Human capital management: Modernizing the federal workforce through industry innovations

Federal human resource organizations are facing a transformational moment. The convergence of an aging workforce, a surge in demand for new skill sets, and outdated human capital management (HCM) systems has challenged agencies to do more with less. Yet, with adversity comes opportunity. A growing number of commercial HCM platforms, boasting FEDRAMP certifications, are now accessible to federal agencies. These platforms bring innovations that have been proven in the competitive private sector, offering promising tools to modernize HR operations in Federal.

One federal entity, with a diverse global workforce serves as a testament. Faced with the challenge of rebuilding its workforce post-pandemic with an aging collection of disparate HCM systems, this agency turned to Workday, the preeminent commercial HCM platform trusted by over 10,000 Fortune 500 giants in healthcare, retail, and financial services.

George Batsakis, CEO of Groundswell, the prime awardee for this work, notes, “We are at a transformative juncture in federal HCM. Groundswell’s history in federal IT positions us to integrate Workday proficiently, ensuring leaders are empowered with the critical data they require.” Echoing this sentiment, Jill Jones, CEO of CrossVue, one of the top Workday consultancies in the U.S. and Groundswell’s exclusive partner for this groundbreaking project, stated, “The gold standard for human capital management [Workday] is now FedRAMP-approved and at their disposal.”

One advantage of modern HCM platforms like Workday, is that they can help agencies achieve a data-driven approach to human capital management aligned with the Office of Personnel Management’s strategic vision. Currently, federal workforce data is siloed and segmented.  For many agencies, it is difficult to gain an enterprise view of their current workforce, much less forecast future workforce needs. With modern HCM platforms, accessibility is just the tip of the iceberg.  Modern platforms are also more intuitive than their legacy counterparts and helps streamline service delivery, reducing burden on overtaxed HR staff.  This supports OPM’s other big push: user experience.  “There’s just so much evidence that when systems are built intuitively, people use technology more effectively,” Batsakis says.

With the help of private sector systems integrators like Groundswell and CrossVue, agencies can configure modern platforms like Workday to meet the complex and varied needs of Federal agency workforces.  “As Workday enters the federal market, we are excited to help guide this transition in partnership with Workday and Groundswell, ensuring federal agencies harness Workday’s full capabilities in the optimal way for the federal market,” said Jones.

One consideration for agencies  when choosing a new HCM platform is whether there are qualified implementors in the market to successfully implement the platform.  For example, in stark contrast to other platforms, which allow almost any systems integrator to implement their products, Workday maintains a tight ecosystem – there are only 8 implementation partners who are certified to work with federal agencies, and only 37 in the commercial sector.  Groundswell and CrossVue represent 2 of only 8 certified Federal implementation partners and are currently working on the first federal Workday implementation aligned to OPM’s Federal Human Capital Business Reference Model (HCBRM).

“This is an exciting time for federal agencies, with access to a new tool and an ecosystem of partners that are ready to help,” Batsakis said. “Agencies should seek out the right partners and take advantage of the opportunity of this moment to reinvigorate their human capital management.”

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