Governance and Management
for a world class institution
John Fielden
CHEMS Consulting, UK
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Topics to cover
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World class status and governance
How do we define autonomy?
Interests of the State
Accountability
International trends in autonomy
Governance and executive management
A spectrum from control to regulation
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
World class status and governance
• Achieved by academic excellence in both
teaching and research
• Must be “internationalized” with partners
throughout the world for both teaching and
research
• Requires flexible and responsive
management with autonomy to act
• Does not need large endowments
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
How do we define autonomy?
• The ability to act without seeking approval from
the State.
• Usually involves for the individual:
– Academic freedom to publish and speak publicly
– Freedom to design and deliver teaching programs
that society and the market need
– Freedom to research whatever one wants
• Usually involves freedom for the university:
– To develop a unique university strategy
– To enrol and select students (within agreed numbers)
– to spend as it wishes within an agreed budget
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Interests of the State
• Achieving national targets and policy goals
for HE
• Ensuring equal access to HE for rich and
poor, both genders, and all races
• Maintaining and improving quality
• Keeping the cost of HE within reasonable
limits (possibly, sharing the cost with
parents, students or industry)
• Developing the national research capacity.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Accountability
In return for granting autonomy governments
expect universities to be accountable to
them in respect of four things:
* adherence to national goals and
policies.
* maintaining academic quality.
* financial honesty and value for money.
* good management and governance.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Accountability methods
• National goals
• Teaching quality
• Financial
• Good governance
• Ministry reviews of
performance
• External quality
reviews and internal
quality assurance
• Financial accounts
and audits
• Information reports
and statistics
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Strategy and planning
Normal model is
• A National Strategy for HE that sets
objectives and goals (up to 10 years)
• Universities prepare their own strategic
plans within the national framework
• Performance measures used at both
levels (eg: % of students from minorities)
• University plans can be creative and
develop their own distinctive strategies.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
International trends
• General move to greater autonomy (eg
Japan’s new legislation, some US states).
• MOEs are surrendering some functions to
buffer bodies or intermediate agencies.
• BUT a growth in scale and intrusiveness of
monitoring and reporting by governments.
• Increase in number of monitoring agencies
(eg: quality assurance).
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
The two extremes - Income
State controlled
• Autonomous
• MES grant
95%
• Students’ fees 3%
• Other charges 2%
• MES grant
40%
• Students’ fees 25%
• Research and
contract earnings 20%
• Other earnings 10%
• Donations etc
5%
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Income in two UK World class
universities (2007)
UCL ($907m)
(Times no 7)
Kings College London
($609m) (Times no 22)
Government grants
29%
34%
Domestic tuition fees
8%
12%
International fees
10%
6%
33.5%
27%
Other (residences
etc)
18%
19%
Investment income
1.5%
2%
Research
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
The two extremes - people
State controlled
• MES approves senior
appointments and
promotions
• Rigid national pay scales
and working hours for all
levels
• Rigid ratios limiting staff
numbers
• Life tenure for academic
staff
Autonomous
• Freedom to select and
promote staff
• Local pay scales and pay
bargaining
• Pay is able to reflect
performance and market
rates
• Tenure is becoming less
common – more contract
staff.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
The two extremes - property
State controlled
Autonomous
• All assets owned by the
State
• Disposals/additions tightly
controlled
• No private sector loans or
JV funding allowed
• Regulations on student
numbers and use of
space
• Assets can be owned by
the university.
• Disposals and asset
purchases allowed
subject to approval.
• Collaboration with
investors, banks or others
possible
• No space norms.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Extent of University Autonomy in 11 OECD
countries
Country
Own public
buildin
gs
Borrow
funds
Spend budgets to
achieve
objectives
Set academic
structure
and courses
Employ and
dismiss
staff
Y
Y
Y
Mexico
Y
Netherlands
Y
Y
Y
Poland
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Australia
Y
Y
Y
Y
Ireland
Y
Y
Y
Y
UK
Y
Y*
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Denmark
Y
Set staff
salaries
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Norway
Y
Y
Y
Finland
Y
Austria
Y
Y
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Sweden
Decide size of
student
enrolment
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Governance and Executive
Management
• Governance is the highest level
supervision of the mission and strategy of
a university, undertaken either by the
Ministry or an independent Board.
• Executive Management is performed by
the Rector and senior academic and
administrative colleagues who are wholly
accountable to the Ministry or the Board.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Legal basis
• An independent university can be established by
law, by Presidential Charter or by incorporation
as a company.
• The legal document usually sets out the powers
and duties of a Board.
• It also establishes the post of Rector and creates
the Academic Council.
• It also defines the power of the Minister as
regards regulation and closure.
• Important that it is not too specific.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Governance in the autonomous
university (USA and UK)
The functions of the Board are to:
• Appoint the President/V-C and monitor
his/her performance.
• Approve the mission and strategic plan,
budget and performance indicators.
• Monitor performance against the strategy
and plan.
• Establish and monitor control and risk
management systems.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Included in University’s own
Statutes and Regulations
• Role and powers of the Vice Chancellor or
President
• Role, powers and composition of
Academic Council
• Delegation of managerial powers to the
President’s Executive Team
• Details of internal decision making
processes and committee structures
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
TYPICAL (SIMPLE) UNIVERSITY
COMMITTEE STRUCTURE - UK
Board
Standing Committee
Remuneration Committee
Audit Committee
Nominations Committee
Membership Committee
Academic Council
Planning &
Finance
Committee
Learning and
Teaching
Committee
Estates
Committee
Safety
Committee
Information
Services
Committee
Human
Resources
Committee
Research
Committee
Regional &
Communications
Committee
Student
Services
Committee
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Academic
Planning
Committee
The State and Institutional
Management
Questions concern how far the State intervenes:
• Should the senior appointments require Presidential
approval? Eg, Rector, Dean.
• Should the State control the mission and vision of
institutions or let them have different missions?
• Should the Ministry seek to improve university
management practices? If so, how?
• What detailed decisions need central intervention – eg,
sales of property, bank borrowings?
• Are all State interventions absolutely necessary?
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
A spectrum from control to
regulation
• Central control by MES; they dictate the
information needed
• Less MES control, university needs better
information to manage itself
• No detailed MES control, so information is
designed to meet university’s needs.
• MES regulation of university through
requiring information reports on
performance.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
An example of too much regulation
or information - the UK?
• Detailed targets on domestic student numbers, social
class of students, and geographical location with
penalties for failure.
• Semi-mandatory requirements on good practice in risk
management, procurement, human resource
management.
• Production of strategies for property, people, teaching,
research, finance, ICT, e-learning, industrial links etc etc
• Extensive external audits of finance, teaching quality,
and achievement of all the national strategies.
• Special funding pockets have conditions attached.
• National laws on health and safety, racial, sexual or age
discrimination requiring annual reports.
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08
Good University Governance
• Powers of the main internal stakeholders are
understood and accepted by all.
• The Board, the Rector and Academic Council
work together and respect each other.
• The academic community accepts that the
decisions of the senior executives are in the
University’s best interests.
• Not too many committees, but enough to provide
for participation in key policy decisions.
• There are methods by which ideas and
information can flow both ways (up and down).
Astana: Strategies for the new
university. Dec 08