• UKG
    The Workday Economy – A Bold New Strategy Emerges By Kathi Enderes, SVP Research and Global Industry Analyst with comments by Josh Bersin The Workday Innovation Summit 2025 was more than an analyst meeting: it was a signal that Workday is attempting a full-scale reinvention. Under CEO Carl Eschenbach and Board Chair Aneel Bhusri, Workday is shifting from a product-centric model to an open, partner-driven, AI-powered ecosystem they call “The Workday Economy.” Let’s explain what the company is up to.   Strong Financial Performance  Now on its 20th birthday, Workday is in a position of strength: – $7.7 billion in subscription revenue – 16.9% year-over-year growth – 11,000+ customers in 175+ countries – 70 million users – 93% customer satisfaction. The company’s goal is to reach $10 billion over the next few years, which means continuing this level of growth. Workday is banking on a few big bets: aggressive partnerships and industry solutions, building Agentic AI, investment in Workday Financials, and a mid-market offering. Let’s look at each of the components in detail. The Platform Play: From System to Ecosystem Workday’s legacy as a highly integrated, proprietary stack (or “walled garden”) worked for years, but now it slows innovation. Now, with intention to make Workday an open platform, the company is expanding its Built on Workday program and expanded Workday Marketplace, to build a “Workday Economy.” Partners and customers can use Workday Extend to build applications natively, with low-code tools and lots of support. Comment by Josh: Workday Extend is a massive priority, but building Workday apps is difficult. With 87 partners now, how big can this app ecosystem become? And just as Apple tightly controls apps for the i-Phone, can Workday do the same with such complex industry partners? They’re definitely going in the right direction. Partnerships as Engine of Innovation Workday’s partner ecosystem is now front and center, supporting ISVs, advisory firms, system integrators, and co-innovation partners. A new Clear Skies Initiative is supposed to prevent channel conflict, ensuring partners can build without competing with Workday’s core offerings. Strategic alliances with Randstad, TechWolf, and five new Workday Wellness partners (including MetLife) are examples. Can Workday use these partnerships to drive real, measurable results? Many partner programs are simply referral relationships: how will sales and service teams invest in the success of these partnerships? This is a new muscle for Workday to build. Comment by Josh: This is big. I think Carl understands that Workday’s “market power,” built through its reputation over 20 years, lets the company pick winning partners and resell their offerings, invest in them, and stop trying to build or compete with everyone in this market. This is the type of behavior a $20-30 Billion company demonstrates, and I hope it continues. (ADP white labels many products and their business never stops growing.) Agentic AI: The Next Frontier Agentic AI is clearly core to the strategy. The Workday Assistant, powered by Illuminate, lets employees interact with HR and finance in natural language, across Microsoft Teams, Slack, and more. Early agentic applications like the Payroll Agent, Employee Self-Service Agent, or Recruiting Agent are promising, but the real test will be customer adoption to create business value. As companies deploy more specialized agents, Workday’s Agent System of Record aims to manage all agents, not just the ones created on Workday. With big players like Microsoft, Google, and ServiceNow aiming for the same level of control, this will be a tough battle to fight. Comment by Josh: I’m not really convinced that Workday can be a system of record for agents, when the system is missing so much data. I would bet on Microsoft, Google, Okta, or others to dominate the agent governance market. On the other hand, agents that work with Workday (recruiting agents, L&D agents, pay agents, etc.) do have to integrate with Workday somehow, so to me this is a way to integrate, not “govern” agents. Agent Extensibility and Customization The new Workday Assistant Studio lets partners and customers build agents to fit unique workflows. This extensibility is good news for customers, but it comes with risk. How well will these interfaces work and how easy will it be for vendors to build integrated apps? Workday now has direct integration with Microsoft Copilot and Google, but most Agent-builders are going after customers directly, and they may or may not want to be held hostage within the Workday Assistant. Comment from Josh: Right now SAP Joule is a year ahead of Workday in ERP/HCM Assistants. Most Workday clients I talk with are afraid to even let employees touch the system and they’re deploying Copilot, ChatGPT, Galileo, or other dedicated assistants. The Workday Assistant strategy needs a bold new move, and Studio alone may not be enough. I think Workday may be better off focusing on optimizing its utility within