Update on Bagels with Mark
October 5, 2009 •
Since its launch in August, around 70 employees have been randomly selected to participate in one of these informal breakfast meetings with the president. But so many of you have expressed an interest in attending, that we’re looking into a way to have employees sign-up. Details are still being worked out, and we’ll share them once they’re available.
So, what happens at these breakfast meetings? We haven’t taken notes, because these meetings are intended to give UCOP employees a chance to speak candidly with President Yudof. And frankly, even if we had, we’d run out of room in this newsletter trying to share all the questions and answers with you.
As you can imagine, many of the discussions have revolved around UC’s budget or the UCOP reorganization. Colleagues have shared ideas and offered creative suggestions. (We have taken notes on some of these suggestions so the president can explore them further).
You can be sure that any information pertinent to your job or to all UCOP staff will be shared with you. Nobody attending the bagel breakfasts is being given exclusive information. Rather, they’re getting to know President Yudof in a more informal setting and having an opportunity to chat casually.
We’ve learned that President Yudof’s favorite movie is Men in Black, for instance, and that he likes to read mystery novels. He’s been unimpressed with the pancakes in California, rating them a five or six out of ten. He’s not above eating his meals at In-n-Out Burger, and California’s traffic and the heavy fog that often blankets his Oakland home awe him. And while he has talked extensively about the challenges UC faces, he hasn’t overlooked the many successes the university—and UCOP—has seen lately.
In terms of getting yourself on the invite list, please be patient. We hope to have the sign-up process in place as soon as possible.
In the meantime, we encourage those who have attended Bagels with Mark to share their experience with colleagues. Feel free to post comments here on what happened at the breakfast meeting you attended, and whether you found it worthwhile.
