Aligning Planning, Management, Leadership, and Reporting across WashU
The Operations and Facilities Management Department, Facilities Planning and Management, and the university’s real estate portfolio, including Quadrangle Housing, are now formally aligned at the enterprise level.
Our new organizational name is Enterprise Physical Operations, Infrastructure, Capital Programs & Real Estate. In day-to-day communications, we will operate under the working name Enterprise Physical Operations, or EPO.
This alignment brings planning, management, leadership, and reporting together under one enterprise structure while continuing to support the distinct needs of each campus.
How We Are Organized
To ensure responsive service delivery, EPO will continue to reflect the unique needs of each campus:
- EPO–Medicine for Medical Campus operations
- EPO–Danforth for Danforth Campus operations
This structure allows us to operate as one organization while maintaining the local expertise, responsiveness, and relationships needed to serve each campus effectively.
Our Focus
EPO is focused on strengthening how we plan, operate, and support the university’s physical environment. Our key priorities include:
- Enabling mission-driven decision making
- Investing in our people as our most critical asset
- Elevating the customer experience
- Strengthening financial stewardship and cost efficiency
- Adopting and leading industry best practices
How We Show Up As One Team
As EPO, we are committed to working more closely across campuses while respecting the needs of each location. This includes:
- Driving integration across campuses while honoring local needs
- Optimizing resources and investments to maximize impact
- Expanding knowledge sharing and building capabilities across teams
- Standardizing processes and systems where it adds value
- Strengthening leadership collaboration, shared accountability, governance, and joint decision-making
Leadership
Enterprise Physical Operations is led by Melissa Rockwell-Hopkins, Vice Chancellor for Enterprise Physical Operations, Infrastructure, Capital Programs & Real Estate.
Under Melissa’s leadership, EPO brings together responsibility for the university’s physical environment, infrastructure, capital stewardship, and real estate strategy across WashU. This enterprise approach strengthens coordination, long-term planning, and strategic investment while maintaining dedicated operational support for both the Medical and Danforth campuses.