Workday User Group: Exploring the Future of Workday in Higher Ed - In-Person Workshop

Overview

Workday User Group: Exploring the Future of Workday in Higher Ed - In-Person Workshop

REGISTRATION IS FILLED - SOLD OUT

Where: College of the Holy Cross
1 College Street
Worcester, Massachusetts 
Directions

When: Wednesday, November 20, 2024
9:00 am - 3:15 pm

Registration Fee:
NERCOMP Member
Early-bird rate through 10/8/2024: $175 (savings of $25)
Member rate after 10/8/24: $200

Non-Member
Early-bird rate through 10/8//2024:  $255 (savings of $45)
Non-Member rate after 10/8/2024: $300

The registration covers the workshop, morning break, and lunch.

Event Overview
Join us for the first-ever NERCOMP Workday User Group!

Join us for an engaging and informative Workday User Group workshop designed to elevate your campus's Workday experience! This day-long event will explore the latest features and functionalities, providing valuable insights and practical strategies to enhance your Workday support and management. Discover best practices from industry experts/colleagues and connect with peers from across the region to share knowledge and experiences. Whether you're looking to optimize your current system or explore new ways to leverage Workday, this workshop offers a unique opportunity to expand your skills, grow your network, and drive excellence on your campus. Don't miss this chance to stay ahead of the curve and empower your Workday capabilities!
 

Session Outcomes:
Participants will:
 - Learn new features and functionality in the Workday HR, Finance, and Student areas
 - Understand options and best practices for data, reporting, and analytics in a Workday ecosystem
 - Develop and improve strategies and practices for supporting Workday at your school
 - Make connections with other colleagues who are supporting and working with Workday across the region

Registration Cancellation Policy:
By clicking the "Register Now" button, you indicate a commitment to attend and will be held responsible for the registration fee. Your fee can be refunded if you notify us of a cancellation at least 5 business days before the event via email to nercomp@nercomp.org.

Event Disclaimer:
NERCOMP reserves the right to use any photographs or other mechanical recordings taken at NERCOMP events in promotional materials. No mechanical recordings of any kind may be used at NERCOMP events without the prior written consent of NERCOMP organizers and presenters. The views and opinions expressed at NERCOMP events do not necessarily reflect those of NERCOMP, nor does NERCOMP make any representation regarding the information presented at NERCOMP events.

Agenda

Workday User Group Agenda

7:30 am-9:00 am  Registration and Coffee

9.00 am-9:30 am Welcome and Introduction to the NERCOMP Workday User Group
Speaker: David Blezard, Senior Director, University System of New Hampshire

Welcome and background on why NERCOMP wants to get a Workday User Group happening on a regular basis.  Overview of the day and an opportunity to get to know the others present.

9:30 am-10:45 am Data, Reporting, and Analytics in and out of Workday
Panel discussion/presentations from Colleges: Smith, Bentley, and  Wellesley 
Speakers:  
Marion Cronin, Assistant Director for Enterprise Applications and Reporting, Amherst College
Shruti Muralidharan, Sr. Business Systems Analyst | IT, Bentley University
Lisa Newman, Manager of Business Intelligence, Wellesley College

We will explore different options and solutions for building and managing reporting and analytics needs within Workday.  Topics will include Workday’s native reporting and dashboarding functions, Prism, and external environments.

10:45 am-10:55 am  Break

10:55 am-12:00 pm What’s New in Workday
Speaker: Presented by Brandon Lock of Workday

Workday staff will present on topics of what’s new in the product.  Expected areas of focus include AI/ML solutions and automated document intake, OCR, and processing, such as for invoices.

12:00 pm-1:00 pm  Lunch

1:00 pm-2:00 pm  Unconference Discussions

Self-select topics that will be chosen the day of the event.  This is an opportunity to focus in on a specific area of interest, to share mini-stories from your institution, and to make connections with others working on the same Workday issues and challenges as you are.

2:00 pm-2:10 pm Break

2:10 pm - 3:15 pm Workday Operations and Support
Panelists:
Fred Kass, Associate CIO for IT Operations, Amherst College
John Singler, Associate Vice President of Enterprise Applications & Data Services, Smith College
Karen Warren, Associate Vice President for Information Technology, Wesleyan Universiy
Kevin Kane, Director of Enterprise Systems, Wesleyan University 

We will share our perspectives, experiences, and best practices related to on-going Workday Operations and Support paying particular attention to the time after your implementation partner has left the project and your functional departments and IT organization are firmly in the driver’s seat.  This panel discussion offers a comprehensive overview of the tactics and strategies used to ensure a successful transition from implementation phase to your continued use and improvement under Workday.

