President issues update on PRASE review

York President & Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri has issued the following letter to the York community:

As you are aware, last fall York engaged PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to help the University develop and implement more effective administrative processes and procedures, to help maximize our human and financial resources to better support York’s mission of academic excellence, student success and community engagement.

Over the past several months, I am delighted that so many York community members from across the University took the time to participate in the information sessions and the PwC workshops, in order to discuss existing administrative processes and procedures, and to identify current strengths, weaknesses and recommendations for service improvements.

I would like to thank all of you for the time that you dedicated to this process. I recognize that Phase 1 was very extensive, but many of the specific recommendations suggested in the report are a result of your input. I would also like to thank Vice-President Academic & Provost Patrick Monahan, Vice-President Finance & Administration Gary Brewer, the PRASE Steering Committee and Working Group members, and PwC for their efforts.

In late February, we received the Phase 1 report of the Process Re-Engineering & Service Enhancement Review (PRASE) from PwC.

For the first time in our history, York now has:

  • An overview of what, where and how York’s administrative services are currently being provided and the associated costs;
  • a comprehensive range of potential service improvement opportunities; and
  • a potential new service delivery operating model that more clearly focuses the University’s limited financial and human resources for supporting its academic priorities.

Since receiving Phase 1 of the report, the PRASE team has been reviewing the findings and recommendations, as well as consulting with the deans, vice-presidents and senior managers, seeking their feedback and input.

This report contains preliminary recommendations from PwC, and on Monday, March 21, we will make available the full PRASE Phase 1 findings and recommendations on the PRASE website. Immediately following the release of the report, we will enter a 30-day consultation period to listen to suggestions, address concerns and allow us the time to properly determine our next course of action. Part of the consultation process will include two community information sessions, allowing us the opportunity to present you with a summary of the PwC report, and will be followed with a discussion and question period. The first session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 22, from 1 to 2:30pm in the McEwan Auditorium in the Seymour Schulich Building, and the second will be held on Friday, March 25, from 10 to 11:30am in Moot Court Room in Osgoode Hall Law School.

There is no doubt that as we proceed, how we do things at this University will change, but ultimately, we will be in a stronger position to realize our priorities for the University. We believe that PRASE will not only help us to provide consistent and improved service delivery, allowing York to better achieve its strategic academic goals, but it will also address our current financial situation.

At York, we value the input from our community members and are committed to a continued open consultation and dialogue. We encourage you take the time to read the full report and attend the community information sessions, so that together we can make a difference. Should you have any questions about PRASE, please send an e-mail to prase@yorku.ca.