Demystifying SAP SuccessFactors Suite Abbreviations and Terms for New Users

[prasannapatilhcm]

For newcomers to the SAP SuccessFactors Suite, grasping abbreviations and their meanings can be challenging. SuccessFactors, with its over two-decade history, has continuously evolved, introducing new modules, terms, abbreviations, acronyms, and buzzletters. Below, I've compiled a helpful list for new clients, consultants, or end-users. Please be aware that these abbreviations may change over time, with new ones being added and old ones continuing to be used, while some may become obsolete. Please forgive any omissions

If any explanation isn't clear or needs improvement, please message me privately. I'll review and update it. I aimed to keep it concise and simple for beginners.

The following terms are commonly utilized by members of the functional team.

Abbrv.,	Definition	Brief Explanation
360	360 / Multi-Rater	Allows integration of self-feedback with anonymous input from colleagues and external sources for a holistic employee performance evaluation.
ATS	Applicant Tracking System	It’s a feature and part of the broader Recruitment module helps streamline the recruitment process
CDP	Career Development Planning	Empowers employees with diverse development opportunities and career planning, while offering managers standardized tools to monitor their team's progress
CMP	Compensation	Optimize workforce compensation align compensation programs with business goals, enhancing individual and business performance through personalized rewards
CoC	Center of Capabilities	Offers a structured approach for cataloging and assigning essential employee attributes such as skills and competencies within your organization.
EC	Employee Central	Centralized system for managing employee information, such as personal details, job history, organizational structure, time off, and other HR-related data.
ECP	Employee Central Payroll	Streamlines payroll management tasks such as processing payroll, handling taxes, etc. by automating payment processing
ECSC	Employee Central Service Center	HR service delivery system, featuring an integrated knowledge base for personalized HR policy data & communication with the HR help desk via phone or email within the platform
EP	Employee Profile	Centralizes employee information, including personal details, job history, skills, and performance data, enhancing HR management efficiency and decision-making
EX	Employee Experience	Offering automated, AI-driven insights and action plans, our solution facilitates informed decision-making for enhancing employee engagement, productivity, and retention.
GM	Goal Management	Facilitates the alignment of individual goals with company objectives, ensuring employees and managers focus on priority tasks
HCM	Human Capital Management	Cloud-based HCM software suite encompassing core HR, payroll, talent management, HR analytics, workforce planning, and employee experience management
HXM	Human Experience Management	HXM emphasizes enhancing the experiences of employees, customers, and stakeholders, while HCM prioritizes managing and nurturing people.
JPB	Job Profile Builder	Empowers users to construct comprehensive job profiles comprising various content types and establish families and roles
JRDM	Job Requisition Data Model	Families and Roles necessary for organizing jobs into a hierarchy, utilizing job families, roles within these families, and optionally, job codes linked to each role
LMS	Learning Management Solution	Empower individuals for the future by leveraging innovative capabilities that drive skills management, learning, and development.
MDF	Metadata Framework	A platform within an application for easily creating new, uncomplicated apps without the need for coding.
OMP	Opportunity Marketplace	Focuses on recognizing employees' holistic selves and individual capabilities. It facilitates goal achievement by aligning individuals with opportunities that match their aspirations
ONB	Onboarding	Simplify employee onboarding, cross-boarding, offboarding, and rehire programs with one comprehensive solution.
PM	Performance Management	Tool for optimizing performance appraisal processes and aligning individual goals with organizational objectives
PMGM	Performance & Goal Management	Assist in aligning strategy and goals, enhancing employee performance via continuous coaching and feedback, and acknowledging top talent
RCM	Recruiting Management	Manages the core recruiting processes. Increasing recruitment efficiency empowers to attract, engage, and hire talent seamlessly. Key features job posting, candidate sourcing, applicant tracking, and interview scheduling.
REC	Recruiting	Focuses on the entire recruiting process, from sourcing candidates to onboarding, and includes features like job postings, candidate management, interview scheduling, and offer management
RPB	Role-Based Permissions	Allocate access and actions based on predefined roles, ensuring tailored and secure system usage. Each role is tailored to specific job functions or responsibilities within an organization
RMK	Recruiting Marketing	Its a tool for creating and distributing employer branding content to attract top talent, manage job postings, and engage with candidates effectively.
RPOS	Recruiting Posting	Allows to access the expanding job board marketplace to post job and internship offers across various platforms, manage listings efficiently, and analyze performance metrics.
S&D	Succession & Development	Identifying and developing talent within organizations to ensure smooth leadership transitions and foster career growth opportunities
SFSF	SuccessFactors	SFSF was the stock ticker for SuccessFactors prior to its acquisition by SAP and is the most commonly used abbreviation, especially among HRIT veterans.
SP	Succession Planning	Identify and develop internal talent to fill key roles within the company. assessing  skills and competencies, and creating development plans to prepare them for future positions or critical roles
TT	Time Tracking	Enables organizations to effectively manage and track employee time and attendance. It streamline time recording, approval processes, and compliance with labor laws and company policies
OM	Opportunity Marketplace	For internal talent mobility. It allows to creation of a marketplace where employees can explore new career opportunities within the company. Helps match employees with open positions based on their skills
VAR	Variable Pay	Facilitates incentive compensation management by aligning employee performance with rewards through variable pay plans
WFA	Workforce Analytics	Tool that provides insights into workforce data, enabling organizations to make informed decisions regarding talent management and strategy. It helps analyze trends, predict future outcomes, and optimize workforce performance
WFP	Workforce Planning	Tool that helps organizations forecast future workforce needs and align talent strategies with business goals, facilitating better workforce management and decision-making

The following terms are commonly utilized by members of the technical team. Technical Section is WIP

Abbrv.,	Definition	Brief Explanation
SaaS	Software-as-a-Service	SaaS is the delivery of SuccessFactors over the internet or in the cloud with no need to install, maintain, or host software on-site
PaaS	Platform-as-a-Service	PaaS is a complete cloud environment that includes everything developers need to build, run, and manage applications—from servers and OS to all the networking, storage, middleware etc
IaaS/iPaaS	Integration-as-a-Service	is a suite of cloud services enabling development, execution of integration flows connecting any combination of on-premises and cloud-based processes, services, applications, and data
SFSFAPI	SuccessFactors Application programming interface	is a set of protocols that enable different software components to communicate and transfer data. SuccessFactors OData APIs is a standardized protocol for creating and consuming data APIs.
Odata	Open Data Protocol	is a standardized protocol that builds on core protocols like HTTP, and commonly accepted methodologies like REST. The result is a uniform way to expose full-featured data APIs
API	Application Programming Interface	is a set of rules and protocols for building and interacting with software applications
HCI	SAP HANA Cloud Integration	tool kit used for synchronization and contains features, pre-packaged content to develop and configure integration flows, enabling data integration between on-premise and cloud applications.
BTP	SAP Business Technology Platform	previously called SAP Cloud Platform (SCP) technology platform that brings together data and analytics, AI, application development, automation, and integration in one, unified environment
SSO	Single Sign-On	is a session and user authentication service that permits a user to use one set of login credentials
UDF	User Data File	is a comma-separated value (. csv) file and is used to add or change data for one or more employees at a time
SOAP	Simple Object Access Protocol	can establish connectivity between the SAP cloud solution and a remote application by setting up an external Web service integration scenario using SOAP, which is an XML-based protocol for exchanging structured information through Web services.