How to Use Worktags in Workday
This article will walk a user through how to use Worktags in Workday.
Worktags are labels used to describe and classify financial transactions in Workday for tracking and reporting purposes. As their name implies, Worktags tag a transaction to tell the system what the transaction is for. They replace traditional accounting codes or chart fields, making data entry simpler and reporting more powerful. A variety of attributes function as Worktags, such as Cost Center, Spend Category, Grant, Company, Project, and Fund. Outlined below are some of the more common Worktags you may encounter.
Identifies a university department.
Identifies a specific project with a defined start and end date. Examples include capital projects and fabricated equipment related to research.
Identifies grants and contracts funded by an external party. Grants have defined start and end dates.
Tracks donor contributions and amounts available to be spent within donor restrictions. Gifts can be endowments or spendable gifts.
Provides insight into the university's expenses. Required for all expense transactions.
Provides insight into the university's revenue. Required for all revenue transactions.
Groups related activities for financial statement and budget management purposes. Typically defaults in based on related Worktags.
Identifies a university program, event or specific activity.
The image below shows the set of Worktags that can be applied to a Requisition Order, for example:
How Worktags Support Budget and Spending Oversight
Worktags enhance visibility into both budgets and actuals by allowing financial data to be tracked, categorized, and analyzed with precision. This enables smarter decision making and helps ensure financial accountability across the organization.
Here's how they contribute:
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Detailed Reporting: Worktags make it easy to generate targeted reports that compare budgeted amounts to actual spending — at any level of detail. Whether it's a Cost Center, Project, or Program, users can drill into where funds are going and how they align with planned budgets.
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Embedded Insights: Workday provides built-in, real-time reports directly within Worktag records. This means users can quickly view current balances, transaction history, and budget-to-actuals data without running separate reports or leaving the page.
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Flexible Filtering and Analysis: Because every transaction is tagged, users can sort, filter, and compare data across multiple dimensions — such as departments, initiatives, or time periods. This helps reveal spending trends, highlight variances, and support more informed financial decisions.
Worktags can be related to or dependent on other Worktags, meaning that when you select one Worktag on a transaction (Driver Worktag), other Worktags will be automatically populated (Default Worktags). Conversely, you can manually assign one or more Worktags to a transaction. These are called Basic (or Flat) Worktags.
Default Worktags are automatically populated based on the selection of a Driver Worktag.
When a user selects a primary Worktag (e.g., Grant, Project, Cost Center), related Worktags such as Fund, Functional Expense and Division may be auto-populated. This simplifies the data entry process and helps ensure that transactions are categorized correctly.
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Driver Worktags: Primary Worktags that trigger related Worktags (e.g., Cost Center).
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Related Worktags: Worktags that are auto-populated based on the driver Worktag (e.g., Fund).
Default Worktags help us streamline the process of entering financial data and reduce the risk of errors by maintaining consistency and alignment across financial records.
Basic Worktags (also called Flat Worktags) are used independently to categorize a transaction without triggering related Worktags. It is typically added on an ad hoc basis by users to provide specific details about a transaction.
Examples:
- Supplier: Specifies the vendor you are making the purchase from.
- Location: Specifies the location related to the transaction (e.g., Campus, Building).
These basic Worktags help in organizing and analyzing financial data without the complexity of dependent relationships.
How Worktags Function in Practice
When entering a financial transaction – such as a purchase requisition – users assign Worktags to accurately classify and route the expense.
For example, in the case of purchasing laptops:
- Select a Cost Center – Identifies the department or unit responsible for the expense (e.g., IT Department).
- Select a Fund – Indicates the source of funding for the transaction (e.g., General Operating Fund, Restricted Fund).
- Specify a Spend Category – Describes the nature of the purchase (e.g., IT Equipment or Computer Hardware).
Once these Worktags are assigned, Workday uses them to:
- Route the transaction for appropriate approval and processing
- Associate the expense with relevant budgets and funding sources
- Ensure it appears accurately in financial reports and analyses
This structured tagging approach helps maintain consistency, improves transparency, and enhances the overall integrity of financial data.
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If you need assistance with Workday Financials-specific issues, contact Finance Support.