HR Data Security Sr. Analyst (Workday)

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a HR Data Security Sr. Analyst (Workday) based in the United States.

This role offers the opportunity to become a key subject matter expert in Workday security administration and HR data governance.

You will help protect sensitive employee information while strengthening access controls, compliance, and security practices across HR platforms.

The position combines hands-on Workday configuration with governance, audit support, risk assessment, and process improvement.

You will work closely with HR, IT, Legal, Compliance, and other stakeholders in a complex, distributed environment.

The role provides significant autonomy for routine security decisions while requiring sound judgment when handling complex or elevated access requests.

You will also contribute to the continuous improvement of governance frameworks, security processes, and audit readiness.

This is a fully remote U.S. opportunity with limited travel and meaningful scope across enterprise HR data operations.

Accountabilities

• Serve as one of the primary Workday security configurators, managing domain, role-based, and user security groups, including creation, modification, and assignment.
• Monitor more than 100 active Workday security activities in production, investigate anomalies, resolve standard configuration issues, and escalate complex or high-risk matters when appropriate.
• Partner with HR and IT stakeholders to improve Workday security governance, role design, access management processes, and overall security controls.
• Conduct bi-annual Workday user access reviews and coordinate security group cleanup, access hygiene, and remediation activities.
• Stay current with Workday security updates and patches and recommend appropriate configuration or governance enhancements.
• Manage routine access requests across Workday, Peakon, UKG, HR ODS, and Reporting & Analytics through ServiceNow and SharePoint.
• Evaluate access requests against role-based access profiles, least-privilege standards, and established approval criteria, escalating non-standard or elevated requests as required.
• Document business use cases, decisions, approvals, request status, and governance activities while maintaining accurate access trackers and supporting documentation.
• Identify requests requiring Legal or Compliance review and provide appropriate recommendations before escalation to leadership.
• Analyze governance, audit, and access-utilization trends to identify recurring risks, control gaps, and opportunities for process or policy improvements.
• Lead periodic governance reviews and support corrective actions arising from audit findings, risk assessments, and operational reviews.
• Maintain governance policies, process documentation, trackers, and SharePoint resources to promote consistent security practices.
• Configure and manage security across additional HR platforms, including Peakon, UKG, Prism, and HR ODS, while supporting relevant platform transition activities.
• Coordinate audit support activities, assess documentation requirements, work with stakeholders to provide timely responses, and track remediation through resolution.
• Recommend improvements based on audit results, findings trends, governance assessments, and emerging security risks.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in a related discipline with approximately 4 years of relevant experience; alternatively, a master’s degree with 2+ years of relevant experience or 8 years of relevant experience in lieu of a degree.
• Approximately 4 years of experience in a related HR data security, Workday security, data governance, or access management role is preferred.
• Strong knowledge of Workday HCM security configuration, including domain, role-based, and user security administration.
• Workday Security Administration certification, such as Workday Pro Security, is required.
• Experience with HR data access management, data governance principles, security controls, and least-privilege practices.
• Exposure to additional HR platforms such as Peakon, UKG, HR ODS, and Prism is advantageous.
• Experience managing multiple concurrent workflows with a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail, particularly governance trackers, process documentation, or audit materials.
• Strong judgment and discretion when handling confidential and sensitive employee information, with the ability to recognize when leadership involvement is necessary.
• Ability to independently make routine security and access decisions while understanding the boundaries of assigned authority.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively across HR, IT, Legal, Compliance, and other business functions.
• Proficiency with reporting and data visualization tools such as Excel, Tableau, or Power BI.
• Experience supporting internal or external audits, compliance documentation, or regulatory processes in an HR or data governance environment is preferred.
• Familiarity with SailPoint or comparable identity governance and access review platforms is a plus.
• A degree in Information Systems, Information Security, Computer Science, or a related field is preferred.
• Experience in telecommunications, healthcare, or another regulated industry is advantageous.
• Ability to respectfully challenge access or governance requests that fall outside established policies or approval channels.
• Strong organizational skills and adaptability, with the ability to manage changing priorities in a complex, distributed organization.
• Must be currently authorized to work in the United States without current or future employer sponsorship; OPT, CPT, STEM/OPT, and future visa sponsorship are not supported.
• Willingness to travel onsite a few times per year if working remotely; approximately 5% travel may be required.

Benefits

• Competitive base salary of approximately $81,400-$122,000, depending on location, knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience.
• Potential eligibility for additional incentive compensation.
• Fully remote work within the United States, with flexibility to work remotely anywhere in the specified country.
• Flexible paid vacation arrangements consistent with job responsibilities and business needs.
• Seven paid holidays annually.
• Up to 160 hours of paid wellness time each year for personal or family wellness needs.
• Additional paid leave options, including parental, bereavement, jury duty, military, voting, and volunteer time.
• Health insurance options, including medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Retirement planning benefits, including a 401(k) program.
• Opportunities for professional growth and development within a collaborative, innovation-focused environment.
• Limited travel requirements of approximately 5% annually.