¶ SAP SuccessFactors
¶ SAP
Introduction to SAP SuccessFactors
People are at the center of every organization. No matter how advanced the technology, how refined the processes, or how large the customer base, every achievement ultimately comes down to the talent, motivation, and capability of the workforce. For decades, companies tried to manage their people using isolated systems, spreadsheets, and basic HR tools. But as the workplace grew more complex, as employees demanded better experiences, and as organizations realized that talent is not an administrative category but a strategic asset, a new generation of solutions began to emerge. SAP SuccessFactors is one of the most influential among them.
This course, consisting of one hundred in-depth articles, will introduce you to the world of SAP SuccessFactors—its vision, its modules, its role in the modern enterprise, and the way it reshapes the employee journey from end to end. Whether you're new to SAP, working in HR, building a career in consulting, or simply curious about how digital HR platforms operate, this journey will give you a strong understanding of how SuccessFactors is transforming human capital management across industries.
To truly appreciate the value of SuccessFactors, it helps to understand the environment that led to its creation. Traditional human resources was once heavily administrative—hiring, payroll, benefits, and compliance. While these functions remain essential, the expectations placed on HR have changed dramatically. Leaders now expect HR to contribute to strategic planning, workforce development, organizational culture, employee engagement, and long-term business success. Employees expect personalized experiences, continuous learning, transparency, recognition, and meaningful development opportunities. The workplace itself has become global, mobile, hybrid, digital, and incredibly dynamic.
These new realities made it impossible for HR to rely on disconnected systems and manual processes. Organizations needed a platform capable of managing the entire employee life cycle—from the moment a candidate discovers a job to the moment they retire or move on. They needed a system that connects people, processes, and data into one coherent experience. They needed insight into workforce performance, visibility into talent gaps, automation for routine processes, and intelligence for decision-making. SuccessFactors emerged as SAP’s answer to all of these needs.
At its core, SAP SuccessFactors is a cloud-based human experience management platform that transforms the way organizations attract, develop, engage, and retain their people. Rather than functioning as a traditional HR system, SuccessFactors takes a holistic view of the employee journey. It covers recruitment, onboarding, performance management, learning, compensation, succession, development planning, and workforce analytics—each designed to support the unique needs of employees and employers. It doesn’t simply store data; it improves the way organizations interact with their people.
One of the defining elements of SuccessFactors is its emphasis on experience. It recognizes that employees today want intuitive interfaces, transparency, mobility, and meaningful interaction with their organization. HR is no longer about paperwork—it’s about creating an environment where people feel supported, informed, and empowered. SuccessFactors accomplishes this by providing user-friendly tools, personalized dashboards, automated workflows, mobile capabilities, and an architecture that encourages continuous feedback and improvement.
In this course, you will explore these components one by one. You will learn how SuccessFactors manages recruiting processes by providing a seamless experience for both candidates and hiring teams. You’ll see how onboarding becomes a coordinated, engaging process instead of a stressful administrative rush. You’ll understand how performance and goals tools help organizations align individual contributions with strategic objectives, turning performance reviews into meaningful conversations rather than bureaucratic exercises.
You will dive into learning management, one of the most powerful aspects of SuccessFactors. In today’s world, learning is no longer a once-a-year activity. Employees expect continuous development, easy access to courses, personalized learning paths, and insight into their own growth. SuccessFactors enables all of this by combining structured training, social learning, mobile lessons, and compliance tracking into one ecosystem. Organizations that adopt strong learning practices often find themselves more adaptable, more innovative, and better positioned for long-term success.
The course will also guide you through compensation management, a function that must balance fairness, competitiveness, and financial precision. SuccessFactors provides transparent tools that help managers reward performance, stay aligned with budget constraints, and support equitable compensation practices across the organization. When compensation is managed consistently and thoughtfully, employees feel recognized and organizations maintain competitiveness in the talent market.
