Skip to content

Bringing the WoW Factor to Humber

Humber’s Ways of Working (WoW) is a shared approach that brings alignment, structure, and momentum to everything we do. As proponents of productivity it ensures our people, processes, and tools work together in a consistent way so that projects move forward with clarity and confidence as we build brilliance together.

WoW is about how we sculpt solutions. It is about how we plan, prioritize, and deliver as a community. By creating visibility and reducing friction, WoW helps teams focus on what matters most: achieving results that make a real impact for Humber and for learners, demonstrating our Humber edge in action.

Humber WoW in Action: Transforming Projects and People

Just imagine having the spark of innovation with big ideas, the builders to sculpt the solutions, but no shared process to bring it all together and help move from imagining to executing. Humber’s Ways of Working provides that process to guide you to building brilliance, aligning every initiative to a shared constellation of strategy, collaboration, and productivity.

Alignment

A shared structure that connects teams around clear goals

Clarity

Defined roles and rhythms that reduce friction and duplication

Efficiency

Transparent, repeatable practices that accelerate delivery

Support

Collaborative tools and templates that support every stage of work

Agility

Flexibility to adapt while staying aligned to strategic outcomes

Trust

Stronger cross-functional relationships and trust

Innovation

Space to surface innovation and scale what's working

Accountability

Clear accountability and confidence in results

The Value of Humber WoW for Executives, Leaders, and Teams

Executives Drive Results with Evidence and Impact

Executives need confidence that strategy is translating into productivity with measurable progress. Humber WoW provides an enterprise-wide view that grounds results in evidence, not assumptions, and demonstrates how individual efforts add up to institutional impact. With this clarity, executives can make faster, data-informed decisions, allocate resources where they matter most, and showcase credible outcomes to stakeholders.

WoW Enables Executives With:

  • Clear line of sight from strategy to execution
  • Evidence-based reporting on outcomes and progress
  • Early visibility into risks and opportunities
  • Confidence to communicate impact at the highest level

Leaders Shift from Firefighting to Focused Delivery

For Leaders, Humber WoW turns individual efforts into collaborative, team-based execution. By embedding shared structures and rhythms, it provides a repeatable process to move from imagine to execute with measurable progress and helps teams balance immediate priorities with long-term goals. Leaders gain the visibility and tools they need to guide delivery without micromanaging, while building credibility through consistent and reliable results.

Leaders Benefit From:

  • One clear view of work in progress
  • Tools to prioritize effectively and allocate resources
  • Early signals when projects are drifting off course
  • Repeatable processes that sustain momentum

Team Members Work with Clarity and Confidence

Humber WoW helps Team Members bridge between thinking and doing by leveraging a repeatable process to understand exactly what matters, what “done” looks like, and how their work contributes to larger goals. By removing ambiguity and making progress visible, it empowers individuals to take ownership, build skills, and focus on meaningful tasks that drive impact. With clarity and confidence, Team Members see the value of their contributions and feel connected to the bigger picture.

Team Members Thrive With:

  • Transparent priorities and clear definitions of “done”
  • Confidence that progress is measured, not guessed
  • Direct connection between effort and institutional goals
  • Opportunities for growth, ownership, and impact

Case Studies

See Humber WoW In Action

We are showcasing “WoW Case Studies” that highlight bold, high-impact projects bringing Humber’s innovation strategy to life. These stories demonstrate how our teams are reimagining experiences, driving results, and setting new benchmarks for students and partners.

MOOC Case Study  PAL Case Study 

A Cross-Team Case Study:
WoW-Level Teamwork

Challenge

Launching Humber’s first MOOC came with high complexity: multiple platforms, diverse audiences, and a tight, three-month timeline. Coordinating departments that had never worked together before added further pressure, especially in navigating registration systems, digital platforms, and integrated communications.

Solution

Using Humber’s Ways of Working (WoW) model, the team brought structure and alignment to a fast-moving, multifaceted project. Weekly planning meetings, transparent progress tracking, and flexible workflows allowed teams to stay in sync. WoW helped the group adapt quickly, track shared goals, and maintain clear lines of communication, despite multi-prong requirements and technical complexity.

Results

  • Launched successfully in under 3 months
  • Seamlessly coordinated efforts across multiple departments
  • Synchronized marketing, registration (via Brightspace and Blackboard), and digital credentialing through Destiny One and MyCred
  • Achieved a level of cross-Humber collaboration not seen in prior projects of similar complexity

Conclusion

The project team credited WoW with making the difference. It transformed what could have been a stalled initiative into a streamlined, successful launch. As shared in a presentation to the president: “The WoW factor worked.

A Case Study In Change:
The WoW Behind Pal

Challenge

Changes to the Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) process, required for international students applying to Humber, prompted the need for significant updates to internal admissions systems. As government requirements continued to evolve, the team faced ongoing challenges adapting workflows and infrastructure to align with the new and frequently shifting processes. Maintaining compliance while minimizing disruption required flexibility, collaboration, and rapid response.

Solution

Leveraging Humber’s Ways of Working (WoW), the PAL implementation team established the stability and responsiveness needed to navigate the evolving requirements. WoW’s iterative, adaptable framework enabled continuous alignment, seamless collaboration, and timely decisionmaking. This empowered the team to adjust course as needed, keeping the project moving forward despite an unpredictable and shifting landscape.

Results

  • Implemented successfully in under 3 months
  • Adapted quickly to unforeseen changes without losing momentum
  • Delivered the new system with clarity and confidence
  • Ensured smooth integration of new processes for ongoing use

Conclusion

WoW provided the PAL implementation team with the structure and adaptability required to meet the challenge head-on, turning uncertainty into opportunity and ensuring the project’s success in record time.

Next Steps

To get started with Humber’s Ways of Working, complete the WoW Maturity Scorecard to assess your team’s current project practices. Reflect on where you are today and where you want to be. Use your results to identify key areas for improvement. Bring your completed scorecard to the onboarding session to help guide discussion and support focused planning.

Download Your Scorecard 

Find out how we can help bring the WoW Factor to your initiatives.

wowfactor@humber.ca