Interview with Chief Audit Executive Carolyn Devine Saint

Carolyn Devine Saint recently joined the University as Chief Audit Executive. She is a past chair of the North American Board of The Institute of Internal Auditors and has extensive experience in internal audit. She previously served as Vice President of Internal Audit at 7-Eleven, Lowes, and Sears.  We recently asked her a few questions about her vision for her new role at the University. Here's what she had to say:

What attracted you to move from the private sector to higher education? 

I wanted to dedicate my energy to an organization with a sense of mission and purpose that aligns with my values. You could say I want to do more than help sell more Slurpees or hammers. While higher education has many business-like functions, it seems to place more emphasis on the humanity within its system than private sector companies do. That feels right.

 

What specifically about U.Va. compelled you to make the change?

Pat Hogan and his Executive Search Group. Their recruiting process made me feel as special as if they were recruiting the football coach! I admired the rigor of the search committee’s process and felt they understood the value of internal auditing by the way they went about finding a new Chief Audit Executive. It was tough! I met so many great people in the recruiting process and thought I could help materialize the vision they had for the department. In the end this was an offer I couldn’t refuse!

What are your early impressions of Charlottesville and the University?

Charlottesville is one of the most beautiful places I’ve been. The mountains…the wineries…the artisinal restaurants…it’s easy to see why people never want to leave. The University itself is a marvel: brilliant people working in a lovely place with a keen sense of the past but with eyes clearly set on the future via the Cornerstone Plan. It’s a daunting and exciting place to work! I look forward to being a part of it.

What are the challenges facing Audit today?

Audit’s challenges at U.Va. are the same as those for auditors everywhere: how to add value to the companies they work in while struggling, like all departments, with limited resources—human and dollars—to do the work needed to be credible and trusted advisors on risk to the Board and executive management.

 

What are your priorities as you begin your role?

My priorities are to gain an understanding of the department’s charter and responsibilities in the context of the University’s strategy and culture; to align our work with the Cornerstone plan and strategic risks; and to enhance the department’s credibility with stakeholders through delivery of timely, valued insights on risks and controls. 

What are the most significant opportunities you see right now? 

I’d say the most significant opportunity is to question the status quo and make sure we really understand why we do things the way we do. The opportunity is to reinvent internal auditing at UVa!

What do you most look forward to?

Helping my team reinvent itself, redefine our internal culture, and build the kind of esprit de corps that makes the valuable work we do a joy. If we build this kind of team, we can help drive the culture of innovation and positive change that Pat Hogan and other leaders envision for U.Va.

LWS Outstanding Contribution Award

Sarah Doran of Student Financial Services has been selected as a recipient of the University’s 2015 Leonard W. Sandridge Outstanding Contribution Award!

This program gives members of the University community the opportunity to honor employees who have shown exemplary service and commitment to the University. Sarah's nomination received support from SFS, the Provost's Office, Organizational Excellence, and others. As the highest honor for staff at the University, it is a significant (and well-deserved) recognition.

Congratulations, Sarah!

Spotlight on Excellence

Has someone you work with demonstrated a high level of quality, or implemented an improvement or innovation? Have you observed someone deliver excellent service to faculty, staff and/or students?

The Office of Organizational Excellence (OE) wants you to recognize individuals who contribute to an overall culture of quality at U.Va. This is a peer-recognition program for those exhibiting the principles of OE in their work, because everyone has an opportunity to advance excellence!

Criteria: (one or more)

• Leads Improvement
• Delivers High-Quality Customer Service
• Establishes Productive Partnerships

Nominate a person of excellence! Individuals selected will receive a token of appreciation from University leadership. Plus, each quarter, one lucky winner (and their original nominator) will be randomly selected for a gift certificate.

Educational Resources in OSP

For those interested in learning more about what Sponsored Programs and Research Administration are all about, OSP has a webpage that lists classes it has offered in the past with a plethora of references related to each class.

To get a “40,000-foot” view of research administration click here for an online video module offered through the integrated system. (Keep in mind that the organizational structure has changed a little since the video was made.)

Finally, all the information related to OSP’s classes to prepare staff for the Certified Research Administrator (CRA) exam can be found here. Even if you don’t plan to take the exam, this information can be extremely helpful.

If you are ever stumped and need help from OSP, feel free to email osp-help@virginia.edu and they will be glad to assist you.

