New phase in the review of KI's operational support: focus on responsibility and mandate
KI continues its work towards more coordinated and effective operational support. A project involving representatives from both departments and the Professional Services (GVS) is now reviewing support functions, working methods and coordination in order to better meet the demands of core activities and the surrounding world.
‘Coordinated and optimised operational support’ is one of KI's priority focus areas and is based on the university management's dialogue with the entire organisation. The goal is operational support characterised by cooperation, common processes and efficient use of resources and expertise. The work is being carried out in project form under the leadership of Marie-Louice Isacson, specialist and former head of office at GVS.
‘Today, there is no common definition of operational support at KI. It is about more than administration – operational support must professionally meet the needs of the core business, support management and contribute to development and compliance’, says Marie-Louice Isacson.
Lessons learned from previous initiatives
The project builds on previous initiatives, such as ‘Harmonized professional services’ (2019-2021), and on analyses ahead of the new organisation of KI’s Professional Services in 2025. During the spring, in-depth interviews with managers and key personnel have identified strengths and challenges within operational support.
A lot of things work well at KI, but there is a need to clarify the responsibilities and mandates for operational support in different organisational parts of KI. There is also a need for more coordination, as several processes are perceived as unclear and slow, and sometimes with unclear decision-making paths.
Workshops during the autumn
During the autumn, workshops will be held in areas such as communication; security; HR; research support, including research agreements; premises and services; IT; finance, purchasing and procurement; and educational support. More areas may be added during the spring. The aim is to create dialogue about responsibilities and mandates and to identify areas where coordination needs to be developed.
‘By clarifying responsibilities and mandates, we will have better conditions for both management and core activities, and a good foundation for cooperation and joint development work within operational support. The project will also develop proposals for a simple model for joint planning and follow-up of operational support’, says Marie-Louice Isacson, who believes that the work can lay the foundation for a new working order for operational support as a whole at KI.
Read more about the project on the employee portal: Review of administrative organisation and procedures.