Our purpose shapes us
A message from Frank: July 2023
Hello team, I hope your week is off to a great start, and that you all enjoyed an excellent long weekend! We actually hiked up Seymour (Dog Mountain Trail) and the view at the top was amazing!
Over the last 3 months, I’ve met with teams from across the VPFO, most recently with our new VPFO Project Management Team. Through these conversations one thing is always abundantly clear: whether it’s budgeting, implementing Workday and preparing for IRP Student, or exploring new models for Campus Security, what we do in the VPFO matters — deeply — to the success of UBC.
I’ve heard so many of you clearly and passionately connect your role or your work to our purpose and the university’s mission. And I have also heard your questions about where that alignment is unclear or seems to be missing.
To reflect both your feedback and our growing sense of shared purpose as a portfolio, the VPFO Senior Leadership Team and I have been working to review, simplify, and prioritize the VPFO Strategic Plan. I want our plan to help us connect our stories and our work together — to define a common cause that helps us continuously improve what we do in support of the university.
My intention is that our new VPFO PMO will help us deliver on that promise — both in the VPFO and, where we're able to, across UBC.
As our plan comes together, we’ve identified two big priorities we need to start with — one is a reimagining of UBC’s budget process, and the other is preparing for the operationalization of IRP Student. These are big things, and the changes we’ve made to our teams are intended to set us up to successfully take on these initiatives.
I know our new PMO and Financial Operations & Integrated Services teams are up to the challenge. But to truly succeed we’ll need to keep coming together, all of us, to deliver a concerted effort.
I plan to keep listening, so please keep sharing with me! I welcome you to reach out — to me or any member of our leadership team — to share your experience.
I look forward to seeing what we can do together,
Frank Laezza
Vice-President Finance & Operations
Strategic Plan updates
Raffaela Mendel, Manager of Financial Planning & Analysis
"What drives us forward is knowing that through improving our forecasting accuracy and delivering relevant and actionable information, we can empower sound financial decision-making and mitigate risks for our community."
Find out what it's like working in a team as diverse as Treasury and how Raffaela drives the university forward as an analyst, learner and connector.
Read Raffaela's story
Operations updates
Facilities
Building Operations, Custodial Services, Customer Services & Informatics, Energy & Water Services, Infrastructure Development, and Municipal Services
- Enhancing operations and safety at the BRDF: The control room and office of the Bioenergy Research Demonstration Facility (BRDF), which processes renewable biomass sourced from urban wood waste to generate thermal energy for heating campus buildings, have recently been renovated. Read more
Finance
Comptroller, Financial Operations & Integrated Services, and Treasury
- Quarterly Update: Lean Six Sigma progress across UBC: As of June 2023, a total of 844 certifications have been issued through the program. Learn more
- May interest rates: The May interest rates are now updated and available on the UBC Finance website.
- Claiming unidentified wire transfers and direct deposits: Please check through the list of unidentified payments (updated as of June 28) to see if any payments belong to your department.
Operations & Advising
Communications & Engagement, Human Resources, VPFO Project Management Office, and Safety & Risk Services
- Staff Pension Plan 2022 Annual Report: Review the Staff Pension Plan 2022 Annual Report and learn more about the year's highlights, including membership and financial statistics, Plan governance and risk management, and investment performance.
- Safety & Risk Services releases Asbestos Awareness course: Developed to enhance UBC community members' knowledge about asbestos and to demystify misinformation found on the internet and in the media, the Asbestos Awareness course is now available through WPL. Learn more
- Keeping you updated with our newsletters: We have a series of regular email newsletters to keep our diverse and specialized teams within the VPFO updated. Learn more about our newsletters
The VPFO consists of individuals doing important work to support the university. Our people bring our strategy to life and make our plans into reality. Read more about the people of the VPFO.
Shout outs
- Special thanks to Building Operations, Energy & Water Services, Infrastructure Development, and all across Facilities who were involved in the air fan system upgrade in the Chemistry Physics Building. Read the full story
- A shout out from the Centre for Comparative Medicine to Matt De Souza and Dave Kernachan from the Metal Shop in Building Operations for a job well done and even stepping up to work through their lunch hour. Your hard work is appreciated!
- Special thanks to Lydia Dong, Payroll Operations Support Specialist, for your help covering the Leave of Absence Desk! We are so grateful that you always take the time to help your coworkers. It’s really made our Payroll team come together. You are really an asset to the team and the organization.
- A big thank you to Alex Fiuza, Service Excellence Transformation (SET) Project Senior Manager, and his team in the VPFO Project Management Office for delivering excellent training on the PMO Project Pipeline and Smartsheet to support the continued growth of SRS’ Project Management approach. We really appreciate your support and willingness to partner with us to strengthen our project delivery!
