newslink
Issue number 74
Inspiring professionalism in higher education
featured in this issue
High level overview of the AUA’s activities for the sector
First in a series on charitable giving and the AUA Become an AUA Advocate
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Featured in this issue Front Cover Picture: Provided by Coppermedia.co.uk Proofreaders: Laura Ashcroft – AUA National Office Katy Beavers MAUA – University of Westminster Liz Buckton FAUA – University of Sheffield Lisa Burton MAUA – Warwick Business School Neil Matthews MAUA Sarah Megson MAUA – University of Kent Martine Somerville MAUA – Leeds Trinity University College
2 Reflections from the Executive Director 3 Outgoing Chair’s Column 4 Incoming Chair’s Column 5 Obituary - Dr Tony Rich 5 Call for AUA Conference Proposals 6 Spotlight: Sue Boswell 7 The AUA: Inspiring professionalism in higher education 8 AUA Membership Accreditation 9 Become an AUA Advocate 10 CPD Behaviour 12 Profile on Perspectives Incoming Editor
13 Latest Perspectives overview 14 Make a Charitable Donation 16 Week in the Life: Liz Wilkinson 18 Marketing’s Hidden Talents 19 AACRAO SEM Conference report 20 Issues in Brief 21 Student at Large 22 Themed Networks 23 AUA Events 24 Gill Hinson MBE 25 Network News 26 Annual Awards 27 AUA News
Reflections from the Executive Director The new strategy has been launched, the new membership categories are now available, modernised and professionalised network support arrangements are in place - once again I have to say the AUA has been busy! Over the last four years I have been enormously privileged to be your Executive Director, leading the Association through a remarkable phase of its history. As well as celebrating our golden jubilee in 2011 we have all worked hard to position the AUA to meet the challenges facing our sector and evolve to be fit for the future. We have engaged with new strategic partners in ways only dreamt of by our founders - the admissions route through the PgCert with UCAS, recognition and
adoption of our CPD Framework across the sector, a closer relationship with NUS, and funding from both HEFCE and JISC. Of course we are also weathering the most hostile economic climate in a generation and adapting to an almost unrecognisable HE sector. The ongoing challenge for all of us will be to do even more with even less. For a professional association like AUA the focus has to be on staying relevant and useful to those who decide (quite rightly!) that their professional membership is essential to their own competitive advantage. As I prepare to end my tenure as Executive Director I am of course reflecting on what has been achieved and what is still to do, and of all the people who have made it possible. At its heart AUA is a membership organisation - inspired by the membership, influenced by the membership - but a membership organisation which serves a far broader community of practice. So I want to say a huge personal thank you to all of you who give generously of your time, energy and expertise to support the work of the Association.
I have enjoyed the pleasure of working with some hugely committed Officers and Trustees and wish them well for the future. There are many, many others I could mention here - Council members, PgCert mentors and Board of Studies, the Perspectives Editorial Advisory Board - but my greatest personal thanks go to the National Office Team. As professional administrators we know well that the invisible hands behind the scenes really are keeping our organisations going. Being the ‘admin’ behind the professional association for administrators is often an uncomfortable place, so I want to say a very public thank you to the friends and colleagues I have worked with over the last four years. The AUA really is lucky to have a dedicated and professional team coordinating and amplifying the energy and efforts of the membership. During the jubilee we encouraged everyone to look back to celebrate past achievements, look forward with aspiration and ambition, and look beyond for fresh perspectives - it is with this firmly in mind that I wish you all every good fortune for the future.
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Chair’s Column
Celebrating Change and Continuity Author: Christopher Hallas FAUA, Outgoing Chair of AUA and Director of Student Affairs, University of Greenwich pathways and progression, CPD and the AUA professional behaviours. Discussions were progressed through extensive consultations and at the April 2012 AGM members resolved to endorse proposals for accredited membership frameworks, devised on the basis of those discussions.
sector partners, especially those involved with us via the AUA Council, and those engaged with us via continuing and new service delivery partnerships. The roll-out of the CPD framework has resulted in the profile of AUA being raised to new levels in many HEI’s.
PgCert and Professional Development Two years ago I reported that you could anticipate possible development of further specialist pathways on the PgCert programme and possible establishment of additional certified awards. After participation in Open University Validation Service review in May 2012 we received AUA institutional and PgCert re-validation for a period of three years. This included validation of a modularised structure to the PgCert programme, which better recognises the achievement of participants, enhances programme flexibility and allows the establishment of possible new specialist awards. A Short Life Working Group (SLWG) is being commissioned to consider future developments and possible future awards in the light of the opportunities that we’ve created.
