I’ve been really inspired in my first few months by hearing and seeing how many of you value the connection between the work that you do and the overall success of the university. While I have deep respect for the role I’ve been asked to fill, I do see myself as a member of this team and encourage you to engage with me and to consider me a teammate. I hope I made this connection with everyone who joined me last Wednesday at our “We are the VPFO” team event on the Vancouver campus.
It was incredible to gather hundreds of us in person to truly experience the diversity of our people and our services, as well as the connections that we share as individuals and as colleagues. The spaces you develop, maintain and protect, are labs where the treatments for diseases are explored and classrooms that enable cutting edge learning. The people you resource and support are researchers developing sustainable building materials, and students who are tomorrow’s business leaders.
We are a large and multifaceted team, and our mandate is a big one—the UBC community relies on us in many different ways—but I believe that by understanding our core purpose, focusing on our foundations, and working together as a team we can accomplish what we’re here to do. We are the VPFO, and we’re here to enable excellence at UBC through finance, facilities, and managing risk.
I hope that those of you who were able to attend on Wednesday, online or in person, enjoyed the opportunity to get together. We’d love your feedback – please complete this short survey to share your thoughts. Each month I plan to share a message with the portfolio through our newsletter and I’ve asked the leadership team to identify a good mix of opportunities for us to meet face to face, whether in our teams or all together. Your feedback can help make those meaningful for everyone.
Have a great week,
Frank Laezza
Vice-President Finance & Operations