Meet Our Sponsors: Jennifer Burns

Jennifer Burns is the Associate Vice President of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer. As co-lead sponsor for the Integrated Renewal Program, including the Applications Ecosystem Program, and co-lead of the Integrated Service Centre, Jennifer shares how Workday will continue to update, improve and streamline UBC’s processes. 

Tell us about your history with UBC, your current role and your connection with the IRP.

I have a varied history with IT at UBC that started in 2002, when I joined UBC as many of us do as a term position as the manager of the IT Service Centre. UBC turned out to be a great fit, my term became permanent, and over time I worked in a variety of different leadership roles within the IT portfolio. Currently I'm the Associate Vice President of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer (CIO). As part of that role, I am a co-lead for the IRP that includes the Applications Ecosystem Program (AEP) and also a co-lead of the Integrated Service Centre (ISC), which is a unit that will be the successor of the activities of the IRP after we go-live with Workday in November.

How do you envision both of these two programs IRP and AEP moving forward to achieve a successful implementation of Workday?

I believe it is a hand-in-glove process, because it is important to have both moving parts working cohesively for a successful implementation. The technological environment of UBC is a complex ecosystem, very much like a neighbourhood. And Workday is situated right in the middle of this close-knit community, where it needs to interact with all the different systems through the exchange of data. Therefore, in order to achieve our vision of a seamless user experience for students, faculty and staff, the handover of the business processes, data and workflow needs to be cohesive between all the applications. It’s an important collaborative effort in order to deliver successful outcomes for all of UBC.

It’s also important to recognize the tremendous efforts of people across the university that are contributing to the success of the program, who may not be officially working in the IRP or AEP, but who are in finance, HR, or IT roles in units across the university that are supporting the work in various capacities.

What really excites you about the changes that are coming with the implementation of Workday?

I believe the implementation of Workday is just the starting point of the complete journey. Our existing systems have aged and have become fragile, so what we will see immediately from Workday is a more stable and robust system with a better, more modern user experience. We will continue to update and improve our capabilities, with a constant cycle of enhancements to further streamline all the processes that take place at UBC. 

One of the challenges of our current systems is the accuracy and alignment of all the data across all units. The Integrated Renewal Program has worked closely with the UBC Data Governance initiative to ensure clean and reliable data, and in the first release, we will see improvements on how UBC will be able to gather and use information in order to complete day-to-day activities and make timely decisions.

What do you see as some of the challenges we will encounter while we work towards this implementation during COVID-19 and working remotely?

Executing any large ERP replacement project is always complex and challenging, no matter the size of the institution. When you layer on the complexity and scale that is UBC, with the multitude of stakeholders involved, it takes that challenge to a whole other level. As we move closer to the launch of Workday, all the planning and testing that was completed starts to take shape into something that we can see. This becomes a crucial time in the program that allows us to see in more detail what actions we need to take to ensure everything goes smoothly when we go-live.

Working through this during remote working and physical distancing conditions due to COVID-19, everyone has had to readjust how they work from home while still collaborating with their teams. I have been incredibly impressed with how the institution has risen to this new challenge, and it is a testimony to the commitment of our staff, our stakeholders and our partners to the success and delivery of this program.

While there is no question that working remotely adds additional complexity, we have seen progress continue, and our teams are working to mitigate any of the difficulties we encounter. Their dedication and fortitude is truly impressive.

How do you think everyone in the UBC community should work collaboratively to ensure this launch is successful?

The change that will happen with the deployment of Workday will be experienced differently across various stakeholder groups in the community. So an important part of our job as sponsors in the program is to seek to understand the various perspectives across UBC and provide guidance to the program to ensure there is enough understanding of the requirements and needs that we can ensure robust training and support for everyone for the launch. The Organizational Change Management (OCM) team and the Transition Network have been instrumental in this process, not only in gathering feedback from their units back to the IRP, but also to help raise awareness to the changes that will be happening with Workday.

The current switch in gears to remote working conditions has meant that everyone in the community had additional challenges or responsibilities, which means it may be more difficult to engage people on the changes and impacts of Workday. Communication and support from leadership within their departments and units becomes even more important in order to increase the awareness of the implementation for all faculty and staff. Overall, a successful launch requires a community approach; the IRP to provide relevant information to keep everyone engaged, UBC employees to continue to learn more about the changes that will impact them through call-ins and training, and sustainment teams that will continue to support and educate everyone during and after we go-live.

What does success look like to you when we go-live?

There are different definitions and levels of success when it comes to the launch of Workday, from short-term to long-term. Short-term success involves creating a system that is simple and quick to learn and use in order to keep UBC operating in a more efficient manner. We are investing time to take our successes forward and continuously improve our processes and capabilities over time as well as the various systems that support those capabilities. UBC’s strategy to create transformative learning experiences and support research excellence require more flexibility and adaptability beyond what our current systems can deliver. Long-term success with this implementation will enable UBC to have reliable and flexible systems in order for UBC to achieve its strategic goals, and allow us to operate more effectively and efficiently.

What is one aspect as co-lead that you enjoy the most?

One thing I have enjoyed the most is the opportunity to learn and understand all the moving parts that make up the complex community that is UBC. Although I have been a part of this institution for many years, being involved in this program has provided me with an understanding of other areas and their challenges, as well as the bigger picture and opportunities to help improve how UBC operates. I’ve learned so much about all the different facets involved in HR, finance and student operations, and also about the Okanagan campus, which has enabled me to be a better partner in IT, and to support the program, my teams and my colleagues. I have truly enjoyed the opportunity to work and collaborate closely with my fellow sponsors in the program – through this journey we have built stronger relationships and teams, and that creates a stronger foundation for our future collaborations.