Charlotta Andersson Lund, Head of the Property Department.
Have you been affected by the new pandemic? The meeting pandemic at KTH. I meet colleagues at meetings every day, but it is during the breaks at the toilet queue and at the coffee machine that we have time to chat. During these necessary breaks, almost everyone realises that there is a lot going on at KTH at the same time.
There are many change projects going on in parallel. The merger of the University Administration is one of these long-term projects that started in 2022 and will last until 2026.
A major change that affects and will affect us is the programme for the relocation of operations in Kista and Södertälje. The Property Department participates in the programme group and in programme support. It is part of the property department’s responsibility to plan and ensure the implementation of construction projects, such as tenant adaptations and adaptations to the physical work environment of the university’s premises. The Property Department works with the aim of creating well-functioning premises adapted to the activities.
When changing a facility and its utilisation in order to improve efficiency, it is important to implement it according to established processes. For example, to consider what our priorities are. Is it time, quality or finances? Good planning can save resources and avoid late programme changes, which are often costly.
To lead in change is to understand the processes going on in each of us. To achieve a safe, trusting and permissive work environment, we need to understand each other’s mission. Be curious about each other’s knowledge and have faith in each other’s abilities. I often encounter this when I stop at the coffee machine and get a much-needed break.
A unified HR also becomes a stronger HR and I see new development opportunities and working methods when our department grows from 46 to 120 people. This will benefit the whole of KTH and everyone’s working environment in the long term.
In accordance with the University Director’s decision to reorganize and redeploy staff, we will now have many more people from 1 April. It feels great and I welcome new perspectives and experiences that are mixed with others where we together can get and create an overall picture of HR issues across KTH. It will generate more mobility, make HR support closer to the business and we can apply best practice on issues from the entire business. We can build HR support that is also more strategic and perhaps less purely administrative.
The conditions in the schools regarding how they work with HR are different. But through the co-organisation, we can now create a common picture and interpretation of where we are going to support KTH’s operations in the best possible way, regardless of whether it is about the work environment, labour law, travel management, personnel finances and recruitment, for example. At the same time as the support is adapted to the needs of education and research.
I would also like to point out that, as before, HR is a department and function that will also be able to work even more preventively in the future. But it is important that anyone considering a personnel issue of any kind comes to us in time – before it even becomes an issue. A lot can be solved at an earlier stage, and the timing is important. So as I said:
Johanna Stellan, Head of Administration at ABE and Project Manager for the co-organisation of HR, finance and communications within the University Administration.
As we soon enter the needs analysis phase (phase 2) of the work to co-organise HR, finance and communications and create a strong management support in the schools, the consideration of different needs and perspectives becomes even more important and cooperation is crucial. Only together can we create a strong foundation to build on when planning how best to organise operational support going forward.
A key element is the close cooperation with employee organisations and HR. By working together to give everyone’s voice the opportunity to be heard, navigate through complex issues and ensure a good working environment, we create the best conditions for continued development work. This is not only important for a positive and supportive work environment, but also for making informed decisions for a future organisation that reflects the needs of the business.
Risk assessments are currently underway as a tool to identify and manage potential challenges with the reorganisation. These take place both centrally and locally in the schools. It is important to identify and address risks at an early stage, and at the same time open up many different ideas for solutions and new opportunities that strengthen our organisation.
The next step is needs analyses based on the needs of the business. These will form the basis for how we organise ourselves in each support area going forward.
We work together with a focus on our common goal: to improve and streamline our work. By collaborating effectively, listening to each other and making use of the expertise of different groups, we can provide operational and effective support to all our colleagues and students both during and after the reorganisation.
Johanna Stellan, Head of Administration at ABE and Project Manager for the co-organisation of HR, finance and communications within the University Administration.
Fredrik Oldsjö, Head of the Management Office and Deputy University Director.
The 20th February was a special day: we submitted KTH’s annual report for 2023 and the budget for 2025-2027.
The annual report is a fantastic collaboration between all departments that goes on for several months. All to try to give as accurate and clear a picture as possible of KTH’s activities. Although the focus is on the things that we, as a government agency, are obliged to report, the annual report provides a fantastic overview of KTH’s fascinating activities. In 2023, for example, we can be pleased that the number of doctoral students is increasing again, that our researchers have attracted more funding from the Swedish Research Council than ever before, and that we are starting up the unique national initiative Cybercampus Sweden.
In the budget document, we provide a forecast of our activities for the coming year. We are in a tough financial situation right now, but through the efforts of the entire organisation, we will be able to reverse the trend within a few years.
The budget submission also provides an opportunity to give input to the government on strategically important issues. We highlight the need for higher remuneration for our education and show that KTH can contribute a great deal to the government’s investments in education in technology and science.We also emphasise the importance of increased basic appropriations for research and the need for various investments in research infrastructures. But our most important issue is the galloping costs of premises and the need for the government to change the system of market rents, which hits KTH so much harder because of Stockholm’s high rent levels.
If you want a good picture of what KTH is today and important strategic issues for KTH: read the annual report and the budget document!
Fredrik Oldsjö, Head of the Management Office and Deputy University Director.
I looked through the cases that have come in since I started at KTH in April 2023. A lot of expected events such as theft, burglary and vandalism. This is not unusual, we are a large authority in several geographical locations.
Threats, demonstrations, fire and hatred on various platforms against both employees and students are also matters that I have handled during the year.
I have worked with security for many years and know that it is a world that exists in most places where many people interact together. There are also great values, both economically and academically, and many lives are at stake. It sometimes brings out the less favourable sides of people. My job, together with my co-workers, is to ensure that we have a safer, more secure and more conscious place, that KTH will be strong in that. There are many things we can do to raise the level of what I call safety culture. The first is to talk about the fact that it exists and is needed for us to have a good study environment and work environment. In addition to talking about safety culture, we need a few more people to solve the events that occur at KTH. Therefore, since January this year, there is now a department where most people have been recruited and are in place. This means that we can be present in more places and work more broadly to achieve a safer, more secure and more aware KTH.
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