Strategic Investment Fund

• Individuals identify a strategic project requiring investment that advances one or more strategic plan strategies.
• It is recommended that applicants consult with the relevant Strategic Plan Pillar Leads to confirm that the proposed project is aligned with overall strategic plan implementation efforts and that it is not duplicative of or counter to other projects.
• If applicants wish to consult with the relevant Pillar Leads, they must submit the SIF Proposal Summary before the Consultation Deadline.
• Please note, consultation with the Pillar Leads is an opportunity for one round of feedback before submitting the Full SIF Proposal. This consultation is not intended to lead to a formal endorsement by the Pillar Leads, nor does it guarantee success of your proposal.
• Pillar Leads:
• Education Pillar Leads: Roger Wong, Vice-Dean, Education & Jennifer Golinski, Senior Director, Education Programs and Services
• Research Pillar Leads: Rob McMaster, Vice-Dean, Research & Michelle Wong, Senior Director, Research
• Organization Pillar Leads: Chris Lovato, Vice-Dean, Academic & Shanda Jordan Gaetz, Managing Director
• Partnership Pillar Leads: Mike Allard, Vice-Dean, Health Engagement & Shanda Jordan Gaetz, Managing Director

• Applicant develops Full SIF Proposal and submits it to fom.strategicplan@ubc.ca before the Proposal Submission Deadline.

• Proposals are assigned to SIF Advisory Group members to review and score.
• The SIF Advisory Group meets to review proposals based on selection criteria and funds available.
• On behalf of the SIF Advisory Group, the chair recommends proposal selection and prioritization to the Dean for final selection.

• The SIF Advisory Group chair contacts all applicants to notify them of the decision and rationale, and announces which initiatives are selected for funding.
• Funded initiatives proceed and must report on progress using the status report template. Upon completion, funded initiatives must provide a final report using the template.
• If a SIF project is not proceeding as planned, if the SIF Project Leads are not meeting their responsibilities, or if other issues arise, the SIF Advisory Group chair may recommend to the Dean that funding be withdrawn from the project.

The SIF amount allocated to a successful proposal is fixed and is based on the proposed budget. Applicants are encouraged to add a budget contingency percentage that is proportional to the degree of project uncertainty with the amounts in the proposed budget.

No additional SIF amount will be allocated to successful projects over and above the original amount allocated. If the intended outcomes of the project cannot be achieved with the amount allocated, the project lead is encouraged to seek additional funding elsewhere. If none can be secured, the project lead may submit a new proposal as part of the next round of SIF allocation. The proposal for additional funding will be evaluated on its merits relative to other proposals submitted in that round.

SIF project accounts cannot be overspent. SIF Project Leads are responsible for monitoring project expenditures and ensuring that the SIF account is not overspent. SIF Project Leads are supported by their assigned Finance Manager, as needed.

The SIF allocation must be spent on items proposed in the SIF application or, if different, on items that are reasonably required to complete the project and/or achieve the intended project outcome as proposed. Amounts spent, committed, and planned must be reported through the regular status report. The Dean on the recommendation of the chair of the Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group may decide if an expenditure is not sufficiently required to complete the project and/or achieve the intended project outcome as proposed and may withdraw funding accordingly.

SIF recipients who use SIF awards to cover expenses are expected to follow the UBC Expenditure Guidelines. Exceptions are not permitted.

If a SIF project is delayed, the cause of the delay and the new milestone schedule must be reported in the regular status report. If a project timeline change is deemed too significant or unreasonable by the Dean on the recommendation of the chair of the Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group, remaining funding may be withdrawn.

If SIF project scope changes, the cause of the change and the new scope completed, underway, and planned must be reported in the regular status report. If the change to scope is deemed to result in a different or substantively diminished project outcome by the Dean on the recommendation of the chair of the Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group, remaining funding may be withdrawn.

In accepting a SIF allocation for a successful proposal, the lead applicant(s) (a.k.a. SIF recipient(s)) agree(s) to submit status and final reports according to the schedule outlined in the funding letter and using the templates provided. If the SIF project schedule changes, the status report and final report due dates may also change by mutual agreement.

If the SIF recipient(s) do(es) not submit the status report(s) and/or the final report on time, the Dean on the recommendation of the chair of the Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group may decide to withdraw funding from the project and/or deem the SIF recipient(s) ineligible to apply for future SIF rounds or receive future SIF allocations.

The purpose of the Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group is to:

• Recommend to the Dean allocation of the Strategic Investment Fund to appropriate proposals according to the Strategic Investment Fund Allocation Criteria.
• Review status of successful applications and recommend to the Dean whether to continue funding based on progress, as needed.

Voting

• Ex officio
  • Vice Dean, Academic (chair) (1)
  • Strategic Plan Academic Pillar Leads, or delegate (4)
• Elected
  • Four Department Head/School Director members (4)
  • One Regional Associate Dean member (1)
  • Two Faculty of Medicine Centre/Institute Director members (2)
  • One Senior Departmental Administrator member (1)

Non-voting

• Ex officio
  • Senior Director, Finance (1)
  • Executive Director, Development and Alumni Engagement (1)
  • Deputy Chief Information Officer, Medicine (1)
  • Director, Strategic Initiatives (1)

The chair may invite others to participate in meetings, as needed.

From time to time, the Dean may create special topic-specific rounds or streams within a round. Membership for these special rounds can be adjusted by the chair in consultation with the Dean, as needed.

Ex officio members are members by virtue of their position. 

Elected members are elected by their peers through a voting process managed by the Dean's Office.

Ex officio members are members for as long as they hold their position. 

Elected members are members for a one-year term and are eligible for renewal.

Chaired by the Vice Dean, Academic.

The Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group calls for proposals and meets to review proposals and decide which to select two times per year. The duration of each meeting or need for additional meetings will depend on the number of proposals received in that cycle.

The Director, Strategic Initiatives will support the chair by managing the proposal call, review, and selection process, and ensuring that decisions and action items are captured.

Quorum is 50% of voting members plus one.

Decisions are normally made by consensus. When consensus cannot be found, the group will decide what to recommend to the Dean through a vote, requiring a simple majority of voting members present to vote in favour to pass.

As an Advisory Group, members may request that differing opinions be included with the recommendation to the Dean.

The Advisory Group receives proposals requesting Strategic Investment Fund allocation from Strategic Plan Pillar and/or Objective Leads or with their endorsement. Others may also submit proposals, but are strongly encouraged to do so in consultation with Pillar Leads.

The Advisory Group reviews proposals and selects those that best meet the criteria. The Advisory Group then recommends the selected proposals to the Dean for final fund allocation decision.

At meetings, the Advisory Group may also review status reports submitted by successful applicants who are implementing their projects, if a project is deemed at risk by the chair. The Advisory Group may recommend to the Dean whether to continue funding the initiative based on progress, as needed.

The Strategic Investment Fund Advisory Group is responsible for:

1. Reviewing proposals according to the criteria in a fair and unbiased manner.
2. Deciding which proposals best meet the criteria.
3. Recommending selected proposals to the Dean for final decision.
4. Reviewing status reports from successful applicants and recommending to the Dean whether to continue funding the initiative based on progress, if requested by the chair.

These terms of reference were approved by the Dean on September 20, 2018.

*Updates to titles in membership list made May 10, 2021*