From Startup to Scale-up: A Day in the Life of a Software Engineering Manager at Workday

Software engineering has captivated me from the start. I’m excited by the field’s constant evolution and endless opportunities to learn. I vividly recall my middle school days, when I first encountered programming languages like Java and C#. The ability to craft a functional website from a few lines of code was nothing short of magical. That initial spark ignited a lifelong passion for software engineering, a flame that burns brighter with each passing day.

In 2015, I came across an article about the invention of smart gloves for sign language translation. I was inspired to see how the creators leveraged their technical expertise to make a meaningful impact on the world. Ever since then, my dream has been to contribute to technology that drives positive change and improves lives. This vision has shaped my career path and continues to motivate me in my work today at Workday, where our goal is to create innovative and impactful technology.

HiredScore to Workday: A Perfect Match

My path to Workday began with the acquisition of HiredScore, a startup where I dedicated three years to crafting innovative solutions within the HR tech domain. Now, as a Software Engineering Manager at Workday, I’m excited to continue this journey, leveraging my experience to drive further advancements.

From the outset, the Workday team embraced us with genuine warmth and enthusiasm. We were paired with ‘buddies’ throughout the company, fostering connections that facilitated knowledge sharing and eased our transition. Workday’s commitment to AI and machine learning aligned perfectly with HiredScore’s mission.

Workday isn’t just using AI for show. We’re dedicated to ethical AI that drives positive results for our customers and enhances human capabilities. The alignment between our work at HiredScore and Workday’s mission has made the transition not just seamless, but fulfilling.

From Stand-ups to Go-Lives: A Glimpse into My Work Day

My day typically begins with a stand-up meeting with my team and our product manager. We collaborate to keep our tasks moving forward, tackle any obstacles, and ensure we’re on course to achieve our sprint goals.

For the remainder of my day I engage in management discussions, architecture reviews, and design sessions. Additionally, I dedicate time to sprint planning and conduct one-on-one check-ins with my team members to provide support and guidance.

Amidst these meetings, I find time for hands-on coding, pushing forward various initiatives, and collaborating closely with my team and other research and development teams on active projects.

As a manager, I often handle unexpected issues that arise and work closely with my product manager to plan our go-lives with clients. I also help prioritise tasks and resolve any issues that come up to ensure we meet our objectives.

My team and I are currently dedicated to scaling both our products and infrastructure to effectively meet the growing needs of Workday’s expanding client base. This involves exploring and adopting new technologies, strategically redesigning aspects of our infrastructure to bolster scalability and resilience, and continuously advancing cutting-edge solutions through the innovative application of AI.

One of our flagship projects, and one that fills me with pride, is the Recruiter Coach AI. This application empowers recruiters by proactively alerting them to necessary actions within the recruiting or sourcing process. It’s proving to be a transformative tool for our clients, streamlining operations, reducing bottlenecks, and significantly improving both time-to-fill and time-to-hire metrics.

Empowering Innovation: Engineering’s Impact on Product Development

Software engineering managers, aren’t just overseeing code or managing timelines — they often play a surprisingly influential role in shaping the product vision and its strategic direction. This involves working closely with product managers, designers, and other stakeholders to ensure the technical team’s work aligns with both short-term goals and long-term company objectives.

One of the most surprising responsibilities (and most critical!) is acting as a translator between business needs and technical realities. Product managers often come with ambitious features or goals, but engineering managers offer critical insights into technical feasibility. For instance, engineering managers might propose alternative ways to implement features that would be faster or easier to develop, or point out potential pitfalls or challenges associated with a certain path that might have been overlooked by someone who is non-technical.

Engineers in general are innovation champions. Often, engineering teams are the first to discover new technologies or methods that can significantly enhance a product’s capabilities. Engineering managers are in a position to identify opportunities where these innovations can align with the product’s vision, helping Workday stay competitive or to achieve new breakthroughs.

Optimising User Experiences with Real-Time Data

Mixpanel is one of my favourite tools in our tech stack, and my go-to for user analytics because it provides event-based tracking, real-time analytics, and powerful A/B testing capabilities. It gives us real-time insights into how users interact with our product, and we’re able to make informed, data-driven decisions about where to make improvements.

Mixpanel helps to streamline our work in many ways. One of its standout features is funnel and conversion analysis, which gives us the ability to build funnels that track the steps users take to complete an action, like onboarding or changing a candidate’s hiring status. We can see where users drop off in a flow and optimise the experience to improve conversions.

By tracking user behaviour, we gain quantifiable insights into what’s working and what’s not. It eliminates the guesswork when prioritising features or deciding what to focus on next.

If a feature is underused, we can explore why, analyse the related funnel, and tweak it to improve adoption. Furthermore, we use it to monitor user adoption and engagement immediately after a new feature launch. If we notice lower-than-expected engagement, we can delve into usage patterns and refine the feature to make it more user-friendly and intuitive.

A Passion for Innovation: Driving Positive Change Through Tech

My experience throughout the HiredScore acquisition has been both exciting and transformative — a blend of continuing the innovative work we did at HiredScore, while also becoming part of a much larger, global organisation with vast resources, opportunities and a broader mission.

I feel lucky to be part of a company like HiredScore, now Workday, and have opportunities to contribute to technology in a rewarding way. One of my most impactful achievements at HiredScore was leading the effort to make our products accessible to all users, and at Workday, I’m continuing to help develop features and solutions that have a positive impact on people. That has always been my goal working in the tech industry and I am looking forward to my future here!

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