The following guiding principles will define and govern the budgeting and planning philosophy. These principles will not only guide Mason as it creates a new approach to resource planning, but also represent a touchstone as we evaluate the effectiveness of our ability to financially plan for the future.
Our approach to creating a new model and the resulting model itself will:
- Support the goals, values, academic and research mission, and strategic vision of the University, with a continued and enhanced focus on alignment of unit-level and university-level strategic priorities and investments.
- Enable and empower units to be entrepreneurial, flexible, and innovative, while also promoting efficient, cost-effective service delivery and eliminating resource duplication to the extent possible.
- Balance centralization vs. decentralization to optimize support, including predictability and accountability of central support services.
- Support collaborative, data-driven decision making by facilitating an environment of open discussion, trust, and opportunities for engagement across campus.
- Create clear, appropriate, and logical budgetary incentives to enhance revenues, control costs, and promote fiscal stewardship.