other more broad AI assistants. (What happened to Workday’s big alliance with Salesforce I wonder.) HCM Innovation: Industry Focus and Acquisition Integration Workday’s HCM suite remains the company’s core, with a focus on practical AI and the employee experience. Industry-specific solutions for higher education, healthcare, and financial services are expanding, offering another path to growth and becoming indispensable for clients. Recent acquisitions like HiredScore, VNDLY, and Evisort can add mature AI-driven capabilities that can bring the HCM product (built 20 years ago) into the latest AI era, given the competition in this space. (Workday now resells Evisort.) Comment from Josh: Workday HCM product teams understand what customers need. The challenge they face is “getting there from here,” so I would bet we see many more acquisitions. If you read our latest research on the Revolution in Corporate Learning, for example, you see that Workday has missed this market. Ditto many recruitment features (high-volume, online job previews, AI-assessment.) So I would expect Workday to do more deals like HiredScore, where they get an AI product base and some amazing HCM product talent. Strong Focus on the Financial Suite Workday’s financial management suite is now central to its growth story, with over 35% of new customers choosing it. The company is pushing industry-specific financial applications, automation, and real-time insights. But the finance function can often be conservative and risk-averse, and the promise of truly integrated HCM and Finance solutions is still a dream for most customers. International Expansion Workday’s global ambitions are bold. New offices, expanded partnerships, and talent programs in EMEA are all part of the plan. Today only 25% of revenue comes from international markets so the company will need to invest heavily here. SAP and Oracle are quite dominant in some countries, so the company has to pick its markets carefully. And remember local players. As Workday courts the Global 2000 (including First-Citizens Bank & Trust, UnityPoint Health, and Toyota), the company definitely needs to build out support, partnerships, and presence in these geographies. Comment from Josh: There are many geographies (Asia, UK, Eastern Europe) where Workday is not well entrenched. While SAP and Oracle dominate some of these markets, if Workday builds a strong partnership model (ie. exclusive SI partnerships in these geos, etc.) they can double their growth rate in these sectors. Look at how well Workday has done in Australia (a fairly small market). Is the Mid-Market Ready for Workday? Expanding to the mid-market is another tenant of Workday’s growth plan. With WorkdayGo, the company is adapting its enterprise playbook to leverage partners. With players like UKG, Rippling, ADP, Dayforce, and HiBob providing tailored, right-sized solutions designed for this segment, Workday will find lots of resistance in this market. (SAP tried this years ago.) Comment from Josh: This is a push for me, I’m skeptical. I love Workday as a product but it’s very complex and needs major administrative support. I doubt Workday can effectively compete with HiBob, UKG, and the others Kathi mentions without building or buying a new product. Years ago Taleo (pioneer in ATS) acquired a separate company to launch Taleo Business Edition and that product sold like hotcakes. I have a hard time seeing how pre-configured Workday SKUs make it that much easier to administer. But who knows, maybe an AI-powered “configurator” could fix that up. Customer-Centric Innovation The 2025 Spring Release delivered over 350 new features, shaped by customer feedback. AI-powered talent rediscovery, simplified workflows, and industry-specific enhancements are all on the list. Customers are reportedly happy and shaping the roadmap. This pace of innovation requires companies to keep up with Workday, often not an easy feat, especially in the AI areas, where adoption still lags the many capabilities Workday offers. A focus on supporting AI transformation will be key to drive real value. Josh’s Perspectives Workday is an ambitious, well run, culture-driven company. These announcements signal a major shift from “technology-based” to “market-based” growth. There’s no question in my mind that thousands of ISVs and integrators would love to build businesses around Workday. The only question is how quickly Workday can make this easy and profitable (for them). As far as AI goes, the market is very competitive. SAP’s AI strategy quite far along (Joule is more extensible than the Workday Assistant), and many AI startups are reinventing the HCM market from scratch. So while the Workday Agent System of Record makes sense, many new “Agent-core” or “AI-native” HCM apps will chip away at Workday’s footprint. That all said, this is an exceptionally well run, strong, “Irresistible Organization”. With a new CTO and strong focus on global growth, I see no reason Workday can’t achieve its $10 Billion target in the next 3-4 years.
