Supports for Existing Initiatives

Guidance on successful governance and oversight models and support setting up Councils of Deans and Principals (including templates for terms of reference, etc.).

Guidance on effective implementation of equity, diversity and inclusion principles in the initiative’s planning and oversight.

Facilitation for strategic planning to support initiatives in achieving research excellence, impact, international recognition, and sustainability. Strategic plans will include the following areas:

• Vision & value propositions (including areas of expertise and differentiators)
• Areas of strategic focus
• Strategic objectives related to the following items:
  • Increasing research impact
  • Enhancing training opportunities
  • Enhancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in research and research teams, membership, communications, programs and training
  • Sustainability by securing operational, infrastructure, and research funding from industry, government, foundations, and donors
  • Increasing the initiative’s and the University’s profile by communicating research and translation impact
  • Identifying key performance indicators that reflect progress against strategic objectives

Sustainability planning, which includes scoping for opportunities and proposal development support for grants, will be conducted in partnership with the following offices and divisions:

• Division of University Advancement
  • Identification of potential partnerships, philanthropic donors, funding sources, etc.
• Governement Relations Office
  • Identification of governmental priorities and funding opportunities
• Office of the Vice-President International
  • Development of partnerships with international corporations and academic institutions
• Innovations and Partnerships Office
  • Building industry consortia and relationships with industry, government and community partners
• Other models: Access to fee-for-service facilities, professional courses, start up accelerators, etc.

Capacity-building and stakeholder engagement support is provided including through an internal Community of Practice group.

Performance and reporting support for initiatives to track their progress towards their strategic plans, specific objectives, and their research, translation, and training impact.

Assessment of the progress towards the initiative’s strategic plan and the achievement of specific objectives includes:

• Progress against the initiative’s milestones and deliverables as outlined in the strategic plan
• Funding secured from the federal tri-agencies (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC), CFI and other government, industry, foundation, and philanthropic sources
• A summary of the key problems/challenges, risks and mitigation strategies

Evaluation of the initiative’s research, translation, and training impact include:

• The extent to which Institutional Strategic Initiatives funds have furthered research capacity at the University (e.g. new and/or improved research infrastructure, enhancements to the training environment, and the development of partnerships and collaborations)
• The quality and impact of research outputs from research-related activities and how innovation has been fostered (e.g. new discoveries and insights, publications, conferences, patents, sharing with knowledge users)
• The impact Institutional Strategic Initiatives funds have had in helping the University to compete and lead on the national and global stage

Hiring and mentoring support for administrative and operational staff to coordinate network activities and work on fostering area-specific advancement as well as business development opportunities that support the long-term sustainability of funded initiatives.

• Assistance drafting job descriptions
• Engagement with the Human Resources & Equity office 
• Implementation of equity, diversity and inclusion principles

Supports for Academic Leads and Senior Staff

The following supports are provided to funded strategic initiatives:

• Community of Practice for senior staff
• Professional development for senior staff
• Mentorship for academic leads
• Operational templates (e.g. budget, reporting, etc.)

Branding, including word mark creation, and website development support is provided in partnership with Brand Hub and the ISI office.