Since McGill staff and students last heard about Horizon McGill at a virtual Town Hall May 16, the team tasked with facilitating the initiative has taken shape.
Among the event’s presenters was Prof. David Stephens, seconded from the Faculty of Science to serve as Horizon McGill’s Academic Lead.
Five McGillians have since joined Stephens; like him, they are seconded from other posts and have a deep understanding of the University.
Horizon McGill’s 10 working groups, co-led by McGill senior administrators and faculty deans, have now been established. Each group is dedicated to an operational priority, such as admissions, research or administrative efficiency.
“These are homegrown teams staffed by McGillians,” said Fabrice Labeau, Vice-President (Administration and Finance) and one of Horizon’s two executive co-sponsors. “They understand how the University operates and know what we need to succeed.”
Horizon McGill aims to transform how the University works and make the most of McGill’s resources, and it remains a key component of President Deep Saini’s strategy.
“The objective is to strengthen our academic program delivery and reimagine how we teach, research and operate in a changing world,” said Labeau. “Ultimately, we want to change the way McGill operates and make it work better.”
Homegrown teams
In addition to Stephens, Horizon McGill’s staff members are Maria Babiak as Program Director, Mark Ordonselli as Senior Communications Advisor, Sarah Delisle as Senior Change Management Advisor, Wesley McCoy as Administrative Officer and newly hired Sharan Gill as Data Analyst.
“The office’s primary focus is to guide and support Horizon McGill’s working groups by providing them with the resources, data and expertise required to achieve the project’s priorities,” said Babiak. “Our amazing team all chose to be part of this bold and challenging initiative. We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t think we could contribute and make a difference.”
Using a variety of methods – including analyzing quantitative and qualitative data, surveys, focus groups, KPIs and benchmarking – the working groups have already begun studying institutional processes and designing better ways of working.
“There’s no getting around the fact that cost savings will need to be a big part of this,” said Labeau. “But any cuts must be part of a broader plan to meet the community’s needs.”
Meeting McGill’s needs
In line with their mandate, each Horizon McGill working group is looking to trim costs, generate revenue and cut turnaround times – all to help ensure the University is a better place to work and study.
Each working group is co-led by an administrator with thorough understanding of the unit’s operations and a Dean who represents the voice and needs of McGill users.
The Administrative Efficiency group is currently working to simplify and modernize the travel and expense reimbursement process – a procedure that will save time and reduce frustration for hundreds of people across McGill.
Meanwhile, the Advancement working group is looking at new ways to generate philanthropic gifts in support of McGill’s operating budget, to alleviate the University’s financial pressure.
At the heart of it all are Horizon staff members, who can provide expertise in process design, change management, communications, data analysis and more.
“It is more than just tweaking a few processes here and there,” said Babiak. “It may start here, but continue on to look at larger processes, systems, structures and roles. It is about intentional transformation, and the team is here to help co-ordinate the rollout of these milestones in a way that make the most sense, both for the institution and our community.”
More news to come
Christopher Manfredi, Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic) and an executive co-sponsor of Horizon, added that “at the town hall in May, we were clear that maintaining the status quo was unsustainable. The University needs to move to better ways of working, and that will require change.
“To ensure those changes are the right ones,” he continued, “we’ll need good data to drive decision-making.”
In Horizon McGill’s next update, Provost Manfredi and Prof. Stephens will explain why data analysis matters and how this will help McGill succeed.