Workday is an industry-leading provider of cloud-based human capital management (HCM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), and financial management solutions. It provides the tools and capabilities needed to transform business processes and optimize operations for companies and organizations in multiple different industries.
Read on to learn more about Workday ERP solutions and how they can help you.
What is ERP Software?
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) refers to software used to track, manage, and optimize everyday business processes. ERP Systems provide the functionality needed to connect business-critical operations and ensure data can be efficiently exchanged between them.
A few of the business activities that can be positively affected by enterprise software include:
- Supply chain management
- Procurement
- Talent and performance management
- Accounting
- Spend management
- Risk and compliance
- And more!
Enterprise resource management systems promote collaboration between core business processes by integrating all aspects of your company in a single solution and providing the flexibility needed to customize capabilities to fit your needs. Not only do ERPs provide end-to-end support for business process automation, but they can also improve the productivity of various enterprises, regardless of size, location, or industry.
Top Reasons to Switch to a Cloud ERP Solution
- Access and leverage new technologies with advanced functions, including artificial intelligence (AI) and Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions.
- Improve the efficiency of integrations between systems, applications, and business tools.
- Use more robust security roles, permissions, and resources to keep even your most confidential data safe and secure no matter what.
- Attract, hire, and retain top-tier talent with seamless recruiting, onboarding, and employee development software.
- Improve operational efficiency through integrated data workflows and organizational management processes.
- Access real-time data and analytics to help company executives make more informed decisions in the long run.
- Increase customer and employee satisfaction by leveraging improved system accuracy and more optimized business operations.
- Reduce and control costs by keeping all relevant and valuable information, insights, and processes in a single system.
Is Workday an ERP?
“If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a duck.”
This abductive reasoning test is usually pretty consistent across the board, but that is not the case when it comes to defining Workday as an ERP system. With its suite of applications and easily integrated software, Workday usually presents itself as an ERP to most people. But, because it is built entirely in the cloud, Workday’s native cloud architecture doesn’t align with the nature of traditional ERP systems.
Workday provides quite a few features, capabilities, and benefits that are similar to those found in ERP systems, but Workday takes this one step further.
How is Workday Different?
While Workday provides similar features, capabilities, and benefits to legacy and cloud ERP systems, the solution goes beyond traditional ERP limitations.
Workday offers an enterprise management cloud that offers newer, faster, more innovative solutions to help organizations operate at peak efficiency in the long run. Workday understands that even the most efficient ERP systems still involve disparate applications and less-than-optimal integration speeds.
The Workday enterprise management cloud uses intelligent core data, seamless integration capabilities, and flexible framework to help companies automate and optimize business processes even more efficiently.
Key Features of the Workday System
- Modern cloud-based interface: Workday’s true cloud-based nature offers a more modern, user-friendly interface that can keep up with changes in the industry and quickly adapt to keep companies operating as efficiently as possible no matter what.
- Pre-built integrations: In addition to its pre-built integrations between Workday modules and applications, the Workday system also provides seamless integration with third-party business tools and software. This way, companies can leverage Workday integration functionality to connect internal and external systems in a way that enhances their efficiency and effectiveness.
- Improved collaboration and efficiency: By providing a common user interface and consistent infrastructure across business applications, functions, and processes, Workday improves collaboration and enhances overall system efficiency.
- Enhanced engagement: Automated business activities, interconnected applications, real-time data and analytics, and easy-to-navigate system design help Workday improve user engagement and enhance the overall employee experience.
Main Workday Applications and Modules
While Workday’s functionality spans multiple different industries and areas of work, the capabilities of each Workday application remain the same across the board.
Let’s take a closer look at the main Workday application offerings for customers around the world.
Workday Human Capital Management (HCM)
The Workday HCM suite includes applications and modules that allow businesses to maintain and optimize business activities from human resource management (HRM) to financial management, recruiting, talent management, benefits management, time tracking and absence management, payroll, and more.
From midsize organizations to large enterprise customers that span a variety of different industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, technology, and education, Workday’s HCM applications provide the modern business solutions needed to succeed in an ever-changing technology world.
Workday Financial Management
Workday Financial Management offers advanced functionality, intelligent automation, and improved reporting and analytics to keep up with financial management processes and help businesses make better decisions in the long run.
Workday’s financial management software allows users to capture business data with financial reporting and consolidation, manage revenue lifecycles, support accounting and finance functions, track expenses, manage audit controls, integrate third-party payroll solutions, and more.
Workday Talent Management
Workday’s talent management solution provides personalized reports and dashboards, succession planning functionality, and pre-built integrations that make finding, attracting, securing, and retaining top-tier talent easier.
Workday Talent Management provides core talent acquisition and retention functions, like recruiting, onboarding, hiring, and learning development. With Workday, companies are able to more efficiently manage organizational change, enable employees to track performance and improve productivity, and provide a more engaging experience for workers, regardless of the size of the company or specific area of work.
Workday Payroll and Workforce Planning
Workday Payroll provides a single solution for all of your payroll processing and tracking needs and keeps all payroll resources in one place. This way, your payroll needs are consistently met, whether you’re making changes to employee benefits plans, completing audits, or updating general financial information.
Workday’s payroll solution not only provides the configuration capabilities needed to meet your payroll calculation and reporting needs, but it also diverse payment options and improved security permissions to help you keep better track of payroll data and keep that data secure in the process.
Workday Analytics and Reporting
Workday’s reporting and analytics functions provide real time analytics and multiple reporting levels to provide the best possible solution for your business needs. Workday provides three main reporting capabilities – Basic, Advanced, and Composite – to give users greater flexibility and control over their Workday experience.
Workday Reporting allows users to find primary data sources, determine necessary reporting functions, outline the quantity and type of data needed, customize output using fields and filters, and share report data to keep everyone in the loop and business operations as optimized as possible.
Benefits for Workday Customers
Here are a few of the main benefits of Workday for users and companies
- Flexible business processes
- Comprehensive data and improved insights
- Streamlined operations and lower operating costs
- Consistent and cohesive infrastructure
- Improved compliance and reduced risk
- Enhanced system adaptability and change management processes
- Mobile access for “always on” functionality
Getting Started with Surety Systems
Whether you need help implementing a brand new Workday Cloud ERP system, integrating specific modules and applications, navigating professional services automation activities within Workday, or anything in between, Surety Systems can help.
Our team of senior-level Workday consultants has the skills and experience needed to help your company outline, manage, and optimize Workday human capital management, financial management, talent and performance management, and project management activities.
Even better, we’ve included a sample profile of one of our top-notch Workday consultants to give you a better idea of what to expect when partnering with us:
Surety Senior Workday ERP Consultant
- 7+ years of Workday ERP experience
- Certified Workday PM, WD Lifecycle Deployment Program, and WD HCM
- Has experience across multiple industries such as retail, healthcare, and higher education
- Has acted as a PM on dozens of Workday Financials and HCM implementations
- Experience with the implementation of multiple Workday ERP modules such as Payroll, Absence, Time Tracking, Benefits, and Compensation
Want to Learn More?
Interested in learning even more about the core components and capabilities of the Workday ERP solution?
Click here to read one of our latest Workday articles that provides a comprehensive overview of the Workday solution and its core human capital management functionality.
Contact us today to learn more or get started with one of our top-notch Workday consultants.
