University of Canterbury adopts Workday for digital overhaul

The University of Canterbury (UC), based in Christchurch, New Zealand, has opted to replace its existing Oracle system with the Workday Enterprise Management Cloud.

The decision to adopt Workday aims to centralise and streamline its people, financial, and operational data as part of an extensive digital transformation.

The university's current ERP system was approaching the end of its lifecycle and was failing to provide necessary functionality. This prompted UC to embark on a significant transformation project geared towards modernising its systems to better support core financial and human resources operations. The goal is to enhance the workplace experience for staff, foster a cohesive environment for research and students, and enable the institution to operate more dynamically and innovatively. To accomplish these objectives, UC has chosen Workday as its strategic partner in this digital overhaul.

Founded in 1873, the University of Canterbury is New Zealand’s second-oldest university and comprises seven faculties, offering a diverse array of tertiary courses across Engineering, Science, Arts, Commerce, Business, Law, Health, and Education. The institution serves over 25,000 students and is supported by 2,300 staff members. Developing world-class digital capabilities is a critical component of UC’s strategy for continued success, which includes delivering high-quality educational experiences to a global audience.

With the implementation of Workday, UC aims to:

• Enhance data and insights for strategic decision-making by providing real-time, accurate data to guide the university’s future.
• Streamline and automate processes using Workday’s AI capabilities to reduce manual tasks and minimise errors.
• Simplify operations by using Workday as a single source of truth for all people, financial, and operational data.
• Improve the candidate and staff experience by leveraging Workday’s comprehensive HR applications for recruitment, onboarding, and staff management.

Jonathan Brabant, Workday’s New Zealand Director, commented on the importance of digital capability in the education sector. “Digital capability is increasingly important for universities and the education sector as a whole. Through this transformation, the University of Canterbury will continue creating a holistic, excellent learning experience for students and support the careers of thousands of staff with robust and future-ready systems and processes,” he said.

Workday is utilised by over 10,500 organisations globally, including more than 60% of Fortune 500 companies. The University of Canterbury joins over 150 higher education institutions worldwide that have adopted Workday. Institutions in the Australia-New Zealand region using Workday include Murdoch University, Macquarie University, The University of Queensland, Deakin University, Flinders University, and Swinburne University of Technology.

The University of Queensland experience exemplifies the potential benefits of Workday. Prior to its implementation, the university relied on disparate manual and paper-based processes across its various campuses and research centres. This lack of standardisation resulted in inefficiencies. Chief HR Officer Al Jury remarked on the positive impact since adopting Workday, stating, “Workday has made the University of Queensland more efficient. Since going live, many of our main processes have been halved in time with automated workflows—1 million approvals in the first year supporting speed and agility. Faculty staff are less burdened by admin and have time to do the research and teaching that mean the world to our students and the university.”