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.

We are looking for a Workday Senior Functional Partner - HCM to join our Workday Support Team during an exciting time of transformation! The role will be based from either our Sunderland or London office on a hybrid basis, 3 days minimum in the office.

This role leads the design and optimisation of Human Capital Management (HCM) processes within Workday, driving continuous improvement and best practice, including absence management.

You will oversee the implementation of system updates and configuration changes across HCM, security, and business processes, acting as a trusted partner to functional leaders. The role delivers value by ensuring efficient, standardised processes and maximising the use of out-of-the-box Workday functionality.

Key Responsibilities:

Act as the Subject Matter Expert (SME) for Workday HCM 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.

Strategy & Continuous Improvement

• Develop and maintain the roadmap for HCM 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.

Stakeholder Engagement & Communication

• Own communications for the HCM 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.”

Governance, Testing & Risk Management

• 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.

Reporting & Training

• Configure and maintain reports relating to HCM and Absence.
• Support training activities and materials, including:
  • User guides
  • FAQs
  • Recorded demonstrations
  • SharePoint content

External Insight & Best Practice

• 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.

Skills & Experience

Essential Experience

• 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.

Qualifications

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

The closing date for applications is Sunday 31 May 2026. Arriva Group reserves the right to close this vacancy early.