Consolidating our Personality, our brand as an inclusive, diverse and personable organisation was also a priority. As mentioned in Newslink 73, I’m especially proud of the increasing diversity that AUA presents. At the launch event for our new strategy I observed that those present represented great diversity, in its broadest sense, not only in terms of gender and age but in terms of background and experience. We had representatives from all mission group HEI’s, from not-for-profit and for-profit organisations, from small and from very large HEI’s. We had participants who hold very senior roles within the sector and also participants who are new to HE careers. Today, those who speak for us, to us and with us at our events and via our other forums represent our developing diversity and our inclusivity. I also set out Passion as an abstract area for consideration – our commitment as an organisation to our values and as individuals to our profession. I’ve seen a tremendous degree of commitment to, and passion for, AUA during my term as Chair. I think it’s important to note that over two years we’ve had greater numbers of colleagues demonstrating their commitment to AUA, for example: standing for election, offering candidacy for appointment to roles, taking up volunteer roles, or presenting proposals for conference sessions.
Past Priorities In my first article in Newslink 66, I set out some priorities for my term of office and some of the developments you could expect to become involved with, in one way or another. In my last column I reviewed one of them, the exploration of chartered status, and I’ll touch upon others now.
Publications and Communications I projected that you could expect to see consolidation of our publishing activities, new directions undertaken in terms of our e-services and our use of social media. We can celebrate the fact that Newslink remains an evermore popular, tangible feature of AUA membership, as evidenced by member surveys undertaken during 2011 strategy consultations. We’ve reviewed and amended arrangements for managing the operation of the Perspectives Editorial Board, working with our publishers, and you’ll see the outcomes from this in future editions of the Journal. Our website today can be appreciated as something of a new, modern generation in comparison to that which we presented in the sector two years ago. We can celebrate the development of extensive on-line services for members and can now turn our minds to encouraging greater take-up and usage by members. As for social media, our current use of Twitter and LinkedIn places us in a more advanced place than we were two years ago.
Membership I projected that you could expect to become involved in discussions on membership frameworks, with development of new categories of membership linked to career
Prestige, Personality and Passion A priority has been to build and develop the standing of AUA, our activities and the value of membership – our Prestige. We now have closer and stronger links with
In this edition of Newslink I share Chair’s Column with our new Chair, Matthew Andrews. As I stand down from the role and as Matthew becomes Chair, there’s a double opportunity for us to share our thoughts with you, looking to the past, looking to the future and looking beyond, as we encouraged all to do during our 2011 Golden Jubilee year celebrations. Change and Continuity I write my last article for Chair’s Column with past articles laid out before me – a two year spread of time, set out for review. I see headings: “Certainties in Uncertain Times”, “New Horizons”, “New Reflections”, “Reflections and Projections”, “Predicting the Future” and “Rites of Passage”. All suggest the changing and turbulent times we’ve been experiencing in the sector and within which AUA has been operating. In this edition of Newslink “change” is again a prevalent theme. However, I’d like to emphasise that we also have continuity. Matthew and I have worked together over the last year, with other Trustees, our President, Alison Johns, and Executive Director Alison Robinson Canham, to ensure that as we switch roles our strategic developments and operational activities continue, as planned and as projected. This has another current relevance since, as you’ll see from her own reflection, Alison will shortly leave the role of Executive Director to pursue other professional and personal interests. Matthew has shared the priorities that I’ve had as Chair and I share those he has for his term of office, set out in his column overleaf. You will see the development and continuity between them – while I look to the past and review some aspects of the last two years, Matthew looks to the future and our directions over the next two.
All Good Things ... When I closed the 2011 Jubilee Conference I made reference to the old saying that “all good things ....must come to and end” and I set out reasons for you to challenge that. My term of office as Chair comes to an end but the good things we’ve achieved during the past two years definitely do not. They will be taken forward and developed further under the aegis of our new Chair. I’ve greatly enjoyed my term of office as your Chair and I look forward to serving as your Vice Chair, and supporting Matthew in achieving new things for our professional association. Now, please turn the page, because “After All, Tomorrow is Another Day”.
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Incoming Chair
A Dedication to Excellence Author: Matthew Andrews FAUA, Incoming Chair of AUA and Academic Registrar, Oxford Brookes University
Being the Chair of the AUA is an honour. It’s also hard work! That much is clear from my year as Vice-Chair. As with so much in life, however, hard work in a good cause brings great rewards and the AUA certainly is a good cause. Those people who attended the launch event for our new strategy will have heard my thoughts on the charitable objective of the AUA because, when planning our future, it is worth reminding ourselves why the AUA exists at all. In our constitution, the Object of the Association is defined as being ‘to advance and assist in the advancement of education by fostering sound methods of leadership, management and administration in further and higher education by education, training, and other means’. The formulation of this objective captures for me one of the main reasons I am so passionate about the AUA: because we exist to advance and assist the advancement of education. Higher education is something which enables individuals to build better lives, ‘to lead lives of consequence’, in the words of John Henry Brookes. But the benefits accrue to society, as much as to the individual, and through the education offered, the research undertaken, and the links of all types developed between institutions and their communities and businesses, higher education contributes enormously to the well-being of the UK and Ireland. That is what the AUA exists to do: to advance education. This is done by all staff who work in higher education, through their work
towards the aims of their institutions, in whatever capacity they are working. Whether that role is teaching, researching, administration, management, professional services, manual roles or the numerous forms of leadership which exist in support of these activities, the aim is the same: to advance education. What about ‘assisting’ in the advancement of education? Well, as John Donne put it so well: ‘No man is an island, entire of itself’. Especially as higher education has become more complex, and has grown to a scale which previous generations would have scarcely imagined possible, that complexity has resulted in more, different, and specialised roles. This means that none of us can work on our own and we must work with and through others. If we remove part of that whole, we are the less for it. Each member of the AUA needs not only to focus on attaining excellence in their own work, but also on finding ways to assist others. Our Professional Behaviours framework includes many key traits needed to carry this out: ‘working with people’, ‘developing self and others’, and ‘providing direction’. (You can read more about ‘working with people’ later on in this edition of Newslink.) The object is also important for what it does not say. It does not say that the AUA exists only to support ‘administrators’ (whatever one of those is). It exists to support all who work in higher education in any aspect of administration, management, or leadership. I’ve already noted the developing complexity and scale of higher education, and that complexity and scale can only be sustained by individuals who are dedicated to excellence in their own roles. The need to engage with this agenda – the AUA’s agenda – has never been more important. Being Chair of the AUA will therefore be hard work. I have an excellent example to follow, in the form of the Outgoing Chair.
