The VP Finance & Operations Portfolio Provides Strategic Leadership and Support for UBC’s Academic Vision through Financial and Operational Management Excellence
The eight units of the VP Finance & Operations (VPFO) portfolio are responsible for the stewardship of UBC’s physical and financial assets. We oversee a $2.5 billion budget, a $1.2 billion endowment, and all university facilities. The VPFO also manages the university’s relationships with the UBC Investment Management Trust (IMANT) and UBC Properties Trust. In all the portfolio’s responsibilities, we are committed to the values of accountability and transparency.
News From the VPFO
March 14, 2019
Update for UBC Travellers – Boeing 737 Max 8/9 Aircrafts
Transport Canada has issued a notice closing Canadian airspace to Boeing 737 Max 8 and 9 aircraft. UBC travellers who have booked through the university travel program, and who are scheduled to travel within the next 72 hours, should contact Vision Travel as soon as possible.
Registration is now open for WACUBO 2019, co-hosted by UBC
Vice-President, Finance and Operations, Peter Smailes would like to encourage members of the university community who are responsible for business operations within their units to take advantage of this excellent opportunity.
Emergency Management Training available for 2019
Emergency Management Training, Exercising and Engagement program courses are now available, at no cost to all UBC faculty and staff throughout the year. The courses will provide different levels of training for individuals to learn the tools required for response and recovery.
How to train your robot
When Gurpreet Gill first started at UBC as a custodian in 1989, the Vancouver campus had half the number of students, only a handful of restaurants, and parking cost 25 cents a day. A lot has changed in 29 years for the now Custodial Head Supervisor, including the recent addition of two new robotic team members.
UBC Aquatic Centre recognized for energy conservation and building design
Since opening its doors to the public in the spring of 2017, the UBC Aquatic Centre has become an iconic part of the UBC landscape for thousands of visitors to the UBC Vancouver campus.
UBC Reporting
2018/19 Operating Budget
The VP Operations & Finance and VP Academic & Provost are committed to open and transparent reporting of UBC’s operating budget. Read our complete 2018/19 operating budget report.
VPFO Major Projects
Integrated Renewal Program
The Integrated Renewal Program is a multi-year business process transformation and system implementation program that will leverage the industry-leading cloud enterprise solution Workday to replace our current core administrative systems with a new integrated, user friendly, mobile-enabled platform.
Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committees (JOHSC) Project
Risk Management Services will be helping the Vancouver campus move from one large University Health and Safety Committee (UHSC)—which covers the entire campus—to a cluster of smaller Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committees (JOHSC), which will cover employee groups within a VP’s portfolio.
Procurement Modernization Project
Financial Operations has heard from the university community that it can be difficult, manual, and time-consuming to make purchases and payments on time. We have developed a plan of action to improve procurement across the university.
People of the VPFO
March 15, 2019
Get to know: Entela Ifti, Intermediate Budget Analyst with the Comptroller’s Budget Department
Entela loves crunching and making sense of abstract nature of numbers . As part of UBC's budget teams she's been working flat out to help make our year end transition as smooth a possible.
Trish Pekeles recognized as one of B.C.’s Most Influential Women in Finance
For the past 5 years, BC Business Magazine has gathered a panel of industry experts and created a list of the top 50 female leaders in major sectors of the BC economy. This year's list features women in finance and our own Trish Pekeles.
Pamela Voigt assumes role as Senior Manager, Custodial Services with Building Operations.
Pam has been with the university for over seven years, progressing from Clerk 3 to a Payroll Manager, from an Assistant Supervisor to an Operations Manager, and currently serving as Acting Superintendent of Custodial Services for the last two years.