Ruth Johnston, Ph.D. works at the University of Washington as Associate Vice President for the Office of Strategy Management in Finance and Facilities. In this role, Dr. Johnston leads 1500 employees in developing strategy, metrics, leadership and staff, along with marketing and communication of university administrative services. Finance and Facilities uses approaches adopted from the Balanced Scorecard Collaborative to create strategy maps and measure performance.

Prior to this assignment, Dr. Johnston spent 8 years leading Student Fiscal Services and 13 years as Quality Improvement Champion in Financial Management (includes Treasury, Controller’s Division, Risk Management, Internal Audit, Student Fiscal Services and Management Accounting and Analysis). From 1989 - 1994 she was Manager of UW Training and Development where she was responsible for planning and delivering classes, customized training, and organizational development services to UW staff and faculty. She also has experience at the University leading the Conference Management Office and in Residential Life in Housing and Food Services.

She has a B.A. in Social Sciences/Counseling Psychology, an M.A. in Human Relations, and a Ph.D. in Organization Development and Higher Education. Her areas of interest are in leading and implementing change, leadership and staff development, performance measures, and organization development. Dr. Johnston’s article on “Measuring Effectiveness in Student Fiscal Services at the University of Washington” is in the 2007 book, Student Centered Financial Services. She teaches a variety of classes and workshops, and consults with higher education institutions and some federal agencies through her firm, Ruth A Johnston Consulting.

Dr. Johnston has just completed three years on the Executive Council for the National Consortium for Continuous Improvement (NCCI) where she served as program chair. She is also active with NACUBO (National Association of College and University Business Officers) and teaches/facilitates at the Central and Western regional professional development institutes and annual meetings.