Sunrise employs around 2,500 employees and has an inspirational work culture characterized by passion, creativity, courage, trust, and team spirit. The company’s acquisition by Liberty Global in 2020 resulted in the merger of Sunrise and UPC, with the rebranding of the combined operation to Sunrise confirmed in 2021. It was clear that Sunrise needed a new core HR system not only to overcome the limitations of the existing support systems but also to meet the needs and aspirations of the newly integrated business. Objectives included maximizing operational efficiencies, delivering service consistency across all business areas, and maximizing employee engagement and talent retention.
After considering potential options, Sunrise selected Workday to bring HR data into one system. This move has ensured seamless and efficient processes in HR operations and payroll and is providing employees with effective support for their journey with the company.
Higher operational efficiency improves productivity and protects margins.
Sunrise operates in a fiercely competitive market, where technology and security considerations continue to rapidly evolve. It is vital, therefore, for the company to maximize cost efficiencies and have the agility and scope to capitalize fully on innovative solutions and services for its customers.
Having all real-time HR data accessible in one place has boosted operational and process efficiencies at Sunrise. Workday is also helping employees to stay engaged with the growing business and develop their own skills and career paths within the company. Finally, Workday is helping the company to retain talent and pinpoint any skills shortages promptly.
The company’s entire HR department actively participated in the design, testing, and deployment of the Workday solution, with configuration expertly handled by a specialist partner. “We were learning as we went along, and there were many complexities as we moved from two systems into one unified core HR system,” says Roger Moll, Sunrise’s director of human resources.
“We did a significant amount of exploratory work to understand the system, which helped familiarize everyone with the capabilities and functionality of Workday,” Moll says. “Although more time spent defining optimal processes early on could have reduced testing and adjustments, we successfully went live in just eight months.”
Having a robust and reliable HR system for all our data and the benefits of Workday self-service functionality have made a huge difference to the way we work. Such improvements are matched with a really good user experience.
Director of Human Resources
Faster and more informed decision-making for individuals and teams.
For a business that embraces innovation and service enhancements, it is vital that Sunrise have the right workforce skills at the right time. This can be achieved only by having a good understanding of the existing skills and professional development paths within the business. That’s why Workday analytics are proving to be so effective in surfacing new insights that help managers lead from the front and keep their finger on the pulse of employee performance.
“Now, it couldn’t be easier for managers to find and access the data they need, including in their mobile phone,” Moll explains. “All of the information is now in the palm of the hand, and it is easy to extract real-life data and then showcase and demo it. Put simply, the best solution for any given task or requirement is now at the fingertips of every manager.”
Every Sunrise employee is also able to build a career path to help them develop their skills so they can keep growing and stay closely engaged with the business. This has transformed the employer-employee relationship and greatly enhanced the company’s skills retention strategy.
A flexible and forward-looking solution that embraces secure AI capabilities.
Sunrise is keen to take advantage of the AI features of Workday. “We recognize that AI will have an important role to play in helping us to develop an even better understanding of our customer base so we can continue to deliver the best possible service for our consumers and business customers,” Moll says.
“The same is true in the world of HR. I’m really looking forward, for example, to using the system’s AI features to help our people to evolve and develop their own ideas about their career development within Sunrise,” Moll continues. “Such a positive step forward will enable and empower our people to work in a very different but more focused way.”
Moll believes the power of AI will also have an important role in helping the business to keep pace with ever-evolving industry regulations. “Workday provides the flexibility and security assurances for us to move further and faster into the world of AI,” Moll says. “Our people will be able to see new opportunities and will be encouraged to ask themselves forward-looking questions, such as, ‘How can AI augment and enrich my job and make me work faster, smarter, and better?’ This represents a significant step forward for the individual and the wider business as it instills the principles of continuous improvement and the spirit of innovation.”
Workday has simplified HR processes, and we are now able to deep dive into data to great effect. The system’s AI features will also help our people to grow, identify likely skills shortages in the future, and help with our sourcing strategies.
Director of Human Resources