Month: March 2015

Unit and parallel testing is the fifth factor in the 10 most critical factors of SAP Payroll. We covered Data integrity, Integration, Configuration and Customization, and HRSP and legal changes in the first four blog posts.

Testing is a building process where we look at individual functionality and see how it fits in the big picture. We can then identify how the process changes when moving from another system or by changes to the SAP system. How do are the differing levels of testing defined and what should levels should we go through?

Unit testing is the validation of individual functionality. Unit tests are typically performed by the technical or functional support team. Those team members should understand the business process.

If your support is outsourced, the outsourced team members should have an understanding of your specific business processes because general knowledge will not provide a specific enough understanding to your business processes and requirements. Many times, outsource team members are viewed as only technical or configuration, but their understanding will impact the effectiveness of functionality.

Integration testing is the validation of aggregate functionality by combining individual functionality. Integration testing is best performed by a mix of the support team and business users.

Parallel testing is the validation of data through concurrently testing functionality. Similar to integration testing a mix of support team and business team members is best.

Finally, we have User Acceptance testing where our Subject Matter Experts along with key users should review the functionality and validate that it will support the business processes and meet their requirements. The SMEs and business users should be able to perform all of the processes and identify breakdowns.

All stages of testing should be performed to provide a complete testing methodology. Unfortunately, when timelines are short it is not uncommon for testing to be shortchanged. The short-term gain may likely be outweighed when fallout is found in production and the result is incorrect employee remunerations. The best run projects will keep testing scopes intact and provide sufficient time and resources to verify business processes and requirements are met.

Please join us for our next blog post where we’ll discuss Time management as another critical factor in SAP payroll.

Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.

This is the fourth of 10 most critical factors of SAP payroll. We covered Data integrity, Integration, and Configuration and Customization in the first three and in this post we will cover Human Resources Support Packages and Country Legal Changes.

Human Resources Support Packages (HRSPs) were put in place by SAP many years ago to reduce the impact of updates towards year-end to HR and HR submodules. HRSPs are released approximately every month and contain individual SAP Notes and other legal and correction updates.

Country Legal Changes (CLCs) are similar to HRSPs, but contain a subset of the HRSP SAP Notes. SAP started creating CLCs in the last few years to provides for lesser disruption and risk to the SAP environment as a whole, HR and HR submodules, and payroll. CLCs are released periodically and contain individual SAP Notes and other legal and correction updates relevant to payroll for a specific country or countries. CLCs do require a specific synchronization HRSP so HRSPs are still required.

Synchronization HRSPs are typically released in May and November. You may apply the HRSP released in May and then the CLC for U.S. payroll released towards year-end and be able to complete year-end processing for the U.S. Many organizations now take this approach to limit testing towards year-end to U.S. payroll.

We are able to identify the minimum HRSP and CLC needed to be applied prior to year-end using the enhancement pack and HRSP currently in place and using SAP Service Marketplace.

• Access https://service.sap.com (requires login credentials)
• Follow path Products > ERP > SAP ERP Human Capital Management > HR Support Packages > Schedule

HRSPs and CLCs are a fact of life and can be very difficult for support organizations and the business to accept. However, we need to make sure all parties impacted understand HRSPs and CLCs contain required legislative compliance updates along with bug fixes. HRSPs and CLCs are not an option, but a requirement for payroll to run successfully. The following items are examples of what are included.

• Tax Reporter form layouts
• 401k or other benefit limits
• New functionality required for the next year, such as employer paid benefits
• Processes may change or underlying program logic changes

With all these changes, a thorough testing plan should be put in place that is repeatable. Repeatable allows us to slightly tweak the data from one testing project/year to the next.

Through our due diligence of what is included in the HRSPs and CLCs being applied, we need to define the impact and expectations for support and business areas outside of the HR module. The HRSPs may require Basis to apply a kernel update or our interface points may be impacted.

Developing a plan early in the year and monitoring the SAP Service Marketplace for release dates and side effects can make for a smooth process to keep payroll up-to-date by applying HRSPs and CLCs.

Please join us for our next blog post where we’ll discuss Unit and parallel testing as another critical factor in SAP payroll.

Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.