2015 Service Award Honorees

Congratulations (and thank you!) to the following employees for their years of service with the University:

25 Years and More
Judy McDaniel (40)
June Seay (40)
Lucy Wrenn (40)
Dave Boling (35)
Sarah Jones (35)
Stephanie Schwar (35)
Vonda Durrer (25)
Laura Lingo (25)
Stephanie Poindexter (25)
Trudy Taylor (25)

20 Years
Katherine Hoffman

15 Years
James Bowen
Peggy Candler
Mike Galvez
Devon Herod
Lisa Layne
Trudy Robinson
Sarah Tarkington

10 Years
Andrew Bedotto
Darlene Booker
Laura Bowness
Randall Ellis
Heather Eppard
Lynn Galasso
Shenika Knox
Del Kolberg
Jeanie Sampson-Giles

Michael Williams

This year's recipients will be honored as follows:

Monday, May 18: Informal breakfast celebration for the Finance Division honorees and their managers in Carruthers Hall Conference Room E (8:30am-9:30am).

Tuesday, May 19: University Service Award Ceremony and Reception at John Paul Jones Arena celebrating 10, 15, and 20 years of service.

Monday, June 8: University Service Award Dinner at John Paul Jones Arena for 25 and more years of service.

Excel Tips & Tricks: Print Preview

If you send or receive Excel files by email, you’ll love this tip!

Have you ever received an Excel file by email, opened it up and sent it to the printer—only to hear the printer take off and start running off a ream of paper? The creator of the worksheet probably neglected to check the Print Preview to see how the worksheet would look when printed, and didn’t set any Print Formats.

Whenever you email a worksheet, consider that it might get printed, and set the Print Format to print properly on paper (maybe add some headers or footers to provide context when it is printed). Basic settings like Portrait vs Landscape orientation, margin size, sheet size and scaling can be found using the Print Preview function (Ctrl-P). Click on the page setup link for more options.

Changes in OSP

The phrase “The only constant is change,” is one that particularly rings true in the Office of Sponsored Programs these days.

Aaron Flynn, who has been working in OSP as a Grants Administrator, has been hired as a Contract Negotiator to fill the position previously held by Victoria Poindexter. Kathryn Kim, an OSP Contract Negotiator who had been serving the School of Engineering, has moved into a new role outside of OSP (but within Finance) as an Export Control Compliance Officer. To take over Kathryn’s duties, Laura Bowness Taylor has shifted back over to SEAS where she worked previously, after having served the School of Medicine faculty for the past few years. And Joanne Reid, a valued member of our Account Create Team who came to us from industry two years ago, has moved over to support the Post Award Team.

While there has been some movement within OSP, we are pleased to welcome several new employees as well. Willow Nash recently joined our Account Create Team.  She has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Business Management from Curry College in Milton, Massachusetts, and worked as a Medical Assistant before moving to Charlottesville from New Hampshire two years ago. She enjoys motorcycles, classic cars and trucks, reading, singing, cooking, and educating people about skin care.
Tesha Westbrook, new to the Post Award Team, has served UVA for 14 years before joining OSP. She started in the Office of the VP for Research for the Animal Care & Use Committee as an Office/Compliance Manager, Fiscal Technician and office LSA (Local Support Associate). Tesha enjoys reading, singing, and planning weddings and other events.

Tammy Sutton recently joined the Post Award team after having devoted 13 years of service to the City of Charlottesville in their Parks and Recreation Department as a Recreation Specialist.  She received her Bachelor’s in Business Administration from American InterContinental University. In her free time, Tammy enjoys spending time with her family, knitting, walking on the Downtown Mall, and enjoying the numerous parks available.  She also is a member of the local roller derby team, the Charlottesville Derby Dames.

In addition to bringing on new folks, OSP staff members are furiously scanning documents as we roll out the new ResearchUVA system. And while all this change is good, it can be challenging, so kudos to everyone in OSP who keep everything running smoothly so our faculty can keep doing their research!

Updates from the Comptroller's Office

Endowment spending rate for fiscal year 2015-2016
At the most recent Board of Visitors meeting held on March 24th 2015, the Board approved increasing the endowment spending rate for fiscal year 2015-2016 by 40 basis points to 4.62% of the market value of the UVIMCO Pooled Endowment Fund at June 30, 2014.

Had the spending policy been calculated using the usual annual inflator, the spending rate for fiscal year 2015-2016 would have resulted in an annual payout of 4.22% of the market value of the UVIMCO Pooled Endowment Fund at June 30, 2014. The additional 40 basis points will result in a .40% increase in the rate to 4.62%, with an estimated total distribution in FY16 of $188 million.

