Uniting Two Systems: ServiceNow + Workday

ServiceNow and Workday. Are they competitors, allies, opponents? As Josh Bersin puts it, they are kind of like cousins. Regardless of your stance on the relationship between the two, we find that a lot of our customers are utilizing both for different reasons. Workday is commonly known and used as the system of record for companies’ HR information and data. And while ServiceNow has been very successful in its HR Service Delivery product, it is not typically referred to as, or intended to be, an “HR system”. So, where do you draw the line for using one versus another? How do you know which product is more suitable for your needs? Let’s discuss a couple of key questions to keep in mind.

What are you trying to capture or achieve? Is it directly related to key HR data for an employee? Are you contemplating updating and maintaining employee personal information such as demographic or contact data, compensation details, or other PII? If so, it is probably a safe bet to keep this in Workday. Workday’s security model and framework have been built specifically for the purpose of securing sensitive information. To try and rebuild this model within ServiceNow would make for a heavily customized and difficult-to-maintain solution. Additionally, it is generally best practice to keep data entry within your system of record as opposed to opening it up for editing in another application, which could create data quality issues.

Is your need related to providing service to employees? Are you trying to create a solution that allows employees to get their questions answered by HR and other departments? Or perhaps you are trying to provide more information to your employees, which will allow them to self-serve more easily. If that is the case, then ServiceNow should be your go-to solution. Through the use of ServiceNow’s Employee Center and record producers, employees can easily submit their questions and/or inquiries to HR. This allows employees to get their questions answered without bombarding HR with emails and phone calls. Not only does this prove beneficial to your employees, but it is also beneficial to your HR staff. You can click here to learn more about the value of HR Services.

Regardless of what you are solving for, the overarching goal should be to create an intuitive and seamless experience for your employees. This doesn’t mean that only one system can be used for all of your needs. However, it does mean that employees should have a good understanding of where to go. If ServiceNow is going to be your main entry point or portal, this might even include having deep links to your Workday business processes so that employees can easily complete necessary tasks. A great example of this would be an Onboarding approach.

As a consulting organization, we generally recommend that our clients keep their “transactions” in Workday, and their “interactions” in ServiceNow. Workday has Onboarding business processes, as well as tasks typically used within Onboarding, such as updates to personal information, benefit elections, and emergency contacts to name a few. This makes sense, given that much of Onboarding is focused on completing information and checking off tasks, but what about those tasks that are unrelated to HR? This might include things such as providing IT equipment, getting their badge set up, and/or assigning their desk. Or, what about interactions such as new hire orientation? By housing your entire Onboarding lifecycle event in ServiceNow, you are able to serve up tasks that can link to Workday and include tasks related to other key business areas. Additionally, you can provide content and knowledge articles to assist the employee on their new hire journey. This is where ServiceNow shines: creating a truly comprehensive employee experience during the onboarding process.

Overall, we find that our customers can truly benefit from what both ServiceNow and Workday have to offer. When configured and utilized correctly, the two systems can unite to work better together and create a great employee experience.

A bit about Sunny: Before coming to The Anti and beginning to implement ServiceNow HRSD, Sunny spent over 9 years implementing and training on the Workday HCM product. Her implementation experience includes leading design sessions, gathering requirements, business process design, data conversion, and testing.

About The Anti: In 2017, we realized traditional HR technology consulting desperately needed an overhaul. So, we flipped the script on consulting culture.

• We grew a team with expertise in real world HR process design and technology implementation

• We aggregated and refined the best practices we’d already proven elsewhere

• We rejected traditional friction points and changed consulting culture for the better

It caught on, and we have since delivered 250+ ServiceNow HRSD engagements as the only elite ServiceNow Partner committed to the employee experience workflow products. The Anti brings a unique blend of HR Consulting experience, HR Technology backgrounds, and HR Practitioner expertise to every engagement.

Types of engagements and how we can help

We offer a comprehensive range of assistance that encompasses five key types of engagement:

• Implementation Readiness Assessments

• User & Experience Design

• Initial Implementations (Phase 1)

• Follow-on Deployments (Phase 2+)

• Advisory and Managed Services

Our mission is to meet you where you are in your ServiceNow journey to ensure your project is a success. Whether you require help with the initial setup or need guidance on optimizing your deployment, we are here to help every step of the way. With our expertise and commitment to excellence, you can be sure you are in safe hands.