Mrs Cherry Tse Ling Kit-ching likes to solve problems and she made a very successful career of that in the civil service, rising to Permanent Secretary of such portfolios as Education and Home Affairs. Now, at HKU, she is taking on new challenges that are both daunting and exciting. As the new Executive Vice-President (Administration and Finance), she oversees all the supporting services and infrastructure, including physical space, that keep the University ticking. The demands are high, given student numbers have risen more than 90 per cent over the past decade or so, and staff numbers and activities are way up, too. But unlike academic work, where the University has responded quickly and deftly to new developments such as AI, it takes a lot more time and negotiation to change systems and build structures to accommodate growth. “My sense of purpose is very clear: we must use resources wisely to provide an inspiring learning environment and better support for teaching and learning, research, and students’ wholesome development. But it is quite a struggle because space is limited and the increases have not caught up with student growth. That said, we always face problems in life. Things often seem impossible until they are done. So, try your best and don’t give up,” she said. An experienced administrator with years in senior government positions under her belt, Mrs Cherry Tse Ling Kit-ching is HKU’s new Executive Vice-President (Administration and Finance), tasked with advancing the support systems for a large, complex and growing institution. Keeping the Wheels Turning Mrs Tse is bringing a similar focus on collective effort to her role at HKU. She is meeting with different colleagues to hear their views on how to make the HKU environment better for students and academics. One issue that inevitably comes up is transport. During peak hours, there are long queues at the HKU MTR station for lifts to the campus. Mrs Tse has tried all the travel options herself to understand the situation better. “I will be seeking help to address these matters, so I want to be able to describe the situation from first-hand knowledge,” she said. She is also concerned with maintaining a sense of community at a time when HKU is adding academic units. Five interdisciplinary schools were recently created, in addition to the 10 faculties. “Being a comprehensive university is a strength in itself. But as knowledge evolves and grows, so does the supporting administrative machinery. How can we ensure that we stay coordinated and communicate well, while working in specialist areas? This is a challenge for the administrator not only at HKU but any large organisation that needs to thrive amid uncertainties,” she said. This is a question Mrs Tse will be addressing in coordination with the Senior Management Team. She has come out of retirement to take up this post and is keen to be a team player and give back to her alma mater, which gave her many new and happy experiences beyond her grassroots upbringing. “Here at HKU, we are already a lot more fortunate than many others. We should be grateful. And when we are able to contribute to the good of the community, then we should do it,” she said. Lessons from bar-benders Mrs Tse has drawn that lesson from her 38 years in the civil service, which she joined straight from HKU after earning a Bachelor of Arts majoring in history. Her role as an administrative officer suited the curious side of her personality because every few years she was moved to entirely new departments and had to start from scratch to master complex issues – hence, her understanding about not giving up. Mrs Cherry Tse Ling Kit-ching Being a comprehensive university is a strength in itself. But as knowledge evolves and grows, so does the supporting administrative machinery. How can we ensure that we stay coordinated and communicate well, while working in specialist areas? Maintaining connections HKU Bulletin | Nov 2025 People 40 41 “It was tough because you are always climbing a steep learning curve, but that also makes life interesting. I think I would feel bored if I was asked to do the same thing over and over again,” she said. One of her most challenging and instructive experiences came just a few weeks into her new post as Commissioner for Labour in 2007. Bar-benders in the construction industry went on strike for 36 days, one of the longest strikes in Hong Kong’s post-war history. As part of the mediating efforts, Mrs Tse decided to break down barriers between the union and the trade association by inviting them to meals and karaoke sessions. Post-strike, she facilitated discussions to address the root cause of the dispute that eventually led to refinements to the wage negotiation cycle and mechanism. Other construction trades took reference. To date, there has been no recurrence of trade-wide salary disputes in the construction sector. “This experience changed my approach to problemsolving. Yes, we had to tackle the most urgent issue but once that had been resolved, we examined the cause in an amicable atmosphere that we had helped forge. It was a collective effort,” she said.
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