Celebrating excellence: 2025 Facilities Staff Excellence Award winners
The UBC Facilities Staff Excellence Award Program provides recognition and rewards to staff who have demonstrated excellence consistently in the performance of their work and service to the university. All UBC students, faculty and staff were invited to nominate one, or more, of their clients or colleagues who, in their view, have achieved excellence in one of the award categories inspired by our VPFO Strategic Plan:
After careful consideration and intense deliberation, congratulations to the following 2025 Staff Excellence Award recipients:
Asset stewardship
This category is awarded to an individual who has made significant contributions to maintaining and improving our assets and spaces, and is invested in ensuring our spaces are safe, efficient and effective.
⭐ Shawn Kenney (Building Operations)
Creativity & Innovation
This category is awarded to an individual who contributed innovative ideas and/or facilitated an innovative environment, developed or improved processes through original thinking and creativity, and employed emerging technology and/or introduced new and meaningful ways to achieve new standards of efficiency and effectiveness in the workplace.
⭐ Bryan Archibald & Gilberto Andrade (Building Operations)
Customer service excellence
This category is awarded to an individual who demonstrated significant contributions to propelling excellence in customer service, improving customer experience throughout our community, anticipating and proactively meeting client needs and consistently providing superior service.
⭐ Danny Austria & Harpreet Gill (Custodial Services)
Kim Nulty inspiration award
This award is given to an individual who is committed to continuous improvement and development, positively influencing others to building consensus around departmental and university initiatives.
⭐ Grazyna Rougeau (Municipal Services)
Leadership development
This category is awarded to an individual who demonstrated significant contributions to; fostering a culture of service excellence through a positive attitude and high performance, exhibiting confidence, empowerment and the exceptional qualities of a leader.
⭐ Edward Ganal (Custodial Services)
Safety & wellbeing
This category is awarded to a group or an individual who made significant contributions to a safe, inclusive and healthy workplace where people feel respected, supported, valued and inspired. They lead activities and initiatives that promote the social, physical, and/or mental health and wellbeing of staff.
⭐ Carmen Raiche de Araujo (Customer Services & Informatics)
Teamwork
This category is awarded to a group or an individual who demonstrated exemplary collaboration, cooperation, reliability and flexibility within and between all levels of UBC Facilities and the UBC community.
⭐ Garage Mechanics: Andrew Russell, Christopher Edwards, Dillon Duckworth, Geoff Woodburne, John Tsonis, Stephen Duguay, Thomas Garey, Winston Feliciano
A huge thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate their team member(s) and colleagues to recognize the amazing work they do. Thank you to the 2025 Staff Excellence Award committee for organizing this program and selecting the winners, and thank you and congratulations to all the recipients for all that you do and for your dedication to UBC!