Dear colleagues,
As we approach the beginning of the holiday season, I find myself reflecting on the many ways our division has come together this year. I’m especially thankful for the opportunities we’ve had to gather, learn, and strengthen our shared commitment to excellence and belonging.
Our progress over the past year has been shaped by our collective willingness to listen, innovate, and, most importantly, act on feedback. Your openness helps us foster empathy, transparency, and responsiveness—values that directly translate into real improvements in the customer experience and the services we deliver across campus.
Turning Insights into Action
We often talk about the importance of listening to our campus community, but listening to you is just as essential. Your feedback remains one of our most valuable tools for ensuring that our strategies and support systems are designed with you and our shared mission in mind. Here are just a few examples of how your feedback has shaped our work this fall:
- Shaping Our Talent Strategy: During our recent Lunch with Leaders session, your candid insights on the upcoming VSIP transitions helped shape the training, tools, and talent strategies needed to support your teams with confidence and clarity. Two of these tools include WorkDNA, an AI-powered resource that helps employees document their specialized skills, and a new supervisor training program. WorkDNA is currently available to select departments and will be released to all employees in the next few weeks. The supervisor training program is in its pilot phase and will be rolled out more broadly soon.
- Improving the Daily Work Experience: At Free Drinks for Feedback, our Facilities colleagues shared valuable perspectives on the current Zone Pilot—insights that are helping us refine the model to improve service delivery, scheduling, and team support.
- Record Attendance: After hearing your interest in more in-person opportunities, we were thrilled to see record attendance—418 colleagues, both in person and online—at our most recent Admin Forum. It was a wonderful moment to hear Provost Dittmar share how our collective efforts are advancing the Momentous strategic goals.
OF&S New Year Celebration
As we enter this season of celebration, I look forward to connecting with many of you at upcoming gatherings. Please be sure to mark your calendars for our New Year Celebration on January 21, as we gather to kick off 2026 with renewed energy and purpose.
Fundamentals of Project Management
I also want to encourage anyone interested in honing their project management skills to consider enrolling in the Fundamentals of Project Management course which will kick off in January. If you missed the info session, you can view it here and submit an application for the course here.
Thank you for your continued dedication, creativity, and care. The community you build every day is what makes OF&S essential to Rice’s mission.
Warm regards,
Kelly Fox,
Executive Vice President, Operations, Finance & Support