BUSINESS AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT AND MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS
Goal
The project will serve to gather insights that will guide the university’s future planning and decisions on the organizational design of both business and administrative support functions and marketing and communications functions.
Initiative Milestones
Timeline is subject to change based on university needs and schedules.
PHASE | DESCRIPTION | TIMEFRAME |
---|---|---|
Data Collection | Collection of organizational charts, job descriptions, etc. | August - September 2025 |
Stakeholder Engagement | One-on-one and group interviews with university leaders and staff | September - November 2025 |
Data Analysis | Analysis of data and interview | October - November 2025 |
Recommendations and Roadmap | Develop initial findings | December 2025 - January 2026 |
Action Planning | Share initial finding and plan next steps | January - February 2026 |
Questions or Feedback
Frequently Asked Questions
What types of information will be collected?
Information will be collected through an inclusive and collaborative process that includes one-on-one and group interviews with approximately 500 faculty, staff, and administrators across all academic and administrative units. Further information will be considered including organizational charts, job descriptions, and information related to administrative and operational processes.
How will confidentiality of sensitive information be maintained?
There will be no attribution made to comments during this process. Information received through interviews and other channels will be aggregated and only the common key themes will be reported out.
How long will the assessment take?
The assessment is anticipated to continue through the beginning of the Spring 2025 semester. This timeline may vary depending on the needs of the University and schedules.
Who will be involved in conducting the assessment?
Segal, a higher education consulting firm, has been engaged to lead this assessment. They will serve as an objective partner in the review process. Several members of the consulting team have held faculty, staff, and executive roles in major public universities and have a deep understanding of higher education practices and culture.
How will employees be selected for one-on-one or group interviews?
The employees selected for interviews are intended to represent a cross-section of our campus community in terms of level, experience, department, and roles. While we would like to talk to everyone, we recognize we do not have the ability to do so.
What if my job classification is included in the assessment, but my job duties and responsibilities are not related to business and administrative support or marketing and communications? Similarly, what if my job classification was not included, but my job duties are related to business and administrative support or marketing and communications?
As part of the organizational assessment, job classifications that are most likely to encompass administrative and business support and communications and marketing responsibilities were included.
Because our job titles are based on broad templates, not everyone with those titles does this kind of work. In those cases, supervisors and leaders will help us remove employees who should not be included. On the other hand, there may be people in other roles who do perform some of this work even if their job title was not selected. Since Segal does not need to review every individual job to make recommendations, those responsibilities will still be captured in other ways, such as through conversations with supervisors.
Will grant-funded positions be included in the organizational assessment?
Grant-funded employees responsible for business and administrative support or marketing and communications functions may be included in the group interviews to contribute to the discussions regarding how this work is done and what opportunities and challenges may exist for more efficient processes. We recognize however that the university cannot ask employees funded by a grant or contract to perform non-grant related work.
If I do not participate in a one-on-one or group interview, can I still share my feedback?
Yes. Employees who are not selected to participate in a one-on-one or group interview can share feedback through the feedback form.
Will the assessment findings and recommendations be shared?
Yes, the assessment findings and recommendations will be shared once finalized.
Who will be responsible for implementing recommendations resulting from the assessment?
UConn’s leadership team will review the recommendations and determine which to adopt, prioritizing them based on a range of factors including immediate needs, available resources, and alignment with institutional goals.
What channels will be used to communicate assessment progress and results?
Updates and information will be provided through this website as well as university-wide communications.
Does the organizational assessment apply to both the UConn and UConn Health Campuses?
The organizational assessment being led by Segal is focused on the Storrs and regional campuses with little to no impact on UConn Health.