TalenTeam isn’t just fast, they really understand our business. Their deep expertise and collaborative approach help us shape better requirements and get solutions that actually fit.
Comprehensive suite covering every step of the skills transformation journey.
TalenTeam isn’t just fast, they really understand our business. Their deep expertise and collaborative approach help us shape better requirements and get solutions that actually fit.
Your SAP SuccessFactors system is like a warehouse of tools. A lot of skills, AI, profiles and workflows.
The 1H 2025 SAP SuccessFactor release hits and your tools are everywhere with no labels. You don’t know where to start, what’s changed or which updates are most relevant for your SAP SuccessFactors system. You risk losing precious time analysing instead of implementation and miss out on the new features that could make your HR system faster, smarter and more aligned to the business.
It might feel like pure chaos and panic. But with the right checklist and SAP SuccessFactor support and implementation partner you can have a successful result.
This blog walks you through some of the key changes and shares some tips on how to make sure you’re ready for the 1H 2026 SAP release.
SAP SuccessFactors follows a bi-annual release cycle, introducing new features, enhancements, and updates designed to improve HR solutions. Understanding these releases is crucial for organisations to maximise their system capabilities and ensure seamless implementation.
Every year, SAP releases system updates: One in the first half of the year (1H), usually between April and May and one in the second half of the year (2H), between October and November.
Release |
Preview |
Production |
1H 2026 |
13 April 2026 |
15–16 May 2026 |
2H 2026 |
12 October 2026 |
13–14 November 2026 |
Among all the changes happening with the SAP release coming up, one thing to watch out for is:
What does it mean?
Employees and managers see everything expanded, skills, competencies and development plans in a single full view.
The problem:
When the latest People Profile auto-switches full view auto on, your existing Role Based Permissions (RBP) rules suddenly apply to the new expanded layout.
Your risk: Sensitive data (salary, performance ratings, PII) becomes visible to people who shouldn't see it.
Fix: Audit RBP tied to profile sections before May 15 production. Audit now to avoid surprises. Get in touch with TalenTeam for a preview testing.
Role Based permissions (RBP) is SAP SuccessFactors' security framework that controls who sees what across the entire platform.
New 1H 2026 workflows make citizenship status changes automatic and configurable.
Before: Manual updates for citizenship through HR tickets
Now: Citizenship status change auto-triggers correct I-9 workflow
On top of that:
Result: US compliance confidence up, HR tickets down. Book a SAP SuccessFactors health check .
Form I-9 is a mandatory US federal form proving new hires can legally work in the United States. Every US employer must complete it.
SAP SuccessFactors Joule evolves from advisor to executor across Performance & Goals (AI drafts goals, suggests calibration), Career & Talent Development (skills gaps → auto-generated development plans), People Intelligence (succession candidate ranking), and Talent Intelligence Hub (skills matching for internal mobility).
What’s the catch? It requires clean job architecture and skills data first, manager training ("trust but verify"), and premium Joule licensing. We've seen organisations activate with messy skills data and the outcome wasn’t the best. We recommend cleaning your data in preview testing before May production.
These are just some of the changes happening, more information will be shared from SAP around the 30th of March via the “What’s New Viewer”
What you should do now, is to prepare a 4 week checklist like this one:
Week 1 (Apr 13-19):
Week 2 (Apr 20-26):
Week 3 (Apr 27-May 3):
Week 4 (May 4-10):
Or simply let TalenTeam experts handle it to make sure your SAP SuccessFactor system is healthy, ready for new features implementation, and focused on features that matter.
We help you manage your SAP SuccessFactors Releases, turning all the changes into your top 5 priorities, we own your 4 week window and we make sure you’ll have a smooth rollout.
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