Welcome to the VP Finance & Operations portfolio
The nine divisions of the VPFO are responsible for the stewardship of UBC’s physical and financial assets, as well as safety and risk management for our university community.
We oversee a $3.98 billion budget, a $3.38 billion endowment, and all facilities on both campuses, as well as managing the university’s relationships with UBC Investment Management and UBC Properties Trust. In all the portfolio’s responsibilities, we are committed to the values of innovation, unity and accountability.

VPFO Strategic Plan 2024–2027
Having a strategic plan gives us a clear path, keeping everyone on the same page. Learn more about where we’re going next and how we plan to get there.
News from the VPFO
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Siu Tse joins Energy & Water Services as Director of Engineering & Utilities
Siu joins us from the City of Port Coquitlam as their Deputy Director of Engineering & Operation and previously worked in City of Richmond, and Metro Vancouver.
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Are you Ranger Ready? Visit the UBC Emergency Ranger Station on Feb 13 and find out!
Emergencies happen, and as UBC students, faculty, staff, and residents, we all have a role to play in emergency preparedness. Visit the UBC Emergency Ranger Station in the AMS Nest on February 13 to find out how you can prepare…
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François Desmarais promoted to Senior Facilities Manager in Building Operations
François is the successful candidate to take on this newly created role with all of the Building Operations’ Facilities Managers reporting directly to him. François will continue to be responsible for the Brown Zone and also manage the day to…
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Announcing a new Associate Vice-President role for the VPFO
Following approval from UBC’s Board of Governors,the VPFO will be adding a new Associate Vice-President. Trish Pekeles has agreed to step forward as acting in the new AVP role until the search committee completes their work.
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UBC Finance Receives Sustainable Purchasing Award from International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories
UBC joined a number of leading research university in receiving the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Award after demonstrating an improvement in sustainable procurement practices.
People of the VPFO
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Get to know: Ryan Huffman, Senior Project Manager with Project Services, Infrastructure Development
Ryan came to UBC because he used to get bored easily. Almost 7 years later, he’s discovered a job that brings him constant innovation, excitement, and the opportunity to bring his unique brand of positivity to his many UBC friends…
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Doug Cheung joins Treasury team in the position of Director, Treasury
Doug will be overseeing cash management together with the strategic long-term modelling and will also be involved in strategic initiatives such as the GBE (Government Business Entity) project with Student Housing and Hospitality Services.
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Jenny Ng joins Project & Planning Business Systems with Infrastructure Development as NAV Data Systems Analyst
Jenny brings with her 19 years of UBC experience and extensive knowledge in managing, analyzing, and reporting on data. She will be joining Infrastructure Development starting January 6, 2020.
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Bryan Archibald is new Manager of Maintenance Planning in Facilities, Building Operations
Bryan will be responsible for facilitating the outcome from those responsible for preventative and predictive maintenance programs in Building Operations.
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Colleen Mah promoted to Associate Project Manager, Project Services with Infrastructure Development
Colleen joined UBC in 2017 as a Project Administrator and has taken on an increasing number of project management tasks, while providing enormous bandwidth to support Project Managers on a number of large projects. Moving into the Associate Project Manager…