Executive Director, HR and Workday Platform Technology

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 organization'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.

This leader serves as the senior HR and facilities technology partner and Workday platform owner, translating HR and facilities strategy into scalable technology capabilities, ensuring platform decisions are aligned to business priorities, compliant with internal controls and regulatory requirements, and sustainable for future growth. The role owns the HR technology platform strategy and operating model, oversees internal team members and external partners, and ensures day-to-day support, enhancements, release readiness, and strategic initiatives are delivered with disciplined execution across the HR technology landscape.

Reporting into the enterprise applications organization, this role partners closely with HR, facilities, finance, IT, security, internal audit, legal, and third-party vendors to drive platform excellence, roadmap execution, service delivery, and governance.

Hybrid role - Durham, US.

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).
• Owner of the overall Workday licensing, contracting, training and tenant as well as the extend, integrations and reporting Workday platform.
• 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.
• Partner with enterprise and functional leaders to prioritize initiatives, balance capacity, and align investments to business value.

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.
• 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.

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.
• Help ensure consistency in platform governance, support model, change control, and technical standards across all supported Workday domains.

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.
• Maintain strong oversight of role design, access approvals, user access reviews, privileged security considerations, and integration credential management in coordination with appropriate enterprise teams.
• Support readiness for internal and external audits by ensuring documentation, traceability, and control discipline across supported areas.

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.
• Provide structure and leadership for complex programs that require coordination across business, IT, vendors, and governance forums.
• Ensure changes are evaluated for downstream impacts across integrations, security, reporting, business processes, controls, and support teams.
• Act as a senior decision-maker and escalation point for platform-related risks, priorities, and trade-offs.

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.
• Establish clear accountability, performance expectations, succession plans, and development opportunities for team members.
• Foster a culture of ownership, customer partnership, disciplined execution, continuous improvement, and compliance awareness.

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.
• Enterprise application support and product ownership
• 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.
• Fortrea may consider relevant and equivalent experience and successful project outcomes in lieu of educational requirements.

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.
• 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 Include:

• 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.

Physical Demands / Work Environment:

Office/home-based:

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.

Physical requirements:

• Frequently stationary for 6-8 hours per day.
• Re