Memphis-Shelby Airport Authority
Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority Streamlines Processes with Workday
The Challenge
Manual processes and siloed systems
Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority (MEM) recognized that its systems were no longer meeting the needs of the organization. The airport struggled with manual processes that relied on paper, leading to inefficiencies within the business.
The airport authority also faced information silos, making organizational visibility a challenge. Existing systems did not integrate and created security concerns for the airport. As the systems began to age, MEM became increasingly aware that its existing standalone, siloed systems were inefficient. For example, prospective employees had to apply through paper processes, creating a poor candidate experience.
“At the beginning of our project we identified systems that were siloed and were surprised
by how our end users were utilizing existing systems, and the impact from how our data
was siloed,” said CIO Jarrett Morgan. “We made the decision to do better, and developed
the digital transformation plan, which included ERP modernization.”
Key Highlights
WORKDAY FINANCIALS AND HCM
MEM selected Workday as its Enterprise Management Cloud (EMC) solution as a key component of its digital transformation strategy and engaged Avaap for the deployment project. Workday offers airports and other transit organizations a single cloud-based system for finance, human capital management (HCM), budgeting, spend management, reporting, and analytics needs. Avaap has deep transit and transport experience with a team of senior level functional experts and value-based, hands-on approach to consulting. MEM was drawn to the configurability of Workday that allowed the airport authority to transform its siloed processes and bring them together to drive better decision-making.
Moving to Workday also allowed the airport authority to enhance the employee experience. MEM took a phased deployment approach for their Workday solution. The first phase was HCM, including Payroll, so the organization could see firsthand how Workday delivers operational excellence and a seamless system that makes it more efficient to complete everyday processes. The second phase included Workday Financials. During Financials deployment, the COVID-19 pandemic affected the project and shifted the deployment to an entirely remote setting. Despite the unexpected challenges, Avaap and MEM were able to seamlessly adapt to the remote environment and complete the project on time.
IMPROVED EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE
MEM faced similar challenges as other transit organizations adopting new technology: driving adoption and managing change. Cultivating an environment that embraces change and innovation included demonstrating the Workday solution and how it would benefit the team.
“We have employees that are resistant to change and want to keep doing what they’ve always done,” says Morgan. “When we introduced the system to the team, everybody’s eyes lit up, and it created excitement and momentum for the project and ultimate Workday deployment.”
With consolidated systems, MEM has a deeper understanding of business functions and streamlined processes. Visibility throughout the organization has improved, leading to a stronger decision-making process for leaders. Employees have a consistent user experience and are more efficient, including a streamlined way to request time o and see payroll information in a single place. The airport authority has also seen this in action with their employee application process.
“Previously, when candidates applied to work at the airport authority, they actually had to fill out a paper application and bring it back,” said Morgan. “The process has been completely revamped and modernized in the way applicant information flows from an applicant to our hiring managers. Workday has been a game changer for our organization.”
Avaap was interested in how our business functions so that they could help create efficiencies, refine business processes, and make us better as a whole organization. Through our partnership, we were able to finish our Workday project on time, during a pandemic, and 10 percent under budget.”
– Jarrett Morgan, Chief Information Officer and Director of Information Technology, Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority
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