WARWICK SECONDMENT REPORT WARWICK INTERNATIONAL HIGHER EDUCATION ACADEMY, WARWICK UNIVERSITY
JANUARY 2019 JORDAN KIRKWOOD
For the attention of Professor Gwen van der Velden, Lisa Drummond and Alison Levey. This report aims to detail my experience and development at the University of Warwick, working as part of the Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA) from October 2018 to January 2019. The design of the secondment was such that I took part in a number of projects spanning a range of activities, skills and approaches to ensure a diversified experience and one that was flexible in aligning with the intended goals of the experience. Initially, Gwen and the wider team compiled a list of possible activities and projects, of which Gwen and I developed and prioritised according to my priorities for development. One of the early projects that I got involved in was exploring the communications and website platform for the WIHEA, reviewing current practice and seeking out ways to improve and enhance practice. This involved bringing together a number of different communications mechanisms, auditing the current offerings including physical and digital, and conducting discussions with WIHEA stakeholders to understand and address the gaps and issues as well as develop recommendations for a strategy/WIHEA Review. Following on from this, I also took part in organising a review of the WIHEA, which involved forming a working group comprising internal and external reviewers. The communication work also fed into this, as it seemed prudent to have the two pieces working together given the synergic elements of the two projects. Another project I undertook was the development and approval of the Student Module Evaluation Feedback Guidance. This was building on the progress that had been made by the Module Evaluation Learning Circle, and involved developing a holistic piece of guidance that was tailored in three tiers; students; administrative and support, and academic staff.
Something that I was involved in throughout my time was assisting in organising and automating the Fellows management and engagement systems, supporting the wider team in making more effective use of data entry and analysis, management reporting and engagement analysis. Whilst this was not an initial project upon arrival, as I got more involved I sought out ways to make the data and membership management processes smarter and less arduous for the team. This has had impacts on the delivery and accuracy of necessary reports which have proven crucial for governance, especially as we approach the WIHEA review. It further honed my skills with data management and embedded process that both speeds up and frees up time needed to draw down effective management and reporting information. One of the key challenges and learning curves, and something that I have later understood to be, at times, an organisational culture 'shock', was the truly huge devolved operation that is Warwick. With over 30 influential departments, low-key faculties and limited central services, this proved to be a whole different experience when it came to working and making progress. It took some getting used to, but there is a greater level of buy-in required that I think in a more 'top-down' or corporate institution, we often take for granted. This has proven to be a substantial learning opportunity as I had to apply my skills and knowledge in the context of the devolved operation, seeking buy-in, cross-departmental support, and effective negotiation skills. Just for illustrative purpose, Warwick University has 3 different VLEs (one faculty built their own!). It has been an eye-opening experience and a delight to work with Gwen, Lisa, Michelle, Sue and many others, including the vibrant pool of WIHEA Fellows. Gwen has been instrumental in helping build a narrative and understanding of the strategy and operation of Warwick, which has been very insightful. I've enjoyed getting involved in the Fellow's experience through engaging with the lunch and learns, learning circles and wider events aimed at enhancing the teaching and learning (or more broadly, student experience) at Warwick. Thank you for making it possible. Yours sincerely, Jordan Kirkwood