Departments can generate the LTP Market Value report in Fundriver to see updated fiscal year 2015-2016 spending distribution estimates.


Interim financials 
March interim financials have been completed and will be presented to the Board of Visitors in June


Annual Meeting of ACC Fiscal Officers
The annual meeting is an opportunity for sharing of ideas and best practices among the ACC schools. With the fairly recent additions of Notre Dame, Syracuse, Pitt, and Louisville, the meeting has grown larger. This year’s meeting was hosted in late April by the University of Louisville.  Among all of the schools, there is great interest in exploring different funding models.  UVA is further along than most, and so for the last two years, Dave Boling has given a presentation on UVA’s experience with developing and implementing the University Financial Model.  This will probably be a recurring update, as all of the schools are under pressure to move to financial models that incentivize cost awareness and operational efficiency, in both academic and administrative areas.

UVa will be hosting the 2016 ACC conference.  Timeframe, location, and other details to be worked out, as we begin reviewing available options.

Orange Teams Pivot to Data Governance Focus

The Managerial Reporting Project recently shifted the focus of the Orange Teams to address broader data governance work. Thanks to valuable cross-Grounds partnerships, the Orange Teams previously focused on a prioritized list of process and improvement initiatives, and addressed many financial information and managerial reporting needs. The new framework will pivot to address specific Data Stewardship subject areas in collaboration with the Decision Support Team.  Defining critical University business terms will be an important data governance task.

From Melody's Desk

Spring has finally arrived!  A quick note of thanks to all of you for your hard work… I sit back occasionally and consider all the balls that we have up in the air.  It is only because of the efforts and the commitment from each team member that we keep the juggling going strong.

I also want to remind each of you about Coffee with a Colleague. This is a great way to step away from email for a moment to connect in a one-on-one conversation with a colleague about a shared issue or interest. It is a simple initiative:  grab coffee with a colleague from outside your office and talk about that retro adjustment or cost transfer expenditure type, learn about how to better use MS Lync, or get an update on the new procurement travel system. We have a pilot program with 100 Free Coffee Cards already purchased – I really hope that you take advantage of this opportunity so that we can continue to offer it.

If you haven’t heard yet, there is a great new Advancing Your Excel Skills class, developed and taught by our team in collaboration with the Center for Leadership Excellence. The class is getting rave reviews and each offering has sold out.  Classes are added regularly and are now open enrollment. To enroll in a class, go to the Integrated System’s Learning Management module. And keep an eye out for the follow-up class which will focus on using Excel for data analysis.

We have wrapped up the evaluation cycle for the long 18 month performance period through December 31st.  This also means that we are nearly 4 months into the 2015 evaluation cycle.  Please make sure that you have worked with your manager to develop your plan for 2015 – what do you want to accomplish this year? I suggest that you try to include one goal about improving a process or daily task; one goal that improves communication with someone from outside Finance (Coffee with a Colleague anyone?); and one specific development goal (Advancing Your Excel Skills or another class offering from the Center for Leadership Excellence).

I want to close by thanking Gerry Kane for his 28 years of service to the University.  He has set a standard for collaboration and working to support the research mission of the University; he has established a solid framework for continuing OSP’s work to streamline and facilitate research administration; he has been a wise and trusted advisor to me; and he has done this all with a great sense of humor.  Best of luck to Gerry and Susan as he begins this new phase of his life!

Bookmark This: Year-End Dates for Fiscal 2015

Year end is approaching and the closing schedules have been posted. The complete list can be found on the Office of the University Comptroller's webpage: http://www.virginia.edu/finance/genacct/key_dates.html.

Peer-to-Peer Feedback in MRP

In the spirit of transparency and internal development, the Managerial Reporting Project team is completing a peer-to-peer feedback exercise. By mid-May, each team member will meet one-on-one with every other team member to discuss individual strengths and development needs.  Importantly, each person will also identify critical partnership requirements for each peer—all through a lens of long-term project success. Finally, each team member will seek to share and learn one idea or skill from everyone else on the project team.

How to Write Better Right Now

It's not enough to have great ideas—you also have to express them effectively. This infographic offers a few tips and tricks to help. Click here to download the poster and read more from EAB.

