Compensation Workbench - Recap of Enhancements (until 12.1 RUP7)

At the outset, a disclaimer is due - this article is a report from a presentation from Oracle HR User Group 2014.

My intent behind putting up this article is to serve as a starting point for folks who have implemented Compensation Workbench may be 2-3 years back, and are just getting started to implement or support another CWB client. Obviously, this article will start to get dated and will need revisions as newer versions are out. But for now, here it is, served fresh straight from the grill:

Recap of Recent Releases	New Features
R12.1 HRMS RUP7 (Released May 2014)	1.Optionally Disable Drill Down Link in Online Total Compensation Statements 2.Position Title added to Total Compensation Statements 3.Download/Upload Comments to Spreadsheet
R12.1 HRMS RUP6* (Released May 2013) *Also included in Release 12.2.3	1.Email Employee Compensation Statements & Total Compensation Statements 2.Compensation Detail Report - Enhanced Performance 3.Back Out CWB Postprocess
R12.1 HRMS RUP4 (Released June 2011)	1.Spreadsheet Download option added to audit & other reports 2.Run Back-out Compensation Workbench Life Events for Single Employee 3.Suppress In Progress Compensation from Displaying Employee History 4.Download Proposed Grade Range, Midpoint & Comparatio to Spreadsheet
Release 12.1.3 (Released July 2010)	1.View Performance and Promotion History Popup in Worksheet 2.Control “Look Back” Period for Viewing Employee Appraisals in Worksheet 3.Post Zero Salary Increases 4.Refresh Plan, Employee and Summary Data from CWB Home Page

For more information, see MOS Document 1557244.1 - Oracle Compensation Release Notes, Release 12.1 HRMS RUP7

Here's whats next: 
Release 12.2.4 is targeted for a release in 2014. This includes digitally signed email statements and UI enhancements to improve CWB user experience.

What is the difference between SIT and EIT

I have heard of this question so often (including today), that I have decided it is worth investing the time to put up a blog on this. Before I go forward, it is worth pointing out that SITs pre-date EITs. From what I recall, EITs were not introduced until 11i.

So, here is the difference between Special Information Types (SIT) and Extra Information Types (EIT):

Property	SITs (Special Information Types)	EITs (Extra Information Types)
Screen usage	SIT's are primarily attached to people. (They can also be used with Jobs and Positions)	EIT's can be attached to following screens: - People e.g. - My Passport Information - Assignment e.g. - Daily Work Schedule - Location e.g. - US Government Reporting - Organization (via a classification) - Job - Position - Element Types, etc.
Date Information	The SIT form has NATIVE Start Date and End Date fields	EIT forms do not have native Start Date and End Date fields Typically, we would 'reserve' two EIT segments to store Start Date and End Date across any EIT. E.g. say ATTRIBUTE29 and ATTRIBUTE30
Security	SITs can be restricted so that they can be viewed only by responsibilities having specific Menu. For example, to control access to Compensation related SITs, we build two separate Menus - SALARY Menu and NO SAL Menu; then select the appropriate menu to restrict access to SITs	EITs can be restricted to be viewed only by specific Responsibility. For example, if you want to store highly sensitive data that should be visible by only one or two top level responsibilities, this is easily accomplished using an EIT (To achieve same result using an SIT, a separate Menu needs to be built each time, resulting in a large number of Menus, which can be increase complexity and maintenance)
Folders	SIT's have a folder that you can query to match certain criteria. Nav: View> Lists> People by Special Information	EIT's do not have a pre-defined folder
Enabling the structure	SIT has to be enabled individually for each Business Group	Once configured, an EIT is available across all business groups. To access the EIT, it just needs to be attached to a Responsibility.
Field Structure	For each SIT, you can define up to 30 fully validated segments of information	For each EIT, you can have up to 30 fully validated segments of information. In addition, you can define 20 additional DFF segments on the EIT
Structure Type	SIT's are a type of Key Flexfields (KFFs)	EIT's are a type of Descriptive Flexfield (DFFs)
Data Storage	When you create new segment combinations, the system will first check to see whether that combination already exists in the table before creating a row. If the combination does exist, the system only retrieves the ID of the row it found. The system therefore has to scan through the whole SIT combinations table. If this is very large, performance could be an issue.	When you create new segment combinations, the row is just inserted into the appropriate table (without checking whether the combination already exists). There is no full scan of the underlying table and so performance isn't affected by the size of the table. Thus, EIT's have advantages in large scale or global implementations
Key Advantages	Can be restricted by Menus. For example, if there is a Salary related SIT, we can ensure that responsibilities having NO SALARY menus cannot access this SIT (There is no easy way to accomplish this for EITs)	1. Can be accessed on multiple screens like assignment, people, etc. 2. EITs have the flexibility to be defined as Single Row (i.e. each employee can have only one row of data) or Multi-Row (Such restriction is not possible using SITs) 3. Can be restricted by legislation code. For example - US Union EIT is restricted such that it can be attached only to Business Groups using US Legislation
Disadvantages	Every unique combination of fields is stored as separate "Definition". When saving an SIT record, the Application first checks whether the combination already exists in the table. Therefore, if number of records is very large, SITs require more processing time.	Every time a new Responsibility is created, EITs have to be separately attached to the Responsibility

If there are other differences you want to know about, or you want to contribute on, please leave a comment and I will make sure I include that in the blog. 

OBIEE vs. BI Publisher vs. Polaris Reporting Workbench

I was recently asked - how can you explain to a user about the difference between OBIEE, BI Publisher and Polaris Reporting Workbench to a business user in simple terms. More specifically, how would you assess the business situation of a client and suggest one of the three reporting tools mentioned below.

I asked a few people around about their opinion, did some research (a.k.a. Google Search) and tried to put down some key features which I hope will highlight the key differences between what these products can offer.

Read on ... and I will be happy to hear your feedback via comments:

Feature	OBIEE	BI Publisher	Reporting Workbench
In brief?	Dynamic and interactive ad-hoc reporting capabilities; dashboard type reporting.	Meant for operational reporting, not analytical reporting. Mainly for creation of pixel perfect operational reports (where (say) the space between each line has to be specific, the colors, the fond and layouts among all the fields have to be arranged in specific ways.)	Self Service solution for real-time Operational Intelligence; integrated with EBS and BI Publisher to produce pixel perfect reports
Audience	Upper management and middle management	Line Managers and operational staff	A broad spectrum: From operational staff to upper level management (via dashboards)
Main Features	1. Hierarchy Drilling 2. Graphical Reporting (Charts, Pivots, Gauges, etc) 3. Ad Hoc Analysis 4. Actionable framework	1. Pixel perfect reports (e.g. Payment Summary, Invoice, etc.) 2. Scheduled Report Generation 3. Once the underlying data extraction logic is ready, the output can be produced in a variety of formats - .pdf, excel, word, etc. 4. Document bursting available	1. Deliver real time ad-hoc reports and Business Analytics to users and Executives 2. Comes with 700+ ready-to-use reports across Oracle HCM, Financials and Supply Chain modules 3. Report output in a variety of formats 4. Run right away or schedule for later 5. Advanced Document bursting features allowing users to set up single reports to be automatically sliced and diced, and then emailed to the appropriate users. (For example, notify all supervisors regarding their employees – run a single reports and it will automatically slice the reports and send to their respective supervisors)
User Interactivity	Interactivity underpins OBIEE. Allows users to dynamically change queries on the dashboard as well as interacting with other areas on the dashboard through action links.	There is no concept of real user interactivity	Advanced Data Visualizations, including Dashboards and Drill to Detail
Real-time information	Time-delayed, depending on refresh frequency. Not suited where real-time reports are needed	Real-time (if used as part of EBS)	Real-time
Integration with EBS	Can be designed to pull data from a variety of sources, including EBS	BI Publisher is a part of OBIEE as well as EBS	Out of box
Benefits	1. Once the underlying data model is designed, the rich user interface makes this a very able tool for end users to present data 2. Reduces time to produce reports, enabling more time to analyse the results 3. Provides “Actionable Insight” i.e. it Highlights where action is required 4. Enterprise grade reporting tool, which can consume data from various sources and enable a Single Version of the Truth across the enterprise	Format pixel perfect output in specific ways, provide support for multiple outputs, allows output bursting. However, it does not have the ability to drill down. * * I stand corrected on the ability to drill down. Pankaj Nawghare pointed out that the Oracle Data Sheet specifically mentions that BI Publisher has a drill down ability. Thanks Pankaj!	1. Sits directly on top of Oracle E-business suite requiring no additional hardware. 2. Administrators and end users access the tool and its capabilities directly from Oracle EBS, meaning less training costs and a higher end user adoption rate. 3. Does not require an additional layer of security, leveraging your Oracle security directly from the box.
Technology	The framework for OBIEE comes from the erstwhile best-of-breed Siebel Analytics product.	BI Publisher was originally a different application, which is now part of OBIEE. The best way to put it is, BI Publisher is another technology that has been integrated with OBIEE, so now the two are both parts of Oracle Business Intelligence. BI Publisher is also available in EBS.	Built using OA Framework, so completely compatible with EBS.
Implementation Tips	A full-fledged OBIEE implementation requires careful thought and planning and cross department co-ordination. Unless there is clearly defined reporting outcome, undertaking a full-fledged OBIEE implementation project rarely yields the business benefits to justify the investment. In such cases, an incremental approach is recommended. 1. Run a small POC 2. Identify the benefits to your organisation, but don’t ‘boil the ocean’ – Keep work packages small enough to get regular delivery 3. Use OBIEE experienced Business Analysts 4. Work with the end users in an ‘Agile / RAD’ way In short, OBIEE implementation is a full scale project.	Unlike OBIEE, which imposes a Kimball methodology in modeling its central model, BI Publisher will let you use any old SQL as the basis for a “data model.” In the hands of non-technical users, this is a recipe for disaster in terms of maintenance costs and overall durability of those reports over time.	Plug and Play solution – installs in less than 3 hours with an implementation plan of less than 2 weeks (includes installation, setups and training).

So then the question:  Which component should I use for my work?

	OBIEE	BI Publisher	Reporting Workbench
Q. Send a daily report in a fixed format to senior management, updated with the latest data?		Schedule report and send by email	Schedule report and send by email
Q. Give teams a set of standard reports that highlight issues on KPI’s	Create a standard set of reports (using Answers) and place these on Team dashboards.		Publish a dashboard using a standard set of reports.
Q. Create Pixel perfect documents?		Use BI Publisher (using EBS) to produce reports	XML output allows creation of such reports
Q. Improve Data Quality?	1. Expose as much data as possible in the dashboards. Do not hide ‘odd’ data. 2. Make sure that all senior management reports come from the OBIEE system.(This will also aid user adoption)
Q. Run a daily Invoice run		1. Use BI Publisher on the latest financial data
Q. Store Reports for Audit Purposes		1. Use Delivers to email a copy of a report or dashboard to a storage account 2. Use Briefing Books to store data 3. Save a report in PDF or HTML format and save in a share drive	Define Delivery Channel to schedule report output to be send via email in a variety of formats
Q: Show Trending information		No	No