One of the most strategic components of SuccessFactors is succession and development. Organizations often underestimate the risk of losing critical talent or failing to prepare future leaders. SuccessFactors allows companies to map out successors, identify skill gaps, evaluate readiness, and create targeted development plans. This forward-looking approach helps organizations maintain stability during transitions while nurturing the next generation of leaders.
Throughout this course, you will also explore how SuccessFactors integrates analytics into every aspect of HR. Workforce analytics is not just a reporting tool—it is a decision-making engine that provides visibility into trends, risks, engagement levels, performance patterns, attrition factors, and strategic workforce planning. In a world where data drives competitive advantage, SuccessFactors equips HR teams with insights that matter. Decisions become more reliable, strategies more proactive, and outcomes more aligned with organizational objectives.
Another essential element of SuccessFactors is its cloud-based nature. Because it operates in the cloud, updates arrive frequently, improvements roll out continuously, and organizations benefit from innovation without major disruptions. Cloud technology also supports global scalability, allowing companies with a worldwide presence to maintain consistent HR processes while accommodating local regulations and cultural differences.
As you progress through the articles, you will learn that SuccessFactors is not only a technical system—it is a business transformation tool. Implementing SuccessFactors requires organizations to rethink processes, redesign workflows, refine data structures, and modernize HR strategies. It pushes companies to focus on experience, clarity, and engagement rather than outdated administrative habits. SuccessFactors becomes a catalyst for change, guiding HR teams into a more strategic and impactful role.
You’ll also explore the integration capabilities of the platform. HR systems cannot exist in isolation. SuccessFactors must connect with payroll, time tracking, finance systems, workforce management tools, and various third-party applications. SAP provides powerful ways to bridge these systems, ensuring that data flows seamlessly and securely. Whether through SAP Cloud Integration, APIs, or pre-configured connectors, integration ensures the entire workforce ecosystem remains synchronized.
The human aspect of SAP SuccessFactors is a recurring theme in this course. HR is ultimately about people, not processes. SuccessFactors enhances the relationship between an organization and its employees by providing clarity, transparency, communication tools, development opportunities, and a sense of belonging. Employees feel supported in their journeys, and organizations gain a workforce that is more engaged and more aligned with business goals.
This course will also highlight the importance of proper configuration, data quality, and governance within SuccessFactors. A system is only as strong as the data it relies on. Clean structures, consistent business rules, clear workflows, and well-designed permissions ensure that SuccessFactors functions as intended. Mastering these elements will empower you to build a platform that is stable, trustworthy, and able to grow alongside the organization.
SuccessFactors is also evolving rapidly. The shift toward Human Experience Management (HXM) emphasizes employee well-being, belonging, and engagement. Modern HR is not transactional—it is emotional, behavioral, and psychological. SuccessFactors continues to expand with features that support well-being tools, continuous listening, sentiment analysis, AI-driven recommendations, and more personalized experiences. This represents the direction HR is moving in—a future where systems understand people as individuals, not just as records.
By the time you complete this hundred-article journey, you will have a complete understanding of the SuccessFactors landscape. You’ll understand how each module contributes to the bigger picture, how systems connect, how workflows operate, and how organizations use SuccessFactors to enhance their HR strategy. But more importantly, you will understand why SuccessFactors matters. In a world where talent is the ultimate differentiator, the ability to attract, develop, and retain people becomes one of the most valuable capabilities any business can have.
SuccessFactors helps organizations build workplaces where people can grow, contribute, collaborate, and feel connected. When HR functions effectively, the entire organization thrives. Productivity rises, culture strengthens, leadership deepens, and innovation flows more freely. SuccessFactors becomes the engine behind these improvements.
This course is your invitation to explore SuccessFactors on a deeper level—to understand not only the technical details but the philosophy behind the platform. You will see how SuccessFactors blends technology, psychology, business strategy, and user experience into a single environment designed to elevate the role of HR.
Welcome to your journey into SAP SuccessFactors. Let’s begin.
