Moving the Data From Legacy to Oracle Fusion

REALITY VERSUS MYTH:

CO-EXISTENCE OF FUSION APPLICATIONS HCM WITH

ORACLE E-BUSINESS SUITE HRMS

A White Paper prepared by IT Convergence presented at Collaborate 13

Author

IT Convergence Fusion Center of Excellence

Copyright

IT Convergence 2013

CO-EXISTENCE OF FUSION APPLICATIONS HCM WITH ORACLE E-BUSINESS SUITE HRMS

IT Convergence White Paper 2 / 16

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 3

Introduction to Fusion Applications ........................................................................................................................................... 3

The principles of Fusion Applications .......................................................................................................................................... 3

Fusion Applications Modularity and Integration Options ............................................................................................................ 4

Co-existence options for Fusion Applications Human Capital Management ............................................................................... 6

HR-to-HR Coexistence ............................................................................................................................................................... 8

File Based Data Loader (FBL) Coexistence .............................................................................................................................. 10

Spreadsheet Loader Solution ................................................................................................................................................... 11

HCM Extracts ............................................................................................................................................................................ 12

Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................................................ 13

HR2HR ............................................................................................................................................................................ 13

HCM Spreadsheet Loader ............................................................................................................................................... 13

HCM File Loader .............................................................................................................................................................. 14

HCM System Extract ........................................................................................................................................................ 14

Dont Walk the Path to Fusion Alone ........................................................................................................................................ 14



EBS-Fusion Applications Coexistence Easy in Theory

Maintaining Oracle E-Business Suite as a One Source of Truth and complementing it with features of Fusion

Applications to provide a Best of Breed solution is a great idea on paper that can be a real challenge to make work in

practice. In addition to being an Oracle solution provider, IT Convergence is also an Oracle end-user, running both the

Oracle E-Business Suite in house alongside Oracle Fusion Applications. We invite you to learn from our first hand

experience with the different co-existence options and why IT Convergence chose the HR2HR approach. This white

paper shares our experience and provides an overview of the technical concepts of each co-existence option, evaluated

for ITCs on-premise installation but also compatible with SaaS implementations.

Introduction to Fusion Applications

Oracle Fusion Applications became generally available in October 2011 and thus began the journey of new business

solution into a territory dominated by big and old players, including multiple products from Oracle, now called

Applications Unlimited (Oracle E-Business Suite, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, and Siebel).

One of the reasons why Oracle built a product from scratch was the need to clearly define its product lines. While this

might have been the most important reason, it was far from the only reason.

Another reason is that today many organizations are embracing service-oriented applications and they want industry-

standard applications platforms and enterprise resource planning systems that adapt to this model. The information

technology industry has moved the paradigm from having all the software in a single suite to running independent best

of breed solutions. And this approach is leading to a world where each system needs to be capable of integrating with

others in the most efficient and cost effective approach.

The adoption of cloud computing for businesses is now reaching maturity. Cloud applications no longer imply high risks

to production, and one of the benefits that the cloud delivers is that ability to deploy new tools in a fast and selective

approach. The options for Fusion Application are: on-premise or in the cloud. But Fusion adopters do not face an

either/or proposition. Because the code is the same, users can seamlessly switch between cloud and on-premise

applications, allowing companies to configure hybrid environments that are tailored to their precise needs.

Finally, the modularity of Fusion Applications allows organizations to deploy exactly what they need and integrate it with

existing IT assets.

The principles of Fusion Applications

Oracle Fusion Applications were built with three game-changing goals in mind: Establishing a new standard for innovation, Establishing a new standard for Work Establishing new Standard for Adoption.



Building a product on open standards allows organizations to lower costs by relying on skills commonly available in the

marketplace and to lower risk by easing integration with other applications, which in turn makes it easier to configure,

maintain and protect all configurations during upgrades.

Companies must adapt quickly to market challenges and the on-premise nature of current ERP systems is difficult to

change and cannot easily be adjusted at a moments notice.

