SFU’s first Academic and Administrative Leaders Forum

Over 280 SFU academic and administrative leaders gathered online on October 18, 2023 to participate in the first bi-annual Academic and Administrative Leaders Forum. 

Created as a commitment to fulfil the goals of the People Plan, the event provided an opportunity for leaders who supervise people at SFU to gather and discuss shared goals and challenges. The purpose of the Leaders Forum is to build a supportive and inclusive organizational culture and strengthen organization development across all leadership levels.

The first forum took place ahead of the tentative bargaining agreement reached with TSSU, offering leaders a chance to hear from President Joy Johnson, VP for People, Equity and Inclusion Yabome Gilpin-Jackson and Dilson Rassier, Provost and Vice-President Academic, on the topic from a leadership perspective. The Provost also spoke to his vision for SFU’s academic and operational priorities.  

The event proved to be lively and engaging with more than 27 questions on various leadership topics asked during the Q&A segment. 

Results from the post-event survey showed that leaders were very appreciative of the opportunity to gather and hear from senior leaders around bargaining as well as other leadership topics. Around 75 per cent of respondents shared that they either strongly agreed or agreed that the Leaders Forum was valuable, and close to 99 per cent shared that they see value in bringing together our SFU leadership community on occasion to enhance our leadership culture at SFU.  

Having strong leaders will support SFU’s vision of fostering an environment where people can thrive and do their best work.