HR and Finance Services Firm Workday Expands at Empire State Building

An artificial intelligence platform for human resource and finance management is renewing and expanding its offices at the Empire State Building.

Workday signed a deal to add 12,338 square feet to its office and renews its existing 26,731 square feet in the process, bringing its total footprint to 39,069 square feet in the iconic building owned by Empire State Realty Trust, according to the landlord, which did not disclose the asking rent or the length of the lease.

Asking rent in the building was $88 per square foot as recently as June 2024, Commercial Observer reported at the time.

It’s unclear when Workday moved into the building, but it has been an ESRT tenant since it first leased space at One Grand Central Place in 2015, according to ESRT.

“This is a space that inspires our employees to do their best work and allows us to better serve our customers, partners, and prospects,” Assal Yavari, vice president of global real estate at Workday, said in a statement.

Harry Blair, Robert Lowe and Paige Engeldrum of Cushman & Wakefield (CWK) negotiated on behalf of the tenant while Jordan Berger, Shanae Ursini and Kerry Lavelle handled the deal for ESRT in-house.

C&W did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Other tenants in the building include management consulting firm Kearney, which signed a lease for 27,866 square feet last summer, and law firm Hecker Fink, which expanded to 53,779 square feet in October 2024, CO previously reported.

Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.