Director of Federal Initiatives & Strategy

Workday; United States; Hybrid; USD 193,000 - 290,000; Full time

Job summary

Workday is seeking a Director of Strategic Initiatives for its Government vertical in the United States. You will lead strategic federal initiatives, ensuring regulatory compliance, coordinating with engineering, product, and customer teams, and guiding roadmap decisions for government contracts.

You will serve as a customer advocate, align cross-functional partners, and own program budgeting and reporting to senior leadership. Flexible/Hybrid work models are available.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in a strategic, operational, or enablement role.
• Experience with large-scale cloud SaaS product, engineering, compliance and platform teams.
• Deep understanding of product lifecycle, security and infrastructure platforms.
• Bachelor’s degree or higher required.
• Experience working directly with customers, Customer Success, Implementation teams, and external partners to manage delivery commitments.
• Proven ability to bring products to market on time with high customer satisfaction
• Experience owning or supporting budget planning and financial tracking for a business unit, program, or initiative portfolio
• Thoughtful people leader with a track record of building strong, cohesive matrixed teams
• Strong cross-functional leadership skills, with the ability to listen and partner across organizations to drive alignment on Government product roadmaps
• Experience partnering with Engineering and Technical Product organizations on product lifecycle management and portfolio prioritization, ideally within a regulated or Federal/Government context

Responsibilities

• Coordinate with Workday Parent, Customers, Customer Success, and Implementation teams to ensure Federal commitments and risks are visible and managed.
• Work with Engineering and Technical Product leadership to embed Federal compliance, security, and mission needs in roadmaps.
• Define and communicate the strategic direction of Workday’s Government initiatives for Federal stakeholders.
• Serve as the customer advocate within product organizations and shape future growth priorities.
• Support Federal growth initiatives through planning forums and financial reviews.
• Own budget planning and tracking for Federal initiatives, allocating resources as priorities shift.
• Coordinate and run key meetings across the Federal Industry vertical.
• Establish internal communications strategy for the Product team and Government vertical.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Cross-functional leadership

Communication

Customer collaboration

Stakeholder management

Governance & portfolio management

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher

Job description

Workday is seeking a Director of Strategic Initiatives for its Government vertical in the United States. You will lead strategic federal initiatives, ensuring regulatory compliance, coordinating with engineering, product, and customer teams, and guiding roadmap decisions for government contracts.

You will serve as a customer advocate, align cross-functional partners, and own program budgeting and reporting to senior leadership. Flexible/Hybrid work models are available.