Workday Payroll (Continuous Value Services) Senior Principal Consultant
Cognizant$130k-$180k / yr
About the role
Lead post-production Workday Payroll support for multiple clients, managing competing priorities, client expectations, configuration, testing, and solution decisions. You’ll build deep expertise across Payroll and its HCM, Finance, Time Tracking, Absence, and Integrations touchpoints, while mentoring consultants and supporting business development. Requires 5+ years of Workday experience, a bachelor’s degree or equivalent, and Payroll certification is preferred. Minimal travel is required, with on-site travel if needed.
The Workday Payroll Senior Principal Consultant (Continuous Value Services) position is best suited for expert problem solvers full of patience and tenacity who are eager to work with a variety of customers and dive headfirst into post-production support with Workday Payroll. This role demands a focus on customer satisfaction while working on competing priorities. You must be a self-starter with excellent time management skills who is able to manage both your time and the customers’ expectations. Strong initiative and time management skills are paramount to success is this role.
Responsibilities
Identify strategies, risks, and options while recommending approaches and mitigations to meet client/functional requirements.
Work alongside the other functional teams and vendors to configure and test to ensure no impact to their production environment.
Perform multiple tasks under limited direction, while regularly keeping the client, your project team, and your Engagement Manager abreast of changes or progress related to the project.
Become a Workday Payroll functional expert with deep knowledge of current functionality, design concepts, and touch points across HCM, Finance, Time Tracking, Absence, Integrations, and future product direction.
Act as a mentor to fellow consultants and analysts, including providing support for shadow assignments.
Drive the project or ticket by driving decisions and recommending best practices related to functionality.
Meet utilization goals and contribute to the post-production internal initiatives to help drive client success and efficiencies.
Actively participate in update training and internal opportunities to share one’s skills and learnings with others within the organization.
Execute the day-to-day activities of Workday project or tickets for a variety of clients including process design, package implementation lifecycle support, and project reviews.
Support business development activities such as identification, proposal development, and other pursuit activities.
Additional duties as assigned by manager.
Skills & Requirements
5+ years Workday experience in an implementation or post-production environment support capacity.
Experience gathering requirements, designing, prototyping, testing, and deploying solutions to meet client requirements.
Subject Matter Expertise in Payroll.
Proactive problem-solving abilities with the capability to identify issues, analyze options, and implement effective solutions.
Passion for exceptional client service.
Proven experience managing multiple clients simultaneously, balancing competing priorities, and delivering consistent results.
Strong communication and presentation skills, with the ability to effectively manage client expectations and clearly convey complex information to clients and team members.
Commitment to staying current with Workday updates, trends, and best practices through ongoing training and development.
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint.
Current Workday certification in Workday Payroll highly preferred or prior Workday experience in Payroll.
Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or Fundamental Payroll Professional (FPP) Certification Preferred.
Minimal travel required, but must be willing to travel on-site if needed.
Salary and Other Compensation
Applications will be accepted until 11/23/2026.
The annual salary for this position is between $129,632 - $180,327 USD depending on the experience and other qualifications of the successful candidate. This position is also eligible for Cognizant’s discretionary annual incentive program, based on performance and subject to the terms of Cognizant’s applicable plans.
Benefits
Cognizant offers the following benefits for this position, subject to applicable eligibility requirements:
Medical/Dental/Vision/Life Insurance
Paid holidays plus Paid Time Off
401(k) plan and contributions
Long-term/Short-term Disability
Paid Parental Leave
Employee Stock Purchase Plan