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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UBC Investment Management releases 2022-23 Performance Results
UBC Investment Management is pleased to release FY22-23 performance highlights on behalf of the funds the firm manages: the UBC Main Endowment Pool and the UBC Staff Pension Plan (SPP). All results as of March 31, 2023.
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Read the 2023 Endowment update
Every year, the university provides a summary report for each endowed fund to the designated donor contact. The 2023 University of British Columbia (UBC) Endowment Summary Report is now available on The University Endowment page, or on the give UBC…
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Celebrating the successful delivery of Workday Adaptive training
Last week, the Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) and the Workday Adaptive Project team celebrated the successful delivery of the Workday Adaptive training series with a graduation celebration with virtual certificates, sparkling juice — and of course, no celebration would…
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Our purpose shapes us
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: what we do in the VPFO matters — deeply…
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Leveraging Smartsheet for project planning and tracking
VPFO Project Management Office uses Smartsheet, a modern project and work management tool, to manage project plans, track deliverables and report on key project milestones. Safety and Risk Services (SRS) within the VPFO has also recently embraced these tools to…
People of the VPFO
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Dimitri Kavouras steps into new role as Subhead Controls Electrician in Building Operations
Passionate about contributing to the UBC community, Dimitri is a current shop steward, previous union delegate, and participant in two apprenticeship committees. He was awarded the Kim Nulty award in 2020 for his contributions and excellence in categories like employee…
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Building a more innovative campus — one project at a time
A powerful duo in the VPFO, Aletha Utimati, a PMP-certified Project Manager and Sandy Sull, a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) bring completely different expertise but share a vision for an innovative campus, a passion for collaboration, and the ability to…
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Rosanna Ma steps into new role as Facilities Safety Associate
Rosanna’s experience in the Research Compliance and Occupational Hygiene team in SRS and consulting industry will be extremely beneficial in her new role. She will be transitioning from the Donald Rix office to join the Facilities Safety team in the…
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Meynardo Villarica steps into new role as Architectural Head in Building Operations
Meynardo joined Building Operations in September 2012 as a carpenter in the Yellow Zone Carpenter and later became the Sub-head for the Carpenter Shop. Bringing a wealth of trade and customer service experience, Meynardo will help to build out processes…
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Staff change as VPFO Administration helps support the President’s Office
Sandy Zarka will be seconded as the new Manager of Administration and Executive Assistant to the Interim President for the Presidential transition period. While Sandy is with the President’s Office, Holly Rail will continue in her current role as executive…