With Fusion Applications, Oracle intends to address these issues by delivering an ERP solution that businesses can

manipulate with simple configuration changes that are instantly applied to all relevant objects, thus adapting to new

business requirements in a timely manner. Oracle is basing these changes on a new platform that has a role-based user

experience, intelligence business processes, and a unified information repository. Every component is built on open

standards such as Java, BPEL, XML, HTML, AJAX, RSS, mobile and others. An example of embedded analytics in

Oracle Fusion can be seen in Illustration 1.

In the past, each individual business software application structured security in a different way. As a result, system

security became a nightmare for those in charge of provisioning and deprovisioning users. Oracle Fusion Applications

has a new security standard built upon a role-based user experience. It is very common for employees in global

organizations to wear multiple hats, and to work effectively they need functionality that not only addresses their various

roles, but also delivers the information needed to make decisions. This functionality of role-based user experience

connects your resources with the right people in order to get the job done.

Ease of adaptability is another key concept behind the Fusion Applications user experience. Capitalizing the E-Business

Suite experience, Oracle decided to focus on adaptability. In the past, even minor modifications needed to be reviewed,

incorporated and tested each time a new patch was applied or a minor upgrade installed, which proved a very time-

consuming task.

The ability to extend Oracle Fusion Applications easily gives end-users a huge advantage. The concept works like this:

Developers build on Fusion Middleware, supported by Fusion Middlewares Metadata Services (MDS), allowing the IT

team to store changed metadata separately from the original metadata. So when patches or upgrades are applied, they

affect only the original metadata. After a patch or upgrade, the changed metadata is reapplied, preserving the changes.

Fusion Applications Modularity and Integration Options

Since the release of Fusion Applications, many organizations have begun including it in their strategic plans, keeping in

mind key objectives such as:

Protecting the investment on Oracle Products Mitigating the risks of upgrading, reimplementing or coexisting Minimizing the interruption of business Getting the most value out of Oracle Fusion Applications

There are two scenarios where Fusion Applications can help organizations meet their needs and support their objectives

based on a co-existence approach.



In the first scenario are organizations that are relatively up-to-date with software releases such as Oracle E-Business

Suite R12.X and have low complexity customizations or extensions (for example, interfaces with third-party systems).

They should consider a phased approach as a strategic roadmap to minimize the risk.

In the second scenario are organizations willing to implement solution components that are not yet available in Fusion

Applications. With co-existence, they can continue to benefit from their existing solutions while taking advantage of new

functionality in Oracle Fusion Applications.

The concept of modularity is key for a phased approach in co-existence with your current Oracle investment. Oracle

Fusion Applications originally comes with 7 families: Oracle Fusion Financial Management, Human Capital

Management, Sales, Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Project Portfolio Management and Governance Risk

Controls. Within each of these families are many new modules, as shown below:

Illustration 1: Oracle Fusion Applications product families

This new concept of co-existence is based on 3 pillars: Financials & Supply Chain Management, Human Capital

Management and CRM Sales.



Illustration 2: Oracle Fusion Applications Co-existence strategy

As part of the Oracle Fusion Applications suite, Oracle provides a number of pre-packaged integrations in the format of:

Real Time Requirements: standardized Web Services, canonical definitions Master Data Synchronization: batch, ETL, ODI.

Some of the out-of-the-box coexistence processes are:

Oracle Fusion Distributed Order Orchestration with Oracle E-Business Suite Order Capture Oracle Fusion Accounting Hub with E-Business Suite Financials Oracle Fusion Shared Spend, Sourcing and Contracts with Oracle E-Business Suite Requisitioning Oracle Fusion Incentive Compensation with Oracle E-Business Suite CRM and HCM

It is very important to understand that there isnt a single integration solution, approach or technology that fits all

integration requirements. However, we will present some tested options that can assist you in evaluating which criteria

can be applied to the integration challenges of your organization and will help you select the right approach and tools for

your specific requirements.

Co-existence options for Fusion Applications Human Capital Management

Oracle Fusion Applications are the only applications that provide preconfigured Talent Management capabilities with

Enterprise Human Resource applications, and can be run in the cloud or on-premise. Primary coexistence processes

include: Oracle Fusion Talent Management and Compensation with Oracle E-Business Suite Human Resources and

Payroll.

There are multiple options for the coexistence strategy that provide choices for different business needs.



