Day: January 20, 2018

Hi,

This is Srinivas Dayana, Working for Cognizant Technology Solutions. I have 10 years of experience in BW and ABAP. I am working on SAP HANA for the past 4 years. As part of the Project requirement, we are currently Simplify few Processes and even want to use the optimised BW objects like ADSO and Composite Provider which will ease the migration from BW 7.4 to BW 7.5.

Summary:

As part of the Project requirement we have build a new data model using the ADSO and Composite Providers and we came across the scenario where there are almost 100 workbooks which are created by Business and all the workbooks will be effected when we switch from old Model to New Data model and Business have to recreate all the workbooks again which will effect Business reporting. So we are using the below conversion tool to convert the Multiprovider to Composite Provider and then enhance the Composite provider with the newly created composite provider so that none of the Queries will be effected and there will not be any impact on the workbooks which will save  lot of time for the business users.

Key Outcomes:

* Easy conversion of Multiprovider to Composite Provider
* Pros of using the below conversion tools
* Points to remember while using the approach

Introduction: We have Business scenario to convert the old BW Multiproviders to Composite Provider, so that we can use some additional functionalities like Join and perform operations on top of the existing MPRO’s. Business has so many Queries and Workbooks that are created on the same and we don’t want to change the existing Reports and Workbooks as that may have impact on the Business reporting.

This Conversion method will ease the Process of converting the Multiproviders to Composite provider with out having impact on Queries and Workbook.

The Below is the step by step Procedure to convert multiprovider to composite Provider:

Step 1: Create a new multiprovider for testing purpose

Step 2: Select the required sources for the multiprovider

Step 3: Identify the Fields that are required and the source from which the data should be populated for the field

Step 4: Activate the Multiprovider

Step 5: Execute the program RSO_CONVERT_IPRO_TO_HCPR

Step 6: Select the Infoprovider which we want to convert to Composite Provider. In this case we will use the multiprovider, which we have created for the test purpose.

Step 7: In the above screenshot , provide the name of the composite provider

* If we want the infoprovider name and the composite provider name to be same then give the same name as the Infoprovider
* We can also give a new name depending on the requirement

*In this case we want to create the Composite provider with the same name, as none of the existing Queries or Workbooks will not get effected.

Step 8: We cannot execute the above Program without giving backup provider name

Step 9: Provide the Backup infoprovider name  and execute in Simulate mode to check whether the Infoprovider can be converted to Composite provider or not.

Step 10: if there are no errors then we can go ahead with the conversion of Multiprovider to  a Composite Provider

Step 11: Execute the Program providing all the required Inputs and use the setting “Convert Infoprovider and copy Queries”

Step 12: Select the required Queries that we want to backup.

Step 13: Select the Required fields for the Queries

Step 14: Provide the Backup Query name, we cannot give the Query name same as the Backup Query  name, in the below example the report 3 will give the error as we have given the same name

Step 15: Provide the proper backup Query name and Proceed

Step 16: Check if there are no errors and confirm

Step 17: Multiprovider is now converted to a Composite Provider

Step 18: Open Query Designer and check for the Target and we can see one set of actual Queries and another set of Backup Queries

Step 19: Test the report before and after the changes

*Output of Query on multiprovider

*Output of Query on Composite Provider

Note: If we collect all the changes in the same Transport then we need to import the changes twice and if everything works fine and if we want to delete the Backup Queries, collect the Queries in separate Transport and import them separately.

The conversion is successful and in case of issues and we need to restore back to the old MPRO , please execute step 20.

Step 20: If the Conversion has some issues and the reports are not working fine we have setting to restore the backup. Select the setting “Restore backup” so that we will be converting back to the Old MPRO.

Note: The setting should be same as the setting during conversion. We need to Provide the exact same setting that we have provided when we have initially converted the Multiprovider to Composite provider or else Restore will not work, so make sure we have backup of the settings. We always need to select the Overwrite Existing HCPR option while doing the restore backup option

Step 21: We can see the Composite provider is set back again to multiprovider

Benefits of this Approach

* Easy Conversion of Multiprovider to Composite provider
* None of the Queries will be effected due to the conversion from Multiprovider to Composite provider
* Use the additional functionalities of composite provider
* None of the workbooks created on the Queries will be effected, so there will not be much impact on the Business due to the conversion

Hope this post is useful and i will update further post on SAP BW and SAP HANA when i have some new learning. http://bit.ly/2DRe7RI #SAP #SAPCloud #AI

First, I used Lumira 1.31.9 Desktop to screen scrape the SAP Inside Track wiki

I manually entered the region and country – here are the data fields:

Month
City
Country
Region
Count

Of course, using Country I had to create a Geographic Hierarchy on the country – I decided to skip the city as Lumira didn’t recognize cities such as “Ballerup”

You can see that Brazil, Germany, and Australia held the most SAP Inside Tracks in 2017

Here is another clearer version of the map:

Counts by region are shown below:

Europe has the most.  North America is the lowest as ASUG has 38 chapters spanning the United States and Canada – I would expect to have fewer SAP Inside Tracks in North America as a result.  This year I attended ASUG chapter meetings myself.  I participated virtually in SAP Inside Track Bangalore thanks to the efforts of Shilpa Krishnaswamy

Of course, to have fun (there’s no visualization benefit to this) is to show animation of SAP Inside Tracks by month:

Another geo-pie map – there’s no visualization benefit here either, but more for a learning experience:

Because I was using Lumira 1.31.9, I wanted to try the “save for migration” feature:

How would this file act in Lumira Discovery?  I encountered this message:

A hard stop error…

I had to change the maps to offline maps:

And more confirmation shown above

Not all the maps converted as I would have liked, so I started over.

