PeopleSoft HCM to Workday migration
Moving from PeopleSoft HCM to Workday is mostly data, payroll and integration work. Oracle still supports PeopleSoft, so you pick the timing. We convert effective-dated history through repeated EIB loads, run parallel payroll until results match, rebuild interfaces, switch SailPoint, Entra ID or Okta to Workday as the HR source, then archive PeopleSoft.
- 01Data and dependency audit
- 02Foundation data mapping
- 03Conversion iterations
- 04Integrations and payroll
- 05Identity source cut-over
- 06Archive and decommission
The story
Told without the client's name or anything that could identify them.
A regional bank's HR team had already signed with Workday, and IT was asked what would break. Reports and downstream systems queried PeopleSoft tables such as PS_JOB directly, and identity governance still treated PeopleSoft as the source for joiners and leavers. We profiled job and compensation data, agreed with HR and legal how much effective-dated history would convert, and found the direct readers through database logs and service account reviews. Conversion ran as repeated EIB loads, payroll ran in parallel until results matched or each difference was explained, and SailPoint switched to Workday as its HR source on an agreed date before PeopleSoft was archived and shut down.
why it was urgentOracle isn't pushing anyone off PeopleSoft. Its support policy lists PeopleSoft HCM Premier Support through at least December 2037, and PeopleTools patches still come out. Workday puts out two feature releases a year, and 2026R2 has been in production since 19 September 2026. In October 2026 Workday also opened its developer program and its Extend AI agent tools.
- openEach PeopleTools upgrade means assembling a project team and freezing the calendar.
- recurringReports and downstream systems query PeopleSoft tables such as PS_JOB directly.
- blockedHR already signed with Workday. Now IT is being asked what will break.
- openFor joiners and leavers, identity governance still treats PeopleSoft as the authoritative source.
The estate, before and after
Before: PeopleSoft at the center of HR data
Payroll, benefits and finance all drew from PeopleSoft HCM through interfaces, and reports queried its tables directly. SailPoint used it as the HR source for joiners and leavers.
After: Workday as the HR source for every system
Workday HCM feeds payroll, benefits, time and finance through Studio, Orchestrate, connectors and APIs, and reporting data lands in the warehouse. SailPoint reads identity events from Workday. PeopleSoft is just an archive now.
How we run it, phase by phase.
6 phases take you from PeopleSoft HCM 9.2 to Workday HCM. Each one ends with something you can check before the next starts. As you scroll, the blocks show the estate moving across.
- phase 01
Data and dependency audit
Profile job, compensation and position data, decide how much effective-dated history converts, and find every system, report and SQL query that reads PeopleSoft directly.
- phase 02
Foundation data mapping
Map departments, job codes and positions to Workday supervisory organizations, cost centers and job profiles. HR signs off each mapping.
- phase 03
Conversion iterations
Run repeated loads through EIB into tenant builds, reconcile headcount, pay and history after each one, and fix the source data instead of patching load files.
- phase 04
Integrations and payroll
Rebuild payroll, benefits carrier, time and finance interfaces with Workday Studio, Orchestrate, connectors or APIs. Run parallel payroll until pay results match or each difference is explained.
- phase 05
Identity source cut-over
Re-point the IGA or IdP to Workday for joiners, movers and leavers, compare identity attributes against the PeopleSoft feed, and switch on a date agreed with security.
- phase 06
Archive and decommission
Export PeopleSoft history for retention and legal holds, move remaining reports to Workday or the warehouse, and shut down the environments.
What the client got
What changed for the client once the work was done. Described, not scored: we don't publish client figures.
- result 01
Workday drives joiners, movers and leavers
SailPoint takes its HR data from Workday now. Before the switch we compared identity attributes against the old PeopleSoft feed, which is why leavers still lose access on time.
- result 02
No system reads PeopleSoft tables
Every report, interface and SQL query that read PeopleSoft directly was moved to Workday, an integration or the warehouse before cut-over.
- result 03
Converted history reconciles to the source
Headcount, pay and history were reconciled after every tenant build, with errors fixed in the source data instead of patched in load files.
- result 04
Pay results match, or the difference is explained
We ran parallel payroll through month-end, quarter-end and special pay events, and recorded a reason for every difference that remains.