Illustration 3: Oracle Fusion Applications HCM coexistence options

Illustration 3 shows the different options that are available to integrate Fusion Applications HCM. These are:

HR-to-HR Interface: delivers the extract, transformation, file transport and intelligent synchronization and exchange of

selective business object data between PeopleSoft Enterprise/E-Business Suite HCM and Fusion HCM.

File Base Data Loader: Initial feed loads full extract of HCM data into Fusion Object Shape.

Spread Sheet Loader: Simplified data loading to Fusion HCM from standard spreadsheets using a flattened row format

for each object. Initial data creation and no support for loading history.

HCM Extracts: creates outbound interfaces for HR and Payroll to another application in coexistence or to 3rd party

service providers with the ability to extract changes only data.

The hybrid landscape with multiple systems and the fast-pace business environment create complex scenarios that call

for IT organizations to elaborate multiple ways of handling information inbound and outbound in a secure and cost-

effective approach.

Illustration 4 shows how Fusion Applications HCM can meet multiple capabilities depending on the implementation and

installation steps.



Illustration 4: Oracle Fusion Applications Integration capabilities

HR-to-HR Coexistence

If your organization is running PeopleSoft HR 8.9 or Oracle E-Business Suite HRMS in Releases 11i, 12.0 & 12.1, and is

wiling to use Fusion Talent or Compensation Workbench before moving to full Fusion HR, this would be the most

suitable coexistence model.

It will allow your application to retain the existing HCM Application as system of record for Core HR Business Objects

and extend the functionality with Fusion Applications HCM modules.

This approach provides a simplified and well-documented setup on your Applications Unlimited and Fusion Applications

HCM, enabling an initial load (full load) of all the data from your source application into Fusion Applications HCM and

also ongoing data synchronization processing for changes (change data capture -CDC).



Illustration 5: Oracle Fusion Applications HR-to-HR Coexistence

Illustration 5 shows some of the objects that are being migrated source-to-target and will be updated on a CDC

approach. It also shows the HR Extract, which will be described later in this paper, as an outbound interface.

The objects being migrated from Applications Unlimited are:

Work Structures Business Units Locations Job Families Jobs Grades Grade Rates Positions Departments Dept Hierarchy Transaction Data Person Work Relationship Workforce compensation Salary Basis Salary Pay Element entries Talent Management Content Items Rating Models Establishments Profiles



File Based Data Loader (FBL) Coexistence

This approach will probably fit organizations that did not invest in Oracles Applications Unlimited or are not willing to do

data transformations.

Illustration 6 shows the Fusion Applications Data Exchange module, which allows loading HCM Data based on the

definitions of the objects to be migrated.

Illustration 6: Oracle Fusion Applications File Base Data Loader (FBL) Coexistence

Some of the required tasks in order to execute coexistence include:

Configuring Oracle E-Business Suite HRMS systems for coexistence Identifying the Business Groups to enable for HCM coexistence solution Importing Oracle Fusion cross-reference data for setup mapping Mapping EBS entities to Oracle Fusion using the WebADI spreadsheets Extracting the EBS data for importing to Oracle Fusion as a zip file Placing the extracted zip file in Oracle Fusion FTP Inbound server and invoking Oracle Fusion Web Service Importing the compensation changes Updating the EBS system with the compensation changes



Illustration 7: Oracle Fusion Applications File Base Data Loader (FBL) Coexistence

Illustration 7 shows the integration of Oracle E-Business Suite HRMS with Oracle Fusion Talent Management using a

coexistence model.

Spreadsheet Loader Solution

A third option to upload data into Fusion Applications HCM is the Spreadsheet Loader Solution, which has some

limitations but can add value to re-implementations.

This is the best choice for loading bulk data into Fusion Apps with a simplified process based on standard spreadsheets

provided by the application. It supports all the objects described in the HR-to-HR coexistence approach and it works only

for data creation, meaning that it is not possible to submit updates.

One of the biggest cons of this coexistence option is that it does not support loading history -which in the Human

Resources world is generally required. Consequently, we would recommend it for limited volumes of data.



HCM Extracts

The latest? tool for coexistence is called HCM Extracts and is very powerful for outbound information. One of the most

common usages is sending payroll information to a third-party system.

Illustration 8: Oracle Fusion Applications HCM Extracts diagram

The HCM Extracts can be used to connect HR and Payroll data with any other application in coexistence, especially

because the capability of extracting changes only, which is very costly in terms of custom development.

Illustration 9: Oracle Fusion Applications HCM Extracts delivery options

1

2

3

4



The HCM Extract permits a fully documented setup for the metadata based extract by allowing proper documentation

and by executing the process either one time or based on a schedule through certain parameter values.

This feature offers a wide variety of uses: complex reporting, employees e-document repository updating, statutory

Reporting, data archiving, varied format output (pdf, csv, eft, xml, Excel etc.) and varied mode output (ftp, email, fax

etc.).

Conclusion

IT Convergence, just like many organizations who have implemented Oracle Solutions, is an advocate of following a co-

existence path towards adopting Oracle Fusion Applications. We realized that sharing the forced upgrade

misconception did not do anything for our IT Strategy and, over the last year, the knowledge transfer helped us switch to

a realistic assessment of the return on our Oracle investment.

A strong requirement in Oracle E-Business Suite and this could be said for any Applications Unlimited is keeping the

solution up-to-date. While this is a responsibility, it also provides unmatched opportunities both to redesign the solution

by extending it with new features and functionalities, and to mitigate risks.

Fusion Applications provides a foundation that allows you to incorporate new functionalities not covered by your current

Oracle (or PeopleSoft, J.D. Edwards/Siebel) ERP solution.

A phased implementation approach, such as the one selected by IT Convergence, combined with an initial coexistence

scenario can provide key benefits and reduce costs and risks while ensuring there is no loss of functionality in existing

Oracle Applications solutions.

As a summary, lets review the coexistence elements of our solution:

HR2HR

Offers a closed solution for coexistence customers only, with end-to-end support to extract, transform, transport & load HCM data between two known HR systems

Ideal for customers using PSoft HR 8.9 or EBS HR 12.0 & 12.1, who want to use Fusion Talent or Compensation Workbench before moving to full Fusion HR

HCM SPREADSHEET LOADER

Offers simplified data loading to Fusion HCM from standard spreadsheets using a flattened row format for each object

Ideal for customers using Fusion HR who want to load HCM data as easily as possible. Works best for limited numbers of records with little or no history. Available since R2 ADFdi version available with R4



HCM FILE LOADER

Offers simplified data loading to Fusion HCM from a csv file using a standard file definition for each business object

Possibility to create and submit changes for one object or all objects Ability to convert selected data from a legacy HR system with full date-effective history Ability to convert selected data with limited history Initial version available with R4 Incremental Merge support scheduled for R7 with backports

HCM SYSTEM EXTRACT

Possibility to extract complex HCM data into an XML file; the file can be transformed and transposed using BI Publisher into required file formats and delivered in various ways to an external 3rd party.

Facilitates very large or complex extract, transform, format, and distributions of data to 3rd party systems. Improves efficiency in interface management with the separation of scheduled extracts to stage and the publishing

of multiple reports from a single extract.

Finally, given this product has only been in the market for a short period of time, to ensure success it is strongly

recommended to involve people with the necessary skills and experience early on the path to Oracle Fusion

Applications.

Dont Walk the Path to Fusion Alone

Oracle Fusion Applications represents the next frontier in Enterprise Resource Planning. And while that statement

implies a certain level of challenge, it also opens the door to opportunity. There are many different paths to Oracle

Fusion Applications, and fortunately you neednt choose nor walk your path alone.

IT Convergence is an Oracle Fusion Applications early adopter and as such we invite you to share in our insights. Check

out our white papers and Power Points weve published based on our own internal use of Oracle, read the latest in our

Oracle Fusion blog, check out our Oracle Fusion Applications consulting services or simply contact us at 1-800-675-

0032 and well be happy to put you in touch with one of our Fusion experts.



LEGAL DISCLAIMER:

The information contained herein should be deemed reliable but not guaranteed. The author has made every attempt to provide current and

accurate information. If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact us: [email protected].

IT Convergence White Paper:

Reality versus Myth: Co-existence of Fusion Applications HCM with Oracle E-Business Suite HRMS

Environments April 2013

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IT Convergence.

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Moving the Data From Legacy to Oracle Fusion