Workday Time & Absence, Senior Product Manager

Senior People Technology (HRIS) Specialist

Gilead HR is advancing a program of global process standardization, operational efficiency, and scalable People Technology solutions. We are seeking a Senior People Technology (HRIS) Specialist with deep expertise in Workday Time Tracking and Absence Management to support and optimize a complex, global Workday environment. This role is ideal for a seasoned Workday practitioner who combines hands-on configuration expertise with strong problem-solving and stakeholder partnership skills. You will serve as the primary subject matter expert for Global Time & Absence, ensuring accurate calculations, compliant policies, reliable payroll integration, and positive employee and manager experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the Workday Time Tracking and Absence SME, owning configuration, maintenance, and optimization of:
• Time entry templates, time types, time blocks, and eligibility rules
• Absence plans, accruals, carryover rules, balance caps, and validations
• Work schedules, calendars, period schedules, and approval workflows
• Partner closely with HR, Payroll, IT, and regional stakeholders to translate business and policy requirements into scalable Workday solutions
• Lead end-to-end delivery of Time & Absence initiatives, including requirements gathering, solution design, configuration, testing, deployment, and hyper-care
• Design, build, and maintain Workday Time & Absence reports and dashboards, supporting HR, Payroll, and manager insights
• Configure and maintain Business Processes, condition rules, notifications, and security related to time and absence transactions
• Ensure seamless integration with Payroll, downstream calculations, and reporting
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex issues related to time entry, absence requests, approvals, balances, and payroll impacts
• Support global and regional rollouts, new country deployments, and regulatory or policy changes affecting time and absence
• Execute and support unit, integration, and regression testing for configuration changes and bi-annual Workday releases
• Identify opportunities for process simplification, automation, and self-service, improving accuracy and user experience
• Review Workday release notes, assess impacts to Time & Absence, and recommend adoption of new features and functionality
• Maintain configuration documentation, change control artifacts, and audit ready records
• Ensure compliance with labor regulations, internal controls, and SOX relevant processes where applicable
• Stay current with Workday releases and updates, evaluating new features and functionality for potential adoption.
• Develop job aids and support materials; contribute to knowledge sharing across the HRIS team

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 8+ years of relevant experience; OR
• Masters' degree and 6+ years of relevant experience; OR
• PhD and 2+ years of relevant experience

Preferred Qualifications

• Degree in Information Systems, Business, or related field (or equivalent experience)
• 8+ years of hands-on Workday HRIS experience, with deep expertise in Time Tracking and Absence Management
• Proven experience configuring complex Time & Absence rules, accruals, eligibility, approvals, and integrations with Payroll
• Experience supporting global or multi-country Workday environments and country-specific time/leave requirements
• Strong understanding of Workday Business Process Framework, security roles, calculated fields, validations, and reporting
• Experience leading or supporting full lifecycle implementations or major enhancements for Workday Time & Absence
• Strong communication and stakeholder partnership abilities; able to translate policy and operational needs into technical solutions
• Excellent analytical, troubleshooting, and documentation skills

People Leader Accountabilities

• Create Inclusion - knowing the business value of diverse teams, modeling inclusion, and embedding the value of diversity in the way they manage their teams.
• Develop Talent - understand the skills, experience, aspirations and potential of their employees and coach them on current performance and future potential. They ensure employees are receiving the feedback and insight needed to grow, develop and realize their purpose.
• Empower Teams - connect the team to the organization by aligning goals, purpose, and organizational objectives, and holding them to account. They provide the support needed to remove barriers and connect their team to the broader ecosystem.