Workday has unveiled Sana, a new conversational AI product embedded within its HR and finance software, designed to streamline workplace interactions. The platform is also capable of connecting with various workplace applications through a distinct integration layer, marking a significant step in integrating AI within enterprise systems.
Positioned as a unified interface, Sana aims to facilitate information retrieval, task execution, and the establishment of automated workflows across both Workday and external systems. It comprises three main components: Sana for Workday, which serves as the in-product interface; the Sana Self-Service Agent, which focuses on HR and finance inquiries; and Sana Enterprise, an integration product that links Workday to additional applications and content repositories.
Sana operates around four core functions defined by Workday: find, act, build, and automate. The “find” function returns answers sourced from Workday data and organizational knowledge, complete with citations. “Act” allows users to perform tasks across connected systems based on their permissions, while “build” generates dashboards, summaries, and documents. The “automate” function sets up multi-step workflows without the need for coding. Examples of Sana’s application include checking remaining holiday entitlements, updating personal information, and generating recruiting dashboards, illustrating its potential to simplify various HR and finance tasks.
“AI only works in the enterprise when it’s connected to trusted, deterministic systems, and that hybrid architecture is exactly what Workday is building,” said Aneel Bhusri, Co-Founder, CEO and Chair of Workday. He emphasized that Sana is not merely a new experience but a powerful tool for users to search, reason, and orchestrate work across the enterprise.
The Sana for Workday interface is targeted at CHROs, CFOs, managers, and employees, providing a single point of interaction for inquiries and workflow initiation. The Self-Service Agent launches with over 300 skills covering areas such as pay, time, and absence, enabling customers to handle routine HR and finance tasks more efficiently and linking this capability to fewer support tickets.
“Most AI projects today live in pilots and browser tabs—they look impressive in demos, but they don’t change how work actually gets done,” said Gerrit Kazmaier, President of Product & Technology at Workday. He added that Sana represents a new method to accomplish work, where AI agents take actionable steps using reliable context rather than merely providing suggestions.
Sana Enterprise expands the functionality by integrating with third-party tools through various connectors, with initial compatibility covering applications such as Box, Gmail, Salesforce, and others. This integration aims to enable seamless task completion across multiple applications via a single conversational interaction, such as finding documents from Google Drive, scheduling meetings in Outlook, or managing Jira tickets.
“Sana is the closest thing we have to a superintelligent co-worker,” said Joel Hellermark, Senior Vice President and General Manager of AI at Workday. He noted that Sana has the capability to see the entire organizational picture and coordinate across different systems, significantly streamlining processes.
The pricing model for Sana indicates that both Sana for Workday and the Self-Service Agent can be accessed through Workday Flex Credits, which customers receive as part of their subscription, without requiring additional licensing. Sana Enterprise is also available through Flex Credits, enhancing its accessibility.
Workday has reported positive customer feedback, with companies like Berner claiming that Sana became their default AI interface within 40 days, attaining a 90% adoption rate and replacing 400 ChatGPT licenses. Other customers have emphasized the central role Sana plays in streamlining workflows and automating processes.
Industry analyst Josh Bersin characterized this integration as a substantial advancement in applying AI to HR and business workflows, particularly concerning agent-based automation. In a recent Q&A, Kazmaier explained that Sana includes a knowledge database and an action layer, designed to run tasks and monitor status via integrations, rather than merely retrieving information.
He further discussed the concept of “shadow AI,” describing an “agent system of record” that manages permitted agents and applies configurations based on team, geography, and department. “We believe that AI is almost comparable in many dimensions with knowledge workers,” Kazmaier said, underscoring the need to manage and secure AI agents similarly to human workers.
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