Written by Kate Fonville, Sales & Talent

The Recruiters Guide to Vetting Workday Talent

The Recruiters Guide to Vetting Workday Talent

As Recruiters, there is nothing more exhilarating than sourcing amazing candidates! We spend countless hours connecting with people across multiple channels, making cold calls, asking for referrals, organizing prospects, and building relationships. When we finally get a hold of a Workday candidate that seemingly meets all the qualifications we have been searching for – how do we ensure the candidate’s actual capabilities match what’s articulated on the resume?! 

Here are a few things to keep in mind when vetting quality Workday candidates:

 

Candidate Quality Control

Workday is such a hot skillset right now and recruiters must first be able to decipher who has the Workday expertise vs. Workday exposure on their resume. Look for the Workday specific keywords, repetition of module/s proficiency applied to different environments, and appropriate verbiage (lead, developed, configured, etc. vs. collaborated, assisted with, participated in, etc.). Additionally, if a candidate has worked for larger organizations, be concerned if the resume focuses on the project as a whole vs. individual responsibilities/deliverables.

 

Asking the Right Questions

Whether your candidate is an HR Business Partner that uses Workday to complete their day-to-day tasks or more hands-on within the tenant (technical or functional), it is important to ask the right questions. This is where the fun begins: digging into the candidate’s ability to articulate their expertise. Yes, there are the standard interview questions of “how many years of experience…?”, “Which modules…?”, “How hands-on…”, etc., however as Workday-focused recruiters, we need to ask open ended questions and see if the candidate can articulate what is written via Workday specific language. In essence, do they see the screens in their head? Can they walk you through it step by step because they’ve been doing it for years, or are they simply reframing how the experience is presented on the resume. If you, as a recruiter, are lost in the technical translation of these steps – you’ve found someone worthwhile!

 

Be Consultative

Workday expertise is in high demand right now. If the candidate is available for extended amounts of time – the recruiter must investigate why. Sometimes a candidate’s resume is the culprit. The articulation of expertise is strong over the phone but the paperwork is generalized or unfocused. In these situations, a great Recruiter must advise such talent on aspects of marketability. One example seen quite often is that a resume will be restricted to one page, with a summary of experience, a brief description of each position held, and 3-5 bullet points of day-to-day responsibilities for each. That one page can span a decade of work. Yes, these are all very important things to include but can a one-page limitation really depict a candidate’s capabilities? This is quite subjective, but my answer is “No, it is not enough.” Who cares if it is 1.5 pages or 5?! So many times I advise candidates to use applicable keywords, give short examples, and flesh out concepts/processes that a hiring manager may or may not be familiar with. 

Each interview that is conducted is an opportunity to learn something new, provide guidance if needed, and bring something valuable to the table. Recruiters take the time to locate rockstar candidates and “unicorns”, so why not leverage their expertise to grow? The more a Recruiter learns about Workday, what each candidate does and doesn’t do will only fine-tune the vetting process thus resulting in better interviews and a higher-quality candidate network. 

If you want to learn more, check out our insights or reach out to us at info@syssero.com