{"id":185024,"date":"2025-12-02T01:00:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T00:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/ku-innovation-og-erhvervssamarbejde-efter-reformen-mindre-silo-mere-sammenhaeng\/"},"modified":"2025-12-02T10:40:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-02T09:40:09","slug":"innovation-unit-after-the-reform-new-colleagues-better-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/innovation-unit-after-the-reform-new-colleagues-better-ideas\/","title":{"rendered":"Innovation unit after the reform: New colleagues, better ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"

After fierce debate, the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) rolled out a new administration structure in March 2025. Staff and students have now had more than six months to get used to the new reality.<\/p>\n

In a series of articles on the university\u2019s intranet KUnet, UCPH deputy directors of eight central units have shared how they have experienced the first few months and offered an update from their area of administration.<\/p>\n

\n

Half a year with the new administration<\/p>\n

On KUnet, you can now read a series of articles where the deputy directors of the University of Copenhagen (UCPH)’s eight central administrative units take stock, six months after the new administration at UCPH was implemented.<\/p>\n

At the University Post, we have launched a similar series \u2014 where we speak to staff and union representatives.<\/p>\n

Read earlier instalments here:<\/p>\n

UCPH Education<\/a>
\nUCPH Finances<\/a>
\nUCPH Buildings<\/a>
\nUCPH IT<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The University Post is now doing a similar series, where we instead speak to employees and union representatives across the organisation.<\/p>\n

In this instalment, we speak to two staff members from the UCPH unit for Innovation and Business Collaboration, where the reform has led to more collaboration between different functions \u2014 and fewer organisational silos.<\/p>\n

An old call for reform<\/h3>\n

Jes Andersen works with communications and press at the secretariat for the Innovation District Copenhagen. For him, the reform has had a clear impact: it has made his job easier.<\/p>\n

Innovation District Copenhagen is a partnership between UCPH, the national hospital Rigshospitalet<\/em>, and the University College Copenhagen. Jes Andersen has worked across several institutions and units for many years. It requires a grasp of the big picture and access to the right skills, something that he has not always had.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve wanted more coherence and more cross-functional collaboration ever since I started here.<\/p>\n

Jes Andersen, employee in Innovation and Business Collaboration<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u00bbThe university has been extremely fragmented. It was difficult to find the right people because everything was compartmentalised,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

According to Jes Andersen, the reform has changed all that. Not by changing his tasks, but by changing the circle of colleagues around him.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI\u2019ve got new colleagues who connect me with knowledge and ideas that I can use directly. And that makes the work both more enjoyable and better,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

He describes himself as \u00bb100 per cent positive\u00ab about the reform\u2019s intentions. The consolidation of professional skills \u2014 in communication in particular \u2014 stands out as a major improvement.<\/p>\n

\u00bbI\u2019ve wanted more coherence and more cross-functional collaboration ever since I started here. The reform has already set off movement in an area that had been frozen in place,\u00ab says Jes Andersen.<\/p>\n

His only real wish is for UCPH to go even further in the same direction.<\/p>\n

\u00bbThere are still areas where different units are doing similar things. I hope we end up with even deeper organisational integration. This makes sense when we\u2019re already working across units,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n

More cross-functional collaboration<\/h3>\n

For Camilla Vang Arffmann, who works on UCPH\u2019s new AI package and who supports external partnerships and digital innovation projects, there is a clear difference between before and after the reform.<\/p>\n

\u00bbNow we work closely with people from across the university. That means we can deliver on projects in a completely different way,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n

I might have wished some things had gone faster. But maybe that\u2019s just me being impatient.<\/p>\n

Camilla Vang Arffmann, staff member at the Innovation and Business Collaboration unit<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Before the reform, innovation work was spread out across the faculties. Projects, partnerships, and ideas existed in many places, but were rarely coordinated as a single, united effort, she explains.<\/p>\n

Whereas she previously worked primarily at the Department of Computer Science, she is now part of a team that covers all of the innovation efforts of UCPH. For her, that is one of the biggest wins of the reform:<\/p>\n

\u00bbIt\u2019s easy to see how many researchers actually want to work together. That\u2019s a huge strength \u2014 and it\u2019s fun to be a part of it,\u00ab says Camilla Vang Arffmann.<\/p>\n

