Thank you for a successful 2025 Business Excellence Symposium!
Breakout Sessions
February 04, 2025
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Where: I Hotel – Illinois Ballroom
RSVP: Closed
Achieving Excellence
Where can your unit improve its operations? How can you sustain your team’s current efficiency and momentum with the latest tools and resources? The Business Excellence Symposium at Illinois draws from the university’s deep well of talent and insights to equip your unit with a road map to operational excellence.
What to Expect
At this annual event hosted by the Strategic Project Management Office, you’ll hear from university leaders sharing success stories, mingle with units delivering their best practices and explore toolkits at exhibitor booths. There is something for everyone at the Business Excellence Symposium — administrative areas such as HR, Budget, IT, Data, Procurement, Space, Marketing and Communications will all be covered as well as OpEx @ Illinois.
Keynote Address
Hear Robin Kaler, Associate Chancellor Strategic Communications and Marketing, share her success stories in working to achieve operational excellence and how others can benefit from the lessons she’s learned along the way!
Breakout Sessions & Exhibition Hall
Presentations and Exhibitor booths hosted by departments across the university showcasing their best practices and resources and an opportunity to network and swap strategies, achievements and opportunities with university units.
Example Topics
- Project Management Best Practices
- Data Explorers
- Operational Excellence
- Keys management
- Intro to Organizational Consulting
- FABplus
- Generative AI
- NCCI: Network for Change and Continuous Innovation
- Business Process Improvement
If you or your team are interested in hosting a booth please send an email to strategicpmo@illinois.edu
Event Details
Agenda for February 4, 2025
8:30-9:00 – Light Refreshments & Networking
8:30-9:00 – Exhibits Open
9:00-9:45 – Keynote Speaker, Robin Kaler Associate Chancellor
Room: Illinois B
Topic: Robin Kaler Associate Chancellor, will present an overview of MarCom’s Operational Excellence project. Following her brief presentation, members of her team will participate in a panel discussion, during which the audience will have the opportunity to ask questions.
10:00-11:45 – Exhibits & Networking
Stop at tables from units across campus to learn about how they are supporting Operational Excellence. The exhibits remain open during the breakout sessions, but do pause during the Keynote Speaker address.
10:00-10:45 – Session 1 Breakouts
Option 1
Room: Illinois B
Presenter: Rebecca McNaught
Topic: Operational Excellence – Behind the Scenes
Come get a behind the scenes look at the work of Operational Excellence. Hear about the progress that has been made and the upcoming focus for 2025 and beyond.
Option 2
Room: Illinois C
Presenter: Stephen Kemp
Topic: Creating Solutions Together with Organization Consulting
Introduction to the new organizational consulting service offered by the Strategic Project Management Office
11:00-11:45 – Session 2 Breakouts
Option 1
Room: Illinois B
Presenter: Kristi Moore
Topic: Why Business Process Improvement (BPI)
Understanding the why behind Business process improvement and how it can enhance efficiency, streamline operations, and foster innovation.
Option 2
Room: Illinois C
Presenter: Stephen Kemp
Topic: Looking Back/To the Future
An interactive discussion of past improvements and future goals that will increase awareness of opportunities for collaboration and creating campus efficiencies.
12:00 – Thank You / Farewell
When to arrive: Check-in for guests begins at 8:30 a.m. Exhibit representatives should arrive by 7:30 a.m. to set up.
Food/Beverage: Light refreshments will be available.
Where to go:
I Hotel & Conference Center
1900 S 1st St.
Champaign, IL 61820