Our Strategic Plan

The 2024-27 VPFO Strategic Communications Plan

The VPFO’s strategic Communications Plan provides a moving 3-year planning window for Communications & Engagement across the VPFO, supporting the Vice-President Finance & Operations’ (VPFO) Strategic Plan, in alignment with the UBC Strategic Plan.

This strategic plan commits to continual improvement in resources, systems, and processes to ensure that the VPFO is aligning our efforts and our story to advance the university. The plan focuses on organizational-level strategic priorities and the ability of the Communications & Engagement team to enable delivery of these priorities. Individual department/group plans will be developed to connect to this principal strategy.

The strategic planning process is grounded in audience, stakeholder, and market research to develop a prioritized approach to quickly changing operational landscape. The core of the plan is available here. For a complete copy of the plan — including research, opportunity analysis, audience analysis, and risks and mitigations — please contact communications@vpfo.ubc.ca.


Our Purpose

Deliver the right information, to the right people, at the right time to empower business excellence.

Our Goals & Objectives

Communications & Engagement (C&E) leads several goals and objectives under the VPFO Strategic Plan:

  • Goal 2.2: Clarify our customers, services and service levels
  • Goal 3.1: Support our people
  • Goal 3.2: Inspire our people through VPFO cultural norms and brand promise.

The communications goals in this plan focus on those that C&E is leading under the VPFO strategic plan, as well as the overarching communications goals of the portfolio. These are not in priority order. Prioritization is set and tracked by the team though the VPFO PMO’s oversight of the strategic plan.

  1. Enhance VPFO accountability though business partnership: Support our portfolio-wide transformation from conventional practitioners to trusted business partners with our clients, customers, and community through the development of strategic frameworks.
    1. Design and implement a VPFO Communications framework that clarifies policy, guidelines, and process to support a shift from reactive to proactive communications across the portfolio; which will in turn outline the direction each division is heading and the communications strategies and tactics that will achieve their goals.
    2. Establish a Communities of Practice (CoP) framework and four pilot CoPs to support leadership in sharing knowledge and best practice and supporting collaboration.
    3. Continue advancing a UBC-wide budget communications framework that builds pathways between our clients, customers, and community and the information they need at the right time in the process.
  2. Transform our digital channels to support cross-functional culture and engagement and improve the perception of our services: Align the VPFO’s digital systems and channels into a network of interconnected systems—a trusted, cohesive, and streamlined set of tools to allow our clients, customers, and community to effectively do the business of the university.
    1. Consolidate the ecosystem of 17 VPFO websites into a clarified network of digital spaces on a unified platform that reflect the 3 main service pillars (Finance and Payroll, Building and Spaces, Safety and Security) of the portfolio.
    2. Create a unified intranet environment that provides the VPFO and internal UBC audiences with essential information they need to do their jobs and works as a baseline system to support transformation and unity for the portfolio.
    3. Continue supporting the standardization of our communications channels for chat and video meetings to a single platform (MS Teams) to enable clear, well-governed and aligned operations.

  1. Connect and collaborate across the portfolio and the university to inform decision-making and enable an integrated customer service strategy: Bring our people together to build an end-to-end understanding of and a sense of mission around our clients, customers and communities.
    1. Establish an initial VPFO Engagement framework, along with associated supports to clarify policy, guidelines, and processes, align our approach, and support best practice, which will enable our clients to inform decision-making and strategy development, improve the experience of our portfolio in our environment, and enhance our reputation with our customers and community.
    2. Enable employee engagement (EX) that supports customer engagement (CX) by creating strategic opportunities for the team to connect around our shared mission of customer and community service (e.g., VPFO Day, Customer Service Community of Practice, team-building game, etc.).
  2. Develop and align engagement and customer experience practice in the VPFO: Bring awareness to the value of engagement as a key support to identify and design services within the portfolio to better serve our clients, customers and community.
    1. Establish a customer experience framework that clarifies policy, guidelines, and process, which will map the pathways our customers travel with the VPFO, identify their touchpoints and pain points, and support a unified approach to the management and improvement of service expectations.
    2. Implement a standardized survey to collect customer experience data and a harmonized report that displays information at the unit level, the division level, and the portfolio level.

