Director, Workday Systems (HCM, HRIS)

About Alliance College-Ready Public Schools

Alliance College-Ready Public Schools is one of the largest and most successful nonprofit public charter school networks in the nation, operating 25 high‑performing middle and high schools that educate nearly 13,000 scholars who make up the heart of Los Angeles’ Latinx, Black, and recent immigrant communities. Alliance schools have been recognized as among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, Newsweek, the U.S. Department of Education, and the California Department of Education. Since opening our first school in 2004, 95% of Alliance scholars have graduated from high school. We strive to uplift our scholars and their communities by fostering unparalleled educational opportunities that encourage scholarly thought, resilient learning, powerful communication, mind‑body wellness, and community advocacy.

Role Summary

Reporting to the Vice President, Human Resources, the Director, Workday Systems will manage efforts to support members of the Talent and Finance Departments with system configuration, metric monitoring, reporting, and analytics tied to the HR Information System (HRIS), Workday. The Director is responsible for leading a cross‑functional group of subject matter experts through system improvements, maintenance, and defect management.

Essential Responsibilities

• Project Management
  • Provide the vision to maintain the current Workday features and identify opportunities for future modifications.
  • Maintain a roadmap of system enhancements and adoption items, reprioritizing when necessary.
  • Offer domain expertise in Workday functionality and system design.
  • Partner with Talent, Finance, and Operations team leaders to improve current processes and promote standardization.
  • Help define and coordinate vendor‑offered training or turnkey information when the platform updates.
  • Work with functional team leads to ensure documentation of existing Workday processes is centrally located and accessible.
• System Design
  • Perform Workday administrative functions such as security maintenance, business process configuration, tenant configuration, report building, and integration support.
  • Provide excellent troubleshooting skills and foster strong relationships with end‑users including principals and subject matter experts.
  • Provide accurate estimates for configuration changes and deliver solutions rapidly.
  • Support Workday feature release updates and enhancements, communicating the implied impact on business process requirements.
  • Develop the overall system design, architecture, deployment, support, and life‑cycle activities, methodology, and processes.
  • Collaborate with other teams to test and implement effective solutions.
  • Communicate with technical architects to ensure the system meets strategic architecture requirements, functional flexibility, and connectivity.
• Implement Software Update and Enhancement Processes
  • Test updates, communicate the impact of changes, and update documentation and processes with functional partners.
• Define, Scope, and Schedule Projects
  • Deliver timely and regular value through project definition, scoping, and scheduling.
  • Deeply understand goals and use cases for Workday.
  • Work with Business Process Owner(s) to understand and encourage the long‑term vision for the platform.
• Serve as Strategic Advisor
  • Provide recommendations to senior leaders and school sites on best‑in‑class Workday practices.
  • Lead and prepare for Workday Governing Committee meetings to support cross‑functional collaboration and monitor progress against network KPIs.
  • Support network‑wide Workday initiatives that require change management.

Ideal Candidate Requirements

• Commitment to Alliance’s core beliefs and mission.
• Knowledge of urban school systems, school environments, and school culture.
• Experience related to implementation and management of enterprise HR or financial applications.
• Deep understanding of HR, payroll, and/or staffing processes and their interdependencies.
• Exceptional project management skills in a context of competing priorities with limited resources.
• Proven record of effective leadership and navigating complex issues to drive performance results.
• Ability to work effectively in a multi‑layered organization and build strong relationships with colleagues and external stakeholders.
• Strong strategic thinking skills and understanding of organizational culture impact.
• Strong conceptual, analytic, and systems thinking to interpret data, develop strategy, and lead implementation.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for diverse audiences.
• Fluency with Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and other office and project management software.
• Willingness to contribute to a dynamic team committed to a new future for urban education.

Minimum Qualifications

• At least four (4) years of progressive professional work experience in a related field, with at least two (2) focused on Workday functions, and a Bachelor’s Degree or higher from an accredited college or university in human resources, education, public administration or policy, or a related field.
• OR at least six (6) years of progressive professional work experience in a related field, with at least two (2) focused on Workday functions, and a high school diploma or equivalent (e.g., GED).

Benefits

• Competitive salaries commensurate with experience.
• Generous retirement allowance equal to 7.5% of regular yearly earnings.
• Health insurance with 100% coverage of monthly premiums for individual employees and $1,000 per month toward medical family plan premiums.
• Paid leave: 8.5 weeks of vacation and paid time off for 12‑month employees, plus 3 weeks of flexible paid time off per year and 27 paid holidays.
• Professional development: $500 per year for staff expenses.
• Relocation bonus of $5,000 for individuals and $7,500 for new staff with families/partners outside Greater Los Angeles.

Compensation

$110,000.00 – $154,550.00

Equal Opportunity Employer

Alliance College-Ready Public Schools is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, national origin, race, sexual orientation, or any other protected characteristic. Alliance College-Ready Public Schools requires all team members to complete a LiveScan background check and TB clearance. The organization encourages applications from qualified individuals who meet some but not necessarily all of the qualifications.