Southern Cross Health Society focuses on delivering value to members.

For nine consecutive years, Southern Cross has been named the Reader’s Digest Most Trusted Health Insurance brand in New Zealand¹. As a member-driven Friendly Society, Southern Cross has a customer-centric operating strategy, where every function makes every decision based on the best outcomes for members. 

For the People Team, one of those decisions was digitizing its many manual HR processes. “Our processes were clunky and time-consuming. Endless spreadsheets and unintegrated systems made completing simple tasks difficult,” recalls People Operations Lead Jessica Hayes. “We knew it was super important to have efficient HR technology. The more time it takes people to complete HR tasks, or look for information, the less time there is to help our members.”  

Southern Cross selected Workday as a one-stop shop that could facilitate its people processes across the employee lifecycle, make things simple and easy for users, and keep up with evolving technology.

Data insights improve risk management, compliance, and fairness.

Southern Cross has automated and integrated its key people processes, including recruitment, payroll, onboarding, and compliance, leading to a notable uplift in risk maturity. “Our teams can now make more data-driven decisions, with access to real-time, centralized employee information that is both secure and accurate,” explains Kathryn Darroch, head of people experience. 

Darroch says the People Team is surfacing insights that were previously hard to access. For example, the ability to tag employees who drive for work makes it easier to manage compliance and safety requirements. Plus, gender pay equity data allows leaders to address gaps, track progress, and improve fairness across the business. 

Future support for adaptability, decision-making, and growth.

The People Team is shifting into what Hayes calls “strategic optimization” of the platform, using it to support more effective workforce planning and improve the overall employee experience. “We want to focus on those moments that really matter to our people,” Darroch explains. With better visibility of people data, the team has confidence in its ability to plan for known future changes and adapt when the unexpected happens.

Darroch sees great potential in using more of the platform’s AI functionality, including opportunities to constantly speed up processes, identify talent, and make compliance easier so employees can focus more on the needs of members. “Workday isn't just a system of record, but a system that actively supports decision-making and growth,” says Darroch. “We're excited about what's to come!”

¹Reader's Digest, “Most Trusted Brands for Health Insurance”; 2017–2025.