I am, however, going to save my praise for Christopher’s leadership for another occasion because as I take up the role of Chair Christopher becomes Vice-Chair. Christopher is a firm fixture of the AUA’s senior leadership team for another year yet, and I am looking forward to a future occasion when I will seek to do his tenure as Chair justice. My priorities as Chair will be: • Ensuring the successful take-up of our new membership tiers: Accredited Member and Fellow. (You’ll find all the details later on in this edition of Newslink.) • Embedding the new network structure, to bring real benefit to members through our geographical and thematic networks. • Working with the team in the National Office, and the Board of Trustees, to develop further a comprehensive and sustainable business model. • Enhancing the reputation of the AUA still further as a provider of accessible, high quality network and national events. • Creating closer and stronger links with our sector partners and projecting the AUA to the sector and beyond. Making sure our new strategy is implemented, after a period of deep and wide consultation, is a top priority. I therefore look forward to a period of consolidation. Standing still is not something we can do either, though, and there is always more work to do. One of the topics I am addressing with the Board of Trustees, just to take one example, is the possibility of institutional membership. Over the next three issues of Newslink I intend to continue to think about the AUA and why it exists. To do so, I’m going to consider our name. That’s another topic often raised! For now, however, I will explore what each part of the name means for us as a professional association: starting with ‘association’ and ending with ‘administrator’.
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Obituary
Tony Rich FAUA 1954-2012 Author: Christopher Hallas FAUA
Many, many colleagues will join with me in remembering Tony Rich, an admired and respected member of the HE professional community and an enthusiastic and popular contributor to the work and activities of our professional association, AUA. Tony died on 17 July, after contracting and dealing with incurable cancer, an illness that precluded him from taking his career in new, planned directions, and which prevented him from continuing to contribute to the work of AUA and other HE professional groups to the extent that he always wanted to be able to do. Tony’s HE career involved roles at a number of HEI’s: • 1984 University of Warwick • 1989 University of Sheffield • 1991 University of East Anglia • 1999 University of Essex • 2011 University of Bristol Colleagues who knew Tony very well in connection with his AUA activities have commented as follows: • He made great contributions to the work and development of AUA over almost 30 years and helped people to change their professional lives • Tony served as a Trustee for more than 10 years, 1992-2004, and as memorable Treasurer for much of that time • He made invaluable contributions to many AUA Conferences and was a key
presenter on the International Stream at conference for many years • Tony ran numerous “Introduction to HE workshops” sharing his knowledge and understanding with newcomers to the sector and new generations of HE professionals • He was a great supporter of AUA, especially during his time at the University of Essex – a star branch which “punched above its weight” • As well as supporting AUA, Tony made significant contributions to the work of ARC and AHUA, and served as Chair for the 1994 Group of Registrar’s • On a more personal note, Tony was an Old Lag – ie a member of the “Old Lag” Quiz team that performed exceedingly well in the AUA Annual Conference quizzes Tony was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Essex earlier in 2012 and Colin Riordan, VC of the University and a member of AUA, has said that “Tony was admired and respected throughout the sector as an exemplary registrar and secretary, and made an immense contribution to the university and to the broader community.”
I cannot add anything further to Colin’s comment other than to endorse it and emphasis the significance and scope of Tony’s contributions to the broader He community, especially AUA. It should be no surprise that Tony was appointed as an Honorary Fellow of AUA (FAUA), in recognition of his significant contributions to the work of the Association and the development of HE professionalism throughout his long career in HE, most recently in his roles as Registrar & Secretary at the University of Essex and as Chief Operating Officer at the University of Bristol. Colleagues recently paid tribute to Tony at the Tony Rich Lecture, “The Impact of Universities on their regions”, held on 26 April, at which Tony clearly enjoyed the opportunity for networking that such events present. Of course, when we spoke he wanted all the recent AUA news. Tony provided a short item for our Jubilee article in Newslink 71 and you can see this and read Tony’s own words on page 14 of that issue – I hope you will.
AUA Conference and Exhibition - Call for session proposals 25-27 March 2013 - The Edinburgh International Conference Centre Visiting the beautiful city of Edinburgh for the first time in its current format, the 2013 AUA Annual Conference and Exhibition promises to be bigger and better than ever. A fixture of the higher education calendar for more than 40 years, the conference aims to promote excellence in higher education management through personal and professional development. Session proposals for 2013 are now being accepted. Proposals are welcomed from
all, and presenting at Conference would of course count towards an Accredited Member or Fellowship application. Papers should align one of the following strands: • Self (e.g. skills, professional behaviours, wellbeing) • Team (e.g. working with others, management, cultural change) • Institution (e.g. policy and strategy, current issues and challenges, specialisms)
• Sector (e.g. international, national policies, commercial, CPD Framework) For further information on the proposal application process and criteria as well as the application form, please visit the AUA website www.aua.ac.uk. Session proposals must be received by 16 September 2012.
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Spotlight
Profile Article: Sue Boswell Author: Sue Boswell FAUA, Assistant Editor of perspectives
‘Thank goodness I’m out of it!’ I try to keep it to myself, but so often when copy-editing a paper for perspectives that’s the thought that crosses my mind. I look at the plethora of changing regulations, the complexities of modern-day university administration, the pressures from all directions, and I’m amazed and impressed that any real progress is ever made. Of course, pitying the younger generations is nothing new – we all think things were better in our youth – but when I look back I really do see a time when there was flexibility to get on with the job without undue interference. There were fewer of us too! This for me was back in the early seventies. I’d spent four years doing some part-time lecturing – I had two small children at the time – whilst also being responsible with my husband for a hall of residence at Goldsmiths, University of London. Flexibility – the French Department time-tabled us so that one of us was always free to look after the family. More flexibility – when I decided the academic life was not for me, I took on odd jobs in the administration, just helping out when and where I could. I loved it! Amongst my responsibilities were the College’s vacation lettings programme, the Junior Year programme for American students, and committee servicing. And I suppose it turned out that I had a gift for it. It was when a new Registrar arrived at Goldsmiths and, wondering what to do with this odd-job person, and looking around to see what was missing in the admin structure – quite a bit, since the College had never been generously funded – that the notion of making me an Information Officer came into view and set me off on the direction I’ve followed ever since. Moral of the story: grab whatever opportunities come your way – you don’t know where they’ll lead. Fortunately, through our links with the University of London, I soon became involved with SCUIO, the Standing
Conference of University Information Officers – it later merged with its polytechnic counterpart to become HEERA, Higher Education External Relations Association. Attending meetings with other Information Officers, including participating in a trip around German universities to meet those doing similar work there, led me on a steep learning curve and brought me into contact with the gurus of the time. I realised from early on how valuable such contacts are; and though in certain aspects we were competitors, it never seemed that way. There was always something to learn. CUA was a natural next step. Here there was a complication: Goldsmiths at that time had a rather anomalous status within the University of London, referred to by our erstwhile Warden, Richard Hoggart, as being ‘below the salt’. We were actually refused entry to the University’s Registrars’ Dining Club – not something that caused me too much grief, but it was indicative of the attitude towards us in certain quarters. Not so with CUA! In 1980 I set up a Branch at Goldsmiths, and applied to join, and all went smoothly. As Branch Correspondent I was a great believer in using social events to oil the wheels; Branch members had monthly meetings over sandwich lunches, and an outing to a restaurant at the end of each term. My thought was, if you feel fed up with something the Finance Department or Registry have done, how can you pick up a phone and bawl out someone that you were drinking with only last week? Our colleagues became mates, not faceless names on the other end of the phone. We did more serious things too, of course, with presentations at the meetings and feedback from conferences.
