Queen’s has released new information regarding its multi-year plan to reform its professional services and introduce financial sustainability.
New details regarding the Queen’s Renew Program—a multi-year initiative that characterizes itself as ensuring “the University’s professional services are operating effectively and efficiently”—were announced in the Queen’s Gazette on June 24. In the update, the University said that the program has been “making steady progress towards its [goals]” over the past six months.
The Program was initially co-signed in 2024 by Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) Matthew Evans and Vice-Principal (Finance and Administration) Donna Janiec. The Program was developed in collaboration with Nous Group—an international consultancy firm hired in early 2024 to help the University tackle its $26.4 million operating budget deficit. The University didn’t respond to questions from The Journal regarding which people and organizations are currently being consulted regarding the future of the Program.
According to the recent release, the Program’s early efforts have been focused on identifying opportunities for improvement in finance, budget, and HR processes. Consultation with staff members led to several recommendations for both immediate and long-term changes, with the main examples provided centring around better use of technology and increased automation.
The June update announced the University’s continued participation in the UniForum benchmarking initiative aspect of the Renew Project—a Nous Group-owned data collection initiative meant to track employee satisfaction levels and investigate the methods and costs relating to how professional services are delivered across campus.
In a statement to the Journal, the University specified two initiatives currently underway with the Program—the Queen’s Renew Finance Initiative and the Queen’s Renew Human Resources Initiative. They emphasized a focus on “[improving] processes and structures related to finance and budget work” and “[improving] key HR processes and structures… that support the university’s daily operations.”
When asked for further specifics and measurable results regarding items the Program has already accomplished, the University explained they’ll be “making better use of existing technology to track casual hires, standardized financial templates, and real-time enrolment dashboards”—clarifying that they will be rolling out in the coming year.
The University didn’t provide any timelines or targets, despite being asked by The Journal.
In response to how this increased automation and technology could affect staffing levels at the University, Queen’s wrote that “at this point, the Queen’s Renew Program is still in its early stages and many details, including any potential impacts, are not yet known.”
As for staff input, the University didn’t address how they will ensure consultation as the Program continues, or what previous participation in the UniForum benchmarking initiative revealed regarding employee satisfaction levels. Queen’s also failed to answer The Journal’s questions regarding how the Program will work to address the University’s operating budget deficit, and if the Program has any specific financial targets relating to overall cost reduction.
While the Queen’s Coalition Against Austerity (QCAA) didn’t provide a statement upon request, they’ve previously shared several concerns regarding The Renew Program.
In one analysis, they wrote that the Program’s “data-driven approach” risks “hollowing out Queen’s function as a space for democratic learning, transforming it instead into an institution focused on rankings, returns, and capital.”
QCAA also critiqued the UniForum initiative, claiming “that the purpose of the survey is to guide who will be laid off.” They shared concerns that “given the levels of understaffing at Queen’s, the survey will not measure faculty’s dissatisfaction with existing services, but rather dissatisfaction with understaffing. So given that the purpose of the survey is to make cuts to services, there is a good chance that it will end up punishing the most understaffed services, for being understaffed.”
The University said it will share further updates on the Queen’s Renew Program as it progresses throughout the year.
Tags
First Year in Focus, QCAA, Renew Program, Renew Program Office
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