Faster implementation, please!<\/h3>\n

Though both employees are positive, there are still things they\u2019re waiting for. This is not because they are against the reform \u2014 but rather that changes on this scale take time.<\/p>\n

Camilla Vang Arffmann points out that some procedures are still not fully in place:<\/p>\n

\u00bbWhen a project spans over several faculties, it\u2019s not always clear who it is that handles the budget or who it is that deals with the communications. It\u2019s not that people are unwilling \u2014 it is just that this has not been clearly defined yet,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n

She describes this as a natural consequence of a massive reorganisation, rather than a fundamental problem.<\/p>\n

\u00bbThese are big changes. I don\u2019t know how you could have prepared for everything in advance. I might have wished some things had gone faster. But maybe that\u2019s just me being impatient,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n

From standstill to momentum<\/h3>\n

In the field of innovation, staff work across faculties, researchers, and disciplines. That\u2019s why the administration reform\u2019s consolidation and coordination of support functions in one place makes particular sense here, they say.<\/p>\n

Both employees describe the same thing: the reform has made it easier to work across units. Not perfectly or fully implemented \u2014 but easier.<\/p>\n

\u00bbThe important thing is to stay true to the reform\u2019s goal of enabling more cross-functional collaboration,\u00ab says Camilla Vang Arffmann.<\/p>\n

Jes Andersen agrees:<\/p>\n

\u00bbWe\u2019re not there yet, but I can already feel the difference. There\u2019s movement in something that has been at a standstill for years.\u00ab<\/p>\n

