Associate Director, People Technology/HRIS (Workday)

Neurocrine Biosciences • San Diego, CA

1d

About The Position

Neurocrine Biosciences is a leading biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering, developing, and commercializing life-changing treatments for patients with under-addressed neurological, psychiatric, endocrine, and immunological disorders. The company's diverse portfolio includes FDA-approved treatments and a robust pipeline. At Neurocrine, strong leadership drives both business results and team success. We look for leaders who think strategically, anticipate what’s ahead and set clear direction, while building and empowering high-performing teams. Successful leaders foster an environment where people are motivated to do their best work and deliver meaningful, measurable impact through sound decision-making and accountability.

This role leads the execution of the People Technology strategy, product roadmap, governance, optimization, and operational excellence, with Workday HCM as the core platform. The position partners with HR, Payroll, Finance, IT, Cybersecurity, Data and Analytics, and business leaders to translate workforce priorities into scalable, secure, and user-centered solutions. The Associate Director serves as the Workday platform owner and primary design authority within established enterprise standards, overseeing architecture, configuration governance, integrations, reporting and analytics, release adoption, data quality, and responsible use of AI-enabled capabilities. This role leads and develops a People Technology team and strategic partners to deliver measurable business value, strong controls, and an effective employee and manager experience.

Requirements

• BS/BA degree in Business Administration, Human Resources, Computer Science, or related field AND 10+ years of progressive HR technology/HRIS experience, including 5 + years with Workday HCM, 3+ years leading teams, and ownership of at least one end-to-end implementation or major transformation plus sustained post-production optimization.
• Experience with Workday configuration, security, reporting and analytics, integrations, and release management required.
• Previous people-management and functional/platform leadership experience required.
• Hands-on depth in at least three Workday functional areas aligned to the company's licensed footprint, such as Recruiting/Talent Acquisition, Talent Optimization, Skills Cloud, Learning, Compensation/Advanced Compensation, Benefits, Absence, Time Tracking, Organization Management, Workforce Planning, or Payroll.

Nice To Haves

• MS/MA degree in Business Administration, Human Resources, Computer Science, or related field AND 8+ years of experience, including 5 + years with Workday HCM, 3+ years leading teams.
• Current Workday Pro certification(s) in relevant HCM, Security, Reporting and Analytics, Platform Administrator, Orchestrate Developer, and/or Extend Developer I areas preferred; equivalent demonstrable expertise accepted.
• Experience leading systems integrators or application management services (AMS) partners preferred.
• Third-party payroll integration experience, including ADP, preferred where applicable.
• ADP or other third-party payroll integration experience preferred where applicable.

Responsibilities

• Lead execution of the People Technology strategy and multi-year roadmap, with Workday HCM as the core system of record, aligning investments, architecture, feature adoption, and platform improvements with HR and business priorities.
• Own the Workday platform operating model, including governance, solution design, configuration standards, demand prioritization, release and change management, technical debt, service levels, and value realization.
• Lead implementations, optimizations, integrations, and major platform changes from discovery and design through testing, deployment, adoption, stabilization, and benefits realization.
• Maintain scalable, secure, and compliant People Technology architecture, data, reporting, analytics, integrations, and controls in partnership with HR, Payroll, Finance, IT, Cybersecurity, Legal/Privacy, Internal Audit, and Compliance.
• Lead production operations and continuous improvement, including incident, problem, and change management; integration and scheduled-process monitoring; root-cause analysis; release readiness; service performance; and user adoption.
• Partner with HR Centers of Excellence and business leaders to optimize the Workday footprint, improve employee and manager experiences, and translate workforce priorities into scalable technology and data solutions.
• Evaluate and responsibly govern emerging capabilities, including AI-enabled tools, Workday Extend, analytics, and automation, using clear business cases, appropriate security and privacy controls, human oversight, and measurable outcomes.
• Build and develop a high-performing People Technology team and strategic partner ecosystem through clear accountabilities, coaching, cross-training, succession planning, knowledge transfer, and vendor performance management.
• Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Retirement savings plan (with company match)
• Paid vacation, holiday and personal days
• Paid caregiver/parental and medical leave
• Health benefits to include medical, prescription drug, dental and vision coverage

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager