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Spokane County staff outline dual-vendor Workday governance plan, seek funding for Workday Success Plan
Summary
County staff proposed a three-tier governance structure and a dual-vendor approach—using Guidehouse for tactical fixes and Workday/WSP for strategic optimization—urging adoption of a five-year Workday success plan and clearer intake and reporting workflows to capture value and user feedback.
County officials presented a proposed governance and procurement approach for the county's Workday enterprise system at a strategic planning meeting on April 27, 2026.
Ashley, who led the presentation, described a dual-vendor model in which Guidehouse would provide tactical, hourly support while Workday (with WSP services) would focus on strategic optimization projects and longer-term system health. She said the approach is intended to resolve day-to-day problems while preserving a coordinated roadmap for larger configuration and automation efforts.
"We have been getting a lot of really good feedback from our line level users," Ashley said, describing the county's intake workflow for help tickets and how those tickets would be triaged to ERP administrators, Guidehouse, or WSP depending on severity and the need for optimization projects. She added that the county is driving users toward Workday Help as the primary input to ensure consistent tracking and visibility.
Staff proposed three governance tiers: a weekly core team of subject-matter experts for standardization and change-control; a governance committee (finance, HR, project managers and change leads) to approve medium-to-large items and prioritize hours; and an executive oversight committee to consider major scope changes or additional funding. The presenters said eventual cadence might move from weekly to biweekly and later monthly as adoption stabilizes.
Presenters emphasized measurable success metrics for the five-year Workday contract, noting that the additional WSP support can accelerate adoption and "value realization" across years of implementation. While specific dashboard numbers shown during the briefing were placeholders, staff recommended developing regular reports so leadership could track optimization adoption, training needs and return on investment.
Commissioners asked for clarity on signing authority and cost. Staff said change orders for both the Workday and Guidehouse contracts could be executed by the senior director of HR or the senior director of finance and administration, and that the current ask for Guidehouse additional hours was roughly $130,000 with about $120,000 remaining in that pocket. The Workday Success Plan was described as a five-year commitment; staff and commissioners referenced an approximate figure in the presentation materials for planning, and said current-year funding would come from fund balance while multi-year budgeting would be considered in future budgets.
Commissioner Brooks said she was comfortable moving forward after the presentation, citing more clarity about how the hours would be used and how the governance model would help rebuild staff trust in the platform. Staff said next steps include finalizing agreements, setting governance cadences, launching reporting/visibility tools and continuing user engagement (surveys, lunch-and-learns) to inform optimization priorities.
The board did not record a formal vote during the presentation session. Staff said contract routing and formal agenda items would return to the board for necessary approvals.