- Kudos to Scott Stevens, Mark Marynick, Dennis Lauinger, Rob Schwarz, Brad Haywood, Ger Coppinger and Stan Takenaka for their quick response, teamwork and ingenuity in successfully averting a campus-wide electrical failure. Great work!
Well done! Want to give someone a shout out in the next edition? Submit your kudos in your local recognition program or email communications@vpfo.ubc.ca
People in motion
- Ann Ogawa has returned from her maternity leave to her role as Executive Assistant to Elana Mignosa and the AVPFO. You'll find her most Mondays and Thursdays at her desk on the 6th floor of Koerner Library in the VP Finance & Operations Office. Welcome back, Ann!
- Sandra See Toh has accepted a position with the Integrated Services Centre as a Senior Coordinator effective June 26. You can find Sandra at the TEF 3 office on most Mondays and Tuesdays.
- Samuel Akindele has joined Facilities' Municipal Services as Trades 3 Mechanic as of June 19.
- Congratulations to Mardi Henderson who has been promoted to Health & Safety Advisor, Faculty of Medicine in Safety & Risk Services.
- Laurinda Tracey has joined Safety & Risk Services as Manager, Student Safety Abroad.
Read more about our people on the VPFO website.
Job openings
All positions at UBC are available on the UBC HR Careers website, or through the career application in your Workday account. Please note that applications will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. on the day prior to the posting end date. The following VPFO positions are currently open:
- Training Coordinator (JR12676) – 7/4/2023
- Lead Advisor, Information Security Compliance-2 (JR13373) – 7/4/2023
- Head Service Worker (Night Shift) (JR13349) – 7/4/2023
- Day - Full-Time Service Worker (2 Positions) (JR13542) – 7/7/2023
- Evening - Full-Time Service Worker (2 Positions) (JR13543) – 7/7/2023
- Workday Security Administrator (JR13235) – 7/8/2023
- Trades 2 - Secure Access Tech (JR13273) – 7/13/2023
- Workday Security Administrator (JR13235) – 7/8/2023
- Safety Associate - Faculty of Medicine (JR13467) – 7/10/2023
- Manager, Threat Assessment Program (JR13498) – 7/12/2023
- Trades 3 - Electrician (1 Position) (JR13475) – 7/24/2023
Don't forget to apply as an internal candidate! Please review Apply for an Internal Job Posting in the Workday Knowledge Base for instructions on how to apply. Reminder to attach a copy of your resume when you apply for a career opportunity in Workday.
We are the VPFO: Spotlight
Each week, we'll meet another member of the VPFO as they introduce themselves and their work.
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Lydia Dong, Payroll Operations Support Specialist
I am part of the Payroll team and our priority is to ensure UBC employees are paid timely and correctly! You can find important dates for payroll, including pay dates, along with helpful resources about your pay, your taxes and your benefits, all on the UBC Finance website.
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Let's get to know each other better! If you or someone you know are interested in being our next spotlight, email communications@vpfo.ubc.ca
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Notable updates
Bringing teams together over food and good laughs
Last week team members across Finance & Operational Excellence gathered on the fifth floor of Technology Enterprise Facility (TEF) 3 to connect and share their favourite recipes that they picked up during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
Bryan Antenor, Customer Support Manager in Financial Operations, started organizing monthly themed potlucks for the Customer Support team to connect as they transitioned back to in-person work. Now it has expanded to an event highly anticipated by the Finance & Operational Excellence department and partners across the VPFO.
Read the full story
VPFO EDI: Point to Ponder
Each month the VPFO Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Committee brings you an EDI topic to consider in your daily life. This month, we'd like everybody to consider the various perspectives that people around them might bring.
"We are socialized to see what is wrong, missing, off, to tear down the ideas of others and uplift our own. To a certain degree, our entire future may depend on learning to listen, listen without assumptions or defenses." - Adrienne Marie Brown
💬 Reflection prompt: What are you doing to accommodate different viewpoints within your team? How does it impact your experiences at work and home when people feel free to express their diverse perspectives and experiences?
For more information or to become part of our committee, visit the VPFO EDI website.
Helpful workshops from UBC HR
UBC HR is organizing some workshops to help faculty and staff better understand their strengths and how to leverage them at work. Please note that registration for the August workshops is not yet open but will be soon.
Helpful news
Some interesting news articles our team members have found informative, helpful, or fun! These are provided for information and entertainment only. Unless noted, UBC doesn’t specifically endorse or supply this content.
- July's event calendar features exciting festivals and events perfect for summer fun.
- While productivity is important, taking the time to connect with your team is essential in avoiding burnout and making work more enjoyable. Here are some ways to connect with colleagues when you’re busy.
