Descriptive Flexfields Explained: From Value Sets to Context Values

In our last learning step, we focused on Actions, Action Reasons, and Lookups—understanding the when and why behind HR transactions.

But that naturally leads to a bigger question:

What happens when the standard Oracle fields are not enough?

What if the business wants to capture a Project Name, Office Type, or any organization-specific detail—without changing Oracle’s delivered data model?

This is exactly the problem Descriptive Flexfields (DFFs) are designed to solve.

What Is a Descriptive Flexfield?

A Descriptive Flexfield, commonly called a DFF, is Oracle Fusion’s way of letting you extend the application without customization.

Think of a DFF as a controlled extension point:

• Oracle gives you a standard page
• You decide what additional information needs to be captured
• The system stores it safely in predefined attribute columns

The key idea is simple but powerful:

You can capture business-specific data while remaining upgrade-safe.

Where Do You See DFFs in Oracle Fusion?

DFFs appear directly on transactional and maintenance pages across Fusion HCM—such as Hire, Person Details, Assignments, and more.

To an end user, a DFF looks like a normal field:

• A textbox
• A dropdown
• A list of values

But behind the scenes, that field is completely driven by configuration.

A useful trick for consultants is using Highlight Flexfields from the personalization menu. This visually marks which fields on a page are flexfields, making it much easier to understand what can be configured and extended.

One Simple Learning Example

To understand the full lifecycle of a DFF, let’s use a learning-only example:

Capturing a Project Name during the Hire process.

This example is not about business design—it’s about understanding:

• How a DFF is created
• How values are controlled
• How the field behaves on the UI after deployment

The same concepts apply to any Descriptive Flexfield in Fusion.

Where Are Descriptive Flexfields Configured?

All DFFs are managed from Setup and Maintenance.

From there, you access tasks like Manage Descriptive Flexfields, where Oracle groups flexfields by application and module. In our case, we used the Person flexfield only as an example—what matters is the pattern, not the specific flexfield.

Every Descriptive Flexfield follows the same structure:

• Segments
• Validation
• Deployment

Once you understand one, you understand them all.

Segments: The Building Blocks of a DFF

A segment represents an individual field within a flexfield.

When creating a segment, you define:

• The field’s identity (name and API name)
• Where the data is stored (attribute column)
• How the data is validated

Segments can be:

• Global – always visible
• Context-sensitive – visible only under certain conditions

This is where Value Sets and Context Values come into play.

Value Sets: The Foundation Behind a Flexfield

Before a flexfield can control what users enter, Oracle needs a Value Set.

If a flexfield defines where data appears,
a Value Set defines what data is allowed.

Value Sets control:

• Data type
• Validation logic
• Dropdown values
• Consistency across the application

This separation allows the same Value Set to be reused across multiple flexfields.

Types of Value Sets

Oracle provides multiple Value Set validation types, each serving a specific purpose.

Format Only
Allows free-text entry. Oracle enforces only the data format (length, type), not the actual values.

Independent
A manually maintained list of values. This is the most common type and is typically used for simple dropdowns.

Dependent
Values depend on a parent Independent Value Set. This is useful for hierarchical relationships such as Category → Subcategory.

Subset
A restricted subset of another Independent Value Set. This allows reuse without duplication.

Table
Values are fetched dynamically from database tables using SQL. This is used when values already exist in Fusion data structures.

Choosing the correct Value Set type is critical—it directly affects usability and data quality.

Context Values: Making Flexfields Intelligent

So far, we’ve focused on what data can be entered.
But what about when certain fields should appear?

This is where Context Values come in.

A Context Value does not create a new flexfield.
Instead, it activates a specific context within the same Descriptive Flexfield.

This allows Oracle to show different sets of fields based on a user’s selection.

Example: Employee Office Type

In our example, the Context Segment is Employee Office Type.

Possible context values include:

• Head Office (HO)
• Branch Office (BO)

When the user selects:

• HO → only Head Office–relevant fields appear
• BO → Branch-specific fields (such as BO City) become visible

This dynamic behavior keeps pages clean and ensures users see only what applies to them.

Deploying the Flexfield

One of the most important—and commonly missed—steps is deployment.

After any change to a Descriptive Flexfield, the configuration must be deployed. Deployment compiles the metadata and makes the changes available on the application pages.

Without deployment, the UI will not reflect your configuration—no matter how correct it is.

Final Result on the Application Page

Once deployed, everything comes together:

• The flexfield appears on the page
• The Value Set controls the allowed values
• The Context Value dynamically controls visibility

At this point, you can clearly see the full lifecycle:
Configuration → Deployment → User Experience.

Why This Matters

Descriptive Flexfields are one of the most important configuration tools in Oracle Fusion HCM.

They allow organizations to:

• Capture meaningful business data
• Maintain data quality at the source
• Adapt the application without customization

Understanding DFFs—along with Value Sets and Context Values—is a foundational skill for anyone working seriously with Oracle Fusion HCM.

In the next step of this learning journey, we’ll continue building on this foundation by exploring how these concepts interact with other core HCM configurations.