    UKG
    2025年06月12日
  • UKG
    January HR Tech Partnership News Who’s partnering with who in the world of HR technology. Salary + UKG Salary.com® 是基于云的整体薪酬管理软件和数据解决方案的市场领导者,今天与UKG建立了新的技术合作伙伴关系,UKG是一家为所有人提供人力资源、薪资和劳动力管理解决方案的领先供应商。UKG 拥有 250 多个技术和服务合作伙伴,是 HCM 行业中规模最大、协作性最强的合作伙伴生态系统之一,专注于为所有人创造更好的员工体验,以改善业务成果。 通过这种合作,同时使用 Salary.com 和 UKG Pro 的组织可以从薪酬数据的同步中受益。UKG客户可以访问Salary.com的: 广泛的薪酬数据库,提供准确、最新和 HR 报告的市场洞察。这种整合使组织能够设定有竞争力的薪酬结构并与行业基准保持一致,从而增强了薪酬计划。 工作评估方法和角色匹配算法,以确保一致和公平的工作分类。 详细说明员工总薪酬的总薪酬报表,有助于促进敬业度、积极性和保留率。 薪酬规划和预算工具,用于简化薪酬规划流程,提高薪酬策略的准确性、效率,并使薪酬策略与组织目标保持一致。 Apploi + Indeed Apploi 是医疗保健行业的独家劳动力管理平台,已被领先的匹配和招聘平台 Indeed 评为 Platinum ATS 合作伙伴。Apploi 是获得此称号的五家 Indeed 合作伙伴之一。 Indeed 与数百个平台集成,帮助雇主更有效地填补职位空缺。Indeed 根据各种因素将合作伙伴指定为白银、黄金和白金合作伙伴。通过指定Apploi为 ATS 白金合作伙伴,Indeed 承认该平台提供了尽可能高的集成、性能和服务水平。 作为 Indeed 白金合作伙伴,Apploi 可以为客户提供独特的优势,以帮助吸引优质的医疗保健候选人。Apploi 客户现在将能够从Apploi平台访问多项 Indeed 功能。其中包括 Indeed Apply Sync,Disposition Sync 和 Sponsored Jobs 集成。 Ascen + Loxo Ascen 是 Y Combinator 资助的合同人员配备后台平台,今天宣布与Loxo建立战略合作伙伴关系,Loxo是#1人才智能平台,用于管理整个招聘生命周期,为人员配备公司推出了完全集成的平台,以无缝管理他们的合同安置。 Ascen与Loxo的完全集成使招聘人员和人力资源公司能够立即将Loxo申请人跟踪系统(ATS)中的数据与Ascen的合同人员管理平台同步。传统上,人力资源公司使用多种“前台”工具来招聘候选人,然后手动将候选人和工作数据导入其“后台”系统以处理合规性、工资单和发票。Loxo/Ascen 集成完全自动化了此类工作流程,为招聘人员节省了时间并消除了手动数据输入的错误风险,同时为管理团队提供了对其运营的实时可见性。 Humi + DMZ Humi是加拿大企业领先的一体化人才解决方案,自豪地宣布与DMZ建立独家服务合作伙伴关系,DMZ是位于多伦多城市大学的世界领先的创业孵化器,为下一代科技企业家提供建立、启动和扩展高影响力创业公司所需的工具。 为了最好地支持DMZ的社区简化其人员运营,Humi正在为DMZ初创公司提供激励措施,以访问其一流的工资单,人力资源和福利解决方案,包括允许公司无缝管理其SR&ED税收抵免申请。