Workday Senior Functional Partner - HCM

Arriva is a leading European passenger transport partner, operating in 11 countries across the UK and Europe. We employ around 35,000 people and deliver more than 1.5 billion passenger journeys each year, connecting people and communities safely, reliably, and sustainably. With strong roots dating back to 1938, Arriva has an ambitious growth and sustainability agenda. In 2024, the business was acquired by I Squared Capital, a global infrastructure investment fund manager, supporting Arriva’s next phase of development.

This role is responsible for the delivery and continuous improvement of Human Capital Management (HCM), including Advanced Compensation and Absence processes within Workday. You will manage or oversee the implementation of system updates and configuration changes across HCM, security, and business processes, while acting as a trusted partner to functional business leaders. The role adds value by ensuring efficient, standardised processes and by maximising the use of out-of-the-box Workday functionality wherever possible.

• Act as the Subject Matter Expert (SME) for Workday HCM, Advanced Compensation, and Absence modules.
• Maintain, enhance, and manage change requests and upgrades across these modules.
• Deliver the Workday Support Team’s solutions, working closely with key stakeholders to agree and deliver a continuous improvement plan.
• Develop and maintain the roadmap for HCM, Advanced Compensation, and Absence adoption and future enhancements.
• Support business units as a critical enabler to maximise automation and reduce off-system processes.
• Identify opportunities to simplify, improve, or redesign processes to enhance user experience.
• Own communications for the HCM, Advanced Compensation, and Absence workstreams.
• Gather and act on feedback from end users across the business.
• Host and facilitate workshops and demonstrations (virtual and in-person) to showcase best practice and “what good looks like.”
• Assess change impacts in line with the established governance model to reduce risk and identify improvement opportunities.
• Manage or oversee testing for new functionality, upgrades, and releases.
• Actively support issue resolution, managing escalations, tracking tickets, and working to agreed SLAs.
• Configure and maintain reports relating to HCM, Advanced Compensation, and Absence.
• Support training activities and materials, including: User guides, FAQs, Recorded demonstrations, SharePoint content.
• Leverage Workday Community and Workday Success Plans to stay aligned with best practice and market trends.
• Maintain strong connections with Workday to bring external insight into the organisation.

• Strong experience with core HR processes and their interaction with payroll and external systems (e.g. time recording, recruitment).
• Proven experience working with stakeholders at all levels of the organisation.
• Experience in multi-national organisations.
• Experience supporting multi-business implementations.
• Understanding of sales, divestitures, and their impact on Workday.
• Experience working in areas of high innovation, configuration, and consulting within Workday.

• Workday Pro certification in HCM, Advanced Compensation, and/or Absence (attained or working towards).

This job description outlines the primary duties and responsibilities of the role. It is not intended to be exhaustive, and the job holder may be required to undertake additional tasks as requested by their manager. Responsibilities may evolve in line with business needs and personal development.