3:15 pm  End

Speakers

David Blezard

David Blezard is the Senior Director of Enterprise IT Systems for the University System of New Hampshire.  He is currently the IT lead for the USNH implementation of Workday, but he also has 30 years of experience across higher education IT services and support.  David is a long-time member of the NERCOMP community and a current board member.

Marion Cronin

Marion Cronin is the Assistant Director for Enterprise Applications and Reporting at Amherst College. She was the reporting lead and data conversion team member in the Workday implementation project at Amherst College.  She also has over 27 years of experience working in IT in Higher Education.

Kevin Kane

Kevin Kane is the Director of Enterprise Systems for Wesleyan University.   He led a cross functional technical team, responsible for integrations and security during Wesleyan’s HCM and Finance implementation of Workday that went live in July 2024.  His team is responsible on-going Workday support, configuration changes, integrations, and security.  Kevin has many years of experience in the student systems space and looking forward to starting Wesleyan’s Workday Student implementation in January 2025.

Fred Kass
Fred Kass is Associate CIO for IT Operations at Amherst College. He is responsible for strategy, communications, budgeting, planning, and operations, including Enterprise Technology and Systems and Networking teams oversight.

He has been a strong proponent of inter-institutional collaboration throughout his higher education information technology career. He has been a member of the Connecticut Education Network Technical Advisory Council, Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology Infrastructure Advisory Council, and a Board Member and Treasurer of NERCOMP. Fred was Principle Investigator for the National Science Foundation grant CC*DNI Campus Design: Trinity College Next Generation Science Network and DMZ. 

Fred has an MBA from the University of Massachusetts Isenberg School of Management and is an alum of the EDUCAUSE Leadership Institute and CLIR/EDUCAUE Leading Change Institute.

Brandon J. Lock, MHA

With over a decade of experience in technology, enterprise architecture, and management consulting, Brandon is a recognized leader in technology innovation and adoption. His expertise spans multiple industries, including higher education, healthcare, non-profit, and public sector. At Workday, he leads a team of technologists and is a thought leader on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). Brandon regularly speaks on the transformative potential of AI at conferences, forums, user groups, and with business executives. Brandon holds a Master’s degree in Health Administration from Georgetown University, a Bachelor’s degree in Molecular Biology and Philosophy from Clemson University, and a specialization in AI for Business from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business.

Workday

Shruti Muralidharan

Shruti Muralidharan is a Sr. Business Systems Analyst at Bentley University.  She holds a Masters degree in Information Systems and is certified as a Workday Pro in reporting and analytics.

Lisa Newman

Lisa Newman is the Manager of Business Intelligence at Wellesley College. She is currently the IT lead for implementing analytic systems, and co-led the technical data conversion from Wellesley's legacy student system to Workday Student. She has over 25 years of experience implementing data warehousing, analytic solutions, integrations, and data management, including over 20 years of experience within higher education.

John Singler
John Singler is the Associate Vice President of Enterprise Applications & Data Services at Smith College, where he leads digital transformation efforts and manages enterprise solutions across the institution. John is known for fostering a collaborative, service-oriented culture and combines technical expertise with a focus on building strong, mission-driven partnerships across the organization.
Smith College went live on HCM and Finance in 2019 and Student in 2021. In addition to core functionality, they’ve also deployed Workday Learning and Prism. 

 

Karen Warren

Karen is the Associate Vice President for Information Technology at Wesleyan University, overseeing user services, technical services, and academic technology. During Wesleyan's HCM Workday implementation, she served on the Workday Steering Committee and coordinated end-to-end testing. Karen collaborated with cross-functional teams to design and implement a comprehensive end-user support model, seamlessly integrated within their ITSM platform, to ensure smooth post-go-live support and operations.

Lodging

Hotel Information:

Rooms are available at the Holiday Inn Express, 10-12 Johnson Street in Auburn, MA. 01501
Call the hotel directly at 1-508-832-2500 or book here.

Parking and Entry

Parking: 

Please park in the Hogan Campus Center lot. Parking is free. When you enter campus from the last gate on the left (Gate 7) you will soon see a series of large parking lots on your right going all the way up to the Hart Athletic Center. All of those lots are general parking. As long as you make sure not to park in student or faculty/staff parking lots there shouldn’t be any problems.

See Campus Map for Parking locations

There is an electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the parking garage for a fee. The stations are on the ChargePoint network and the ChargePoint website has information to utilize your smartphone to use the ChargePoint network. 

Building Access:
You may enter the building via the steps or ramp adjacent to the parking lot.  You are actually entering on the 3rd floor.

Elevators: 
You will enter on the 3rd floor and take the elevator up to the 4th floor.

Restrooms:
There are accessible restrooms located within the Hogan Campus Center on each floor

Slides/Handouts

Presentations, Slides and Handouts:

1.  What's New With Workday (Brandon Lock)

2.  Data, Reporting, and Analytics in and out of Workday (Wellesley College)