Efficient Workday to ServiceNow Integration: ServiceNow receives key data, including department information, from Workday. However, in mid to large-sized company integrations, bringing in department data alone creates an unmanageably large data set.

Understanding the Problem

In large organizations, integrating Workday departments into ServiceNow can lead to data overload. Without proper categorization, users struggle to manage and navigate the extensive list of departments.

Using Workday for integration create a large data set of departments that creates confusion and complexity for the teams trying to use and manage data-based department data. It also impacts the end user population who has to navigate monstrous Department Picklists or remember the IDs of and naming conventions for their groups as well as the teams they work with to manage projects, portfolios, stakeholders, and service delivery. Consequently, this article outlines how most companies using Workday and ServiceNow approach department categorization to enhance the user experience.

Use Case: Coca Cola’s HBC wins with Workday ServiceNow Integration

By integrating Workday and ServiceNow using out-of-the-box solutions, Coca-Cola HBC streamlined its operations, improved data accuracy, and enhanced both strategic and employee management processes. This integration not only boosted efficiency but also significantly improved the overall employee experience, demonstrating the powerful synergy between Workday and ServiceNow in managing enterprise-level operations effectively​.

Coca-Cola integrated HR, IT, Facilities, Finance, and Legal services to remove the customization siloes that kept them from seamless control and visibility. They Digitized Employee Workflows, with 20% improved Project Transparency and improved the Mean Time to restore service Incidents. Time is money, experience is everything. Coca Cola made it happen in ServiceNow and Workday Integration.

Workday’s Foundational Data Model

Workday’s foundational data model organizes and manages department data efficiently. When integrating with ServiceNow, understanding this model is crucial for streamlined operations. Here’s a high-level overview.

Component	Description	Department Relation
Supervisory Organizations	Firstly, groups employees based on reporting relationships.	Represents departments or functional groups.
Matrix Organizations	Next, provides alternative, overlapping reporting structures.	Supports multi-manager reporting across departments.
Company Hierarchy	Additionally, outlines legal and financial entities.	Aligns with departments for financial reporting.
Cost Centers	Moreover, tracks financials and allocates costs.	Manages budgets and expenses at the departmental level.
Business Units	Furthermore, represents high-level functional areas.	Encompasses multiple departments for strategic alignment.
Divisions	Then, groups multiple business units or departments.	Provides broader organizational structure.
Locations	Finally, defines specific physical sites.	Manages location-specific departments.
Regions	Ultimately, groups locations into broader areas.	Facilitates region-based service management and reporting.

This table highlights how Workday’s data model components relate to department data, ensuring seamless integration with ServiceNow.

Workday’s Foundational Data and Organizational Hierarchies

Workday’s foundational data model is designed to streamline the organization and management of workforce data, including departments. This model uses various structural components to categorize and align data, making it easier to integrate with systems like ServiceNow. By leveraging specific field types around Department Name, organizations can create more effective ServiceNow filters for planning and management.

Firstly, Workday provides several foundational elements:

• Supervisory Organizations: These group workers and define reporting structures.
• Matrix Organizations: These offer alternative reporting structures overlapping with supervisory organizations.
• Company Hierarchy: This defines the legal entities within the organization.

Functional Areas

Additionally, Workday includes:

• Cost Centers: Representing financial units within the organization.
• Business Units: High-level functional areas that may align with departments.
• Divisions: Larger segments encompassing multiple departments.

Geographical Groupings

Moreover, Workday supports:

• Locations: Defining physical locations grouped into regions.
• Regions: Larger geographical areas encompassing multiple locations.

Workday Integration Field Types for Better ServiceNow Filters

Workday’s data model includes several field types that enhance ServiceNow filters, ensuring efficient and accurate planning:

• Department Name: The primary identifier for each department.
• Supervisory Organization: Defines the reporting structure, crucial for filtering by managerial hierarchy.
• Cost Center: Aligns financial data with departments, aiding budget-related filters.
• Business Unit: Groups departments under larger functional areas, simplifying high-level planning.
• Division: Provides an additional layer of grouping for strategic oversight.
• Location and Region: Facilitates geographical filtering for region-specific planning.

Benefits of ServiceNow Alignment to Workday Data Model

As more organizations are leaning into Employee Experience, IT Service Management and Strategic Portfolio Management have significant benefits to Aligning Workday’s data model with ServiceNow:

Efficiency

• Streamlined Operations: Categorized data allows for more efficient navigation and management within ServiceNow.
• Improved Resource Allocation: Better visibility into departmental structures aids in more efficient resource planning and allocation.

