5 Questions on Workday Professional Services Automation

Today we introducedWorkday Professional Services Automation(PSA), a new solution I am very excited about. Having worked closely with our customers to develop the new offering, I believe Workday PSA is unique and differentiated in addressing the industry-specific needs of professional services organizations as well as many other billable project-based organizations. Here are some of the questions I’ve received from customers, prospects, and partners about Workday PSA and how it’s differentiated.

Why is Workday introducing a professional services automation (PSA) offering?

Professional services organizations are dealing with some big challenges today—such as rising attrition—that are not being met by current PSA market offerings. These organizations are only as good as their talent, and there is massive competition to attract and retain the best people. Another challenge is that many interrelated functions critical to ensuring successful project delivery and client satisfaction—human resources, project management, resource management, billing, reporting, and more—are often spread out among many disparate systems. This results in unnecessary manual processes, inefficient resource allocation, and lack of overall visibility into talent, operational, and financial metrics.

What is the key value proposition for Workday PSA?

Workday PSA is the only solution on the market that has it all because it was built with people at the center and designed for the way people work today. It’s one system, delivered in the cloud, that helps our customers reinvent how they run their teams, projects, and business.

How will Workday PSA help firms recruit and retain the best talent?

Quality of talent is the number one indicator of a successful professional services firm. Both skill and job satisfaction levels can determine if a project runs smoothly and if a customer is happy.

Workday PSA was designed to address these needs. Employees and managers have a consistent experience whether they are recruiting and hiring, sharing tips on great candidates, helping people develop their skills and careers, or identifying those ready for new challenges and promotions. And, withWorkday Talent Insights, professional services customers can finally anticipate and prevent attrition among their top performing and most billable employees.

Additionally, on theservice deliveryside, Workday PSA leverages Workday HCM as your core talent and skills system of record so you can better optimize resource utilization and assignments. What does all this mean? It means putting the right people with the right skills on the right projects. All in one place. No more juggling of data. No more transactions across multiple systems. That’s freedom!

Professional services organizations are independent firms or the services arm of an existing company (sometimes called embedded services). Which type is Workday PSA designed for?

Both. What may come as a surprise is that in addition to independent professional services firms, a lot of companies drive a significant amount of revenue through a services arm of their organization. While their business models can vary, both have people at the core and their goals are similar. Their competitive edge is the virtuous cycle of matching resources to profitable projects to drive business growth. With Workday PSA, we’re in the best position to ensure that happens for our customers.

How is Workday PSA different than other PSA offerings?

Workday PSA offers everything a professional services organization needs. It was built natively in the cloud for the problems our customers face today and more importantly, the opportunities they can seize moving forward. With more than 700 customers all on the same version, we’re working together to share ideas, innovate, and grow. That’s the hallmark of the Workday experience that truly sets us apart.