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In recent weeks, the Campus Committee on Organizational Restructuring (CCOR) has received reports from three of the Striving for Excellence project teams: travel, small-scale construction and renovation, and graduate student appointments. The teams had been charged with reviewing each process and providing recommendations for improvement. The completion of these reports moves the campus closer to realizing the goals of its restructuring efforts, as outlined in the Striving for Excellence workplan.
Striving for Excellence calls for improvement in the quality of services provided to the campus community and identification of savings that could be reinvested to fund major strategic initiatives. In the spring of 1998, eight administrative processes were identified by CCOR and approved for review by the Chancellor's Executive Advisory Council (CEAC). A sponsor, team leader, and project team was identified for each process. Over the past year, the teams have met regularly to explore the administrative process under review and consider new ways of organizing the process in fulfillment of the University's restructuring goals.
Following the completion of the teams' reviews, CCOR now seeks community feedback on change proposals submitted by each team. Community responses will be reviewed by CCOR and submitted to the project sponsors. Members of the campus community who wish to comment on the proposals are encouraged to do so via e-mail at sfe@chancellor.umass.edu. A summary of each proposal is given below. Hardcopy versions of the full reports may be obtained from Vachel Miller in the Deputy Chancellor's office (phone: 5-2211).
Financial support is one of the primary reasons graduate students choose to attend the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Graduate assistantships are the main form of that support. After examining the processing of graduate assistantship appointments, the project team found that the process is slow and often frustrating for students and staff. Those frustrations have many roots, some of which are: appointment forms require layers of approval; too many appointments occurring simultaneously can jam the system; no single office is charged with coordinating the process; timing of budget allocations for departments does not coincide with graduate recruitment and appointment periods.
In response to these concerns, the project team has recommended an overhaul of the assistantship appointment process. To enable departments to make more timely assistantship offers to prospective and continuing students, departments should be allowed to commit 75% of their current assistantship budget for appointments in the following year. Further, the pre-establish process for grant accounts needs to be simplified and made more accessible. This process allows departments to begin paying students for research work before funds for a grant arrive on campus. Organizationally, a set of interrelated working groups should be established to improve communication between offices and provide overall coordination of the process.
In the fall of 1998, more than 1200 late paychecks and a similar number of late excess checks were issued to graduate assistants. The proposed changes are expected to reduce the number of late checks issued to graduate students. The appointment process will also become more streamlined for departments and staff.
The project team reviewing travel services at UMass asked two main questions: is the University providing the right level of service to clients? Is the University using the volume of travel expenditures to full economic advantage?
The team found that the University has made several improvements to travel services in recent years, including the use of the VISA card and the implementation of the Travel Reimbursement Incentive Program (TRIP). While the University has relationships with two designated travel agencies, only 19% of total travel expenditures were made through those agencies in 1997-98. Currently, UMass travelers work with a large number of different travel agencies and service providers.
Given the wide array of agencies used by UMass travelers-a large majority of whom are faculty-the team recommended that the University refrain from mandating the use of a single travel service. Instead, the team recommended implementing an integrated travel program with incentives for voluntary participation. Many organizations with large travel expenses achieve savings in travel costs by coordinating travel arrangements through an internal department. At UMass, the program would involve coordination of services already in place in order to improve the quality of those services and improve administrative efficiency.
Savings to the University are also expected through volume discounts with air carriers. The savings could be passed on to travelers and result in more travel per dollar spent. The program would require the addition of a Travel Services Manager to coordinate services and pursue cost-saving measures.
This review project analyzed the small-scale renovation and construction process on the Amherst campus. The review covered all aspects of small-scale renovation and construction projects including the following: submitting work orders, defining project scope, design, code review and permitting, estimating, scheduling, timely completion, project cost, quality assurance and billing.
The review team identified that the current priorities for Physical Plant focus on maintenance and repair, before the completion of new small projects. Without a staff dedicated to such projects, completion time averaged 235 days in FY98. The current backlog of funded small project work is estimated at $1.5 million. Most new project work performed by physical plant costs less than $10,000, with an average value of approximately $1800 in FY98.
To improve the timeliness of project work, the review team has recommended that a small office dedicated to small-scale renovation and construction be formed. The staff would be composed of trade workers, in addition to managerial and clerical positions. The goal of the staff would be to complete small-scale projects within 30 days. After initial start-up costs for materials and equipment, revenues generated from the project work are expected to cover ongoing expenses for the office. It was further recommended that an advisory team be established to monitor and evaluate the progress of the office, paying careful attention to cost estimates and labor costs.
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Copyright © 1998
University of Massachusetts, Amherst. |
