DIVISION OF PLANNING AND BUDGET
December 2, 2013
Colleagues,
Tomorrow marks the first anniversary of the establishment of the Division of Planning and Budget at the
Merced campus. Over the past year, we have focused on developing the foundation for our division to
provide enhanced analytics to support institutional decision-making, greater coordination between
planning and budgeting functions, and transparent and strategic resource-allocation processes.
Together, we have accomplished much in this first year. We have focused on making strategic changes
to the process for the development and implementation of our budget; enhanced the Campus Physical
Planning Committee process, utilizing that body for thought leadership and strategic direction for our
2020 Project; and provided analytical support for the establishment of the Long-Range Enrollment
Plan. Thank you all for your unending and consistent commitment to our university.
Looking ahead, we have much more to accomplish. Throughout our first year together, I have thought
about the principles of our organizational structure and how best to arrange our organization to provide
for the intermediate term needs of our campus:
•
Like our university, we should be guided by a team-oriented approach. This applies within our
division, with our counterparts across campus, and with external stakeholders. At the same
time, we need clear lines of authority, and management responsibility;
•
We should organize ourselves to ensure our division has the capacity to meet our responsibility
to support institutional decision-making, to coordinate planning and budgeting functions, and
manage transparent and strategic resource-allocation processes;
•
Our organization structure should be focused on our highest priority areas of support for the
university: real estate, finance, and institutional research;
•
As a division, our three groups have important roles to play in the planning of institutional
development and sound financial management practices;
•
Planning and delivering the 2020 Project and ancillary real estate projects will set the foundation
for future growth of our institution and remain a key priority for the division;
•
In the past year, we have also focused on improving our budget and financial planning
processes. In a dynamic and growing organization like UC Merced, financial planning processes
must continue to evolve to meet the changing needs of the institution, and this will therefore be
a long-term endeavor;
•
In the near-term, our university requires a coordinated process for the establishment of capital
budgets that is integrated with the budget of our institution;
•
The process of budgeting employee headcount and FTE needs to be integrated with the space
management functions of the organization;
•
Our team of analysts should remain focused on providing research and analytical services across
campus. This includes focus on providing analytical support for the Chancellor and Provost's
high priorities, creating and publishing research and facilitating dialogue on these topics across
campus;
With these principles in mind, I am pleased to announce the following changes to our organizational
structure:
•
Finance. One of Chancellor Leland’s two year goals established in December 2012 was to create
integrated budgeting and planning processes aligned with the university’s strategic
priorities. The establishment of the Division of Planning and Budget was a first step towards
creating and implementing a resource allocation model that reflects and supports institutional
academic, strategic and capital-planning priorities. A second step in this process is to establish
the Finance Group. The department will be responsible for managing the process for the
development and recommendation of the campus operating budget to the Chancellor. In
addition, this department will be responsible for a process for the development and
recommendation of a campus capital budget. In coming months, the Vice Chancellor of
Business and Administrative Services and I will work together to make recommendations about
the establishment of this process, leveraging subject matter experts from both divisions and
across campus, as necessary. In January 2014, we will launch a nationwide search for a new
Assistant Vice Chancellor, Finance. The Vice Chancellor of Business and Administrative Services
will serve as the chair of the search committee.
The Finance Group will include Operating Budget and Capital Finance. Emma Loethen will
serve as the Interim Director, Operating Budget. John White will lead Capital Finance. During
the period that Assistant Vice Chancellor, Finance position remains vacant, both departments
will report to me.
In addition to his role in Capital Finance, I will also ask John White to serve as an advisor to me
for the development of key performance indicators and to foster opportunities to enhance
integrated planning efforts on campus. As a former member of the Board of Directors of the
Society of College and University Planners ("SCUP") and Chair of the Conference Program for
SCUP's 49th Annual International Conference in 2014, John can help our campus leverage best
practices in the area of integrated planning.
•
Real Estate Services. The Real Estate Services Group will be responsible for all campus real
estate development and transaction support services. In addition to planning for the
development of real property on campus, the Real Estate Services Group will administer the
acquisition and disposition of real property, manage the development of new campus buildings
that may be procured through public/private partnerships, and provide asset management
services for all leased space.
We are immediately launching a search for a new Assistant Vice Chancellor, Real Estate Services
/ Chief Real Estate Development Officer who will report to me. Interim Vice Chancellor of
Business and Administrative Services, Michael Reese, will lead this search.
While we conduct this search, I am pleased that our commercial real estate consultant Bill Hvidt
will continue to lead our effort to develop the 2020 Project and evaluate a number of additional
ancillary real estate projects.
Steve Rabedeaux will continue to lead Academic Facilities Planning and Phil Woods will
continue to lead Physical and Environmental Planning, reporting to the Chief Real Estate
Development Officer. In addition, our Space Management staff, including Irwin Band and
Ramona Dai’Re will report to the Chief Real Estate Development Officer.
•
Institutional Research and Decision Support. Similar to the Finance and Real Estate groups,
Institutional Planning and Analysis has and will continue to serve a critical role in our campuses
planning apparatus. To better reflect its focus on providing research and decision support
services for senior management and clients across campus, IPA with change its name to
Institutional Research and Decision Support. Nancy Ochsner will continue to lead the group,
serving as Assistant Vice Chancellor, reporting to me.
As we continue to work together, we will help develop our new University of California. Fostering
innovation, entrepreneurialism and knowledge in the heart of underinvested California, we will build the
foundation to continue investment in our university's mission of teaching, research and service.
Please join me in congratulating these individuals on their new and expanded roles within our
organization.
Warm Regards,
Daniel M. Feitelberg
Vice Chancellor, Planning and Budget
University of California, Merced
5200 North Lake Road
Merced, California 95343
Email: dfeitelberg2@ucmerced.edu
Phone: (209) 228-4414