From 1979 to 1981 I took a two-year postgraduate Diploma in Educational Administration, feeling the need of some formal training. As part of the course, I completed a dissertation on internal communication in higher education, a subject close to my heart, and the academic reading certainly gave me many insights into the subject. Communication has remained a major interest, not just for work but for life in general. ‘If they haven’t heard it you haven’t said it,’ became a motto: I was particularly interested in what the obstacles to effective communication were, whether it was overly bureaucratic language or publications that looked too glossy and expensive for their purpose. This is in the perception of the recipient, remember – glossy may be the cheapest paper, but the message it conveys may be the opposite. And putting yourself in the shoes of the recipient may be the most important thing you can do. This led to my first involvement with CUA at the national level, and before I knew it, I had become Editor of the CUA Newsletter. This was a time before we had a national staffed office; apart from writing the newsletter I typed it (the technology ran to an electronic typewriter, so I could change the fonts, but word processors were way in the future) and I also maintained the mailing list of Branch correspondents. When I wasn’t spending my evenings playing my clarinet, I was in the office pounding away at the typewriter – being a touch typist was a convenient skill. During my five years as Editor I was elected to the CUA Executive Committee and served two terms. At first, I was the only woman on the Committee. Hard to imagine such a situation
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now! I became Vice-Chair and later Chair of the Publications Committee, and we launched the Good Practice Guides. This was when I noticed that many colleagues, whilst having great enthusiasm and expertise in their subject, did not always have the skills to write clearly and coherently – and above all, concisely. So I took on the task the of editing the Guides and preparing them for the designer; and yes, I was usually the one who thought up those punny titles. In total, I was responsible for thirty Guides over the years. Meanwhile, back at base, I continued to develop the various aspects of my work. I became responsible for servicing the College’s governing body and other high-level committees; I took over from Registry responsibility for the preparation of prospectuses; I launched an internal newsletter; the Reprographic Service came into my ambit; and I continued with media liaison, corporate identity, alumni relations in due course, and special events – when the University of London devolved graduation ceremonies to individual colleges I was closely involved, with Registry colleagues, in organising these. Fortunately, along with this growing workload, I acquired a small team, and promotions came my way, from Assistant Registrar to Senior
Assistant Registrar and finally to Head of Secretariat and External Relations at the coveted Grade 6 – for younger readers that equated to professorial level. You may be surprised to know that after three enjoyable decades at Goldsmiths I took early retirement and moved to Queen Mary, University of London, as Head of Alumni Relations, later Head of Medical and Dental Alumni Relations. Back to the chalk face! It was good to be back doing the real job, not writing policy papers and managing others, but getting my hands figuratively dirty. CUA of course merged with APA and morphed into AUA, and perspectives came into being. Early on I realised that copy-editing would improve the quality of the Journal, and its founding Editor agreed, so I took that on. I’ve always thought that my French degree has been a factor in my ability with language – along with my being a lifelong bookworm! I have certainly spent many hours with my blue pencil and my colleagues’ prose. I have enjoyed it all. Along the way I have become a Fellow of AUA (and a Freeman of the City of London) – and made many friends. Not that there will be any empty space to fill in my life.
When I left Queen Mary, after ten years, it was the daily commute that had got to me – often an hour and half of train and tube each way – those who have a ten-minute drive to work, count your blessings! I certainly wasn’t ready to put my feet up, and I became the Honorary Secretary of the League of Friends at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, and am still heavily involved as a Trustee and Chair of its Publications Committee. I have also continued with freelance copy-editing, and I collaborated with my husband on a publication for UUK about university fundraising. (He was the founding Executive Director of CASE Europe – the US-based Council for Advancement and Support of Education – but that’s another story.) My latest consuming interest is as a Volunteer Translator for the Wiener Library, the world’s oldest institution for the study of the Holocaust and genocide – work that I hope will still be useful when I’m long gone. So if there is one thought I should like to leave with AUA and its members it is to beware of ageism: we oldies are not all past it, and many of us still have a valuable contribution to make.
AUA inspiring professionalism in higher education As an organisation, we exist for our members. We offer support to help you enhance careers, boost your job prospects and create valuable networking opportunities. In short, we empower our members to take control of their career development. For a high-level overview of the AUA’s activities for not just its members but also the Higher Education sector as a whole, see our publication “Inspiring professionalism in higher education” by following the following link: www.aua.ac.uk/About.aspx
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Strategy
Membership Accreditation You’ll have seen in the last issue of Newslink that we are making some changes to our membership categories. Your membership categories now include the opportunity to have your CPD formally accredited by the Association. We’ve introduced a new core membership category, Accredited Member, which will bridge the gap between Member and Fellow. Professional Reflection
If you are a current Full Member of the Association then why not consider becoming an Accredited Member or Fellow? There will be three main requirements to become an Accredited Member or a Fellow, and we’ll be asking you to provide evidence of the following: • CPD • Professional Capability • Professional Reflection The new ePD, electronic Personal Development log on our Members’ area is the perfect way to get started. The ePD allows you to plan, record and manage your own professional development goals and CPD activities. Check out your ePD on the My Interests tab on the Members’ area, members.aua.ac.uk. CPD
The minimum requirement for Accredited Member will be 25 hours of CPD over the previous two years.
The minimum requirement for Fellow will be 30 hours of substantial and enhanced CPD over the previous three years.
You can track your CPD in the CPD Activity Diary on your ePD, which you can then transfer over to your online application. And don’t forget your CPD can take many forms. Attended an AUA or in house training course? That’s CPD. Read an interesting article that had an impact on your work? CPD again! Delivered a session at the Annual Conference? Wrote an article? Job shadowed? Mentored a colleague? You got it, all CPD! The CPD Activity Diary allows you to record the activity, how long it lasted, and the form it took.
This is arguably the most important requirement of our accreditation. Professional reflection allows you to go beyond simply ticking a box, it encourages you to think about the impact your CPD has had. What was the experience like? What did you learn from this? How will you apply it? These are all vital when thinking about the impact your CPD has had on your professional practice, and you’ll be able to record this in your Personal Development Record (PDR) in the ePD. To become an Accredited Member you’ll need to submit a statement (750 – 1,000 words) demonstrating how your CPD relates to at least three of the nine professional behaviours of our CPD Framework, and how you have used and benefited from this.
Professional Capability Professional capability simply asks you to demonstrate that you have an understanding of underlying principles and theories, and the ability to present, evaluate and interpret information. You will use these skills in most of your every day work and demonstrating them can take many simple forms. For example, a level 4 qualification such as a Certificate of Higher Education or above, will demonstrate these abilities. This requirement is the same for both Accredited Member and Fellow.
To become a Fellow you’ll be required to submit a statement (1,500 words) demonstrating how your CPD relates to all nine professional behaviours of the CPD Framework, and how this has influenced and impacted on others and the sector. You’ll also need to include details of how you have been able to help others with their professional development.
More information and guidance on how to gain Accredited Member and Fellow status can be found on our website www.aua.ac.uk.
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Strategy
Become an AUA Advocate! In the last issue of Newslink, we let you know about the new network structure and how this will allow you to become more involved in the growth and development of the Association. The AUA Networks help to shape the work and development of the Association by taking part in strategic projects and developments, participating in working groups, contributing to One Day Conferences and the Annual Conference, informing and writing Good Practice Guides and organising professional development activities.
You can take a look at the current work of these Networks by visiting the Networking pages of our website www.aua.ac.uk. If you think you have a particular skill or talent you’d like to share with any of these Networks, or you just have an interest in the work they are doing then why not join them as an Advocate?
The Networks with which you can get involved are:
Being an Advocate of the AUA is extremely rewarding, helping to professionalise the HE administration and management environment in which we work. There are also fantastic personal development opportunities.
Geographic • Anglia and London • Ireland • Midlands • North Wales and the North West • Scotland • South • South Wales and the South West • Yorkshire and the North East
Themed • Applicant Experience - jointly with SPA
If you want to help shape and influence these exciting new developments then contact the Coordinators of these groups (they can be found on the Networking webpages) or the National Office on auanetworksupport@aua.ac.uk or 0161 275 2063.
As an Advocate you will be able to: • enhance your professional profile • develop your skills • gain substantial networking opportunities • develop your knowledge of the sector • pursue your own interests in specific areas of HE policy and practice
• Departmental Administrators • Equality and Diversity Group • International Higher Education • Managing Change in Higher Education • Organisational Development • Partnerships • National Planners • Quality Practitioners • Space Management
get
involve d w ith AUA
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Professional Development
AUA Continuous Professional Development Framework (CPD) Author: Jan Shine FAUA, HR/Training Consultant, Paullus Consultancy
Welcome to the final instalment of our closer look at the professional behaviours that underpin the CPD Framework. This time we turn our attention to Working with People. The broad definition used within the framework is:
Working co-operatively with others in order to achieve objectives. Demonstrating a commitment to diversity and applying a wide range of interpersonal skills. Of all the nine areas of the framework, Working with People is probably the one that applies most universally across all roles at all levels. It is such an integral part of our working life that we can sometimes neglect this area when considering our CPD needs.
Achieving results Working with people
g Developin self and others
So, what constitutes an effective working relationship? It is certainly one that is positive, co-operative and mutually respectful. One useful definition of respect is ‘appreciation of the separateness of the other person, of the ways in which he or she is unique’. There are many ways to demonstrate respect, and one of the key ways is to listen and seek first to understand before judging. Other ways include encouraging colleagues to express opinions and ideas, and by taking an interest in the aspects of their life outside work that they talk freely about in the workplace. By taking this approach you can use understanding
Managing self and personal skills
nal Professio rs Behaviou
Providing direction
g Deliverin excellent service
Finding e innovativ s n solutio
g Embracin e chang Using s resource
of other people’s perspectives to help reach agreement. There are some well-established tools that can enhance working relationships by bringing about greater understanding between colleagues. Examples of tools that I have found particularly effective include Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), learning styles and Belbin team roles. Such tools and models encourage us to acknowledge, understand and respect ways of working and thinking that may be different to our own. This in turn enables us to find more productive ways of working with people. Another key to working effectively with others is to face differences directly by surfacing conflicts early so that they may be addressed. Differences and disagreements between people if handled constructively can lead to greater understanding and respect. Seeking, finding and exploring the common ground, whilst sometimes challenging, can be very rewarding and, for me, is one of the joys of relationships in the workplace. Finding win-win solutions should always be the aim. If both parties feel they have gained from resolving a difference they will be more willing to co-operate in the future. Learning to face conflict takes time and can feel uncomfortable along the way. One measure of professionalism is whether you care enough to have those difficult conversations. If I am not happy about a relationship it is more useful for me to think about what I need to do, or not to do, to improve it rather than to blame the other party and wait for them to ‘fix’ it. Giving constructive feedback is critical to working effectively with people. Constructive feedback is given in a nonblaming way and is focused on things that the individual can do something about, for example their actions and
AUA NEWSLINK 11