Lower left is the animation, and what is new is the marker map in the lower right.

On another canvas it was easy to filter on locations/cities with more than 1 SAP Inside Track in 2017 – shown above.

Reading Stephanie Evergreen’s book on visualization, I know that the above doesn’t display the data adequately – perhaps that is for another post…still it interesting to see how Lumira reflects the data on the maps.

So what is your take on SAP Inside Tracks 2017? http://bit.ly/2DTyH3V #SAP #SAPCloud #AI

Are you looking forward to everything 2018 will bring to your organization? Are you excited about making changes that will improve your company across the board? Are you hoping to adjust your HR strategy to bring more benefits to your workforce?

It goes without saying that there are many ways to improve an HR strategy. Even when everything appears to be in place, there’s always something you can do to ensure a higher level of success down the road.

The use of SuccessFactors, for example, can go a long way in changing the way you think about and approach human resources.  

Here are just a few of the many ways SuccessFactors can lead to a better HR strategy in 2018:

* More Success with Recruiting

According to Employment Background Investigations, the average job opening attracts approximately 250 resumes.

While it’s a good thing when you receive a large number of applications for an open position, it can also lead to trouble when making a final decision.

If you want to achieve more success with recruiting, SuccessFactors makes it easier to source and engage with the most talented professionals in your industry.

* Top Notch Technology

Are you struggling to better understand how to implement technology within your HR department? Is this something that has held your company back in the past?

With the use of SuccessFactors, it’s easier than ever to implement technology that has an impact on your organization as a whole.

In addition to traditional HR technology, it’s often up to workers in this department to decide on new ways of doing things.

For instance, a growing number of companies are learning more about 99 Bitcoins, as they’re considering the idea of paying employees in this manner.

One of the largest companies in Japan will begin to pay employees part of their salary in Bitcoin come February 2018. If you have any plans on taking this step – or a similar one – in the future, you need to have the right technology and systems in place.

* Time and Attendance Management

When it comes to time and attendance management, there is no room for error. You know employees will take time off every now and again, so it’s imperative to implement a system for tracking this.

According to Gusto, the average employee receives 10 days of paid vacation per year.

Without the right approach to time and attendance management, you could soon find the HR department in disarray.

As long as a worker has time off available, it doesn’t matter if they spend it watching People You May Know or shopping on JUUL online. What does matter, however, is that you have the right system in place for tracking everything.

* Training

It’s one thing to hire a new employee, but another thing entirely to train this person to do his or her job.

When it comes to learning and development, SuccessFactors can be the difference between success and failure.

If you don’t have a training system in place, you may soon find that your new hires aren’t in a position to succeed.

Get this: Forbes notes that it costs approximately $1,200 to train a new hire. This may not be money you want to spend, but it’s better than the alternative.

Pinpoint Problem Areas

Even if things are going smoothly in your HR department, it doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. As you take a closer look, you may come to find that there are a few areas that deserve your attention.

Once you pinpoint problem areas, you can then decide which solution is best. Some areas that may require your attention include:

* Recruiting top talent
* Training
* Benefits and compensation
* Technology
* Workplace planning and analytics
* Health and wellbeing

Maybe you need to focus on one of these areas. Or maybe you need to focus on all of them. As long as you know what deserves your attention, you can make the necessary changes.

Final Thoughts

It’s good to know that there are things you can do to improve your HR strategy in 2018. It’s not always easy to make changes, but once you take the first step forward everything will come together.

What are your thoughts on the current state of your HR department? Do you have reason to believe that a few changes could go a long way in making things better for your company? Share your personal approach to HR strategy in the comment section below. http://bit.ly/2mUZ01t #SAP #SAPCloud #AI

ICYMI: API documentation is the number one pain point for developers trying to understand what is going on with an API, as they work to get up-and-running, consuming the resources they possess. From many discussions I’ve had with API providers, it is also a pretty big pain point for many API developers when it comes to trying to keep up to date, and delivering value to consumers. Thankfully, API documentation has been being driven by API definitions like OpenAPI for a while, helping keep things up to date and in sync with changes going on behind the scenes. The challenge for many groups who are only doing OpenAPI to produce documentation, is that if the OpenAPI isn’t used across the API lifecycle, it will often be forgotten, recreating that timeless challenge with API documentation.

Thankfully, in the last year or so, I’m beginning to see more API documentation solutions emerge, getting us beyond the Swagger UI age of docs. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful for what Swagger UI has done, but, then, I’m finding it to be very difficult to get people beyond the idea that OpenAPI (formerly known as Swagger) isn’t the same thing as Swagger UI, and that the only reason you generate API definitions is to get documentation. There are a number of API documentation solutions to choose from in 2018, but Swagger UI still remains a viable choice for making sure your APIs are properly documented for your consumers. https://goo.gl/csgkG6 #DataIntegration #ML