UIF/UI Advancement Team Operations - COVID-19 Update
Dear Colleagues:
I hope you and your families are well and staying healthy. The personal impact of this dreaded virus is daunting and, unfortunately, very unpredictable. While each day we learn more about prevention and treatment, unfortunately, the experts are suggesting many more people will become infected in the weeks ahead. Please continue to be proactive and focus on your personal health and well-being, and that of your families.
In the midst of so much uncertainty, one thing we do know to be true is the importance of effective communications. With most of us now working remotely, communications will become even more challenging than normal. As such, I ask for your patience and understanding if information isn’t as easy to find. In an attempt to provide a consistent place to check for Foundation and Advancement operations questions/answers, I have asked our communications team to create a page on UIF Online to serve as a repository of announcements and updates (https://online.uif.uillinois.edu/covid19). This page serves as a resource for the University of Illinois advancement community that we hope compliments what you are already receiving from your own universities, departments, and managers. This page will be updated frequently as new information becomes available, so please check back regularly. Also, if you have suggestions for additions to the page, please share them with your supervisor or marcom@uif.uillinois.edu.
In addition to establishing a place for you to go to for information, I have also organized a UIF/UI-Adv Program– COVID-19 Task Force. The Task Force includes our UIF Executive Operations team and additional team members from human resources, information/technology, and facilities. We will be using this page to provide you with weekly updates from myself and the Task Force. Top of mind for this group is the health and safety of our staff, how we can remain operational and keep business going as best we can, and assessing and planning for the financial impact of this global pandemic
In closing, even though many of us are working remotely, I encourage you all to stay connected with each other as much as possible. Find ways (and time) to stay connected digitally and check in on one another regularly.
Be well, and we will get through this together.
Best regards,
Jim