One of Workday's greatest benefits is that all customers operate on the same system version. There are no buyups for an "elite" model or costly upgrades. Workday offers two yearly feature updates that automatically go into customer environments. There is no direct cost for the updates, but this does not mean that Workday customers should not take these releases seriously. There can be all sorts of great updates, opt-in items and mandatory (often referred to as automatically available) additions in each release.
At Invisors we recommend that our customers focus on the mandatory release items first and foremost. Optional items can often be more helpful, but mandatory releases will be in Workday from day one of the release. These are feature releases that will be put into your tenant and change how the functionality of the system will work, and can be as simple as a name change of a task or as complex as how time tracking calculations will display.
With each release, Invisors pulls down all of the upcoming optional + mandatory updates and works with our clients to determine which items are most impactful to users. The 2025R2 Release window has a few mandatory updates we’d like to bring to your attention so that you’re up to speed with the incoming changes. While these additions are dependent on the SKUs you utilize, this list can provide you with some helpful insights on different mandatory releases that will cause some problems if not reviewed.
# 1 | Effective Dating for Service Dates
Description: Users can now add effective dates to service date changes.
Functional areas: Absence, Time Tracking
Community note: https://doc.workday.com/release-notes/en-us/hrcore/6693151.html
How to review: Utilize Tenant Analyzer to identify Absence Calculations. Make any necessary configuration changes. Test the absence calculations and confirm accuracy in output and reports.
Implications of not testing: Not testing could lead to impacts on time off accrual calculations.
Implications of not reviewing: Your absence calculations may change, causing problems for absence balance and earnings.
# 2 | Save in Context
Description: With this release, Workday now includes a new Save icon directly on task pages. This functionality offers a consistent saving experience, enabling users to quickly save items without leaving the current workflow.
Functional area: Cross-Functional
Community note: https://doc.workday.com/release-notes/en-us/uiplatform/9371300.html
How to review: Search for a task in Workday, for example, "My Contact Information." Click the "Save" icon. Navigate to the Menu to see your Saved Items.
Note that this can be turned off by opting out in the "Maintain Feature Opt-Ins" task.
Implications of not reviewing: Users may be confused or not utilize the new tool if the updates are not communicated.
# 3 | Customer Accounts Hub
Description: With this release, Workday delivers a new Customer Accounts Hub, providing users with one-stop access to many of the most commonly used customer accounts tasks and reports.
Functional area: Customer Accounts
Community note: https://doc.workday.com/release-notes/en-us/fincust/8810665.html
How to review: Search for the "Customer Accounts Hub" in the search bar (optionally add to the home page for users). Access the Hub and review reports and tasks. This may be reviewed for configurable values by the Workday Administration Team as well.
Implications of not reviewing: Team members will continue to use custom reports via the search link or the dashboard. The new Hubs are more efficient + effective than older methods.
# 4 | Self-Service Journeys User Experience
Description: With the 2025R2 release, Workday is transforming how the organization engages with Workday Journeys. Users can now enable existing or new journeys for self-service discovery.
Functional area: Journeys
Community note: https://doc.workday.com/release-notes/en-us/journey/9022028.html
How to review: To test Self Service Journeys User Experience, you should validate that users can discover, self-enroll, and interact with published journeys using the new self-service functionality.
Implications of not reviewing: End users may not be aware that they can now self-enroll and navigate Journeys. This feature gives more power to end users and allows for more adoption of Workday.
# 5 | The Expenses Hub on Mobile
Description: With this release, Workday makes the Expenses Hub available on mobile. The Expenses Hub centralizes expense tasks and reports, providing users with a single location from which to manage their expenses.
Functional area: Expenses
Community note: https://doc.workday.com/release-notes/en-us/mob/9545212.html
How to review: Log into the mobile application. Review the expenses hub from the menu path. Review the different reports and task. Utilize pilot groups to review for end users and update documentation.
Implications of not reviewing: Employees may not use Mobile Expenses due to limited functionality. This Hub gives a one-stop shop for all things expenses on mobile + will increase Mobile Adoption for expenses.
These are just 5 of the Automatically Available releases for the 2025R2 release this year. Numerous other items in this release have similar impacts, which is why we suggest that you complete a thorough impact review across all Functional Areas in scope. If you avoid completing this review, you may run into performance issues in your Workday tenant or miss out on the value that you’re already paying for!
If the latest 2025R2 release has you rethinking how to get the most out of your Workday system, Invisors is here to help. Our team can guide you through new features- both mandatory and optional, tailor enhancements to your business needs and ensure you’re getting full value from your investment. Explore our Tenant Assessment and Optimization services + reach out to connect with an expert and make the most of what’s new in Workday. Fill out the form to learn more →
Additionally, we've curated a list of the 21 best optional + mandatory features from the latest release. Download for our detailed feature overviews, key business benefits + reasons why you'll love each feature.