  1. Foster a unified and engaged VPFO culture: Support an engaged culture that prioritizes collaborative business partnerships portfolio-wide—no matter the position or title, team members should feel connected to the VPFO and the VPFO strategic plan and empowered to take part.
    1. Create strategic opportunities for the portfolio to come together within the context of our strategic plan, see itself as a team, and build interpersonal relationships that support our desired culture (e.g., VPFO Day, Pink Shirt Day, teambuilding game, etc.).
    2. Implement a suite of connected look and feel materials (templates, video, graphics, websites, newsletters, etc.) that illustrate our portfolio identity within the UBC brand to visibly draw strategy, divisions, and services together for our clients, customers, and community.
    3. Support our values of accountability, unity, and innovation by showing our leaders as active and accessible, our people as business partners, and our services enabling excellence for our clients, customers, and community.
    4. As organizational change occurs, show clear alignment to the portfolio’s strategic framework. Support our leaders and teams though transition in a way that consistently highlights and reinforces our vision, purpose and values.

Approach Strategies

Over the span of the plan, the VPFO will be experiencing significant change and transition. Much of the focus of this transition will involve helping leadership (i.e., managers and above) align tactical work to operationalize projects within the VPFO’s strategic priorities. To show how C&E will help drive strategic priorities, the following communication strategies will be employed:

  • Build active and visible sponsorship with leaders, especially during organizational change.
  • Share strategic messages through people-based stories. Experiences speak louder than data.
  • Build a culture of open, plain language conversation that encourages connection and trust.
  • Use an integrated portfolio identity to align channels, messaging, and collateral.

  • Empower modernization and transformation within the portfolio by aligning our digital channels into an integrated systems of touchpoints led by constituency and customer experience research.
  • Be consciously mindful of equity, diversity and inclusion.

Key Messages

  • The VPFO is a team of over 1,400 people, making up 10 per cent of UBC’s staff across both campuses. We contribute to UBC and the VPFO’s mission of sparking ideas, actions and inspiration for a better world.
  • UBC is an active community where over 80,000 people come together every day to live, work, learn and play. The people of the VPFO are all part of managing the core financial, facilities, safety, and risk functions, ensuring the university and its community thrive.
  • What we do touches everyone at UBC. Whether it’s our Facilities team maintaining over 400 hectares of land and 189 buildings, our Safety & Risk Services team enhancing safety and security 24/7, Enterprise Risk & Assurance team advancing a culture of risk-informed decision making, or our Finance team managing UBC’s $3.8 billion budget—our impact is felt across the university.
  • With over 100,000 community members who rely on our collective efforts—around 70,000 students and 30,000 faculty and staff—the VPFO is focused on delivering first-class, specialized services.

  • The VPFO is a large dynamic portfolio, and when we move forward together, we create real, positive change for the university.
  • Many of us are looking to change the mindset of “that’s just how things are at UBC”. Together, we can be the driving force behind a new, forward-thinking culture at the university.
  • Every action we take at the VPFO affects the entire UBC community. Stepping up, offering help, and working together toward shared goals are key to building trust and making a difference across the university.

  • We’re putting our community first and shifting from traditional ways of doing things, reinforcing the experience of our services and our role as trusted business partners for UBC.
  • We’ve invested in industry-leading tools to support data-driven strategies. By really understanding our communities we can better build and refine the tools, systems, and processes that serve them.
  • Listening to our community is key. We’ve collected feedback from over 1,000 surveys and held more than 120 engagement sessions to continuously review what’s working and where we can improve. By acting on this feedback, we aim to strengthen trust-based relationships and deliver exceptional service.

  • The VPFO is all about connections. We’re a network of services, and our culture thrives when we build strong relationships within our team and across our functions. Our role goes beyond our daily tasks—it's about connecting with others and supporting the processes that keep us all moving forward.
  • Each team, department, and individual bring their own unique approach. When these align with the VPFO’s values of Innovation, Accountability, and Unity, great things happen. So, bring your own style and energy into shaping the VPFO.
  • Our leaders are accessible to everyone in the VPFO. Events such as VPFO Day, the Divisional Ice Cream Socials or Winter Holiday parties give us all a chance to connect, share ideas, and keep the conversation going, no matter your role.
  • Our commitment goes beyond individual tasks. By embracing values such as Accountability, Unity, and Innovation, we’re building a collaborative culture where we can all succeed as trusted partners.

  • It’s time to reach out and collaborate with other VPFO teams. Expanding your network helps elevate everyone, making our collective work even stronger.
  • When we pool our specialized skills, whether it’s for building a new facility or supporting groundbreaking research, we push projects forward together. Our diverse experiences and perspectives are a real strength at every level.
  • Taking part in events like VPFO Day, Pink Shirt Day, or Earth Day shows our commitment to teamwork. Whether it’s stepping in when needed, offering a hand, or working together toward shared goals, we’re all about supporting each other.
  • Being part of the VPFO means more than just showing up; it’s about actively participating and making a difference. Every contribution, no matter how small, adds value and strengthens our collective success.