How Kris Weir and Becky DiMattia Launched a Self-Service Space Sharing Model at BU Questrom

Questrom recently underwent a space-sharing makeover thanks to Kris Weir, Director of Operations and Space Planning, and Becky DiMattia, Associate Director of System Administration & Operations in the Registrar’s Office. While Questrom’s space reservation system worked like a charm in the past, the growing body of adjunct faculty was making it challenging for our administration to fully accommodate reservation needs. Kris and Becky collaborated to bring a new self-service space-sharing system to Questrom through a platform called Skedda, which freed up time and transformed the culture among space-sharing stakeholders.

When Questrom faculty growth had come to a head, with only 170 offices for 240 professors, Kris and Becky knew they needed to find a way to streamline space sharing, and fast. While the prior system suited our school’s needs years ago, the two realized it had its restrictions, including limited access to the reservation system for ‘special spaces’, which made it much harder to resolve any conflicts or classroom-tech issues.

On top of that, our school’s event manager, “one of this school’s brightest lights” according to Becky, had resigned. Her leadership and efforts to host polished professional events and executive education made an incredible positive impact. Her departure presented an opportunity for the Questrom Registrar’s Office to try a new approach to managing the school’s space reservations and they adopted the Skedda reservation system. Years later, Kris came up with the idea to leverage Skedda to allow adjunct faculty to self-schedule in shared office spaces. Kris and Becky’s collaboration marked the beginning of a system wide shift.  

Last summer, Becky and Kris launched their new office hoteling model. Adjuncts and TAs could now reserve shared office space on-demand, using secure links tailored to their access level. The transition was fast, and the feedback was even faster. “It was just, ‘Thanks!’” Becky recalled. “They clicked the link and booked their space. That was it.”

“Skedda has drastically reduced the workload of office assignments, removed the assumptions we make about our adjunct faculty working preferences, and allowed them a choice of offices to work from,” says Kris. “It takes a matter of hours to set up all faculty, send informational emails, and give out keys. This process was taking weeks to sort out who was assigned where.”

Becky recently shared the stage with the Senior VP of Skedda at the Tradeline University Facilities Conference in Boston to present Questrom’s use of self-service reservations and “special” space reservations.

Their session, “Maximizing Space Efficiency: BU’s Journey to Shared Offices and Seamless Room Scheduling,” spotlighted how Questrom’s approach to space has evolved into a transparent, self-service model. 

This change did more than solve an office crunch. It sparked a cultural shift. By decentralizing access and trusting users, Becky and Kris’s teams eliminated bottlenecks, increased transparency, and used real-time data to inform decision-making. It also supported accessibility needs and policy compliance, all without adding a single square foot of new construction. “We had to let go of the idea that only admins could manage space responsibly,” Becky explained. This shift allowed independence without chaos. Her advice for other higher ed leaders? “Don’t be afraid to decentralize.”

Becky DiMattia has worked at Questrom for almost 20 years and is a Terrier herself as she received her Master’s in Education from BU. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Art History from Ithaca College and enjoys painting and volunteering at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Kris Weir has been with Questrom since December of 2022 and is also a Terrier having graduated from the Boston University Metropolitan College in 2018. Kris got her Bachelor’s Degree in Bachelor of Creative Arts, Theatre Studies, from University of Southern Queensland and has in depth experience in Theatrical Production and Stage Management.

Questrom runs on incredible staff like Becky and Kris!