Virginia Historic Garden Week

Each spring visitors are welcomed to over 250 of Virginia's most beautiful gardens, homes and historic landmarks during "America's Largest Open House." This 8-day statewide event provides visitors a unique opportunity to see unforgettable gardens at the peak of Virginia's springtime color, as well as beautiful houses sparkling with over 2,000 flower arrangements created by Garden Club of Virginia members.

This year's event will be held April 18-25 and the University will have two properties on the tour: Morven Farm and Foxhaven Farm. Click here for more information on Historic Garden Week, or here for information on U.Va.'s participating properties.

Updated: Professional Certifications on the AVPF Team

Below, you will find a list of some of the many professional certifications held by our colleagues in the AVP for Finance area. If you hold a certification that is not listed below, please let your colleagues know by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post! (If you are viewing this post in the email digest, please click through to leave a comment on the blog.)

Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC)

Certification for financial counseling and education, including money management, financial goal setting, and overcoming debt. Practitioners must meet educational requirements, pass an examination, complete 1,000 hours of experience in financial counseling, submit professional references, and adhere to the AFC Code of Ethics.

Held by: Scott Miller

American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP)

Certification in complex, multi-dimensional situations with multiple interests. Practitioners must meet a required combination of education and experience and pass an exam.

Held by: Kobby Hoffman

Certified Clinical Research Professional (CCRP)

Certification in clinical research agreements through the Model Agreement & Guidelines Initiative (MAGI). Practitioners must pass a written exam.

Held by: Hannah Edelen

Certified Professional Contracts Manager (CPCM)

Certification that demonstrates meeting the National Contract Management Association’s (NCMA) highest standards for education, training and experience. Practitioners must have extensive business education and training, a minimum of 5 years of experience, and pass an exam.

Held by: Victoria Poindexter (Lifetime Certification)

Certified Public Accountant (CPA)

The only licensed qualification in accounting. Practitioners must meet and educational and experiential requirements (in Virginia, 120+ hours of education and a bachelor’s degree or higher in an accounting or similar concentration) and pass a four-part examination covering the areas of financial, auditing, regulation, and business accounting.

Held by: Melody Bianchetto, Randy Ellis, Steve Kimata, Karyn Tancredi, Sara Tarkington, Vivian Xue

Certified Research Administrator (CRA)

Certification that demonstrates a broad understanding in the body of knowledge in research administration. Practitioners must achieve required years of experience and pass a written exam (preparation classes are offered by OSP).

Held by: Greg Ball, Andrew Bedotto, Christine Carrizosa, Virginia Coffey, Vonda Durrer, Kobby Hoffman, Kathryn Kim, Mike Ludwick, Angela Sherman, Colleen Speakman, Vivian Xue

Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA)

Certification in management accounting expertise. Practitioners must have an accounting degree, CPA certification, 3+ years of management accounting experience, and pass an examination.

Held by: Vivian Xue

Clinical Research Contracts Professional (CRCP)

Certification in clinical research contracts through the Model Agreement & Guidelines Initiative (MAGI). Practitioners must pass a written exam.

Held by: Lynn Koplin

Lean Six Sigma Green Belt

Certification for a professional who demonstrates a thorough understanding of the tools and principles of Lean. Practitioners must complete 2 weeks of classroom training, pass a 3-hour examination, and complete a real-life process improvement project under the guidance of a mentor.

Held by: Mark Anderson

Microsoft Office User Specialist (MOUS)

Certification for demonstrating a thorough understand of Microsoft Office software. Practitioners must demonstrate proficiency in all Microsoft Office applications and pass a certification exam.

Held by: Edrina Allen

Oracle University

SQL Certified Professional: Certification for advanced PL/SQL design and development. Practitioners must pass 2 examinations. OBIEE Dashboard Design, Repository Design & Development, Advanced Topics: Certification for expertise in design, management, and development in DSS toolset.

Held by: Phil Cook

Procurement and Contracts Management

Graduate certificate through the U.Va. School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Requirements include 8 courses in areas such as Federal Acquisition Regulations, Projects Management, and Intellectual Property.

Held by: Mike Ludwick

Project Management Professional (PMP)

Certification that provides the framework for being a successful project manager. Practitioners must have 2 years of experience, pass an examination, and participate in continuing education.

Held by: Tom Kim, Scott Newman, Forrest Swope

Web Design & Development
Certification that follows completion of a prescribed number of classes held by U.Va. ITS that allow practitioners to design, develop, and maintain websites, interactive forms, and other web applications.
Held by: Del Kolberg