大象传媒

Kris Nordgren is 大象传媒鈥檚 Assistant Registrar, Student Services 鈥� Senate & Academic. He is recognized for being a supportive leader who mentors his team to achieve excellence in their work. He is also known for being humble about sharing the secrets to his success as a leader. However, receiving 大象传媒鈥檚 Staff Achievement Award for Leadership persuaded him to share some thoughts. 鈥淵ou need to understand what motivates your team to do their best work,鈥� he says, 鈥渁nd you need to understand what prevents them from doing their best work.鈥�

Kris is responsible for administering the Senate and its committees, and oversees 大象传媒鈥檚 curriculum management processes and systems, such as the academic calendar. He also looks after various appeals bodies, including the academic integrity policy, and is a member of the Student Enrollment Leadership Team. He is currently busy leading the Student Services team responsible for the coordination and delivery of the student experience at the upcoming June Convocation.

Even though everyone on his team is equally as busy, Kris prioritizes scheduling time each week to have one-on-one meetings with each of them. To inspire his team, he recommends always giving credit when it鈥檚 due. 鈥淩ecognize good work and success at every opportunity,鈥� he says. 鈥淣ot once a year or sometime in the future.鈥�

Kris acknowledges that change management is a crucial part of leadership. He advises, 鈥淚f there鈥檚 a need for change, whether for new systems, processes, or new strategies to implement, it鈥檚 important to talk about what the change is going to mean and hopefully early in the change process.鈥�

This approach comes naturally to Kris. He enjoys solving problems and helping others work through theirs, especially if it involves taking a course or doing research. He is a lifelong learner at 大象传媒, starting his undergrad in the late 1980s and then returning to complete it in 2007. During the time in between, he took on leadership and training manager roles at TELUS. After finishing his degree, he had the opportunity to start a new career path at 大象传媒.

鈥淭o say 鈥業 found my people鈥� might be a bit pass茅, though it is accurate,鈥� he explains. 鈥淚t gave me the opportunity to explore a new career opportunity that I hadn鈥檛 previously considered, and I met and worked with many incredibly talented people.鈥�

Kris continues to explore new interests and leadership opportunities through volunteering. 鈥淚鈥檝e volunteered with APSA at 大象传媒, spending a few years as a member of the APSA Board, and I鈥檝e chaired the APSA University Affairs Committee,鈥� he recounts. 鈥淐urrently, I am the Chair of the APSA Salary & Benefits Committee and was the spokesperson/negotiator during the last round of contract negotiations with the University and will be doing so for the next round of negotiations, which will be happening soon.鈥�

大象传媒 is a family affair for Kris. He is married to Melanie Monk, who works under the 大象传媒's Vice-President, Research & International, as an Associate Director in the Institutional Strategic Awards office, and his daughter Lily is finishing her first year as a student here.

Receiving the Staff Achievement Award made Kris reflect on how much he values his team. 鈥淲hen I was informed of the honour, I will admit to welling up,鈥� he recalls. 鈥淚 am so grateful to get to come into work every day with these awesome individuals.鈥