Twice a year, Workday releases bring new features, enhancements, and occasional retirements. These updates can unlock powerful capabilities for your organisation (or cause disruption if you’re not prepared!).
Many organisations focus solely on the tech. However, the truth is, if your people aren’t ready, your system won’t be either. Release readiness isn’t just a technical process, it’s a talent strategy.
When done well, it boosts adoption, improves ROI, and creates space for internal growth. If you miss it, you risk wasted investment, frustrated teams and reliance on external support that could’ve been avoided.
Why Release Readiness Matters
Poor preparation affects more than just your platform.
Business Risks:
- Missed opportunities to leverage new functionality.
- Avoidable downtime and disruption to business processes.
- Wasted license spend on unused features.
Talent Risks:
- Key updates managed by only a small number of individuals, creating bottlenecks.
- Frustrated users who feel blindsided by changes.
- Increased attrition risk due to lack of support or training.
According to Forrester, SaaS customers that actively prepare for major updates are likely to see improved time-to-value and ROI.
The Release Readiness Maturity Curve
Where do you fall on the scale?
- Level 1: Reactive - You learn about updates after they go live. No structured testing or communication.
- Level 2: Informed - You review release notes, but there’s no formal adoption plan. Training is ad-hoc.
- Level 3: Proactive - You have structured testing, release champions, planned communication, and clear governance updates, both technical and talent-focused.
Your Workday Release Readiness Checklist
Here’s how to get your system, and your people, ready for the next Workday drop:
1. Nominate Release Champions
Identify an internal ambassador in each function. They’ll be there to take a deep dive into the release, assess the business impact, and champion adoption in their team.
Talent tip: Release champions often evolve into key Workday leadership roles - great for career progression and retention.
2. Review Release Notes as a Cross-Functional Team
Bring your technical and functional leads together to interpret the changes. Map each update to affected business processes and to team skill requirements.
Talent tip: Identify any training gaps early so you can build capability ahead of go-live.
3. Test in Sandbox & Involve Your End Users
Don’t limit testing to AMS consultants - involve your nominated super users.
Talent tip: Hands-on testing builds confidence and strengthens internal ownership of Workday.
4. Communicate the Change Early
Replace vague “new release incoming” messages with targeted briefings, tailored by role.
Talent tip: Use these sessions to develop communication skills in your release champions.
5. Update Governance & Role Documentation
Document not just the process changes, but who owns them.
Talent tip: Review your RACI charts. This helps clarify accountability and creates internal development opportunities..
6. Track Adoption & Celebrate Success
Measure usage of new features and gather feedback within the first month.
Talent tip: Recognise and reward teams who adopt changes effectively, it reinforces positive behaviours.
A Workday release is more than a technical update; it’s an opportunity to develop your people and strengthen your governance. If you want to unlock the full potential of your Workday system, you need to prepare your system and your talent in tandem.
As a Workday AMS Partner with specialist recruitment expertise, we help organisations build both the systems and the teams that can thrive through every release. Whether you need to identify your next release champion, close skills gaps, or refine your governance model, we can help you turn release readiness into a competitive advantage.
Learn how our AMS pathways work - reach out today.
