At the end of January, Workday announced impressive Q3 results. The strong revenue growth led to an 18% increase in its share price from November 2018. This boost reflects the burgeoning prospects for the challenger ERP solution, which has been taking both midmarket and enterprise customers by storm.
Now what I’m about to say shouldn’t surprise you. If you’re following the trend and adopting Workday, you need the right skills. Given the nature of the Workday implementation process, this means bringing in specialist technical resource from a small pool of qualified experts.
I’ve written before about what companies get wrong with Workday recruitment. Here I give 3 examples of companies that did it right – and reaped the benefits.
Recruiting for a unique combination of requirements
A major consultancy needed permanent, German-speaking, certified manager-grade Workday consultants for a European base. These were business-critical roles, and the internal recruitment team had been struggling to find the right fit for this particular combination of skills. They approached us both hopeful and sceptical that we could solve their problem.
We made a promise – we would deliver several suitable CVs within 3 weeks, and that the company would hire at least one of those candidates. We started by taking a detailed brief. Then we delved into our bespoke, Workday-specific CRM to develop a headhunting and competitor mapping plan.
Several candidates then went through our robust vetting process. Within 3 weeks, we shortlisted 5 and sent the internal team detailed reviews of their skills and suitability factors. Over the next week, the consultancy conducted interviews, emphasising the project complexity and the opportunities to add value. That same week they made 2 offers.
Within days, one candidate had accepted his offer and signed a contract. The second candidate signed his contract within the next 2 weeks.
Making speed a competitive advantage
At the beginning of January (on a Thursday), we received an urgent enquiry from an end user in the UK.
They needed a Functional Consultant to start ASAP. Thus far in their implementation, they’d concentrated heavily on the payroll side. Core HCM was behind and needed serious attention.
Across the Focus Cloud team, we qualified, interviewed and shortlisted 2 candidates that day, with several others ready and prepared for the Friday. We sent the client the 2 profiles and arranged for out-of-hours interviews the next day.
The first interview was a success – the candidate and client were both delighted. The client issued the offer within 30 minutes and sent the contract paperwork over an hour later.
The contractor was surprised at the incredible speed, excited to get the offer – and even more enthusiastic about starting on Monday.
The start of the recruitment process to the contractor arriving at work was 3 business days.
Resourcing across the Workday implementation process
A global technology company was in the midst of a Workday test phase and was due to go live in months. The system from their Workday partner required more testing, and they needed a capable Functional and Integration Tester to help them deliver in line with their timescales.
After a couple weeks of informal discussions surrounding their Workday project, we received their official requirement for a contractor role on a Monday morning. Within 2 hours, we’d sent them 5 suitable profiles.
We booked interviews for the following week. They chose a candidate within 5 working days, and he was on site just 2 weeks later.
This forward thinking, combined with fast decision making, saved the team countless hours and alleviated the risk of severe project delays.
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How to Recruit Workday Experts (To Make Your Work Days Easier) – Your Guide to Streamlined & Successful Workday Hiring
Credit - Lloyd Gordon - CEO | Focus Cloud