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Senior Vice Chancellor for Operations Janel Forde

ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ Today caught up recently withÌýSenior Vice Chancellor for Operations Janel Forde to discuss significant accomplishments from the fall and what’s on the horizon for 2026. Forde joined ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ in June, beginning the next chapter of a long career in both the public and private sectors that has included senior and executive roles with the city and county of Denver, the state of Illinois, the city of Chicago and Chicago Public Schools.

The Operations organization comprises the units of the Department of Human Resources (HR); the Division of Public Safety (DPS); Employee Health and Well-Being (EHWB); the Office of Compliance, Ethics and Policy (OCEP); and the Office of Information Technology (OIT).

Operations and its component units play a critical role in supporting the success of faculty, staff and students, as well as ensuring resource alignment across major functional areas like IT and HR.Ìý

How has Operations helped advance the ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ priorities this semester?Ìý

So much of what we do in Operations is centered around fostering the success of all students, faculty and staff, one of our institutional priorities. Much of our work is behind the scenes yet is so important for ensuring our people have the tools they need to be well, feel safe and thrive.Ìý

This is tough to narrow down, but a snapshot of just a few of the impactful ways in which we have fueled success of our people this fall include:Ìý

One of the first things we did when I arrived over the summer was launch a standalone office ofÌýEmployee Health and Well-Being (EHWB)Ìýthat is dedicated to the wellness of our faculty and staff. I am so proud of this team for their innovation and resilience as they worked through a rapid organizational transition and laid out a path forward for employee well-being. EHWB’s WorkWell team saw more than 1,100 people engage with its workshops and events this fall, including cooking classes and nutrition workshops, a stress management series, illness prevention services, financial wellness presentations and more.Ìý

The chancellor is excited about supporting our people in this way, and there are great opportunities on the horizon—not to mention multiple successes to date, such as being recognized by the American Heart Association for having a healthy work culture and being selected as a finalist for the Family-Friendly Workplace Award by the Health Links Program at the Colorado School of Public Health.ÌýÌý

°¿³Ü°ùÌý (OIT)Ìýhas done a tremendous job of working this fall to implement the new CU Secure Wi-Fi service across campus. The new Wi-Fi network will provide a better user experience for our students, faculty and staff, reduce the need to re-log in and ensure increased data security. I encourage all toÌý ahead of the spring semester to ensure they can connect seamlessly when the new semester begins.Ìý

In theÌýOffice of Compliance, Ethics and Policy (OCEP),Ìýour team worked closely with OIT, the Research and Innovation Office, Academic Affairs and others to get aÌýnew Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) Policy in place and meet new federal requirements. These efforts demonstrate ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ commitment to research excellence and trustworthiness, positioning the university to compete for complex, high-value federal awards and partnerships. OCEP will be building out a team to manage campus CUI needs and will be updating the CUI training for principal investigators and others on our campus who work with CUI to ensure they have the knowledge and tools they need to be successful in navigating the new requirements.Ìý

In addition to a wealth of professional development and training opportunities conducted, ourÌýDepartment of Human Resources (HR)Ìýcontinues to work behind the scenes with units across campus to advance ourÌýHR Blueprint project, which is taking a holistic approach to the future of HR services on our campus to ensure staff and faculty in all units have the tools, systems and resources they need to grow and thrive.Ìý

Senior Vice Chancellor for Operations Janel Forde visits a booth at the 2025 Health and Wellness Fair. Photo by Glenn Asakawa/ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ.

Finally, ourÌýDivision of Public SafetyÌý(DPS) continues to evolve from a police department to a holistic integrated public safety model, including physical security, drones, CUPD and much more. This fall, the DPS teamÌýlaunched the new ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ Safe app,Ìýadded two new K-9 units, andÌýrolled out a new video alerts education campaign to inform students, faculty and staff about our different types of campus alerts.Ìý

What projects are you most excited about for the year ahead and why?Ìý

Looking ahead at the spring, Operations will be building on a lot of the work from the fall and executing new initiatives that will aim to enhance the employee experience.Ìý

More than 2,000 people attended the Health and Wellness Summit in November, validating our focus on faculty and staff well-being. I am particularly excited for theÌýlaunch of the Well-Being Innovators Network, an ambassador-type program that will help raise awareness and connect our faculty and staff with EHWB programming.Ìý

I am excited for the full impact of the new CU Secure Wi-Fi project, noted above, to take shape as students, faculty and staff return from winter break. The upgraded Wi-Fi is just one piece of OIT’s overarching efforts to support our campus by providing technological tools that enhance productivity and increase security for our people.

Our HR team has been working closely with the CU system to prepare for the shift from the MyLeave timekeeping application and a mix of third-party systems to a more unified and streamlined solution that simplifies time and leave tracking for our employees and their supervisors. The Time and Labor Project will be a significant initiative over the coming year with significant benefits.Ìý

How can faculty, staff and students help contribute to the success of these initiatives?Ìý

Get involved. That can occur in a number of ways, from attending events to participating in professional development to educating yourself about campus safety so that you know what action to take during an emergency. Operations provides an abundance of programming to help equip our people to thrive on campus.Ìý

If you are passionate about well-being,Ìýlearn more about the WIN program and apply to be a WIN representative for your campus unit. If you care about safety,Ìýdownload the ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ Safe app and advocate for people in your unit to do the same. Take actions likeÌý to ensure a better work experience online. Or sign your department up forÌýa training opportunity like The Buff Way.Ìý

When we all participate and support each other in these types of efforts, we help build a campus culture of care where all of us can find belonging and thrive.Ìý