Executive Director, HR and Workday Platform Technology

Primary technology platform leader for Human Resources and Facilities and the enterprise platform owner for Workday. Accountable for the strategic leadership, operational stability, governance, product roadmap, and continuous improvement of the organization’s Workday ecosystem, including Workday Human Capital Management (HCM), integrations, reporting, security, and Extend, as well as selected non-HR Workday technologies.

Responsibilities

• Lead the overall strategy, roadmap, and operational support model for Workday, owning the technology direction for key Workday capabilities (Core HCM, Recruiting, Compensation, Talent/Performance, Absence/Time Tracking, Workday Security, Reporting, Integrations, and Extend).
• Serve as the primary technology platform leader for HR, aligning HR technology strategy, investment priorities, platform governance, and delivery execution with enterprise and HR business objectives.
• Act as the enterprise Workday platform owner, with decision accountability for platform roadmap, release adoption, configuration standards, technical debt management, and long-term platform health.
• Partner with enterprise and functional leaders to prioritize initiatives, balance capacity, and align investments to business value.
• Ensure reliable production support, operational excellence, and end-to-end platform ownership for Workday HR and enabling platform services, including incident management, defect resolution, service request intake, enhancement prioritization, and release planning.
• Own the intake, prioritization, and value-based sequencing of HR technology demand, ensuring work is transparent, governed, and aligned to business outcomes.
• Establish and maintain service delivery standards, operating rhythms, and performance expectations for internal teams and external support partners.
• Drive stabilization, simplification, and standardization of processes across supported domains.
• Provide leadership and coordination for non-HR Workday technologies that intersect with or rely upon the same platform foundation, including HR reporting strategy and execution.
• Partner with Finance, enterprise applications, and other business stakeholders where Workday architecture, integrations, reporting, and security models extend beyond HR.
• Ensure Workday-related processes and changes are managed in accordance with SOX controls, audit requirements, security standards, and internal governance expectations.
• Partner with Internal Audit, Cybersecurity, Legal, Privacy, and Compliance teams on access controls, change management, documentation, and issue remediation.
• Define and enforce Workday platform ownership standards, including role-based security, configuration governance, release governance, integration oversight, data protection, and audit readiness.
• Lead major cross-functional initiatives involving Workday HR or platform capabilities, including implementation phases, enhancements, acquisitions/divestitures, operating model changes, or global process standardization efforts.
• Prioritize the technology portfolio using outcomes and the value of IT, providing structure and leadership for complex programs requiring coordination across business, IT, vendors, and governance forums.
• Act as a senior decision-maker and escalation point for platform-related risks, priorities, and trade-offs.
• Lead, develop, and coach a high-performing team across functional, technical, and platform disciplines, establishing clear accountability, performance expectations, succession plans, and development opportunities.
• Manage a hybrid workforce that may include employees, contractors, and AMS/implementation partners.
• Foster a culture of ownership, customer partnership, disciplined execution, continuous improvement, and compliance awareness.

Requirements

• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in enterprise applications, HR technology, or Workday-related technology leadership roles.
• Significant hands-on and leadership experience with Workday HCM and associated platform capabilities.
• Demonstrated experience serving as a technology platform owner or senior product/platform leader for HR technology, preferably Workday, in a complex global enterprise environment.
• Experience leading complex cross-functional initiatives involving multiple business and technical stakeholders.
• Experience operating in a regulated environment with strong governance, controls, and audit expectations.
• Experience managing vendors, implementation partners, and/or AMS providers.
• Proven people leadership experience, including leading managers and cross-functional teams.
• Strong knowledge of Workday architecture, platform capabilities, and enterprise application operating models.
• Strong understanding of HR technology strategy, Workday platform ownership, product roadmap management, release governance, platform lifecycle management, and service delivery operations.
• Strong understanding of AI, machine learning, and generative AI concepts, including ability to evaluate and prioritize AI use cases based on business value, risk, compliance, and operational readiness.
• Understanding of AI governance, privacy, bias mitigation, transparency, and regulatory considerations.
• Ability to connect business priorities with system strategy, risk management, and delivery execution.
• Strong executive communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong judgment in prioritization, issue resolution, and governance decisions.
• Demonstrated ability to lead through complexity, ambiguity, and organizational change.
• Strong team leadership, coaching, and organizational design capabilities.
• High level of discipline in process, documentation, compliance, and service management.
• Ability to balance strategic planning with pragmatic operational execution.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Business Administration, Human Resources, Finance, or related field, and 12+ years of relevant experience; or equivalent combination of education, certifications, and progressive leadership experience.
• Master's Degree (MBA or related field).
• Workday Pro certifications.
• ITIL, PMP, Agile, Product Management, AI Governance, or related professional certifications.

Work Environment

• Work is performed in an office environment with exposure to electrical office equipment.
• Occasional drives to site locations with occasional domestic and international travel.

Physical Requirements

• Frequently stationary for 6-8 hours per day.
• Repetitive hand movement of both hands with the ability to make fast, simple, repeated movements of the fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Occasional crouching, stooping, with frequent bending and twisting of upper body and neck.
• Ability to access and use a variety of computer software developed both in-house and off-the-shelf.
• Light to moderate lifting and carrying, or moving of objects, including luggage and laptop computer with a maximum lift of 15-20 lbs.
• Regular and consistent attendance.
• Varied hours may be required.