¶ SAP SuccessFactors
I. Foundations of SuccessFactors (1-10)
1. Introduction to Human Capital Management (HCM)
2. What is SAP SuccessFactors? An Overview
3. Understanding the SuccessFactors Suite
4. Key Benefits of Implementing SuccessFactors
5. SuccessFactors Deployment Options (Cloud)
6. Introduction to Employee Central
7. Understanding the SuccessFactors Architecture
8. Navigating the SuccessFactors System
9. SuccessFactors Terminology and Concepts
10. The SuccessFactors Implementation Process
II. Employee Central (EC) (11-30)
11. Managing Employee Data in EC
12. Organizational Structure Management
13. Position Management
14. Job Information Management
15. Personal Information Management
16. Global Payroll Integration with EC
17. Time Management in EC
18. Absence Management
19. Leave Management
20. Travel Management
21. Employee Self-Service (ESS)
22. Manager Self-Service (MSS)
23. Workflow Configuration in EC
24. Event Reason Management
25. Data Replication from EC
26. Reporting and Analytics in EC
27. Security and Authorizations in EC
28. Customizing EC
29. Integrating EC with other Modules
30. Best Practices for EC Implementation
III. Performance & Goals (PMGM) (31-45)
31. Introduction to Performance Management
32. Goal Setting and Management
33. Performance Reviews and Appraisals
34. Calibration and Talent Review
35. 360-Degree Feedback
36. Performance Management Workflows
37. Competency Management
38. Development Planning
39. Succession Planning
40. Performance Reporting and Analytics
41. Goal Alignment and Cascading
42. Performance Improvement Plans
43. Continuous Performance Management
44. Best Practices for PMGM Implementation
45. Integrating PMGM with other Modules
IV. Learning (LMS) (46-60)
46. Introduction to Learning Management Systems
47. Course Creation and Management
48. Content Management and Delivery
49. User Management and Enrollment
50. Learning Catalogs and Curricula
51. Online Learning and Assessments
52. Blended Learning and Classroom Management
53. Mobile Learning
54. Reporting and Analytics in LMS
55. Social Learning and Collaboration
56. Learning Paths and Certifications
57. Compliance Training Management
58. Integrating LMS with other Modules
59. Best Practices for LMS Implementation
60. Gamification in Learning
V. Recruiting (RCM) (61-75)
61. Introduction to Recruiting Management
62. Job Requisition Management
63. Candidate Sourcing and Screening
64. Applicant Tracking and Management
65. Interview Management
66. Offer Management and Onboarding
67. Recruiting Reporting and Analytics
68. Career Site Management
69. Employer Branding
70. Social Recruiting
71. Mobile Recruiting
72. Integrating RCM with other Modules
73. Best Practices for RCM Implementation
74. Talent Pools and Pipelines
75. Candidate Relationship Management (CRM)
VI. Succession Planning (SP) (76-85)
76. Introduction to Succession Planning
77. Talent Identification and Assessment
78. Succession Planning Process
79. Development Planning for Successors
80. Succession Planning Reporting and Analytics
81. Talent Pools and Succession Candidates
82. Integrating SP with other Modules
83. Best Practices for SP Implementation
84. Leadership Development
85. Career Pathing
VII. Compensation (CMP) (86-90)
86. Introduction to Compensation Management
87. Salary Planning and Administration
88. Bonus and Incentive Management
89. Equity Management
90. Compensation Reporting and Analytics
VIII. Advanced Topics and Integrations (91-100)
91. Integrating SuccessFactors with SAP ERP HCM
92. Integrating SuccessFactors with other SAP Cloud Solutions
93. SuccessFactors APIs and Integrations
94. Workforce Analytics and Planning
95. Mobile Solutions for SuccessFactors
96. Security and Authorizations in SuccessFactors
97. Reporting and Analytics in SuccessFactors
98. SuccessFactors Administration and Configuration
99. Best Practices for SuccessFactors Implementation and Management
100. Future Trends in SuccessFactors and HCM