SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting: Understanding the Key Differences Between the Legacy Candidate and Latest Applicant Workbenches
In the world of talent acquisition, staying ahead of the curve is crucial, particularly when it comes to the tools you use. SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting has been continuously evolving, and one of the most significant changes in recent has been the redesign of the Candidate Workbench. This update is part of a broader effort to enhance the user experience for both recruiters and applicants.
The new Applicant Workbench offers a more modern, streamlined approach to managing applicants. But how does it compare to the legacy Candidate Workbench? In this article, I’ll break down the key differences between the two workbenches so you can better understand how these changes might impact your recruiting processes – especially if you’re already using SAP SuccessFactors Recruiting and are planning to switch to the latest Applicant Workbench.
1. User Interface and Experience
Legacy Candidate Workbench: The legacy version was relatively straightforward but could feel clunky and less intuitive, especially when managing multiple candidates or switching between different stages in the recruiting process.
Latest Applicant Workbench: The new Applicant Workbench offers a cleaner, more modern interface. It’s designed to be more user-friendly, with easier navigation between candidate applications and a streamlined experience for managing candidate statuses and feedback.
2. Applicant List Management and Filtering
Legacy Candidate Workbench: In the legacy workbench, filtering applicants was possible but less dynamic. You could filter by basic attributes, but the filtering process required more manual input and was not as responsive as it could be. Also, multiple filters could not be applied as easily, which sometimes resulted in less efficient candidate management.
Latest Applicant Workbench: The new Applicant Workbench takes filtering to the next level. You can now dynamically refine the applicant list using a variety of criteria like status (e.g., “New Application”), previous employment, educational background, and even keywords in resumes and cover letters. Facets for picklist items such as Country/Region also allow users to see the number of applicants for each attribute, helping recruiters make quicker, data-driven decisions.
In addition, the latest workbench provides keyword search capabilities across resumes, cover letters, and screening questions, offering greater precision when reviewing applicants.
3. Candidate Detail View
Legacy Candidate Workbench: In the legacy Candidate Workbench, viewing detailed information about a candidate involved navigating between different tabs and sections. While functional, it required more clicks to access various data points, which could be time-consuming, especially when managing a large pool of applicants.
Latest Applicant Workbench: The new workbench introduces a more unified and expandable application view. When selecting a candidate, the detail view opens directly with tabs organized into clear sections (e.g., applicant information, activity, comments). Information such as screening details, application status, and resume content are all displayed on the same screen, which significantly improves accessibility and ease of use. You can also compare applicants by selecting multiple candidates, making it easier to assess different candidates at the same time.
4. New Features and Capabilities
Legacy Candidate Workbench: The legacy workbench provided a standard set of features such as status management, applicant history, and basic candidate details, but it lacked more advanced functionality that modern recruitment teams often need.
Latest Applicant Workbench: The redesigned Applicant Workbench introduces several new features that provide more flexibility and control for recruiters. For instance:
- Better visual distinctions between different types of applicants (internal, external, agency).
- Agency-submitted candidates are now included in the list with an agency icon, allowing recruiters to easily distinguish them.
- The ability to view and download resumes and cover letters directly from the workbench without having to open separate files.
- Comments and status updates are visually highlighted, making it easier to keep track of progress and requirements for each candidate.
5. Reporting and Analytics:
Legacy Candidate Workbench: While basic reporting was available, it was often difficult to extract insights on recruiting efficiency or candidate pipeline health without custom reporting.
Latest Applicant Workbench: The new version integrates advanced analytics and reporting capabilities, providing real-time insights into the recruitment process, allowing HR teams to track key metrics and make more data-driven decisions.
6. Limitations (or Challenges) of the New Workbench
While the latest Applicant Workbench is a major step forward, it’s important to be aware of its limitations and challenges, as SAP has confirmed that the rollout of this new workbench will be incremental to ensure a smooth transition.
- Learning Curve: Existing users may experience an adjustment period as they get accustomed to the new interface, especially given the expanded functionality.
- Potential Bugs: As with any new tool or enhancement, the broader user base may uncover unexpected bugs, which may need to be reported to SAP for resolution.
Conclusion
The transition from the legacy Candidate Workbench to the latest Applicant Workbench offers numerous advantages, from a redesigned, more user-friendly interface to advanced filtering, dynamic list management, and streamlined actions. While the new workbench introduces significant improvements, it’s important to be mindful of the learning curve and any limitations that might affect your specific use cases. Although SAP has not yet announced an official date for the deprecation of the legacy workbench, it’s highly likely that it will eventually be phased out.
As such, this is an excellent time for organizations to begin exploring the new workbench and taking full advantage of its capabilities. If you’re considering a new implementation, I highly recommend jumping straight into the latest Applicant Workbench. This will not only future-proof your recruiting processes but also ensure you’re leveraging the most advanced tools available to streamline and optimize your talent acquisition efforts. And finally, if you are already in SAP Recruiting but are looking to optimize your module and take advantage not only of the redesigned workbench but many other latest features, do get in touch with us at Gavdi. Our Optimization and Advisory services can help support you through this transition.
About the Author:
Barbara is an Associate Director and SAP SuccessFactors Senior Consultant at Gavdi Group, based in their central London office. She specializes in HR technology, solution optimization, and business consulting. Barbara has been helping organizations implement and optimize their strategic HR solutions for over 12 years, working across a wide variety of industry sectors