behaviours. Many colleagues have found the professional behaviours framework in itself a valuable way to provide structure for giving constructive feedback to colleagues. Another useful framework I have used to good effect is ‘AFIR’ which represents: • Action (what the person does or doesn’t do) • Feeling (how that makes me feel) • Impact (what effect it has on me/the team/the work/the organisation) • Request (what/how I’d like them to change) and is used to frame feedback statements and questions. For example imagine that I am responsible for delivering a project and the project manager is never available to talk with me about the project. Rather than a blaming statement ‘You are never available when I need you’ I would first identify the four elements of AFIR, so in this example it might be something like: • Action: Not being available when needed • Feeling: Frustrated • Impact: I cannot get timely feedback on the project • Request: Regular feedback on the project. This would then be communicated to the other person in the following way: “When you are unavailable I feel frustrated because I cannot get the feedback on the project that I need. Would you be willing to agree a set time that we could meet once a week?” Having established good working relationships, it is important to continue to monitor and review the effectiveness of those relationships on a regular basis to resolve any issues before they become significant. For one-to-one working relationships you could take time perhaps once a quarter as part of a regular meeting to review what’s working well and sharing thoughts on where the relationship could be improved. One effective question I have used as an appraiser is ‘If it were up to you, what one thing would you change about our working relationship?’. Relationships with other areas of the institution or with external partners can be reviewed by building
When you are unavailable I feel frustrated because I cannot get the feedback on the project that I need. Would you be willing to agree a set time that we could meet once a week? in a regular review meeting to check that the needs and expectations of both areas are being met and that the desired outcomes and objectives of the collaboration are being achieved. Whether it stems from differences in age, race, gender, education or experience, some diversity of thought will occur in any workplace. Every person and every team/group of people has something valuable to contribute and you can reinforce this in your professional practice by demonstrating that you value differences and taking personal responsibility for challenging inappropriate or exclusive practices/behaviours. We get a great deal of misinformation within organisations about people who are in different groups from us. If ever we think ‘All xxxxx are like that’ then we are stereotyping which can be extremely damaging. It causes destruction in relationships and, when endemic myths develop which reinforce people’s negative feelings, that in turn can influence their attitudes and beliefs. Diversity broadens the number of potential solutions and enables colleagues to learn from one another. Successful organisations do not merely tolerate diversity of opinions, they recognise the exciting opportunities presented by the diversity of the people within them.
There is no doubt that the quality of working relationships at all levels can have a direct impact on the overall success of an organisation. Good working relationships are built on a culture of co-operation where each individual is working with others towards the achievement of shared aims and objectives for the good of the whole and towards a common purpose. Aristotle got it right, the whole really is greater than the sum of its parts. Jan Shine FAUA www.paullusconsultancy.com Jan is an independent HR/Training Consultant who worked with us throughout the two-year LGM project to develop the CPD framework, and is currently the lead consultant working with institutions who are piloting implementation of the framework. All the articles featured in this series can now be accessed via the dedicated CPD Framework website at: cpdframework. aua.ac.uk.
12 AUA NEWSLINK
Spotlight
Profile Article: Dr David Law Author: Dr David Law, Incoming perspectives Editor A few months ago, when Giles Brown was coming to the end of his term as editor-in-chief, the AUA office started a search for a replacement and I was asked if I would like to be considered. I was delighted to be able to send in my cv and then put my credentials in person. I am even more pleased to be able to write now to the membership with a short introduction and, more importantly, to launch my own search. There must be many members who, like me, believe that what makes perspectives a really interesting and important periodical is its commitment to the improvement of operational and leadership practice. We are looking for new authors and, first of all, we are looking to AUA members who can speak to both policy and practice in contemporary HE. We need you to put yourselves forward and to develop those policy papers into publishable pieces. You will benefit and so will both your own institutions and the sector as a whole. I have been very fortunate to have had two careers in HE. For about twenty years I was an academic, teaching and researching in the broad fields of modern history and international relations. Most of this time I was at Keele University and I still feel hugely grateful to the Keele colleagues who supported me when I wanted to take some time out on research leave to spend time in Russia and then in the USA at Harvard. This gratitude extends to those who also encouraged me to recognise that professional careers in HE can take unexpected turns.
I still recall being asked to see the VC about how Keele might respond to a request from something called the Academic Audit Unit. With the ‘old part’ of the sector being forced to recognise that accountability required review and public report, the QA ‘industry’ was kick started and the established universities were obliged to take on board much that those institutions that were soon to be ‘new universities’ had been doing for many years. For me, leading the first academic audit at Keele was followed by a 50% secondment to HEQC (the predecessor of QAA). Quickly I acquired skills (and a vocabulary) that could, if I wished it, make me mobile. Over the last 15 years, I have spent about one-third of my worktime at University of Hull as Academic Registrar, another third at University of Warwick (firstly as Academic Registrar and then International Director) and the final third has been at Edge Hill University as the PVC responsible for students (services, marketing etc) and the external relations of the University. Personally, I am now moving into a new phase of my career when I would like to be able to combine aspects of the two careers I have had so far and I see this editorship in such a light. I know through personal experience that there are many AUA colleagues who, in various ways, have got both the scholarly skills needed for publication and the practical experience that yields the case studies that will constitute the core of their articles. Please share your expertise and critical understanding with your colleagues.
