Workday Kickoff Event Celebrates Project Team and Change Leaders
In August, the Matoaka Woods room at William & Mary’s School of Education was filled with excitement and enthusiasm as nearly 100 members of Information Technology, Finance, Budget and Human Resources gathered for the Workday Kickoff Event. The team was joined by representatives from Huron Consulting Group and Workday as well as President Katherine A. Rowe and Executive Vice President for Finance & Administration Mike Todd.
The event was organized to celebrate the hard work of the project team as they embark on this challenging but transformative project that will streamline business processes and amplify their impact on campus. Workday is a cloud-based platform that will replace the current Banner system and provide a unified and user-friendly experience for human resources and finance services.
Chief Information Officer Ed Aractingi, who also serves as an executive sponsor for the project, kicked off the event saying, “We appreciate all the effort being put forth by everyone in this room. Today’s event is a celebration of the impact your work has on campus. What this project is all about is amplifying the impact that we have on this campus by bringing the best tools and systems to our community.”
President Rowe echoed Aractingi’s sentiments, thanking the project team for their dedication and commitment to the Workday project. “So much work went into getting right here, to the point where we are kicking off a major change management project that is dedicated to everyone who works and studies here,” said Rowe. “The most important resource we have is human time. This project is about valuing the time and intention of the human beings who work here and giving them much better tools than we currently have. We are about to radically improve the processes we use to get stuff done. What you are doing is so important and so cool.”
Todd, who was only in his third week on the job, also addressed the audience, expressing his appreciation and support for the project team and their role as change leaders. He highlighted the benefits of Workday for the university community, such as improved efficiency, transparency and collaboration. He also acknowledged the challenges and the risks that the project entails and urged the attendees to communicate and collaborate effectively throughout the project lifecycle.
The Workday Kickoff Event was a successful and memorable occasion that celebrated the project team and their role as change leaders on campus. The event also marked the beginning of a new chapter for the university, as it prepares to transition to Workday and embrace the change that will enhance its operations and impact.