Humi将负责技术报告,审查索赔和资格,并确保探索所有可能性,以最大限度地提高索赔率。 Sequoia + Remote 红杉资本是全面福利和薪酬领域的先驱,宣布与建立、管理和支持全球分布式劳动力的领导者 Remote 建立合作伙伴关系,为各地风险投资支持的公司提供全面的人力资源外包解决方案,以支持其全球员工。 此次合作以红杉资本的 PEO 产品 Sequoia One 为中心,该产品专门用于帮助美国风险投资支持的科技初创公司提供他们所需的服务和能力,例如薪酬管理、人力资源、福利和工资单。通过与 Remote 合作,共同客户现在拥有单一解决方案,通过实时集成 Sequoia People Platform 和 Remote 的全球 HR 平台来管理和扩展其全球员工队伍。同时,Remote 的国际客户可以在专门满足科技公司独特需求的认证 PEO 的支持和指导下扩大其在美国的人员运营。 Fountain + Sterling Fountain 是领先的一线员工招聘和入职综合平台,Sterling(纳斯达克股票代码:STER)是全球领先的背景审查和身份服务提供商,宣布 Fountain 选择 Sterling 作为 Fountain 客户的首选背景审查合作伙伴,标志着他们成功合作的五年。这一战略合作伙伴关系旨在通过技术支持的合规解决方案和消除手动任务,进一步简化酒店、零售、医疗保健、零工经济和物流行业的筛选流程。 作为扩大合作伙伴关系的一部分,Fountain 和 Sterling 合作将 Fountain 的创新劳动力平台与 Sterling 行业领先的筛选解决方案相结合,以简化新员工的筛选流程。其结果是具有凝聚力的求职者体验,提高了人才保留率,并加快了雇主的招聘速度。 Relode 在重新定义医疗保健招聘的变革性举措中,拥有广泛医疗保健专业人员和招聘人员网络的领先医疗保健招聘引擎 Relode 自豪地宣布与 epocrates 建立战略关系,epocrates 是 athenahealth, Inc. 旗下公司,为超过100万处方者提供数字临床决策支持。该联盟将 Relode 的创新招聘引擎与值得信赖的 epocrates 解决方案相结合,以增加职位空缺的覆盖面和可见性,使医疗保健组织能够解决空缺职位带来的挑战,并开始快速、大规模地缓解这一痛点。 Survale + HappyDance 领先的招聘体验管理平台提供商 Survale 宣布与 Ph.Creative 公司 HappyDance 建立新的合作伙伴关系。 根据合作条款,两家公司将合作,向客户和潜在客户展示彼此的技术。 HiringThing + HRlogic 首屈一指的白标招聘平台 HiringThing 已将人力资源合规解决方案的领导者 HRlogics 添加到其合作伙伴市场中,以帮助各种规模的企业充分利用宝贵的工作机会税收抵免 (WOTC) 激励措施。 这项联邦税收抵免适用于雇用和留住 10 个有“重大就业障碍”的目标群体的员工的雇主,例如长期失业、失业或残疾退伍军人以及有犯罪记录的人。 “公司正在重新思考谁是'理想'员工,”HiringThing HR 战略业务合作伙伴 Becca Noland 说。“传统上,在因心理健康、旅行、帮助照顾家人或医疗原因而休息时,长期失业之类的事情不应该取消候选人的资格。同样,仅仅因为某人在年轻时犯罪并不意味着他们没有学习和成长。这些类别的人代表了一些真正的、原始的职场人才。 SOURCE HRTECHFEED
    UKG
    2024年01月29日