May 2022 Update

Revision History

This document will continue to evolve as existing sections change and new information is added. All updates appear in the following table:

Date	Product	Feature	Notes
29 APR 2022			Created initial document.

Overview

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The information contained in this document may include statements about Oracle’s product development plans. Many factors can materially affect Oracle’s product development plans and the nature and timing of future product releases. Accordingly, this Information is provided to you solely for information only, is not a commitment to deliver any material, code, or functionality, and should not be relied upon in making purchasing decisions. The development, release, and timing of any features or functionality described remains at the sole discretion of Oracle.

This information may not be incorporated into any contractual agreement with Oracle or its subsidiaries or affiliates. Oracle specifically disclaims any liability with respect to this information. Refer to the Legal Notices and Terms of Use for further information.

Feature Summary

Strategic Workforce Planning

Strategic Workforce Planning

Monthly Update Schedule

Test Environments: Oracle will apply this monthly update during the first daily maintenance that occurs at or after 22:00 UTC on Friday, May 6, 2022.

Production Environments: Oracle will apply this monthly update during the first daily maintenance that occurs at or after 22:00 UTC on Friday, May 20, 2022.

NOTE: The monthly update will not be applied to any environment for which this monthly update is requested to be skipped using the EPM Automate skipUpdate command or service request to Oracle.

NOTE: Backing up the daily maintenance snapshot and restoring the environment as needed are self-service operations. Oracle strongly recommends that you download the maintenance snapshot every day to a local server.

The Oracle Help Center provides access to updated documentation. The updates will be available in the Help Center on Friday, May 6, 2022.

NOTE: Some of the links to new feature documentation included in this readiness document will not work until after the Oracle Help Center update is complete.

Documentation Updates Available One Week After Readiness Documents

Updated documentation is published on the Oracle Help Center on the first Friday of each month, coinciding with the monthly updates to Test environments. Because there is a one week lag between the publishing of the readiness documents (What's New and New Feature Summary) and Oracle Help Center updates, some links included in the readiness documents will not work until the Oracle Help Center update is complete.

https://docs.oracle.com/en/cloud/saas/epm-cloud/index.html

Fixed Issues and Considerations

Software issues addressed each month and considerations will be posted to My Oracle Support.

NOTE: Fixed issues for EPM Cloud Common components (Smart View for Office, EPM Automate, REST API, Migration, Access Control, Data Management/Data Integration, Reports, Financial Reporting, and Calculation Manager) are available in a separate document on the My Oracle Support “Release Highlights” page.

This provides visibility into EPM Cloud release contents.

Give Us Documentation Feedback

We welcome your comments and suggestions to improve the content of the What's New document and the product documentation.

Please take our quick survey or send us your feedback at EPMdoc_ww@oracle.com. In the body or title of the email, state that you are inquiring or providing feedback, and indicate for which EPM Cloud service and the monthly update cycle.

Please Join Oracle Cloud Customer Connect

Please take a moment to join the Cloud Customer Connect forums for EPM Cloud services. Oracle Cloud Customer Connect is a community gathering place for members to interact and collaborate on common goals and objectives. This is where you will find the latest release information, upcoming events, or answers to use-case questions. Joining takes just a few minutes. Join now!

https://cloud.oracle.com/community

NOTE: The Settings and Actions menu now contains a link to Cloud Customer Connect. To access this link, from the Home page, click the down arrow next to the user name (in the upper right-hand corner of the screen), and select Cloud Customer Connect.

Follow Us on Social Media

Follow EPM Cloud on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

These are great resources for the latest updates and information about EPM Cloud.

Features

Updates to the Getting Started with Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud for Administrators Guide

The Getting Started with Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud for Administrators guide has been enhanced with instructions to change the name of OCI (Gen 2) Strategic Workforce Planning Cloud instances, which allows you to modify the instance name, and consequently, the URLs to access your environments.

Business Benefit: Changing the instance name allows you to fix errors that you made while specifying the instance name during the Strategic Workforce Planning Cloud instance activation process.

Key Resources

• Changing the Name of an OCI (Gen 2) EPM Cloud Instance in Getting Started with Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud for Administrators

Updates to the Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud Operations Guide

The Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud Operations Guide has been updated with information on FastConnect Support for Classic and OCI (Gen 2) environments.

Business Benefit: Information in the EPM Cloud Operations Guide helps you troubleshoot issues and report issues and requests to Oracle.

Key Resources

• Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud Operations Guide

EPM Automate Updates

A new version of EPM Automate is now available. This update introduces the updateUsers and dismissIPMInsights commands. This update also contains changes to the addUserToGroups, addUsersToGroup, copyPOV, removeUserFromGroups, and removeUsersFromGroup commands. Additionally, the EPM Automate documentation has been updated with a Groovy script that can be used to automate the emailing of the Activity Report to specified users.

updateUsers Command

This command modifies attributes such as email, first name, and last name of the Strategic Workforce Planning Cloud users using the new values identified in an ANSI or UTF-8 encoded Comma Separated Value (CSV) file that was uploaded to the environment.

dismissIPMInsights Command

This command automates the dismissing of Intelligent Performance Management (IPM) Insights data before running new IPM Insight jobs. Dismissing data dismisses all open insights on which you do not plan to take action. This command is an alternative to manually dismissing the data using the IPM Insights dashboard.

Updates to addUsersToGroup and addUserToGroups Commands

These commands have been updated to allow the user running the command to be specified in the CSV file to be added to groups. This behavior was not permitted previously.

Updates to the copyPOV Command

This command has been updated with additional optional parameters to selectively copy data to the destination POV.

Updates to removeUserFromGroups and removeUsersFromGroup Commands

These commands have been updated to allow the user running the command to be specified in the CSV file to be removed from groups. This behavior was not permitted previously.

Groovy Script for Emailing the Activity Report

The Working with EPM Automate for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud guide now contains a Groovy script that can be used to automate the emailing of the Activity Report to specified users using server-side Groovy.

Business Benefit: The updateUsers command allows you to modify attributes of existing users without deleting and then adding them again. The dismissIPMInsights command allows you to automate the process of dismissing IPM Insights data on which you do not plan to take action, without using the IPM Insight dashboard..

Updates to the addUserToGroups, addUsersToGroup, removeUserFromGroups, and removeUsersFromGroup commands remove the restrictions that prevented the users running the command from adding or removing their own group association. Changes to the copyPOV command allows you to selectively copy selected data to the destination POV.

The new Groovy script included in the EPM Automate documentation helps automate the process of emailing the Activity Report to specified users without installing the EPM Automate client.

Key Resources

• Working with EPM Automate for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud:
  • Installing EPM Automate
  • updateUsers
  • dismissIPMInsights
  • addUserToGroups
  • addUsersToGroup
  • copyPOV
  • removeUserFromGroups
  • removeUsersFromGroup
  • Emailing the Activity Report Using a Server-side Groovy Script

REST API to Update Users

You can now use a REST API to update attributes such as email, first name, and last name of a batch of existing users in an identity domain using the new values identified in an ANSI or UTF-8 encoded comma-separated value (CSV) file that was uploaded to the environment. Before using this API, use the Upload REST API to upload the file.

Business Benefit: Using REST APIs to automate the process of updating users allows you to modify attributes of existing users without deleting and then adding them again.

Key Resources

• Migration REST APIs in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Role Information

• Service Administrators

REST API to Restore Backup - Parameter to Specify the Name of the Backup Snapshot

In OCI (Gen 2) environments, when restoring backups with REST APIs, you can now use an optional targetName parameter to specify the name of the backup snapshot on the target environment.

Business Benefit: Specifying the name of the backup snapshot helps you keep multiple backups on the environment with different names.

Key Resources

• Restore Backup - Only for OCI (Gen 2) Environments in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Role Information

• Service Administrators

REST API Support to Generate a Report Snapshot

A new REST API parameter has been added to generate a Report Snapshot via the Job console.

NOTE: The Report Snapshot is a pre-existing artifact type, which includes Report, Report Snapshot, Book, and Bursting Definition.

Business Benefit: Helps you to automate this process via the REST API.

Key Resources

• REST API for Narrative Reporting

REST API to Update Target Options for Integration Job Type

A targetOptions parameter is now available with the Integration Job Type type for the jobs REST API.  Use the targetOptions parameter to modify and update the target options defined for the data load rule or integration at runtime without modifying the integration definition.

For data export based applications, you can use targetOptions parameters to replace the pre-defined target option parameters at the rule level for a data load rule/integration or specify them at runtime.

Business Benefit: The targetOptions parameters gives you the ability to change the target option at the data load rule/integration level or at runtime.

Key Resources

• Integration Job Type in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Role Information

• You must have the required privileges to execute a specific data rule/integration.

Enhanced Error Messages for EPM REST APIs

The error messages for EPM REST APIs have been enhanced to provide additional usability.

Business Benefit: This allows you to better understand and respond to error messages.

Key Resources

• Quick Reference in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Role Information

• Service Administrators

REST API Common Helper Functions for Java, cURL, and Groovy

REST API Common Helper Functions for Java, cURL, and Groovy have been updated in Appendices B, C, and D of the REST API guide to reflect the enhancements delivered this month.

Business Benefit: When using the Common Helper Functions, you will be synchronized with the new features.

Key Resources

• Common Helper Functions for Java in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud
• Common Helper Functions for cURL in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud
• Common Helper Functions for Groovy in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Role Information

• Service Administrators

Roles for REST APIs

The REST API documentation has been enhanced to show the roles required to use REST APIs.

Business Benefit: This helps you quickly determine which users have permissions for each REST API.

Key Resources

• Quick Reference in REST API for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Role Information

• Service Administrators

Changes to Access Control Behavior

Access Control now allows Service Administrators to add and remove their own user accounts to and from groups. Previously, this was not allowed.

Business Benefit: This change removes the restriction that prevented Service Administrators from adding or removing their own group association.

Key Resources

• Assigning a User to Many Groups in Administering Access Control for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud

Updated EPM Books Extension for Smart View

An updated EPM Books extension for Oracle Smart View for Office is now available to download and install. This update includes general improvements and bug fixes.

Business Benefit: Downloading and installing the latest EPM Books extension for Smart View gives you access to the latest features, improvements, and bug fixes.

Key Resources

• Installing the EPM Books Extension in Working with Oracle Smart View for Office

New Pyramid Chart Types in Reports

A Pyramid Chart is a triangle representation of a data hierarchy. The triangle is divided into sections, illustrating vertically top-down and broad-narrow structures and processes.

Pyramid Chart Type

Business Benefit: Provides an additional visualization option for analyzing data.

Key Resources

• Designing with Reports for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud
  • About Charts
  • Chart Properties

Support for Lock and Unlock Integration in Task Manager

A new Process Automation Integration type named “Lock Unlock Data Integration” is now included in Task Manager for Data Exchange.

The lock operation prevents data from being loaded to a selected POV by location, or application associated with a period and category. When a location or application has been locked, you cannot import, validate, export, or rerun a validation.

An unlock operation enables you to unlock a locked location or application.

Business Benefit: This new integration will allow the users to efficiently include a location lock operation from Task Manager.

Key Resources

• Lock Unlock Data Integration under Pre-Built Integrations for Financial Consolidation and Close and Tax Reporting, Planning and Planning Module, and Profitability and Cost Management in Administering Financial Consolidation and Close

Groovy Features for Exporting Data

When using Groovy to export data, you can now specify:

• the order in which dimensions appear in the output file
• the column dimension with BSO cubes
• the level of data to be exported; for ASO cubes, only level 0 is supported

These features can be used by any application that has access to Groovy.

Business Benefit: This gives you more options when using Groovy business rules to export data.

Steps to Enable

You don't need to do anything to enable this feature.

Tips And Considerations

To get a quick introduction to Groovy business rules, watch the Learning Groovy in EPM Cloud video.

Key Resources

• Learning Groovy in EPM Cloud video
• Creating a Groovy Business Rule in Designing with Calculation Manager for Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Cloud
• Introduction to Groovy Business Rules
• Groovy Tutorials
• EPM Cloud Groovy Rules Java API Reference

Role Information

• Calculation Manager Business Rule Designer

Changing a Member in the POV is Reflected in All Sessions Without Having to Log Out of the Web Interface

When you make a change to the POV, the change is reflected within seconds in all parallel sessions for the same user without having to log out of the web interface. For example, if you change the POV in a form in the web interface, the change is reflected for the same user's session in Smart View, in a REST API call, or in Reports.

Previously, if you changed the POV in a form in the web interface, you had to log out of the web interface to see the updated POV selection in another open session, such as Smart View, REST API, or Reports.

Business Benefit: This enhancement ensures that any changes you make to the POV are reflected in all open sessions for the same user, whether it be the web interface, Smart View, REST, or Reports.

Tips And Considerations

• If you make a change to the POV in any session other than the web interface, you must re-open the form in the web interface to see the updated member in the POV.

• If you are using vertical tabs in the web interface, if you make a change to the POV in a form on one tab, the change is reflected right away in a form on another vertical tab.

Key Resources

• Selecting Different Data to Work With in Working with Planning

Application Owner Now Automatically Reassigned to Synchronize with Changes in the Predefined Role

Strategic Workforce Planning now automatically reassigns application ownership if the original Application Owner is deleted or if their predefined role changes.

The Service Administrator who creates the Strategic Workforce Planning application is auto-assigned the Application Owner function. When a Service Administrator with the Application Owner function is deleted or when the user’s predefined role assignment is downgraded (for example, from Service Administrator to Power User), Strategic Workforce Planning reassigns the Application Owner function to the next available Service Administrator user (in alphabetical order) for the application, and then deletes or changes the role of the current Application Owner user in Strategic Workforce Planning to sync up with Access Control.

If there are no available Service Administrators, then Strategic Workforce Planning does not delete the Service Administrator user or change the role. Oracle will contact you with next steps to resolve the issue.

Business Benefit: This enhancement ensures that the Strategic Workforce Planning Application Owner is in sync with any user or role changes.

Tips And Considerations

Administrators can change the application owner using the system setting Assign Application Owner.

Key Resources

Administering Planning

• Managing Application Ownership
• What Application and System Settings Can I Specify?

More Flexibility for Determining the Current Quarter in Planning and Forecast Preparation

In the Planning and Forecast Preparation configuration task for Strategic Workforce Planning, when you select Quarterly as the planning basis for Forecast for the first year, you now can choose how Strategic Workforce Planning determines the current quarter, in cases where the current month is the last month of the quarter.

When the current month is the last month of the quarter, select an option in Planning and Forecast Preparation for how Strategic Workforce Planning should define the current quarter:

• If you select Lock current period for forecast, Strategic Workforce Planning uses the next quarter. For example, if the current month is March, when you select this option, Strategic Workforce Planning defines the Current Quarter as Q2, and data cells in Q1 in forms are read-only.

• If you clear Lock current period for forecast, Strategic Workforce Planning uses the current quarter. For example, if the current month is March, when you clear (deselect) this option, Strategic Workforce Planning defines the Current Quarter as Q1, and data cells in Q1 in forms remain editable.

Business Benefit: This enhancement gives you flexibility in managing how Strategic Workforce Plannings determines the current quarter.

