In the SAP SuccessFactors H1 2020 release, you have the option to upgrade to the latest Continuous Performance Management (CPM) tool. The new CPM is an Admin Opt-in upgrade that can be done in the Admin Center through the configuration settings of CPM. Before you complete this update, there are some things you should know.

What’s Different in the Latest SAP SuccessFactors CPM Upgrade

The latest CPM has a new user interface and limited capabilities. Here are some noticeable differences from the previous version:

  • The Other Topics area has been relabeled to Discussion Topics. This small change will most likely go unnoticed by most.
  • The Coaching Advice section and Feedback requests are not currently available. These two items may have a more significant impact depending on your current configuration and business process.
  • Currently, linking to Development goals is not available.
  • One of the first items you will notice in the new version is the Activities default page has more of a bin view with drag and drop capability. This experience will allow users to make quick updates to Activities. Another one of the new features now available in the latest CPM is Meeting Notes. This new area within CPM allows both the Manager and Employee to save notes.
  • Notes are only visible to the user who entered them. When a meeting is captured, the notes are captured as well, regardless of the user who entered them but still only visible to the user who entered the notes.
  • You will also notice a change in the way you navigate to previously captured meetings. Instead of scrolling endlessly backward, you now have a list of meeting dates to navigate to a specific meeting date.
CPM upgrade continuous performance management H1 2020
The new My Activities page in the latest CPM update.

What’s Next for SAP SuccessFactors CPM Upgrades

What can we expect in terms of Continuous Performance Management upgrades for the H2 2020 release? Gaps will be closed for some of the restricted items noted above. Other items we may see include enhancements such as linking to multiple goal plans and capturing meetings with someone other than your Direct Manager.

If you are asking yourself, should we upgrade now or wait, consider this: If you are new to CPM and you are not planning to use CPM for collecting Feedback, this new version of CPM will be suitable.

Keep in mind improvements are coming in the H2 2020 Release. If you are currently using CPM and utilize the Feedback features, Coaching Advice, or linking to development goals, then you might consider waiting until the H2 2020 Release. This will prevent you from losing some of the functionality you are currently using.

You may also want to consider the timing of your upgrade to the latest CPM. An upgrade will require end-user training and may work best at the beginning of a cycle. Lastly, if you enable the latest CPM version and decide it is not the version you want to use, you can easily revert to the previous version.

Eventually, the latest CPM will match and exceed the functionality of the previous version, coupled with a more user-friendly experience. If you do make a move, improvements to the new version will make it well worth the effort.

For more on the latest CPM release, check out our LinkedIn Live session covering the SAP SuccessFactors H1 2020 Performance Management release: