Decoupling Accounting Logic from Transaction Systems Using Event-Based Architecture: A Case Study on Workday Accounting Center

The growing demand for agility, scalability, and regulatory transparency in financial systems is reshaping modern Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) architectures. This paper presents a case-based architectural study of Workday Accounting Center (WAC), a cloud-native platform that uses event-based pipelines to decouple transactional data from accounting logic. By examining the technical components and deployment framework of WAC, the paper highlights how this approach addresses core limitations in traditional ERP systems—particularly around subledger complexity, auditability, and integration flexibility. Targeted at transaction-intensive sectors such as banking, insurance, and healthcare, the study outlines a generalized reference architecture for implementing event-driven accounting logic and offers strategic insights for enterprise architects and ERP transformation leaders. The paper concludes with recommendations for broader adoption and future research directions in event-based financial system design.