the standard element with the ID custom02, and change the label from Customizable Field 2 to Marital Status.

    1. Search the XML document for the standard element ID custom02.

    2. Change the label for custom02 from Customizable Field 2 to Marital Status.

  4. Validate your changes and save the data model as a new version (_V2 in the name).

    1. From the menu bar, choose XML → Validate.

      If there are any errors, review your configurations and update as required.

    2. Choose File → Save As.

    3. Since version control is very important, be sure to save the file as a new version.

    4. Specify a location to save the file and choose Save.

  5. In Provisioning, import your updated data model. You may see warning messages but the system should indicate "Template(s) has(have) been uploaded and saved."

    1. Log in to Provisioning.

    2. On the Companies screen, choose your Company Name.

    3. Scroll down to Succession Management and choose Import/Export Data Model.

    4. On the Import/Export Data Model screen, select the Import File radio button and then Choose File .

    5. On the Choose File to Upload dialog box, navigate to the file you saved previously and choose Open.

    6. On the Import/Export Data Model screen, choose Submit.

  6. Log out of Provisioning.

Task 4: Configure employee files

You have changed the label of standard element and now you wish to change the available employee information in the Employee Files tab.

Add Region and Marital Status fields and move them further up after the Last Name field. You will use Configure People Profile tool to do that.

Configure employee files

Steps

  1. Log into your instance.

  2. Use the Action Search to navigate to Configure People Profile or on the Admin Center screen, navigate to Employee Files → Configure People Profile.

  3. On the Profile Section, choose the Personal Information sub-section and Personal Information block.

  4. At the right side, under User Fields choose add field.

  5. Add Region and Martial Status in the list of fields and move it under theLast Name field.

  6. Choose Save on the bottom right.

  7. Check the layout in your People Profile by navigating to My Employee File.

Implementing a translation into the Data Model

Business Example

In this exercise you will learn how to implement a translation into the Data Model.

Steps

  1. Add a German translation to the field "First Name".

    1. Use the latest version of your data model from the previous exercise or download the latest version from Provisioning.

    2. Open the file with an XML-editor of your choice and search for "First Name". Note that you already find a french translation to "Prenom" from the previous exercise.

    3. Copy the line with the French translation (<label xml:lang="fr-FR">Prenom</label>) and paste it directly in a new line below to have a placeholder/template.

    4. Edit the new line to: <label xml:lang="de-DE">Vorname</label>, validate the file and save the file as a new version of the Data Model.

    5. Log into Provisioning and click on Import/Export Data Model in the section "Succession Management".

    6. Set the radio button to Import File, click on Choose Fileand select the latest version of your Data Model.

    7. Write a comment in the comment box (e.g. German translation for "First Name" added.) and click on Submit.

    8. To test your translation, log into your instance, click on the name menu and then select Settings.

    9. Click on Change Language, choose "Deutsch (German)" and click on Switch.

    10. In the main menu click on Meine Personaldaten and note, that "First Name" is translated to "Vorname".

    11. To switch back to English languages click on the name menu and on Einstellungen.

    12. Click on Sprache ändern, choose English US (English US) and click on Wechseln.

Result

You have learned, how to implement a translation into the Data Model.

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Learning

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