Accuracy

• Consistent Data: Aligning data models ensures consistency and accuracy in reporting and analysis.
• Reduced Errors: Clear categorization and structured data reduce the likelihood of errors during integration and use.

Employee Experience, ESC, and Onboarding

• Enhanced Employee Experience: Seamless data integration ensures employees have access to accurate departmental information, improving their overall experience.
• Efficient Employee Service Center (ESC): Accurate departmental data enables more efficient handling of employee queries and issues within the ESC.
• Improved Onboarding: New hires benefit from accurate and organized departmental information, making their onboarding process smoother and more efficient.

Strategic Portfolio, Project, and Resource Demand Management

• Enhanced Planning: Accurate departmental data supports better strategic planning and portfolio management.
• Resource Management: Improved visibility into departmental needs and capacities aids in effective resource demand management.
• Project Oversight: Clear alignment of departments with projects enhances oversight and management capabilities.

By understanding and utilizing Workday’s foundational data model, organizations can ensure a seamless and efficient integration with ServiceNow, leading to improved operational efficiency, data accuracy, and strategic management capabilities.

Customization Needs for Workday to ServiceNow Integration

In conclusion, integrating Workday department data with ServiceNow using out-of-the-box solutions is generally most effective in terms of being both efficient and effective. By leveraging standard APIs, import sets, transform maps, and scheduled imports, organizations can achieve seamless integration without the need for customization, ensuring data consistency, accuracy, and enhanced operational efficiency.

Custom Attributes

To align with ServiceNow categories when you can not align to adapt, you may need to add custom attributes in Workday. While foundational attributes like cost centers and business units exist, additional customization may be necessary.

Department Tagging

Workday implementations typically do not include specific tags for ITSM or SPM needs. Therefore, leveraging existing Workday tags, or creating custom tags could be used to facilitate this mapping, in situations where ITSM or Strategic Portfolio Management have unique needs to be added or configured to ensure smooth data transfer and alignment.

Functional Area Grouping

Furthermore, grouping departments into functional areas requires configuring Workday’s existing structures to match the desired categorizations for ServiceNow.

Steps to Achieve Desired Mappings

Review Existing Structures

Firstly, evaluate the existing organizational, cost center, and business unit structures within Workday.

Identify Gaps

Next, determine what additional categorizations or mappings are needed for ServiceNow integration that do not currently exist in Workday.

Add Custom Fields and Tags

Then, implement custom attributes, fields, and tags in Workday to align departments with ServiceNow categories.

Data Synchronization

Ensure that the data synchronization process between Workday and ServiceNow includes these custom mappings and categorizations.

Testing and Validation

Finally, test the integration to ensure that the categorizations are correctly mapped and functional within ServiceNow’s ITSM and SPM modules.

Tips for Approaching the Activity

1. Collaborate Early: Engage both Workday and ServiceNow teams early in the process to ensure alignment.
2. Document Everything: Maintain detailed documentation of all custom fields and mappings.
3. Iterate and Improve: Continuously review and refine the categorizations based on user feedback.

Challenges and How to Avoid Issues

Challenge 1: Data Overload

Solution: Implement a robust categorization system to break down large data sets into manageable groups.

Challenge 2: Misalignment of Structures

Solution: Regularly review and align Workday structures with ServiceNow requirements through cross-functional meetings.

Challenge 3: Integration Errors

Solution: Conduct thorough testing and validation to catch and resolve errors before going live.

Conclusion

In conclusion, effectively categorizing Workday departments for ServiceNow integration enhances the user experience by reducing data overload and improving navigation. By understanding the foundational elements, customization needs, and following a structured approach, organizations can achieve a seamless integration that supports efficient IT Service Management and Service Portfolio Management.

Resources: Efficient Workday to ServiceNow Integration

• Coca-Cola HBC gains visibility into its entire project universe
• Coca-Cola deploys COVID-19 employee portal – ServiceNow
• Demystifying Taxonomy Categorization
• Organization Management in Workday
• ServiceNow HR Demo: Employee Service Center Walkthrough (Thirdera)
• ServiceNow Unified Taxonomy: What It Is, Why You Need It, and How To Get Started
• Strategic Portfolio Management FAQs
• Workday to ServiceNow Integration (Mulesoft)