ASU leaders talk Workday, how new system will support the university
Michael Baumert, ASU assistant vice president and controller, speaks at the leadership town hall. Photo by Emmanuel Padilla/ASU
ASU leadership hosted a town hall on July 31 about Workday Human Capital Management, the new HR and payroll system launching university-wide later this year.
Employee attendance topped 1,200 — 200 attended in person at the Rob and Melani Walton Center for Planetary Health auditorium on the ASU Tempe campus, and more than 1,000 joined via Zoom.
Morgan R. Olsen, ASU’s executive vice president, treasurer and chief financial officer, was among the leaders who spoke about the new system.
“Workday’s features and capabilities mean that employees will have improved tools and resources to support our students and the university’s mission,” Olsen said. “Workday is one of the few systems that can keep pace with ASU. We’re excited for what it enables us to do in the years ahead.”
Michael G. Latsko, vice president and chief human resources officer, previewed what employees can anticipate.
“Workday is a new way to get work done. Employees get a centralized location with convenient mobile access, a customizable homepage and AI-powered assistance and search,” Latsko said. “Workday is like the smartphone, the most up-to-date tech.”
>>Watch a recording of the ASU leadership town hall.
A better way to work
Workday is an all-in-one platform combining ASU’s human resources and payroll systems. These functions will also connect with the university’s financial management system, Workday FMS. This project will make Workday a single source for employees to manage various business processes, including:
- Access paychecks and payroll information.
- Enter time off.
- Manage their employee profile.
- Onboard and hire new workers.
- Review and change benefits.
Employees will have a profile to showcase their skills, certifications and other career information. They can still access LinkedIn Learning courses and university training through the Workday Learning platform.
Out with the old, in with the new
Michael D. Baumert, assistant vice president and controller, said PeopleSoft — ASU’s current human capital management system from 2007 — has grown complex with a patchwork of integrations. The system also limits how ASU can use it. One limitation is global hiring.
“If we want to hire individuals who live in other countries, our existing system was essentially incapable of doing that, given the way ASU originally implemented it,” Baumert said. Workday, on the other hand, makes that easy to do. “It gives us avenues to do things we were completely incapable of doing.”
ASU will retire several systems after Workday goes live on Dec. 23, 2024, including:
- BrassRing.
- Career EDGE.
- PeopleSoft HCM.
- Time and Attendance Support — TAS.
Chelsea Tyrrell, assistant vice president of Provost Operations, assured attendees that the Workday project had considered academic needs from the start.
“Team members from academic units and the Provost Office were recruited and have been highly involved with making decisions, ensuring Workday enhances and aligns with academic processes,” she said.
Tyrell said the project team will host a faculty and academic staff-specific town hall on Tuesday, Sept. 24, from 9 to 10 a.m. at McCord Hall on the Tempe campus.
Years in the making
ASU began assessing its current business process systems and future needs in August 2021 before launching a comprehensive research and vetting process for a new human resources system.
The university selected Workday HCM in November 2022 because it met more of its needs than other systems. The Arizona Board of Regents approved ASU’s decision later that month.
A project team of more than 120 people spanning six internal groups — change management, technical, testing, etc. — and Huron project consultants began work on the two-year-long Workday implementation project.
The Workday project team has designed, built and tested the platform, partnering with over 165 readiness coordinators from every ASU unit. Readiness coordinators shared their unit’s processes and needs and provided feedback during project development. They will also join the project team’s outreach and engagement efforts to support their units’ transition to Workday.
The road ahead
The Workday project team will continue to test the system with university subject matter experts. The team will release training materials in October, including courses, job aids and other resources.
ASU leadership asked employees to be patient as they learn and adapt to Workday, but Latsko underscored that the new system will be worth it.
“There will be some adjustments, but we should all be excited about Workday,” Latsko said. “It benefits the university in many ways and makes us even more excited about what ASU will do in the future.”
Please visit the Workday project website for more information and ongoing project updates. Visit ASU Events for upcoming outreach events. Email the Workday HCM project team with questions or for more information.
