About the role

TheHCM Configurator – Releaseis accountable for the safe, controlled, and predictable deployment of change across the HCM ecosystem. This role exists to ensure that the volume, cadence, and complexity of change introduced through SaaS platforms, legislative updates, integrations, and transformation initiatives does not compromise operational stability, payroll accuracy, or compliance.

Sitting within the HCM delivery and operations model, this role acts as the release authority and control integrator between Product, Configuration, Quality, Security, and DevOps. It ensures that individual “ready” changes are assessed collectively, sequenced intelligently, and deployed in a way the organisation can safely absorb.

This role is essential in a global HR environment with:

• Frequent SaaS releases (e.g., Workday)

• Payroll‑adjacent and statutory change

• Multiple vendors and delivery streams

• Parallel transformation and BAU activity

Role Responsibilities

Release Strategy & Governance

• Own the HCM release strategy andoperatingrhythm, defining how cadence, bundling, and sequencing are managed across platforms and geographies

• Establish andmaintainrelease guardrails, including blackout periods, deployment windows, and risk thresholds

• Define and enforce release readiness criteria, including quality, security, compliance, and operational sign‑off requirements

• Act as the final release decision pointfor go / no‑go decisions, escalating material risk whererequired

Release Planning & Coordination

• Own and manage end‑to‑end release calendarsacross HCM platforms, ensuring alignment of BAU, legislative, and transformational changes

• Identifyand actively manage cross‑team and cross‑vendor dependencies, preventing conflicting or compounding releases

• Sequence releases to minimise blast radius, particularly around payroll, core lifecycle events, and regulatory processes

• Ensure clear visibility of upcoming releases to Product, HR Operations, Payroll, and downstream consumers

Deployment & Cutover Control

• Coordinate environment readiness(configuration completeness, data readiness, integration alignment) prior to deployment

• Oversee controlled production deployment and cutover activities, ensuring proper validation and rollback readiness

• Lead or coordinate hypercarereadiness and execution, ensuring rapid triage and resolution of post‑release issues

• Capture lessons learned andensurethey are fed back into release planning and standards

Risk, Compliance & Transparency

• Assess and articulate release risk in business terms, not just technical terms

• Ensure releasescomply withaudit, SOX, and regulatory expectations, with traceable evidence

• Maintain release artefacts and documentationrequiredfor governance, audit, and leadership reporting

• Provide clear,timelycommunication on what is releasing, when, why, and with what impact

Continuous Improvement

• Drive continuous improvement of release predictability, stability, and transparency

• Partner with Quality and DevOps to reduce manual effort, rework, and dependency risk over time

• Identifyrecurring release issues and proactively address root causes (not just symptoms)

Why you?

Basic Qualifications:

• 12+ years hands‑on experience owning enterprise HCM release management in SaaS environments (e.g., Workday)

• Strong understanding of HR processes, payroll dependencies, statutory change, and downstream impacts

• Proven experience coordinating releases across multiple teams, geographies, and vendors

• Solid grounding in change, release, and deployment control practices

• Experienceoperatingin risk‑aware or regulated environments

PreferredQualifications

• Releases occur predictably and transparently, with minimal disruption to employees and HR operations

• Payroll, lifecycle, and statutory processesremainstable even during high‑change periods

• Product teams have confidence that release risk is understood and controlled

• Hypercare becomes shorter, quieter, and more focused as release discipline improves

• Leadership has clear line of sight into change impact and risk, not surprises aftergo‑live