What HR leaders can look forward to with SAP SuccessFactors

SAP HCM is on borrowed time. Support will officially end in 2027, and though there’s talk of extending that deadline, the software is inevitably heading toward obsolescence, stepping aside for its more advanced successor, SAP SuccessFactors. This is emblematic of a trend in which companies are ditching legacy systems in favor of cloud platforms that meet today’s demands for greater efficiency and fewer headaches in human capital management.

As an human resources leader, you're right to be excited about what SAP SuccessFactors can do for you and your team's day-to-day. We'll be diving into the robust features and major perks of this software, showing you how it can elevate your department's effectiveness and why pairing it with an AI-powered document management system will streamlines workflows and unlock new levels of efficiency; levels representative of the age of AI and its impact on our working lives.

First, let’s explore the reasons behind why the support for SAP HCM is ending.

SAP’s move from HCM to SuccessFactors is driven by the need to modernize HR systems and meet current business demands for cloud-based solutions. SuccessFactors offers flexibility, scalability and lower maintenance requirements compared to the older on-premises HCM. By transitioning to SAP SuccessFactor’s cloud-based infrastructure, businesses can:

• Manage HR processes more efficiently
• Access real-time data
• Reduce infrastructure costs
• Benefit from regular updates and new features introduced by SAP to keep up with industry changes
• Benefit from improved employee experience, advanced data analytics and easier compliance management

See SAP’s official statement.

SAP SuccessFactors is a comprehensive HR management platform designed to cover a wide range of HR activities across an all-in-one cloud-based system. In day-to-day operations, SuccessFactors reduces the administrative burden on HR teams by automating repetitive tasks, offering self-service options for employees and providing a unified platform to handle all aspects of HR management.

Here’s how it will impact your team:

Enhanced mobile capabilities:
SuccessFactors enables HR tasks to be managed on the go through its mobile app. Features like viewing the organizational chart, accessing learning modules and managing employee profiles are all available from a mobile device. This means HR teams can stay connected and manage tasks even when away from their desks​.

AI-driven recruitment and performance management:
The platform introduces AI-assisted tools for recruitment, such as skills matching and applicant screening. This means that the recruitment process is more streamlined, allowing HR professionals to match applicants' skills with job requirements quickly.

Automated onboarding and mass task completion:
SuccessFactors provides an enhanced onboarding experience where new hires can complete all onboarding tasks from a single page. For organizations with high-volume hiring, the platform allows for mass task completion, enabling managers to complete tasks for multiple new hires simultaneously.

Improved time tracking and payroll management:
The platform integrates a new timesheet experience that works in tandem with SAP S/4HANA, allowing employees to record time for payroll and track activities in a unified manner.

Compensation planning with audit tools:
SuccessFactors introduces a planner audit tool for compensation planning. HR planners can view and download compensation change history logs, providing real-time visibility into changes and reducing the administrative burden of running audit reports.

AI-powered learning and development:
The platform offers AI-driven recommendations for employee development. This includes personalized career pathways, upskilling opportunities and targeted learning courses, making it easier to nurture talent and support employee growth​.

Below is a comparison that highlights how these two platforms stand in contrast across various critical dimensions:

SAP SuccessFactors offers a wealth of features to boost the efficiency and strategic management of HR departments. However, one of its standout features is the ability to integrate with external solutions, most notably with an AI-powered document management system (DMS). This integration is particularly critical for HR leaders, streamlining document handling and enhancing overall operational efficiency.

A highly mature form of technology that has been through multiple innovations, a DMS embodies the transformative impact of AI on business operations. It acts much like a personal assistant capable of interpreting and managing documents. It automates workflows, performs content analysis and makes informed decisions based on document data, making daily operations quicker and easier, and with minimal manual effort.

Here are a few specific capabilities:

• Intelligent HR data management
  A modern DMS automates document processing by classifying, extracting and filing employee documents based on data protection laws. It can also independently process and organize the content as searchable metadata, directing it to the appropriate people for further action.
  
  
• Document centralization
  This tech is best known for automating the categorization, archival and retrieval of documents, ensuring they are organized in a coherent system that simplifies searching and access for users. Ideal for when tools like SharePoint just aren’t cutting it.
  
  
• Self-service
  HR professionals can use a modern DMS’ self-service functionality to quickly and easily generate customized documents based on each employee’s or applicant’s particular needs, reducing their workload.

• Transparent employee lifecycle
  With version control and a uniform folder structure with complete transparency, HR leaders maintain complete oversight over the employee lifecycle.
  
  
• Automated onboarding/offboarding
  Manage the provision & return of access cards by IT, company vehicles & office equipment by purchasing and much more.

A modern DMS is ideal for tidying up your digital documents before the big move. The system gathers all your essential files, ensuring they are neatly organized and readily accessible for when you transition to SAP SuccessFactors. And while some companies using SAP HCM may have a modern DMS, it’s far more likely to find no DMS or an outdated legacy system in place. Without a DMS, documents are simply stored in HCM, meaning they aren't securely organized or audit-ready, much like leaving files scattered in shared drives. If they do have a legacy DMS, it's likely incompatible with SuccessFactors.

To streamline the transition to SuccessFactors, it’s best to adopt a modern DMS before migrating. This ensures that all documents are properly stored, secure and compliant with regulations. With the right access controls in place, employees can view their own files but not others'. Once documents are securely in the DMS, only the data within HCM needs to be migrated to SuccessFactors. The documents stay where they are, and only the interface shifts from HCM to SuccessFactors, making the entire process smoother and more manageable.

Take the case of adesso Group, a leading IT service provider in Europe. With a sprawling workforce spread across 63 locations and entirely paper-driven processes, adesso faced formidable challenges in HR management. The absence of digital files and centralized access to HR documents made every process sluggish and cumbersome—right at a time when the company aimed to implement SAP S/4HANA and SAP SuccessFactors.

Recognizing the need for a foundational change, adesso integrated a modern DMS to prepare for this major systems overhaul. This strategic move revolutionized their approach by digitizing and centralizing their entire repository of HR documents.

Here’s how it unfolded:

• About 5 TB of HR documents were migrated into the new DMS.
• The system now serves over 1,500 frequent users and approximately 8,500 occasional users, facilitating broad access and interaction across the company.
• With the new DMS, the creation and digital signing of employment contracts were significantly expedited.
• Management gained location-independent access to digital employee files, integrating seamlessly with SAP SuccessFactors, allowing for more efficient workflows without the need to switch applications.

Transitioning to SAP SuccessFactors marks not just a technical shift but a strategic leap into modernizing your HR landscape. This move to a cloud-based platform redefines your ability to interact with, analyze and manage employee data and workflows, representing a switch from traditional practices to proactive, data-driven HR management, where every decision can be informed by real-time insights, and every process is streamlined for maximum efficiency.

And when you're ready to simplify your migration and transform your HR document management, then make sure you see a DMS in action. Book a demo today.