- result 05
PeopleSoft history stays available after shutdown
History is exported for retention and legal holds, remaining reports live in Workday or the warehouse, and the PeopleSoft environments are gone.
Risks we plan for
-
History scope creep
Converting every effective-dated row makes each load slower and harder to reconcile. Agree early what converts and what goes to an archive people can still query.
-
Payroll differences
Small rounding, accrual or retro rules can change net pay. Parallel runs need enough cycles to cover month-end, quarter-end and special pay events.
-
Hidden direct readers
Systems that query PeopleSoft tables break silently at cut-over. They're found through database logs and service account reviews, because interviews miss them.
-
Broken leaver process
If the identity feed moves late or maps termination dates differently, leavers keep access. Identity testing belongs in the main test plan.
Where AI helps, and where it needs guardrails
Workday has agents now, so scope them tightly. Extend AI has generally available Developer Agent, Custom Agents and Agent-Ready Tools, and the Anthropic partnership connects Developer Agent to Claude. Any agent reading worker data gets its own integration system user, with security groups that cut it down to the fields it needs. Pay and personal data stay out of agent scope unless someone has a clear reason.
forward deployed engineers →What you're left with
We write these for your setup, and they're working documents. Your team should be able to keep things running from them long after we've gone.
- document01
History conversion scope agreed with HR and legal
yours to keep - inventory02
Foundation data mapping workbook
yours to keep - report03
Conversion reconciliation reports per tenant build
yours to keep - tests04
Integration inventory with Workday designs and test results
yours to keep - runbook05
The identity source cut-over plan. It comes with an attribute comparison against the old PeopleSoft feed.
yours to keep - plan06
PeopleSoft archive and decommission plan
yours to keep
Platforms and services on this move
Learn the background
Terms from this page in plain English. If you want the why, the field note behind it is right there.
- 01Service account
- A non-human account that software signs in with. Shared ones tend to pick up years of extra permissions.in context →
- 02Rules
- The JavaScript snippets Auth0 used to run at login. Someone would write one to add a role to the token or block a sign-in, and each one ran after the last.in context →
- 03tenant
- Your company's Microsoft account. Every environment draws on one shared pool of storage, so a bloated test copy hits everyone.in context →
- 04Premier Support
- The first stage of Oracle's support policy. You get CPU patches here and in Extended Support, which you pay extra for. Once both end, the patches stop coming.in context →
- 05Identity governance
- The tools and process that decide who should have what access, grant and remove it as people join, move and leave, and prove it to auditors. Often shortened to IGA.in context →
Certified engineers, wherever you need them.
Some clients want a project team, some want a couple of engineers on theirs. Either works. Onsite, nearshore or offshore, with handovers across time zones that keep things moving.
Onsite
Engineers at your sites in the US
Nearshore
Overlapping hours with US teams
Offshore
Overnight progress on your backlog
All time zones
Coverage handed over across time zones
01We've signed with Workday. What part of the program would Cohash take on?
Usually data conversion, integrations, the identity feed, reporting moves and PeopleSoft decommissioning, working beside the team configuring Workday. We can also staff Workday integration developers and data analysts on contract or contract-to-hire.
02How much history should we convert?
It depends on legal retention rules, how far back HR's reports actually look and how clean the old data is. Many teams take a few years of job history across and archive the rest in a store people can query.
03What drives the cost?
Countries and pay groups first. After that, integration count, data quality, history scope and the number of parallel payroll cycles the business wants.
04Is Oracle ending PeopleSoft support, or can we stay?
You can stay. Oracle's lifetime support policy lists Premier Support for PeopleSoft HCM 9.2 through at least December 2037, and PeopleTools patches keep coming. Nothing forces the move. If you go to Workday, it's because the business chose it, and that leaves time to plan the conversion properly.
05Workday or PeopleSoft, what changes for IT after the move?
PeopleTools upgrade projects go away, and Workday's two feature releases a year arrive on Workday's calendar. Anything that queried PeopleSoft tables directly, such as PS_JOB, has to move to Workday reports, an integration or the warehouse before cut-over. The identity feed changes source as well, so test leavers early.
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- 03See how similar projects wentcase studies
Planning this move?
A 30-minute working session with a senior engineer. No slides.
- The platform and the version you're on
- Where you need to get to, and by when
- What's custom: rules, plugins, integrations
- Any audit finding or deadline driving it