A lot has happened at the Faculty office over the past year. We have taken several steps towards creating a clearer structure and providing even better support for the faculty’s activities. All functions within the office now have a designated manager, which means we have welcomed two new colleagues to the management team: Malin Schatz, our new Head of education, and Daniel Kåreda, Head of Management support and Communication since September. This means the organisation is starting to find its form, allowing us to work in a more cohesive and long-term way going forward.
I often reflect on the role of the Faculty office. Why do we exist, and how can we make the greatest impact? For me, it’s about being a stable and accessible support for our departments, boards, committees, and leadership — getting the cogs to turn smoothly so that our daily operations run as efficiently and predictably as possible.
Having managers in place for all functions has also made a big difference for me personally. Previously, I was responsible for both the education function and, during the spring, also for the communications function. That sometimes left less room for strategic work. Now I can focus more on the bigger picture — on processes and long-term development — which is something I truly look forward to.
We’ve also introduced two exciting new roles at the office. Maria Ovesson, Policy officer in Management support and Communication, is helping to strengthen our research support, and Carina Jarl, our new Education coordinator, is part of the Education function with a focus on enhancing the societal relevance of our programmes and strengthening collaborations with the labour market.
Another important step forward — aimed at creating better structure and support — is that all departments now have an administrative manager in place. This autumn, Catarina Lindén took up the role at the Centre for Mathematical Sciences. This means we now have the same structure across all departments, which aligns fully with our strategic plan and our goal of a more coherent organisation and governance. I’m very pleased that Catarina has joined us, and I look forward to further developing the network of administrative managers in the year ahead.
Collaboration with LTH remains an essential part of our everyday work. We share three joint departments, which requires both responsiveness and coordination. Together, we are working to find ways that make it easier for the departments to navigate between two faculties. At the Faculty office, we are very aware of this challenge. Our functions have several joint initiatives and regular dialogue with LTH for this reason — ranging from exchanges between Heads of finance as well as HR managers and in addition joint networking meetings for our communicators. We’ve made great progress, even if there’s still more to do.
The close collaboration I’ve already established with Tina Josefson, LTH’s newly appointed Head of Faculty Office, is an important part of this work. I look forward to building on that partnership — with the aim of bringing together the administrative management networks from both faculties at least once next year, and continuing to develop joint structures that benefit both sides.
We’ve also now settled into the second floor of the Astronomy Building — with a fantastic view! And in a few years, I’m excited about the next step: when the building becomes our Natural Science Study Centre, complete with reading rooms, meeting spaces, a central library, and the Faculty office, student union LUNA, and doctoral student union NDR all under one roof. That will make us even more visible and accessible — right at the heart of where things happen.
Of course, there are challenges too. Right now, IT and information security are areas where we need to find sustainable solutions — preferably in collaboration with LTH and at the university-wide level.
But overall, I feel very optimistic about the year ahead. We have a clearer structure, stronger collaboration, and many dedicated colleagues who want to move forward. That makes me both proud and hopeful.
Catrin Malmström. Head of Faculty Office at the Faculty of Science.
