2024 PRIORITIES

Safe & Comfortable Environment

We are dedicated to ensuring a safe and comfortable environment for students. We will continue to advocate for campus resources to maintain and improve residence halls and fraternity and sorority houses.

Excellence in Facilities Management

We are actively pursuing the APPA Award for Excellence in Facilities Management (AFE). This award is designed to recognize and advance excellence in the field of educational facilities nationally and internationally. Our ongoing collaboration with facilities units across campus, adherence to industry standards, and commitment to fulfill the essential role of facilities operations in the overall institutional mission and vision, will be pivotal in achieving this goal. Our plan is guided by recommendations from the external Facilities Management Evaluation Program (FMEP) in the areas of: leadership; strategic and operational planning; customer focus; information and analysis; development and management of human resources; process management; and performance results.

Strengthening Partnership with Facilities Management

In all aspects of Residential Facilities’ operation, our success relies on strong, collaborative, and positive partnerships with other facilities management units across campus. We will develop formal agreements between departments to clearly define roles, responsibilities and authorities.

Residential Facilities will initiate major design projects including:

• The renovation of the Ellicott community

• South Campus Infrastructure replacement

• The repurposing of existing spaces to build new Residential Facilities offices on north campus.

By leveraging the SHIFT implementation and collaborating with Facilities Management, Procurement, and other campus partners, we will complete these projects responsibly and efficiently.

Training & Development

In alignment with the DSA Strategic Plan theme “Our People/Us - Our Well-Being and Development”, Residential Facilities invests in the well-being, development, satisfaction, and success of our team members.

We are developing a comprehensive training plan which includes a variety of resources:

• Training and progression series for non-exempt employees

• Addition of training staff: Instructional Design & Planning Program Manager, and full time skills trainer

• Partnership with the UMD Center for Leadership and Organizational Change (CLOC) to pilot their new Excellence In Supervision Training

• Implementation of a formal skills training program (CMI Professional Housekeeper program) for frontline staff

• Leadership development program (APPA Supervisor’s Toolkit) for supervisors and managers

• Department-level facilitation of WorkDay and AssetWorks training

What we want SALT to know

We are currently undergoing a three-year organizational transition. While we remain committed to supporting new initiatives, our primary focus will be on implementing internal operational changes. Our transformation is essential to become a critical enabler in “every student thriving”.

Our immediate priorities include:

• Relocation of Residential Facilities administrative offices and functional units

• SHIFT (AssetWorks) development, training, and implementation

• ELEVATE (Workday) training and implementation

• Action plan based on FMEP recommendations

• Initiatives directly related to our five strategic focus areas:

- Operational Efficiency

- Staff Development & Professionalism

- Safety

- Student Environments

- Modernization

Along with recruiting efforts to manage typical staffing turnover, we are focused on succession planning for the next two years. There is a large number of staff eligible to retire within the next three to five years. We are working to transfer valuable institutional knowledge, build redundancy, and realign existing positions to successfully bridge these retirements.

There are also vacancies that are unpredictable. Sadly, two members of our work family passed away last year. Yusef Jones and Sarah Davies were beloved colleagues and their loss was deeply felt throughout the department. We will continue to support our staff through these transitions and as new employees join the department.

We continue to experience communication and management challenges with Facilities Management. This has a direct impact on staff morale, operational efficiency, and fiscal responsibility. We plan to develop service level agreements and memorandums of understanding in hopes of more clearly defining guidelines for the collaborative work between departments.

Among the items to consider is increasing the limit for project delegation authority, allowing DRF to have more autonomy with construction and renovation projects.

Residential Facilities is mission focused but lacks a distinct organizational identity. Despite our great work and accomplishments, many don’t know who we are and what we do.

We encounter unique departmental challenges and are committed to raising awareness to topics such as language, work shifts, accessibility, and technology. We anticipate potential hurdles related to ADA accommodation, open enrollment, and the implementation of the new systems and technology. However, we are resolute in overcoming these challenges.

We will advocate for our staff and cultivate a community of operational excellence built on transparency, trust, and teamwork. Our goal is to develop a strong organizational identity through proactive engagement. This includes activities that promote brand awareness, partnership and educate our stakeholders on the different elements that make up our organization.

Conclusion

The Department of Residential Facilities operational framework is shaped through the lens of Student Affairs’ four Strategic Commitments: Our people, Our Students, Inclusion, IDEASJ, and Our Division.

In alignment with “Our People’’ we addressed staffing shortages and boosted employee morale through succession planning and professional development.

In addressing “Our Students’’ we ensured safe and modern environments where “every student can thrive”.

By embracing “Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Anti-Racism, and Social Justice” we foster an organizational culture that promotes equity, accessibility, advocacy and a strong sense of belonging.

Lastly, guided by “Our Division” we strengthened partnership with other departments and facilities management units, reinforcing collaboration and shared achievements.

This report serves as proof of our ongoing commitments. Each strategic action resonates with the division’s core commitments and propels us toward a shared successful future.