This article was first written in Danish and published on 25 November. It has been translated into English and post-edited by Mike Young.<\/em>
\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The administration reform has made a less fragmented University of Copenhagen, according to two employees. 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innovation centre UCPH Lighthouse works to strengthen entrepreneurship among students and researchers. It belongs to the Innovation and Business Collaboration unit, which has interdisciplinarity as a top priority."},{"acf_fc_layout":"Standfirst","subject":"Co-operation","text":"This is a story about what will follow","use_post_excerpt":true},{"acf_fc_layout":"Byline","is_author":true,"contributors":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>After fierce debate, the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) rolled out a new administration structure in March 2025. Staff and students have now had more than six months to get used to the new reality.<\/p>\n<p>In a series of articles on the university\u2019s intranet KUnet, UCPH deputy directors of eight central units have shared how they have experienced the first few months and offered an update from their area of administration.<\/p>\n<div class=\"factbox\">\n<p class=\"factbox-header feature-color\">Half a year with the new administration<\/p>\n<p>On KUnet, you can now read a series of articles where the deputy directors of the University of Copenhagen (UCPH)’s eight central administrative units take stock, six months after the new administration at UCPH was implemented.<\/p>\n<p>At the University Post, we have launched a similar series \u2014 where we speak to staff and union representatives.<\/p>\n<p>Read earlier instalments here:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/education-unit-after-the-reform-uncertainty-is-still-the-order-of-the-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">UCPH Education<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/administration-reform-universitys-finance-staff-reveal-contrasting-journeys\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">UCPH Finances<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/campus-officers-after-the-reform-same-job-just-got-harder\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">UCPH Buildings<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/it-support-hit-hard-by-ucph-administration-shake-up\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">UCPH IT<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The University Post is now doing a similar series, where we instead speak to employees and union representatives across the organisation.<\/p>\n<p>In this instalment, we speak to two staff members from the UCPH unit for Innovation and Business Collaboration, where the reform has led to more collaboration between different functions \u2014 and fewer organisational silos.<\/p>\n<h3>An old call for reform<\/h3>\n<p>Jes Andersen works with communications and press at the secretariat for the Innovation District Copenhagen. For him, the reform has had a clear impact: it has made his job easier.<\/p>\n<p>Innovation District Copenhagen is a partnership between UCPH, the national hospital <em>Rigshospitalet<\/em>, and the University College Copenhagen. Jes Andersen has worked across several institutions and units for many years. It requires a grasp of the big picture and access to the right skills, something that he has not always had.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I\u2019ve wanted more coherence and more cross-functional collaboration ever since I started here.<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Jes Andersen, employee in Innovation and Business Collaboration<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbThe university has been extremely fragmented. It was difficult to find the right people because everything was compartmentalised,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>According to Jes Andersen, the reform has changed all that. Not by changing his tasks, but by changing the circle of colleagues around him.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI\u2019ve got new colleagues who connect me with knowledge and ideas that I can use directly. And that makes the work both more enjoyable and better,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>He describes himself as \u00bb100 per cent positive\u00ab about the reform\u2019s intentions. The consolidation of professional skills \u2014 in communication in particular \u2014 stands out as a major improvement.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI\u2019ve wanted more coherence and more cross-functional collaboration ever since I started here. The reform has already set off movement in an area that had been frozen in place,\u00ab says Jes Andersen.<\/p>\n<p>His only real wish is for UCPH to go even further in the same direction.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThere are still areas where different units are doing similar things. I hope we end up with even deeper organisational integration. This makes sense when we\u2019re already working across units,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<h3>More cross-functional collaboration<\/h3>\n<p>For Camilla Vang Arffmann, who works on UCPH\u2019s new AI package and who supports external partnerships and digital innovation projects, there is a clear difference between before and after the reform.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbNow we work closely with people from across the university. That means we can deliver on projects in a completely different way,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I might have wished some things had gone faster. But maybe that\u2019s just me being impatient.<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Camilla Vang Arffmann, staff member at the Innovation and Business Collaboration unit<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Before the reform, innovation work was spread out across the faculties. Projects, partnerships, and ideas existed in many places, but were rarely coordinated as a single, united effort, she explains.<\/p>\n<p>Whereas she previously worked primarily at the Department of Computer Science, she is now part of a team that covers all of the innovation efforts of UCPH. For her, that is one of the biggest wins of the reform:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s easy to see how many researchers actually want to work together. That\u2019s a huge strength \u2014 and it\u2019s fun to be a part of it,\u00ab says Camilla Vang Arffmann.<\/p>\n<h3>Faster implementation, please!<\/h3>\n<p>Though both employees are positive, there are still things they\u2019re waiting for. This is not because they are against the reform \u2014 but rather that changes on this scale take time.<\/p>\n<p>Camilla Vang Arffmann points out that some procedures are still not fully in place:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWhen a project spans over several faculties, it\u2019s not always clear who it is that handles the budget or who it is that deals with the communications. It\u2019s not that people are unwilling \u2014 it is just that this has not been clearly defined yet,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<p>She describes this as a natural consequence of a massive reorganisation, rather than a fundamental problem.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThese are big changes. I don\u2019t know how you could have prepared for everything in advance. I might have wished some things had gone faster. But maybe that\u2019s just me being impatient,\u00ab she says.<\/p>\n<h3>From standstill to momentum<\/h3>\n<p>In the field of innovation, staff work across faculties, researchers, and disciplines. That\u2019s why the administration reform\u2019s consolidation and coordination of support functions in one place makes particular sense here, they say.<\/p>\n<p>Both employees describe the same thing: the reform has made it easier to work across units. Not perfectly or fully implemented \u2014 but easier.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe important thing is to stay true to the reform\u2019s goal of enabling more cross-functional collaboration,\u00ab says Camilla Vang Arffmann.<\/p>\n<p>Jes Andersen agrees:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe\u2019re not there yet, but I can already feel the difference. There\u2019s movement in something that has been at a standstill for years.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>This article was first written in Danish and published on 25 November. It has been translated into English and post-edited by Mike Young.<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"ArticleEnd"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Newsletter","lang_select":"en","identifier":"Newsletter","headline":"Get an email with upcoming events and top University of Copenhagen stories","button_text":"Sign up here","class":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"OtherStories","headline":"","hand_picked_posts":false,"references":false,"category":false,"theme":false,"number_of_posts":"4","style":"default"}]},"taxonomyData":{"category":[{"term_id":4539,"name":"Working environment","slug":"arbejdsmiljoe-en","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":4539,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":95,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[],"post_format":[],"expression":[{"term_id":15,"name":"News Article","slug":"news_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":15,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":11492,"filter":"raw"}],"translation_priority":[{"term_id":5468,"name":"Optional","slug":"optional-en","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5468,"taxonomy":"translation_priority","description":"","parent":0,"count":674,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/DSC_0002-1280x857.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185024","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=185024"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185024\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":185092,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185024\/revisions\/185092"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/185025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=185024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=185024"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=185024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}