As Workday cranks up its focus on industry-specific solutions and positioning, the company disclosed recently that annual recurring revenue from financial services customers now exceeds $1 billion.
I want to emphasize that Workday is not saying it has reached $1 billion in industry-cloud revenue for financial services — rather, the company’s comment refers to the total revenue it is generating from financial services companies across Workday’s lineup of applications for Financials, HR, planning, analytics, and more.
So, while this disclosure does not equate directly to industry clouds, it certainly does underscore the increasing emphasis being placed on industry expertise and differentiation by every major cloud vendor.
On the company’s fiscal-Q2 earnings call late last month, co-CEO Chano Fernandez said the increased focus on vertical markets “is another area of significant opportunity and investment, and I am pleased to share that financial services is our first industry to exceed $1 billion in annual recurring revenue.”
Fernandez noted that financial services customers were among “some of our most strategic transactions and go-lives in Q2,” including new customers Raymond James and Apex Fund; expanded deals at Bank of Montreal and Cushman & Wakefield; and go-lives at United Overseas Bank and Comerica.
Those comments from Fernandez underscore the cloud industry’s rapid and profound focus on delivering not only industry-oriented solutions but also industry-specific applications and services as companies in those fields require new and more-sophisticated tools that allow them to master the new types of digital engagements and digital processes customers are requiring.
Fernandez added that as Workday pursues billion-dollar opportunities in other industries, the company’s partner ecosystem “is becoming an increasingly important driver of our growth and industry success.” In particular, he cited strong progress in healthcare, education, government, retail, hospitality, and technology and media.
Fernandez then used the occasion of the high-profile earnings call to highlight some industry advances with major system integrators “such as Accenture, Deloitte, KPMG, and PwC” that he said are “not only ensuring successful deployments but also serving as innovation engines addressing our customers’ specific needs.”
That rings true with what all of the Cloud Wars Top 10 companies are saying about the increasingly strategic role that partners are transforming cloud deployments from tech-focused transactions to strategic business-transformation initiatives that take full advantage of those “innovation engines.”
Plus, Fernandez said, some big announcements around new industry-specific innovations — including “industry accelerators with specific solutions and use cases” — will be forthcoming at the company’s upcoming Rising customer event in Orlando, occurring September 12-15.
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