Operational Review

September 9, 2024

Dear Community Members,

King’s is committed to continuous improvement and excellence.  As such, King’s is commencing an operational review, which the Board of Directors and I believe will help us fulfill our mission as a Catholic undergraduate university, meet the needs of our diverse community and remain competitive as an institution of higher learning. King’s has engaged StrategyCorp to assist in this comprehensive review. StrategyCorp is familiar with King’s through their work on the strategic framework and has extensive experience in the postsecondary sector.

The operational review will

• Ensure King’s policies, processes, and structures are aligned with its strategic priorities with a special focus on promoting success and genuine inclusion for all students, faculty, staff and partners. 
• Identify opportunities to ensure King’s long-term financial sustainability through new revenues and the careful stewardship of resources.
• Enhance student experience and student satisfaction by improving operational practices and processes from admissions and registration to academic advising and support services
• Ensure King’s is able to adopt leading practices to operate at a level consistent with other thriving universities.
• Empower our people to adopt new technologies, practices, and processes to drive continuous improvement and innovation in our operations.

Your input and active participation are essential to the success of this operational review. We are committed to a co-creative process, engaging constituencies across the university through a carefully planned series of activities.

Engagement activities are scheduled to begin shortly and will be strategically interspersed throughout the review process. These activities are designed to capture a broad range of perspectives, ensuring that the outcomes of the review accurately represent the collective insights and requirements of the King’s community. 

The review is projected to span approximately four months. This timeline allows for thorough analysis, community engagement, and the development of findings, ensuring that every phase of the review is given the attention it requires.

To facilitate an open and effective communication channel during this review, StrategyCorp has established a dedicated email address (kuctransformation@strategycorp.com) to collect suggestions and feedback from all interested parties. Please be assured that confidentiality is a priority; all submissions will be received only by StrategyCorp and will be handled with discretion. Feedback will be aggregated by theme to ensure privacy and non-attribution before it is received by King’s.

At the conclusion of the review, StrategyCorp will present a comprehensive report of the findings to the Board of Directors. This presentation will outline actionable findings and strategic insights derived from the review. It's important to understand that while all findings will be carefully considered, the implementation of each will be subject to further evaluation based on our strategic priorities and resource availability and in collegial consultation with all members of the King’s community.

One of our core values as an organization is “stewardship”.  By definition, stewardship is “the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care”.  In that respect, the operational review should be seen as an exercise in stewardship; our ability to continue to provide as we have for generations. Inclusive access to university education depends on how effectively we manage our financial, environmental, and human resources.  In recent conversations with members from various departments and areas of campus life, I was reminded of the interconnectedness of people, culture and mission.  I learned, for example, about how some basic operational changes can have a tremendous positive impact on people’s sense of belonging and purpose in carrying out their respective roles to advance our mission. Administration has a responsibility to listen and learn, constantly, about changes that are needed to allow us to deliver on our promise – to each other, and to the people and communities we serve.   

Sincerely,

Robert Ventresca
President (Interim)