Workday Success Drives Shortage in Available Talent.
Founded in 2005, Workday has emerged as the leading platform for human resources and people management, revolutionizing the way businesses handle their largest cost area. Boasting an impressive clientele that includes half of Fortune 500 companies and a quarter of the Global 2000, Workday's success can be attributed to its cloud-based foundation and comprehensive suite of unified HR, compensation, recruitment, and finance solutions. This article delves into the Workday talent gap, analyzing the implications of its dominance and exploring the strategies the company is employing to address this industry-wide challenge.
The Workday Talent Gap:
Workday's rise to prominence has had far-reaching effects on the labor market. With an increasing number of organizations adopting the Workday ecosystem, there has been a surge in demand for professionals skilled in deploying, maintaining, and maximizing the potential of the platform. This growing demand has led to a scarcity of Workday talent, creating a significant talent gap that needs to be bridged.
The scarcity of skilled Workday professionals can be attributed to several factors. First, the platform's unique architecture and functionality require a specialized skill set, which is not readily available in the market. Additionally, Workday's rapid expansion and the subsequent increase in client base have outpaced the growth of the talent pool. As a result, organizations face challenges in finding qualified individuals capable of effectively implementing and managing Workday solutions.
The Workday Ecosystem: Addressing the Three Distinct Talent Demands
The Workday ecosystem has significantly transformed the HR and people management landscape, necessitating the availability of skilled talent across different roles within the industry. Let's explore the three distinct types of talent demands within the Workday ecosystem and the challenges associated with each.
Services Partners:
Workday Services Partners, comprising global and regional systems integrators, play a crucial role in delivering new Workday implementations. These partners, including renowned companies like Accenture, Deloitte, IBM, and PwC, require trained professionals capable of implementing and managing specific Workday modules such as HCM, Benefits, or Payroll. Additionally, expertise in reporting and integrations is essential.
To work on Workday implementations, employees of Services Partners must obtain and maintain certifications for each module. Certification involves completing training and passing an examination, followed by biannual recertification after each new release. While the number of certified consultants increased by 35% in 2022, the demand for certified Workday consultants was even higher, with over 16,000 unique job postings by Services Partners during the same period. This talent gap highlights the need for a larger pool of certified professionals to meet the industry's requirements.
Advisory Partners:
Workday Advisory Partners, consisting of smaller specialists, provide specialized knowledge and guidance to customers on product selection and maximizing the value of their Workday instances. While extensive training and certification are not mandated, employees of Advisory Partners need to possess the necessary skills to configure and administer the platform, as well as support other users.
Workday offers the Workday Pro accreditation as an optional measure to recognize a high level of competence on the platform. Maintaining Workday Pro accreditation requires biannual recertification with each new release. Despite 4,500 Workday Pro certifications issued to date, there were approximately 7,000 open positions in 2022 that specifically demanded candidates with Pro Certifications or equivalent expertise. This indicates a scarcity of skilled talent in the market, presenting challenges for Advisory Partners and customers in recruiting qualified individuals.
Customers:
Workday customers, typically organizations requiring HR and finance employees with Workday skills and experience, have their own talent demands within the ecosystem. While technical proficiency may not be necessary for all positions, supporting a Workday implementation requires familiarity with the platform. Positions that explicitly mention Workday skills usually indicate roles focused on supporting specific components, such as compensation administration or payroll.
Although Workday does not mandate training or certification for customer employees, the growing number of Workday support users indicates the need for platform-specific skills. In 2022, approximately 31,000 new support users joined the Workday ecosystem, which fell short of the 58,000 jobs posted by customers seeking candidates with Workday skills during the same period.
Closing the Gap
Recognizing the need for new and innovative approaches to meet the growing demand for Workday talent, Workday has implemented several strategies to bridge the talent gap. Let's explore the four key areas where Workday is making progress:
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Workday is taking steps to break down barriers between Services Partners and Advisory Partners by making certain certifications available to all partners. Workday Pro accreditation, which was initially exclusive to Advisory Partners, is likely to be extended to Services Partners. This move will allow a broader range of partners to obtain certifications and enhance their expertise within the Workday ecosystem.
2. Training Beyond the Ecosystem:
In a significant development, Workday made its training available outside the ecosystem for the first time. Workday Basics and Workday Beyond Basics are asynchronous online courses providing an introduction to the platform. While currently free, Workday plans to charge $99 for each course in the future. Over 10,000 individuals have already enrolled in these courses, but Workday aims to further expand the reach of its training programs. Taking inspiration from Salesforce's successful Trailhead initiative, which offers free content on various Salesforce products and skills, Workday aims to provide accessible and comprehensive training resources to bridge the talent gap.
3. Partnerships with Universities:
Workday is actively pursuing partnerships with universities, aiming to integrate Workday training into their courses and programs of study. This collaborative approach seeks to produce a pipeline of graduates equipped with Workday skills and certifications. By partnering with educational institutions, Workday aims to create thousands of new professionals with the necessary expertise to meet the industry's demands.
4. Rise Apprenticeship Program:
To address the experience gap in the Workday ecosystem, Workday has supported the launch of Rise, an apprenticeship program developed by Helios, a Workday Advisory Partner and Achieve Partners portfolio company. Rise recruits new and recent college graduates, placing emphasis on potential and diversity rather than prior HR experience or exposure to Workday. Apprentices undergo last-mile training on HR and Workday, obtaining Workday Pro certification. They also develop consulting skills required to assist Workday customers. After completing the program, apprentices are deployed to clients on projects, managed services, or staff augmentation. After a year, customers can bring experienced Rise consultants in-house at no additional cost. This apprenticeship program aims to bridge both the skills gap and the experience gap within the Workday ecosystem.
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