Better By U
On This Page:
How you can participate | What happens next? | What is a Better by U idea? | Community feedback | FAQ
Turning ideas into action.
Every day, faculty and staff experience opportunities to make the University of Alberta better.
Whether it's simplifying an administrative process, improving a service or removing a frustrating roadblock, the people closest to the work are often closest to the solution.
Better By U is a university-wide initiative led by the Office of Strategic Transformation and Delivery that empowers employees to identify opportunities for improvement, help shape organizational priorities and collaborate on practical solutions that improve the way we work.
Putting the university’s values of curiosity and shared accountability into action, Better By U recognizes that meaningful change happens when the university community works together — and provides support to turn your ideas into tangible improvements.
Because a better university is built by you.
How You Can Participate
There are two ways to get involved in Better By U:
Share an Idea
Have you experienced a process that could work better?
You don't need to own a process to improve it. If you've experienced a challenge or identified an opportunity, we'd love to hear your ideas.
Ideas should:
- improve processes, services, or experiences
- benefit faculty, staff, students, or the broader University community
- be practical, achievable, and collaborative
If you are unsure where to start or need help with the questionnaire, please contact BetterByU@ualberta.ca.
Help Shape Priorities
Not every improvement begins with your own idea.
The university community is able to review opportunities submitted by colleagues and share your feedback. Your input helps to inform which improvements should move forward next.
Community feedback helps ensure we focus our efforts where they'll have the greatest impact to you.
What Happens Next?
Every idea follows a transparent journey, supported by the Better By U team.
What is a Better By U idea?
We’d like to hear your ideas for improvements at the university — and if your idea is bigger in scope, connect it with the appropriate support.
| We're looking for ideas that: | We will redirect ideas that: |
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Better By U Project examples could include:
- simplifying hiring approvals
- improving administrative processes for inviting guest speakers
- strengthening IT support for evening instructors
- eliminating unnecessary travel through virtual alternatives
Want to follow an idea?
Community Feedback
The university community — which includes you — help to influence which Better By U submissions move forward next.
Each feedback cycle features ideas that have successfully completed Discovery and are ready for broader input.
As a community member, you can:
- Review shortlisted ideas
- Indicate those that matter most to you
- Help influence which opportunities should be prioritized given our capacity.
Current Feedback Round
Status: Not yet open.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long before I hear from someone?
You'll receive an acknowledgement immediately after submitting your idea. Depending on where we are in the current review cycle, a member of our team will contact you for an interview as we enter our next intake review cycle.
Are submissions anonymous?
No. We'll contact you to better understand your idea. Once ideas are opened to Community Feedback, contributor names are removed.
What if my idea isn't selected?
Great ideas don't disappear. Ideas that aren't selected for the current implementation cycle remain active in the Better By U Incubator and continue to be considered in future rounds.
How can I track my submission?
As ideas are received the Better By U dashboard displays current submissions, and you will be updated via email as your idea progresses.