How We Choose to Operate
At UC Berkeley, our mission demands excellence—not just in what we accomplish, but in how we work together to achieve it.
As stewards of the campus, the Administration Division powers the extraordinary achievements of our students, faculty, and staff. Guided by our 5-year strategic plan, our four Operating Principles define the actionable rules and shared behaviors that turn our divisional values into everyday practice. They bridge the gap between abstract strategy and daily execution.
The Administration Division's four operating principles are:
1. Clear the Path
- Focus: External Action
- Mindset: Question the status quo and remove friction.
- In a large university, campus partners too often expect to hear "no," "but," or "why things can't happen." Clear the Path is about actively identifying hurdles, dismantling administrative barriers, and helping our campus partners get to "yes." Our goal is to make working with our division as smooth, straightforward, and collaborative as possible.
2. Mutual Success, Always
- Focus: External Purpose
- Mindset: Shared ownership and collective impact.
- The Administration Division does not exist for its own sake—we exist so the rest of the university can win. Mutual Success, Always means measuring our value by how effectively our support helps other units thrive. Whether we are strengthening long-term facility resilience or tackling campus-wide deferred maintenance, we take genuine pride in knowing our behind-the-scenes work powers Berkeley's success.
3. Simple is Smart
- Focus: Internal Mindset
- Mindset: Efficiency over effort.
- Working hard is commendable, but working smart drives us forward. Simple is Smart is the internal discipline to reject unnecessary complexity. It takes true mastery to make intricate processes clear, fast, and cost-effective. We continuously adapt our workflows to eliminate clutter, save time, and maximize our impact for the campus.
4. Expert Support, Ego Aside
- Focus: Internal Style
- Mindset: Confidence without attitude.
- Our division is home to world-class professional experts across dozens of disciplines. Expert Support, Ego Aside means using that deep expertise to guide, empower, and support others. We approach every interaction with humility, approachability, and an unwavering commitment to partnership.
Grounded in Our Strategic Goals
Our operating principles directly power the three primary goals of our 5-Year Strategic Plan:
- Enhance Campus Life: Elevating the student, faculty, and staff experience through responsive services and deep collaboration.
- Strengthen Financial Stewardship & Resource Management: Optimizing constrained resources with transparency and discipline to sustain operational delivery and long-term impact.
- Unified Division: Cultivating a strong, connected Administration Division by empowering people, fostering shared values, encouraging creativity, and strengthening trust and engagement.
