The Covenant, assessing progress
Welcome back to a new term and my congratulations to all colleagues who secured academic promotions in the 2018/19 round. I enjoyed celebrating their achievements at an event last week and was particularly pleased to see the significant increase in the proportion of women promoted – an increase of 10 percentage points to more than 47% of all academic promotions.
As I enter my second summer term as Nottingham’s Vice-Chancellor, we also approach the anniversary of my proposing a Covenant with staff to improve trust, transparency and engagement across the University. I would like to use this blog to take stock and assess progress.
As we develop our strategic direction for the next decade and beyond, I have been pleased with the thoughtful and committed way in which so many colleagues have responded to the consultation on our new University Strategy. More than 2000 people or groups submitted comments to the Green Paper consultation led by Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Andy Long, and more than 17,000 opinions were elicited through events and the consultation questionnaire. Work is now underway to produce a draft University Strategy, with further opportunity for staff input during the summer.
In terms of our digital and physical infrastructure, Campus Solutions has been delivered successfully against its revised timetable. However, I am in no doubt there remains considerable work to do to realise the benefits of the new system and - more importantly - deliver tangible improvements on the ground for both staff and students. Now that the system is live, I will ensure that outstanding actions are delivered from last year’s review of the organisational effectiveness of student support. In addition to this work on Campus Solutions, the University’s Estates Director, Linda Goodacre, is leading work on a new masterplan for our physical infrastructure that will maximise use of our existing estate, enhance our sustainability and upgrade the condition of our existing buildings to provide the very best environments in which to research, teach and study.
Whatever happens with Brexit, our global culture, presence, reputation and reach are more important than they have ever been. We are creating a new model for global engagement that continues to draw extensively on our campuses in China and Malaysia, but also focuses more broadly on high quality international partnerships, research reputation and enhanced global opportunities for students and staff. The University of Nottingham has recently had a high profile presence at some significant events, including the Universitas 21 conference at the University of Maryland, the British Council ‘Great’ Festival in Hong Kong and the British Council Going Global Conference in Berlin. We are seeking new ways to identify additional opportunities from the multiple global engagements of staff throughout the institution. I also hope that we will, as part of the new University Strategy, consider how a ‘global’ experience for students and staff can be cultivated on each of our campuses, even for those who are not able, or do not wish, to spend time abroad.
One of my personal objectives is to ensure that the wellbeing and positive engagement of our staff and students is a hallmark of the Nottingham experience. We continue to have a huge amount of work to do here, but I feel significant progress has been made over the last year in eliciting ideas for improvement from staff, and in working collaboratively with trade unions on issues of mutual concern.
‘Task and finish’ groups are developing solutions to a range of issues, including career progression, senior pay, appraisal and development, and how we reward the highest standards of performance. Working with UCU, we are developing a new set of principles to ensure hourly-paid teaching staff are employed consistently and paid fairly. New task groups will start work this term to ensure that we have the highest professional standards in tackling workplace bullying and sexual misconduct in our staff and student communities, and we will be reviewing student discipline codes, with a particular emphasis on the misuse of social media.
I am particularly pleased with progress in the drive to improve equality, diversity and inclusion, led by Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Sarah Sharples, developing and consulting staff on our EDI Delivery Plan and commencing work to secure the Race Equality Charter for Nottingham. I have offered personal support for some of these initiatives through my VC mentoring programme and my monthly surgeries - both of which have been beneficial for me, and I hope have supported colleagues who have taken advantage of them.
Since my arrival, I have been keen to improve the access and ease with which staff can get information they need. To further this goal, I am delighted to introduce the new Staff Room information hub for colleagues on our UK campuses. This has been designed in extensive consultation with staff of all grades and job families. It provides news, a gateway to other platforms and the most requested useful links to services. It will also support our approach to more transparent governance by making the minutes of University Executive Board and Committee meetings easily accessible. We will keep the page under review, inviting and acting upon feedback across the term.
Reflecting further on our governance, my colleagues on the University’s Council, Executive Board and Senate have spent significant time improving its rigour and ensuring that decisions are made at the right levels in the organisation. Following a number of changes made to UEB sub-committees as well as a culture review of Council and UEB relationships, I feel that we are beginning to develop a more transparent and inclusive model of decision-making and governance that reduces duplication and increases joined-up thinking. There is still further work needed to test how well this approach is working. However, already I feel that UEB is benefiting from a greater variety of the expertise, ideas and views from across our community, and our committees now include members of staff who represent our diversity in all its forms. A Senate effectiveness review will take place next academic year as part of this larger project, and there is still work to do to consider how these principles operate at Faculty and School/Department levels.
This is only a snapshot of some of the developments inside our University, and to enable all of this and so much more, we will be investing over the next five years to support our priorities in research, teaching and infrastructure. Over the same period, a task group sponsored by Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Sam Kingman, will be leading a new programme, Getting in Shape — Investing in our Future, to identify additional income streams, increase efficiency and reduce waste to ensure that we continue to flourish sustainably in the face of the financial challenges that Brexit and the Augar Review will undoubtedly present. Sam will be publishing more details and inviting your support for this important programme shortly.
I want to end by referring again to the Covenant, in which I pledged to work with colleagues to improve transparency, governance and wellbeing, as well as ensuring shared accountability and shared ambition. Culture changes do not happen overnight, and it takes some time before they are truly felt on the ground. I recognise that however many improvements we make, we can always do more, but I hope that some of the reforms outlined in this blog are a step in the right direction. I appreciate the input from so many people in the University who have contributed to the various task groups, programmes and committees, and I look forward to continuing to press ahead with these reforms.
Professor Shearer West
Vice-Chancellor
13 May 2019