If you’ve been keeping up with ICG on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, you’ll know that through the rest of the week I’ll be attending the HR2015 Conference in Las Vegas.

I have already spoken at my five sessions and was an expert at Ask-the-Experts. I look forward to a more relaxed couple of days at the conference. Check out some pictures from HR2015 Day 2:

 

Check back later this week for more photos and updates from HR2015. And in the mean time, for more updates about the conference and ICG, check in with us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

If you’ve been keeping up with ICG on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, you’ll know that through the rest of the week I’ll be attending the HR2015 Conference in Las Vegas.

I have already spoken at two session, had time to see some wonderful speakers, and take a look around at all of the great things happening at the conference. Check out some pictures from HR2015 Day 1:

 

Check back later this week for more photos and updates from HR2015. And in the mean time, for more updates about the conference and ICG, check in with us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Yesterday was fun at HR2015! Catch these afternoon sessions today on Day 2.

Managing payroll claims, garnishments, month-end accruals, and more: Lessons from the trenches

Mike Timm, ICG
Time: Wednesday, March 4 1:00 PM Pacific
Room: Raphael 3

Through detailed screenshots and system demos, this session provides critical guidance based on real-world experience for ensuring accurate and timely processing of overpayments, garnishments, retroactive calculations, and month-end accruals. By attending, you will learn how to:

• Configure wage types to support claims forgiveness, repayment, and deduction recovery
• Reconcile claims from a user, functional, and technical perspective, including insight into the impact of IRS regulations related to claim processing and the different taxing rules that apply
• Avoid common pitfalls associated with posting retroactive calculations and month-end accruals
• Ensure the accuracy of garnishment configuration and administration, including tips to manage effective garnishment dates and track and monitor their activity

Panel discussion: Payroll Q&A with SAP customers and experts

Mike Timm, ICG
Linda Crosby, United Launch Alliance
Steve Bogner, Insight Consulting Partners
W. Eric Sauerhoefer-Thompson, The Walt Disney Company
Time: Wednesday, March 4 2:30 PM Pacific
Room: Tower Ballroom 8

This no-holds-barred exchange of ideas with peers and experts tackles your most pressing payroll challenges. Join this panel to:

• Learn how your peers are streamlining and increasing the consistency of their regular payroll runs
• Examine how others are reducing the time spent making payroll adjustments through proactive analysis and error correction
• Hear about best practices to adopt (and worst practices to avoid!) to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of payroll results

A comprehensive guide to US taxes and their impact on payroll operations

Mike Timm, ICG
Time: Wednesday, March 4 4:45 PM Pacific
Room: Tower Ballroom 8

This session examines key factors essential in avoiding costly tax-related pitfalls, including a thorough review of US tax regulations and associated reporting and auditing requirements. By attending, you will:

• Master tax configuration in SAP ERP HCM, including lessons to avoid or overcome challenges associated with setting up key tax models and wage types
• Get critical guidance to comply with state and federal tax regulations and auditing requirements
• Explore how to use Tax Reporter to run multi-worksite, SUI, and W2s, including how to reconcile between Tax Reporter and payroll results
• Obtain best practices for managing and tracking BSI Tax Update Bulletin (TUBs), and get an overview of new and enhanced functions delivered in the latest version of BSI TaxFactory

Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.

If you are attending HR2015 today, make sure to catch these sessions!

Field-tested strategies to avoid or overcome the most common and costly payroll and time-related challenges

Mike Timm, ICG
Time: Tuesday, March 3 11:15 AM Pacific
Room: Raphael 3

This session tackles some of the most common payroll and time-related pitfalls and offers proven techniques for identifying, troubleshooting, and resolving them, including lessons to:

• Identify the object master data, configuration, or systemic issue causing the payroll error, and determine the best approach for resolution
• Overcome technical complexities associated with setting up and customizing process models, schemas, and rules
• Manage common challenges associated with mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and get tips to accelerate the acceptance of a new payroll system
• Leverage CATS and the time schema to more easily process complex time rules and avoid time-related discrepancies

Integrating payroll with accounting (FI/CO) and benefits: Configuration guidelines and best practices to reduce complexity

Mike Timm, ICG
Time: Tuesday, March 3 4:30 PM Pacific
Room: Raphael 3

This session examines key process decisions and technical considerations for integrating SAP payroll with accounting (FI/CO) and benefits applications and processes. By attending this session, you will:

• Examine the integration points between payroll and key accounting (FI/CO) applications like GL, treasury, cost accounting, and accounts payable and get tips for optimizing data flows
• Discover payroll interface design techniques that help drive streamlined integration
• Understand what’s required to process benefits in conjunction with payroll in SAP ERP HCM, including an overview of required configuration and integration

Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.

