Associate Director, Workday Operations

At Gilead, we’re creating a healthier world for all people. For more than 35 years, we’ve tackled diseases such as HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19 and cancer – working relentlessly to develop therapies that help improve lives and to ensure access to these therapies across the globe. We continue to fight against the world’s biggest health challenges, and our mission requires collaboration, determination and a relentless drive to make a difference.
 

Every member of Gilead’s team plays a critical role in the discovery and development of life-changing scientific innovations. Our employees are our greatest asset as we work to achieve our bold ambitions, and we’re looking for the next wave of passionate and ambitious people ready to make a direct impact.
 

We believe every employee deserves a great leader. People Leaders are the cornerstone to the employee experience at Gilead and Kite. As a people leader now or in the future, you are the key driver in evolving our culture and creating an environment where every employee feels included, developed and empowered to fulfil their aspirations. Join Gilead and help create possible, together.

Job Description
 

The Workday Operations leader is responsible for the end to end ownership, quality, and governance of foundational Workday data, while also designing and leading a scalable, tiered Workday support model. This role ensures that Workday data, support processes, and operational responsibilities are clearly defined, efficiently executed, and aligned with business needs, compliance requirements, and platform sustainability.

Acting as the central authority for Workday data, this role partners closely with HR, Payroll, Benefits, Finance, IT, and Analytics teams to manage organizational data changes, resolve data issues, and establish durable data standards. The role blends hands on execution with governance leadership, ensuring Workday data reliably supports transactions, payroll, integrations, and analytics at scale.

Key Responsibilities

Workday Data Ownership & Governance

• Own the design, structure, and ongoing integrity of foundational Workday data, including supervisory organizations, companies/legal entities, positions, jobs, cost centers, locations, and related attributes.

• Define and enforce data governance standards, policies, and approval workflows to ensure consistency, compliance, and alignment with business strategy.

• Serve as the primary point of contact for Workday data usage, standards interpretation, and governance decisions.

Tiered Support Model Design & Operational Governance

• Design and implement a tiered Workday support model (Tier 1 / Tier 2 / Tier 3) that clearly defines support scope, ownership, escalation paths, and service expectations across HR, HRIS, IT, and external partners.

• Identify and categorize Workday work by complexity, risk, and expertise required, determining where activities should be handled (e.g., HR operations, HRIS analysts, data management, solution architects, or vendors).

• Define intake, triage, and escalation processes for Workday requests, incidents, and data issues to ensure efficient resolution and appropriate use of specialized resources.

• Create standards and playbooks for common data and system issues to enable lower‑tier resolution and reduce repeat defects.

• Monitor support trends and root causes to identify systemic issues, recommend process or design improvements, and continuously refine the support model.

Data Maintenance & BAU Support

• Lead business‑as‑usual (BAU) data support across Workday modules, including mass data loads, recurring maintenance, year‑end activities, and urgent data corrections.

• Manage and execute EIBs, data loads, and data updates, ensuring accuracy, auditability, and minimal business disruption.

• Provide expert support to HR and HRIS teams for data‑related questions, reporting issues, and troubleshooting.

Data Quality, Audits & Controls

• Establish data quality metrics, validation routines, and monitoring controls to proactively identify and remediate data issues.

• Perform regular data audits to detect inconsistencies, root causes, and systemic gaps, and drive corrective and preventive actions.

• Support internal and external audits by ensuring strong documentation, traceability, and compliance with regulatory and internal control requirements.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 10+ years of relevant experience; OR

• Masters' degree and 8+ years of relevant experience; OR

• PhD and 5+ years of relevant experience

• Candidates less than 50 miles from the Foster City office are required to be Onsite - Hybrid Eligible

• Candidates 50+ miles from the Foster City office will be Remote.

Preferred Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in Workday HRIS, data management, or data governance roles, with demonstrated ownership of foundational data domains.

• Strong hands‑on experience with Workday Core HCM data structures, including supervisory orgs, positions, jobs, cost centers, companies, and locations.

• Proven experience executing mass data loads (EIBs), data audits, and data remediation in production Workday environments.

• Deep understanding of how upstream data impacts payroll, integrations, security, and reporting.

• Experience defining and enforcing data governance frameworks, controls, and approval processes.

• Strong analytical, problem‑solving, and root‑cause analysis skills.

• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain data concepts and standards to non‑technical stakeholders.

• Experience supporting Workday in a large, global, or regulated environment.

• Experience designing or operating tiered application support models for HRIS or enterprise SaaS platforms (Workday preferred).

People Leader Accountabilities

• Create Inclusion - knowing the business value of diverse teams, modeling inclusion, and embedding the value of diversity in the way they manage their teams.

• Develop Talent - understand the skills, experience, aspirations and potential of their employees and coach them on current performance and future potential. They ensure employees are receiving the feedback and insight needed to grow, develop and realize their purpose.

• Empower Teams - connect the team to the organization by aligning goals, purpose, and organizational objectives, and holding them to account. They provide the support needed to remove barriers and connect their team to the broader ecosystem.

The salary range for this position is:

Bay Area: $195,670.00 - $253,220.00.

 

Other US Locations: $177,905.00 - $230,230.00.

Gilead considers a variety of factors when determining base compensation, including experience, qualifications, and geographic location. These considerations mean actual compensation will vary. This position may also be eligible for a discretionary annual bonus, discretionary stock-based long-term incentives (eligibility may vary based on role), paid time off, and a benefits package. Benefits include company-sponsored medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans*.

For additional benefits information, visit:

https://www.gilead.com/careers/compensation-benefits-and-wellbeing

* Eligible employees may participate in benefit plans, subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable plans.

For jobs in the United States:

Gilead Sciences Inc. is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment, and is dedicated to fostering an inclusive work environment comprised of diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences. Employment decisions regarding recruitment and selection will be made without discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, genetic information or characteristic, gender identity and expression, veteran status, or other non-job related characteristics or other prohibited grounds specified in applicable federal, state and local laws. In order to ensure reasonable accommodation for individuals protected by Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Act of 1974, and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, applicants who require accommodation in the job application process may contact ApplicantAccommodations@gilead.com for assistance.

For more information about equal employment opportunity protections, please view the 'Know Your Rights' poster.

NOTICE: EMPLOYEE POLYGRAPH PROTECTION ACT
YOUR RIGHTS UNDER THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT

Gilead Sciences will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, (c) consistent with the  legal duty to furnish information; or (d) otherwise protected by law.
 

Our environment respects individual differences and recognizes each employee as an integral member of our company. Our workforce reflects these values and celebrates the individuals who make up our growing team.

Gilead provides a work environment free of harassment and prohibited conduct. We promote and support individual differences and diversity of thoughts and opinion.

For Current Gilead Employees and Contractors:

Please apply via the Internal Career Opportunities portal in Workday.