Interview with Danny Lockwood, HRIS strategist and Workday specialist
1. What major trends do you see shaping Workday system strategy and HRIS architecture over the next 3–5 years?
“Over the next few years, we’ll see a definitive shift from traditional transaction-heavy systems to AI-augmented orchestration. HRIS architecture is moving toward a “skills-first” model, where the Workday Skills Cloud becomes the foundational layer for dynamic talent matching rather than static job profiles.”
Medical billing and revenue cycle management (RCM)
In a high-volume medical billing environment, a skills-first architecture moves beyond generic “Billing Specialist” roles. Instead, the Workday Skills Cloud identifies granular competencies like “ICD-10 Coding Accuracy” or “Payer-Specific Appeals.” When a billing company takes on a large new contract for a specialized surgical group, the system identifies internal staff with high proficiency in those specific diagnostic codes, regardless of their current department, allowing the firm to pivot resources rapidly to maximize clean claim rates.
2. How do you think AI and Workday’s predictive analytics will transform the way HRIS teams support the business?
“AI and predictive analytics are turning HRIS teams from system maintainers into strategic partners. Instead of just looking at historical turnover, we’ll use tools like the Manager Insights Hub to provide leadership with prescriptive data that identifies flight risks or internal mobility gaps before they impact the business.”
Higher education
Universities often struggle with faculty “churn” or staff departures during critical grant cycles. HRIS teams in this sector can use the Manager Insights Hub to analyze engagement markers and turnover trends. By identifying a “flight risk” profile for a lead researcher based on lack of internal mobility or stagnating compensation, HRIS can provide Deans with prescriptive data to intervene with a retention package or a new research leadership opportunity before the individual resigns, protecting the institution’s research funding.
3. As employee expectations shift toward personalization, intuitive UX, and self‑service, how will Workday teams need to evolve their configuration strategy, user experience design, and tenant optimization practices?
“Employee expectations have evolved; they want their work tech to feel as intuitive as their personal apps. Configuration strategy must move toward Workday Everywhere, meeting users in Slack or Teams, while using Workday Journeys to create a guided, personalized experience for complex life events.”
Retail
For a global retailer with a high volume of frontline associates, the goal is to reduce “time to task.” By leveraging Workday Everywhere, a floor associate can request a shift change or view their pay stub directly within Slack or Microsoft Teams without ever logging into the full Workday tenant. For complex events like a “Leave of Absence,” Workday Journeys provides a curated, mobile-first checklist that guides the employee through medical documentation and benefits preservation.
4. What role do you see data transparency, auditability, and reporting playing in future Workday deployments?
“Data transparency and auditability are no longer “nice-to-haves” given the rise of global pay transparency and ESG regulations. Future deployments will lean heavily on Prism Analytics to blend Workday data with external sources, providing a single, auditable version of the truth for executive decision-making.”
Financial services
In the highly regulated banking sector, ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) reporting and Pay Equity audits are critical. A firm can use Workday Prism Analytics to ingest external market salary data and localized cost-of-living indices, blending them with internal Workday HCM data. This creates a single, auditable dashboard that proves pay equity across gender and ethnicity cohorts to regulators, while also tracking “Social” metrics like diversity spend for annual disclosures.
5. What advice would you give organizations that want to future‑proof their Workday ecosystem, especially when it comes to versioning, extensibility, integrations, and reducing technical debt?
“The best way to reduce technical debt is to embrace “Configuration over Customization.” By utilizing Workday Extend for unique business needs, you keep the core tenant clean, making the bi-annual release cycle an opportunity to innovate rather than a burden of fixing broken integrations.”
Manufacturing
Manufacturers often have unique safety and equipment certification requirements that do not fit perfectly into standard HCM objects. Rather than building “brittle” custom integrations to external tracking databases, the organization can use Workday Extend to build a bespoke “Safety Certification Tracker” directly within the Workday UI. This keeps the core HCM clean and ensures that when the bi-annual Workday releases occur, the certification app remains functional and integrated, significantly reducing technical debt.
6. If you were mentoring someone who wants to grow into a senior Workday leader what skills, certifications, or experiences would you tell them to prioritize?
“I tell anyone looking to grow into leadership to prioritize Workday Pro Certifications in HCM, Security, and Reporting to build technical credibility. However, the real differentiator is the ability to translate complex business problems into scalable, automated solutions that actually improve the employee experience.”
Technology/SaaS
In the fast-paced tech industry, a senior Workday leader must do more than manage the back-office. By obtaining Workday Pro Certifications in Security and Reporting, a leader gains the technical authority to partner with the CTO on data privacy. The differentiator is the ability to walk into a boardroom and explain how a specific automated onboarding workflow, built via the Workday Business Process Framework, reduced “time-to-productivity” for new engineers by 15%, directly impacting the company’s product development velocity.
Danny Lockwood is a highly accomplished Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) Strategist and Workday Specialist with over a decade of experience optimizing enterprise technology. He leverages a deep technical background to help organizations streamline their HCM, Payroll, Recruiting and Security operations.
In addition to his advisory leadership, Danny served for 15 years at a major enterprise company providing mobility services specifically for higher education. With this extensive background, he has been an integral part of the higher ed ecosystem for nearly 20 years, bringing a specialized perspective to complex institutional challenges.
Based in the Tampa area, Danny is a dedicated father who balances his professional life with a passion for travel and community. When he isn’t managing high-level HRIS projects, he can often be found embarking on international cruises, exploring local attractions with his daughter, or engaging in web development projects using cloud and AI technologies.
