Office of Strategic Consulting announces interim director

Charles Meyer will become interim associate vice provost for strategic initiatives and director of the Office of Strategic Consulting starting Jan. 1. Current director Jenny Faust will be leaving the position at the end of December to take on a new role as the chief consulting officer at the University of Michigan.

The Office of Strategic Consulting serves as a resource for academic and administrative units on campus, helping to enhance organizational effectiveness by supporting strategic initiatives, change and improvement efforts while building organizational capacity.

Meyer currently serves as the director of strategic initiatives within the Office of Strategic Consulting. Previously, he held key roles creating and leading national grant-funded initiatives at UW–Extension, where he strived to help people and organizations try new approaches to their work, including new strategies, techniques, and technologies. Meyer is an alumnus of UW–Madison and earned an executive MBA and a bachelor of arts degree.

Faust, a nationally recognized expert in developing academic leadership, has served as director since 2017 and oversaw the creation of the Office of Strategic Consulting after the merger of the Office of Quality Improvement and Administrative Process Redesign. Services have expanded to include project management and leadership coaching in addition to core areas of strategic planning, process improvement, organizational design and enhancing culture and climate.

Other accomplishments under her direction include the creation of the UW–Madison policy library, support for the tear-down of the physical plant buildings and preparation for the new School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences building, and providing support for several strategic plans, including those of the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration and the UW System President.

“I am proud of what I and my staff in the Office of Strategic Consulting have accomplished together, and I am grateful for the many campus partners that have trusted us with their projects over the past five years,” Faust says. “I have complete faith in my Strategic Consulting colleagues, under whose leadership the office will surely soar to new heights.”

The Office of Strategic Consulting reports to the Provost’s Office, with additional dotted-line reporting to the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration (VCFA).

As interim director, Meyer will manage the affairs of the Office of Strategic Consulting, providing leadership and support for the delivery of its core services, which include strategic planning, process improvement, organization design, project management and delivery, change management, leadership coaching and enhancing organizational culture and climate.

The timeline for the search for a new director has not yet been finalized.