Executive Director, HR and Workday Platform Technology

The Executive Director, HR and Workday Platform Technology is the primary technology platform leader for Human Resources and Facilities and the enterprise platform owner for Workday.

This role is accountable for the strategic leadership, operational stability, governance, product roadmap, and continuous improvement of the organisation’s Workday ecosystem, with primary accountability for Workday Human Capital Management (HCM), the broader Workday platform (including integrations, reporting, security, and Extend), and selected non-HR Workday technologies that support cross-functional business processes.

Summary of Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership for Workday

• Lead the overall strategy, roadmap, and operational support model for Workday.
• Own the technology direction for key Workday capabilities (Core HCM, Recruiting, Compensation, Talent / Performance, Absence / Time Tracking, Workday Security, Workday Reporting, Workday Integrations, Workday Extend).
• Serve as the primary technology platform leader for HR, accountable for 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.

Operational Ownership and Service Delivery

• Ensure reliable production support, operational excellence, and end-to-end platform ownership for Workday HR and enabling platform services.
• Oversee incident management, defect resolution, service request intake, enhancement prioritization, release planning, and support processes.
• Own the intake, prioritization, and value-based sequencing of HR technology demand, ensuring work is transparent, governed, and aligned to business outcomes.

Support for Non-HR Workday Technology

• Provide leadership and coordination for non-HR Workday technologies that intersect with or rely upon the same platform foundation.
• Oversee the 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.

Governance, Risk, and Compliance

• 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.

Program and Change Leadership

• 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.
• Leading the technology programs using a product mindset and leading with agile ways of working.
• Prioritize the technology portfolio using outcomes and the value of IT.

Team Leadership and Organizational Development

• Lead, develop, and coach a high-performing team across functional, technical, and platform disciplines.
• Build the right organization structure and role clarity across product support, technical platform ownership, delivery management, and governance.
• Manage a hybrid workforce that may include employees, contractors, and AMS / implementation partners.

Qualifications (Minimum Required):

• 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 (Minimum Required):

• 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.

Physical Demands / Work Environment:

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

Target Pay Range: $200-265K