As March 9th approaches, it's almost time for Workday's 2024R1 release. I'm here to share a couple of my go-to strategies to ensure we’re all set for a smooth transition. It's all about staying organized and getting social!
Before we dive in, I've got to give a nod to my friend Sheena from Texas' blog post. She laid out a road map last year for handling Workday releases. It’s a great read, and her advice is gold for any release cycle. Check it out on the Customer Sharing Movement blog page, here https://www.customersharingmovement.com/post/5-tips-for-your-first-workday-release-cycle.
In a nutshell, Sheena recommends:
Create a Project and Assign a Project Owner/Manager
Export the “What’s New in Workday” report
Engage Your Subject Matter Experts (SME)/Functional Owners
Test, Test, Test!
Communicate & Update Training
Now, let me add my own flavors to this mix:
Getting Organized Together:
Teamwork is key! Let's sit down with the What’s new in Workday report and map out who’s testing what. By dividing and conquering, we make sure no stone is left unturned and every feature is checked.
Leveraging Our Workday Peers:
Here's where the fun begins! One of the coolest things about Workday is that we're all on the same journey. Everyone, in every organization, is updating at the same time. So, why not learn from each other?
Virtual Connections are a Lifesaver:
I love the face-to-face interaction at Workday Rising, but we can’t always wait for annual events. That's where the Customer Sharing Movement comes in. The weekly Sharing Café and 24/7/365 Share Space on Slack (SOS) are fantastic for connecting with Workday sharing fans from around the globe. It’s like having a 24/7 support group, perfect for those late-night questions.
For instance, just last week in the Sharing Café, we delved into the new placement for announcements on the Workday home page. They are moving to the top right part of the page and will display one announcement at a time, scrolling one by one. This small but significant change was highlighted during our hour in the Sharing Café on Wednesday morning, and even the feature release link was shared for everyone to see. You can check it out here. https://community.workday.com/node/1178198
Gleaning Insights from Others:
Chatting with peers from different organizations is super insightful. They might use the same features differently or work with modules we haven’t tried. It’s a great way to see if there’s something new we can adopt or a different approach we can take.
Summary:
We all know how hectic daily tasks and projects can be. But, when it comes to tackling a big release like Workday 2024R1, it's all about collaboration – both within our team and with the wider world of Workday sharing fans.
Author: Jasper from Indiana