HR2015 is right around the corner and the Agenda Builder has been released. There are many options at each time slot and choosing can be difficult. Below is the recommended schedule we put together to get the most out of the conference.

March 3, 2015

9:00 AM – Tower Ballroom 2
How moving your HR to the Cloud is like the game “Snakes and Ladders”
Mike Ettling, SAP

Keynote panel: Cloud: What, why, and how
David Ludlow, SAP
Roland Cloutier, ADP
Tony Coyle, Capgemini

11:15 AM – Raphael 3
Field-tested strategies to avoid or overcome the most common and costly payroll and time-related challenges
Mike Timm, Integrated Consulting Group

1:30 PM – Tower Ballroom 8
Case study: Hindsight is 20/20: A look back at United Launch Alliance’s initial SAP payroll and time installation – What they would have done differently if they knew then what they know now!
Linda Crosby, United Launch Alliance
Marty Schmoker, United Launch Alliance

3:00 PM – Tower Ballroom 8
Latest enhancements in SAP ERP HCM self-services: HR Renewal, SAP Fiori, and SAPUI5
Jeremy Masters, Worklogix

4:30 PM – Raphael 3
Integrating payroll with accounting (FI/CO) and benefits: Configuration guidelines and best practices to reduce complexity
Mike Timm, Integrated Consulting Group

 

March 4, 2014

8:30 AM – Da Vinci 3
Field-tested techniques to ensure an effective compensation model
Jeremy Masters, Worklogix

10:30 AM – Tower Ballroom 8
An A-to-Z guide to streamlining HR processes across desktop and mobile devices with SAP Fiori
Martin Gillet, Cogilius bvba

1:00 PM – Raphael 3
Managing payroll claims, garnishments, month-end accruals, and more: Lessons from the trenches
Mike Timm, Integrated Consulting Group

2:30 PM – Tower Ballroom 8
Panel discussion: Payroll Q&A with SAP customers and experts
Moderator: Mike Timm, Integrated Consulting Group
Panelists: Steve Bogner, Insight Consulting Partners; Linda Crosby, United Launch Alliance; Eric Sauerhoefer-Thompson, The Walt Disney Company

4:45 PM – Tower Ballroom 8
A comprehensive guide to US taxes and their impact on payroll operations
Mike Timm, Integrated Consulting Group

 

March 5, 2015

8:30 AM – Da Vinci 3
Advanced customizations for savings plans with SAP
Clay Molinari, C&C Savant

10:30 AM – Tower Ballroom 8
Panel discussion: Answers to FAQs about SuccessFactors Employee Central
Moderator: Steve Bogner, Insight Consulting Partners
Panelists: Jyoti Sharma, HRIZONS; Becky Murray, hyperCision; Luke Marson, Hula Partners; Joachim Foerderer, SAP SE

1:00 PM – Raphael 1
Payroll and benefits integration exposed
Clay Molinari, C&C Savant

3:00 PM – Da Vinci 2
Case study: Lessons learned from HR Focal Point’s implementation of Employee Central Payroll
Graham Wong, HR Focal Point

4:30 PM – Raphael 3
Introducing the SAP Payroll control center add-on: Lessons for enhancing payroll operations with the real-time capabilities of SAP HANA
Ralf Wagner, SAP SE

 

March 6, 2015

8:30 AM – Raphael 1
HR transformation: Options, considerations, and benefits
Martin Gillet, Cogilius bvba
10:00 AM – Raphael 3
Tackling taxability setup and BSI TaxFactory 10.0
Aditya Aggarwal, Terra Information Group11:30 AM – Da Vinci 2
SAP and Concur travel solutions: An overview
Hendrik Vordenbaeumen, SAP SE

Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.