Consulting the Oracle: Employees Share Insights from Previous Implementation

Approximately 75 employees from across Grounds recently participated in two focus group sessions about the Oracle implementation 20 years ago. FST team members listened to gather insights from participants' experiences that can help the project team anticipate user needs with the Workday Financials implementation.

Participants answered questions about things they liked and didn't like about the process to switch to Oracle, as well as specifically the one thing they would have changed about the implementation. Several themes emerged from the conversations. Training came up repeatedly, focusing on timing and ease of access to information—being able to find the right resource when it's needed and ensuring it's the most up-to-date and accurate. Participants emphasized the importance of trainers being fluent in both current-state processes and how things will work in the new system. 

Another theme was access: users emphasized that they need to have the necessary permissions to interact with every part of a process that pertains to them being able to complete their work successfully. They provided feedback about the importance of knowing who to contact when mistakes inevitably occur and getting a resolution in a timely manner to reduce the steps to remedy situations after the fact. 

The FST team is grateful to participants for their time and willingness to share candid feedback.