Administrative work is complex, specialized, unique, and there is diversity in the work depending on the unit, the leaders, size of the department, etc. Transitioning to an administrative network will not change this. Through the network, we are looking for opportunities to share knowledge and common work, leverage unit skill sets, support consistent approaches, provide coverage, create opportunities for cross training, and more.

It is very important that the relationships amongst admin professionals and their current people leaders remain and continue to grow. With the implementation of administrative networks, the administrative network manager assumes ‘employee life cycle’ responsibilities, while the current people leaders direct the day-to-day work.

The manager of an Administrative Network manages the recruitment process and provides their team with:

• Consistent onboarding with local and institutional systems and processes
• Ongoing training and development opportunities
• Continued support and awareness of best practices, policies, and guidelines
• Mentorship, guidance, and a fresh perspective or solutions
• Clear expectations and ongoing check-ins with team members
• And, regular career engagement and relevant performance feedback.

"Administrative Networks provide administrative professionals with a sense of community, and access to knowledge, training, tools, and resources. By working collaboratively across units, we leverage each other’s experiences and expertise, and support one another’s work life balance."

Suzy Barbour, Manager, Administrative Networks,
Provost and VP Academic and VP Administration Portfolios

In short, yes. As an admin professional, you frequently have access to confidential information. When you join an administrative network, there is no expectation that you need to divulge confidential information to your manager or colleagues in the network. The expectation of confidentiality does not change.

The administrative network manager is focused on you as an employee and the resources you need to do your job. The manager is not focused on the specific confidential nuances of your day-to-day work.

In consultation with the President’s Executive Council and with the deans and executive director, the College of Education, College of Law, Edwards School of Business, and Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy were identified as the first group of colleges and school to take part in the Administrative Network Project due to their overall size and scope.

It is important that admin professionals work in close proximity to the senior leaders, academics and/or professionals they support. As such, admin professionals will remain physically embedded in their existing colleges, schools, or units. 

There are no plans to relocate admin professionals from an administrative network to a central location.

The intent of the network is to align resources to support needs. This is often achieved through collaboration. If there is an increased need for support or training in a specific area in another unit, you may have the opportunity to provide your expertise.

For example, “Mary” is an expert in records management and supports the administrative needs of “College A”. Given her expertise in record management, Mary may have the opportunity to temporarily support this specialized work in another unit within the network. Although Mary might provide temporary records management support to “College B”, her primary responsibilities and physical location remain within her primary unit.

Generally, opportunities to provide expertise to other units is dependant on whether admin professionals are interested in doing this work, if they have capacity, and whether there is expressed need and alignment.

Administrative Networks are a new way for admin professionals to work together to support collaboration and knowledge sharing. 

Figure 1 illustrates the ways admin professionals work together within an administrative network. In this illustration, admin professionals are connected to a manager with functional expertise who provides training, career development and engagement, supports best practices, advocates for processes, policies and guidelines to support the network, and streamlines some basic tasks across the network. Admin professionals are also supported by a network of colleagues for knowledge and resource sharing, coverage, and a sense of community. 

The figure also highlights the relationships that admin professionals have built with different leaders within colleges, schools, or departments. It is imperative that these remain intact to provide support that is vital to the operations of the unit.

One of the key objectives of the Administrative Network Project is to enhance staff retention, support career engagement and development, and identify positive career pathways for admin professionals at USask. As part of the administrative network, you will have regular career engagement conversations, performance feedback, and mentorship with your manager.

Through ongoing discussions between the administrative network manager and people leaders supported by the network, career growth opportunities may be identified within your current college, school, or unit, or across the network.

It may, depending on the outcome of the Job Architecture Project. This is a campus-wide project to create consistent job titles and profiles.

Click here for more information on the Job Architecture Project. 

The Administrative Network Project is not a workforce reduction initiative. Instead, the intent is to implement a new way for administrative professionals to work together on campus so they are better connected and supported, while continuing to provide a continuum of high-quality services within their unit. It is anticipated that some positions will shift in terms of reporting, work activities may be reallocated based on function, and savings will be identified through process changes.