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09-16-2023 12:02 AM
Can someone explain me each of these feature, comparison and differences between them. starting with why do they exist, what is their purpose?
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09-18-2023 01:13 PM
Hi, based on my understanding of your question from your provided information, see my answer below.
ServiceNow offers various profile-related features designed to serve different purposes within an organization. These features aim to centralize and manage user-related information effectively.
Here's an explanation of each feature, their purposes, and the key differences between them:
- User Profile:
- Purpose: The User Profile in ServiceNow primarily focuses on IT users, such as employees who use IT services and require an IT account.
- Why It Exists: The User Profile manages IT-specific information, including user access, permissions, roles, and IT-related attributes.
- Key Functions:
- Manages login credentials.
- Controls access to IT services and applications.
- Assigns IT roles and permissions.
- Tracks IT-specific activities and interactions.
- HR Profile:
- Purpose: The HR Profile is designed to manage employee-specific information related to human resources, including personal details, employment history, and benefits.
- Why It Exists: It exists to centralize and streamline HR-related processes, such as onboarding, offboarding, benefits management, and employee record-keeping.
- Key Functions:
- Stores employee personal information (e.g., name, contact details).
- Manages employment details (e.g., job title, department).
- Facilitates benefits administration (e.g., health insurance, retirement plans).
- Supports HR processes like hiring, promotions, and terminations.
- Employee Profile:
- Purpose: The Employee Profile offers a broader view of an individual, encompassing IT and HR-related aspects of an employee's profile.
- Why It Exists: It provides a comprehensive overview of an employee's information, helping organizations manage IT and HR aspects effectively.
- Key Functions:
- Combines IT and HR data for a holistic view of the employee.
- Enables efficient onboarding and offboarding processes.
- Supports IT access management while ensuring HR compliance.
- Enhances the overall employee experience.
Key Differences:
- User Profile vs. HR Profile: The User Profile primarily focuses on IT-related information, while the HR Profile concentrates on HR-specific details. The User Profile deals with access and permissions, while the HR Profile handles personal and employment data.
- HR Profile vs. Employee Profile: The HR Profile is tailored to HR processes, while the Employee Profile provides a more comprehensive view, including IT access and HR data. The Employee Profile bridges the gap between IT and HR functions, offering a holistic view of the employee's profile.
- User Profile vs. Employee Profile: The User Profile is centered on IT management, while the Employee Profile encompasses IT and HR aspects. The User Profile is primarily used for access control, while the Employee Profile supports broader employee lifecycle management.
In summary, these profile-related features in ServiceNow serve distinct purposes within an organization. The User Profile focuses on IT access and permissions, the HR Profile manages HR-related data, and the Employee Profile offers a comprehensive view combining IT and HR information to streamline employee management processes. The choice of which profile to use depends on your organization's specific needs and the level of integration required between IT and HR systems.
Good Luck!
James @Ecostratus
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09-16-2023 01:31 PM
Hi @ASHU_1 ,
Please read the different documentation provided by ServiceNow.
According to user profile, i'm unsure if it is the standard sys_user table or if you refer to the User profile table within the CSM application: https://docs.servicenow.com/search?q=User%20profile%20page
For HR profile: https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/vancouver-employee-service-management/page/product/human-resource...
For employee profile: https://docs.servicenow.com/bundle/vancouver-employee-service-management/page/product/employee-cente...
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Anders
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09-16-2023 02:31 PM
The purpose is simple, what information is relevant and safe to be shown, anyone can see the employee profile but HR profile will have certain sensitive information that will not be open to whole organization.

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09-16-2023 04:10 PM - edited 09-16-2023 04:25 PM
I think you asked very good question.
User profile is the user table (sys_user) contain basic user information from third directory service (such as Active Directory).
HR profile (sn_hr_core_profile) is a part of HRSD application, which contains basic user information by referencing to user table (sys_user) as well its own HR fields, which contains many sensitive user information. Please see the following image highlighted.
When you activate the Employee Profile plugin, the following fields are pulled from the HR Profile (sn_hr_core_profile) table to populate the Employee Profile (sn_employee_profile) table.
- employment_start_date
- employment_end_date
You can clearly understand their relationship from HR profile table screenshot above.
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09-16-2023 09:53 PM
@John Zhang1 - Thank you so much for patiently answering that. I still do not understand the purpose of having Employee Profile table, why is it required? You could just have the HR Profile Table and view referenced required fields in a UI within Employee Center, why you need a separate table for it?