The Workday Deal Grader

Tick a box only if you can point to the page where the contract says it. "The account executive told us" does not count, and neither does "we assume that is standard." If you cannot find it in writing, it is a no.

Part 1 · Scope

Scope names every geography, legal entity, and business unit in and out Scope defined by module name alone is where change orders come from.

Data conversion ownership is defined end to end, including cleansing and remediation "Client provides clean data" is a change order you have already bought.

Integration and report counts were validated by your team, not accepted from the proposal Unvalidated caps convert into change orders the week you exceed them.

Part 2 · Price protection

The renewal uplift is capped in writing for the full term The renewal math starts the day you sign, not the day you renew.

Products you might add later have price protection today Your logo is worth the most before you sign. Lock module pricing while it is.

Worker count definitions and recount mechanics are written down How workers get counted and recounted decides what the subscription actually costs.

Part 3 · The integrator

You chose the integrator through your own competition, not the vendor's referral The software vendor is not the delivery vendor. Same method, different teams; the team is the variable.

The actual delivery people are named in the contract, with penalties for removal You are buying people, not a logo. If the pitch team is not the delivery team, you did not buy the pitch team.

The deployment fee is fixed against a written scope your team validated A fixed fee only holds if the scope it is fixed against is genuinely complete.

Part 4 · Change control

A pre-negotiated rate card governs the pricing of every change order Without one, every change gets priced mid-program, when your leverage is weakest.

The SI absorbs the cost of its own estimating errors and omissions Otherwise their underestimate becomes your invoice, 51 times if necessary.

Auto-renewal notice dates are on your own calendar, with the window confirmed Diary the notice date, not the end date. Missing it costs a full term at the uplifted rate.

Your redline list, in priority order

What to do with a C or worse

Every no on this page is a drafting change, not a price change, and every one is easier to get before signature than after. The playbook for each is free: The Complete Workday Buying Guide for parts 1 and 2, Negotiating with your System Implementer for part 3, and The Change Order Autopsy for part 4. If the deal is big and the clock is short, I do this review against the actual paper.

Book a deal review Read the Buying Guide