Tips And Considerations

• Lock current period for forecast is available only when Quarterly is selected as the planning basis for Forecast for the first year.
• You can select the option for Lock current period for forecast for each module.

Key Resources

Administering and Working with Strategic Workforce Planning

• Strategic Workforce Planning Planning and Forecast Preparation
• Workforce Planning and Forecast Preparation

IMPORTANT Actions and Considerations

One-Week Lag Between Readiness Documents Live and Help Center Live

Because Oracle readiness documents (What's New and New Feature Summary) are live one week before the monthly update is applied to Test environments, some links to documentation included in the readiness documents will not work until after the Oracle Help Center update is complete when the monthly update is applied to Test environments.

Loaner Program for Cloud Infrastructure Generation 2 Testing and OCI Migration Assistance Early Adopter Program

Oracle Strategic Workforce Planning Cloud is now live on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) Gen 2 environments. If you are interested in testing your application performance on an OCI environment, open a service request following the process at https://docs.oracle.com/en/cloud/saas/enterprise-performance-management-common/tsepm/op_procs_loaner_envs.html and request for a loaner environment in an OCI data center for a duration of 30 days with the business justification as “Want to test application performance in an OCI Gen 2 data center”.

After you have performed the testing, submit Provide Feedback from the loaner environment. Create a service request using the normal support process, if you have any issues or feedback for the OCI environment. For more information, see What is a Gen 2 Cloud?

Additionally, Oracle has instituted a program to assist a limited number of early adopters on Oracle Cloud Classic to migrate to OCI. For more information, see Oracle Cloud Classic to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) Migration Assistance Program for Early Adopters.

Alerts Cannot be Migrated to Prior Version

Due to a major upgrade in Alert functionality, any service that has defined Alert Types will not be able to migrate them or the Alerts that are based on them from the 22.04 update to an earlier update. This normally happens if artifacts are moved from Test to Production during the two week period when Test is upgraded to the 22.04 update while Production is still on the 22.03 update. All other objects in the migration are not affected.

Task Manager Email Notification Settings

Starting in the 22.04 update, the service changed the handling of Task Manager’s Email Notification settings during a migration. The target service’s Task Manager Email Notification settings were updated with the settings from the source service. If a customer wants to retain the target service’s Task Manager Notification settings, they can generate an LCM export with the notification settings from the target service, perform the source migration, then import the LCM file with the notification settings.

See LCM Export and LCM Import in REST API for Oracle Performance Management Cloud.

Date Format when Using the EPM Digital Assistant

When using the EPM Digital Assistant, note that the Date format is not taken from User Preferences, and the assistant does not ask which format to use for the date. The assistant attempts to detect the date format based on the user locale set in the browser and other common formats.

Drill Landing Page in Data Integration / Data Management

The Enhanced Drill Landing page will become the default in the 22.06 update. Starting with the 22.07 update, the option to switch the Drill Type UI will be removed and the Enhanced version will be only version.

Upcoming Change to Planning Admin Extension Installation

In a future update, the installation process and file format will change for the Planning Admin Extension for Oracle Smart View for Office (also referred to as the Smart View Add-on for Administrator). This will not impact current and future usage of Admin Extensions that are already installed.

Currently, an MSI file is downloaded from the Downloads page of the supported business process. The new process will utilize an SVEXT file and allow users to take advantage of the extension update feature in the Smart View Options dialog, Extensions tab.

To use the new SVEXT file format when it becomes available, you are required to first uninstall the Planning Admin Extension using Windows Programs and Features. Then, you can install the new Planning Admin Extension SVEXT file in either of these ways:

• Download the SVEXT file to a temporary folder and double-click it.

• Use the "Check for Updates, New Installs, and Uninstalls" feature in the Smart View Options dialog, Extensions tab to automatically detect and install the Planning Admin Extension

Look for this change in the file format and the installation of the Planning Admin Extension in a future update.