Principal Global Program Manager

Your work days are brighter here.

At Workday, it all began with a conversation over breakfast. When our founders met at a sunny California diner, they came up with an idea to revolutionize the enterprise software market. And when we began to rise, one thing that really set us apart was our culture. A culture which was driven by our value of putting our people first. And ever since, the happiness, development, and contribution of every Workmate is central to who we are. Our Workmates believe a healthy employee-centric, collaborative culture is the essential mix of ingredients for success in business. That’s why we look after our people, communities and the planet while still being profitable. Feel encouraged to shine, however that manifests: you don’t need to hide who you are. You can feel the energy and the passion, it's what makes us unique. Inspired to make a brighter work day for all and transform with us to the next stage of our growth journey? Bring your brightest version of you and have a brighter work day here.

At Workday, we value our candidates’ privacy and data security.  Workday will never ask candidates to apply to jobs through websites that are not Workday Careers. 

  

Please be aware of sites that may ask for you to input your data in connection with a job posting that appears to be from Workday but is not.

  

In addition, Workday will never ask candidates to pay a recruiting fee, or pay for consulting or coaching services, in order to apply for a job at Workday.

About the Team

Workday's Global Strategic Delivery Office is the driving force behind our marketing projects, programs, campaigns, events, and digital experiences. Our mission is to introduce and maintain a consistent approach to carrying out projects, as well as look for opportunities to streamline processes and scale. Our team oversees the cross-functional planning, scoping, and execution of marketing projects to ensure support of best practices, standards, methodologies, and tools. We are a highly collaborative team that thrives on solving complex, multi-faceted challenges.

About the Role

The Principal Program Manager, Events, reports into the Strategic Delivery Office (Global Events) and is a critical leader responsible for orchestrating a portfolio of interconnected event projects and work streams. This role ensures the cohesive delivery of Workday’s corporate events, to achieve overarching business objectives and maximize value. Leveraging a deep understanding of business-to-business marketing and event strategy, this individual will provide strategic oversight, drive integrated execution, and champion best practices across multiple event initiatives.

About You

About You

You are a seasoned program management professional with a proven track record of leading complex, high-impact programs. You possess exceptional strategic thinking, leadership, and communication skills, enabling you to influence senior stakeholders and guide cross-functional teams towards shared goals. You are adept at navigating ambiguity, proactively identifying and mitigating risks, and driving continuous improvement in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Program Leadership: Structure effective delivery strategies for event programs aligned with Workday's OKRs and Marketing imperatives. Work with program sponsors to define success criteria and KPIs, and own vendor relationships and contracts for the event program portfolio.

• Cross-Functional Influence & Collaboration: Build and maintain robust relationships with senior-level cross-functional leaders, project managers, and work stream leads to effectively communicate, influence, and escalate issues. Serve as a trusted advisor, facilitating conflict resolution and driving issue management at the program level.

• Integrated Execution & Risk Management: Develop and oversee the executional design for event programs, managing comprehensive milestone schedules and critical paths across interdependent projects. Proactively identify and mitigate program-level risks, and champion a formalized change control process.

• Communication & Governance Excellence: Develop and implement comprehensive communication plans for event programs, including strategic updates to senior management. Synthesize project information across all work streams to clearly communicate project strategy, progress updates, and risks/issues across multiple teams within the organization and at all levels within the org (from individual contributors to executive leadership). Drive post-mortem sessions to capture lessons l