Future State

Tenacity, hard work, commitment, effort, resiliency, heart, selflessness, good decisions, teamwork, making adjustments, and working to get better — all characteristics of champions. We had the pleasure of witnessing our Spartans excel this March. And whether it is the Spartan basketball teams or living legend, Tiger Woods, champions always strive to get better and not be complacent.

In fact, several years ago after winning the Masters by a large margin, Tiger decided to change his swing. Now, many in the press as well as his peers questioned why he would change his swing at the top of his game. Tiger, however, knew he was getting older and that he would need to make some changes in order to maintain club speed and keep his distance advantage over time. Within 12 months, he had won all four major tournaments, an accomplishment now referred to as the “Tiger Slam.”

Why is this important? Just like our beloved Spartans or Tiger Woods, at H&FS, we are a team of champions looking to get better every day. Our realignment is about making us a better organization and being prepared to meet the many and complex opportunities of the 21st Century.

We — CMID, Marketing Communications and Kellogg Center to name a few — continue to win recognition from professional associations for our excellence. The First-Year Spartan Experience Pilot Program is gaining excitement with new freshmen and their parents. Human Resources was recognized for their Sexual Harassment Training. Student Intern Amanda Kaiser, with Conference & Event Services, was named MSU Student Employee of the Year. And there are certainly more that I haven’t listed here.

Indeed, we have many reasons to be proud. We have a long and storied history of excellence. Michigan State is a 1,000-year institution and we have a bright future with much more success to come.

As I said when we announced our realignment on October 30, this transition will not be easy, but we are getting there. Many of you have put in tremendous amounts of time, energy and heart already and I thank you. I urge you to keep our goals in mind, keep the lines of communication open and keep your focus on our customers. If we do that we can’t help but be successful. And we will emerge on the other side a better and stronger organization positioned for a very bright future.