Personally, I am now moving into a new phase of my career when I would like to be able to combine aspects of the two careers I have had so far and I see this editorship in such a light. I know through personal experience that there are many AUA colleagues who, in various ways, have got both the scholarly skills needed for publication and the practical experience that yields the case studies that will constitute the core of their articles.
As members of AUA we have a collective interest in promoting excellence in HE management. I believe there will be many who will say, like me, that this requires that the “administrators” should gain the respect of colleagues in other areas of the organisations they work for. ‘Division of labour’, as Adam Smith long ago observed, is vital for efficiency. Our institutions need specialists (in teaching, in record keeping, in finance etc etc). But no organisation flourishes unless there is a corporate ambition and unity. The contradiction is that what underpins efficiency might also undermine effectiveness. Although sometimes a still tongue shows a wise head, I have little time for those who argue that the academics create value (ie income) and the administrators consume but do not produce. Contemporary businesses would find it very hard going in the market place if they designed an organisational structure around the manufacturing function in the firm/group. (And, of course, many commercial organisations have no tangible production.) I hope that in our various ways we can demonstrate that the part of the profession that we represent has every right to be considered a ‘partner’ in our ‘firms’. All this has, I think, been true for a long time. What makes it more important than ever is the profound change that HE in England (and, to a significant extent, in the UK) is going to experience in the next months and years. To conclude: my commitment is to you and the organisation that the membership constitutes. If perspectives is to continue to be a well-respected and intelligent commentary on the challenges to be faced in the new era, then it needs your support. I need to know what you value and how you will contribute. Please let me know by email: david.law@edgehill.ac.uk.
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Perspectives Overview
perspectives Author: Allan Bolton MAUA, Acting Editor, Perspectives
The recent issue, 16.2, emphasised strategic issues and megatrends, causes of what Giles Brown called ‘significant perturbations and uncertainties’ in our sector. But we never forget that perspectives is equally about management in the everyday world of work. That combination, of both policy and practice in higher education, to give the journal its full title, is what makes it unique and highly-valued. The next issue, 16.3, draws attention to the front line. Our authors analyse projects they have undertaken and offer us the benefits of their practice and learning. Those authors are good examples of managers whom we, the editorial team of perspectives, greatly appreciate: whilst being leading practitioners, they show themselves also to be reflective analysts committed to sharing in a scholarly and accessible way. Student services, research administration, mentoring in science faculties, and the process of change on a university campus – all subjects analysed in this issue – provide insights into a world of management that can be complex. If some other media talk broadly and without precision about ‘managers’ and ‘administrators’, our authors use the language of ‘professional services’, ‘enabling and facilitating’, ‘intervention’ and ‘engagement’. The triggers for change in these cases are Faculty restructuring, major shifts in skills required of staff, or major expansion in services required both at central and at Faculty levels. Professional management of services is necessary to provide the best experience for students and value for money. To state it more baldly, the penalties for getting it wrong are severe: the institution could become dysfunctional, staff and students could become confused and demoralised. Increased specialisation in research management is analysed by David Langley, and student services by Michelle Morgan. The growth of research office functions has exploded as a result of pressures to collaborate, to raise performance in knowledge exchange and
technology transfer, to prepare RAE then REF submissions, and to manage postaward processes. Greater professionalisation of student services is analysed under the complementary categories of ‘general well-being’ and ‘safety net’ provision, and as a result of previously separate functions such as accommodation, careers, child care, retail, sports/ recreation and study skills forming a ‘one-stop shop’ or at least a closer association. Within human resources, interesting projects arise where good professional practice meets a pressing organisational need. The starting point for Rachel Bird’s article is the importance of ‘reskilling’ and gaining flexibility amongst technical staff who represent a large investment by the university. Mentoring becomes a major part of the solution, not just a ‘desirable’. This continuing project is implemented with care to avoid sceptical if not cynical perceptions which can arise in such situations. Similarly, Craig Gaskell and Kate Dickinson show how a review team is selected and operates, benefiting from experiences of others in the sector. In order to make contact with students more effective and to save resources, the organisation of a campus 45 miles from the university’s headquarters is successfully reformed. The team invests
heavily in individual consultations and breaks down organisational silos which inhibit mutual learning and perpetuate inconsistency. High standards of management are being achieved in organisations which flourish best where management is an open, subtle, highly evolved process. And yet we are in danger of learning too little from the past: David Palfreyman’s article takes us back 30 years to Lord Robbin’s re-evaluation of the state of higher education 15 years after the publication of the influential Robbins Report. Many current challenges have been faced before or were foreseen. Hence reasons to be positive about survival and prosperity!
14 AUA NEWSLINK
Philanthropy
Make a Charitable Donation Author: Noreen Muzaffar, External Relations Officer, AUA
The AUA will be writing a series of articles in upcoming editions of Newslink discussing charitable giving and the AUA. We will let you know more about the ways in which we will be raising funds to support our work and how you can help. Hundreds and thousands of charities exist all over the world, some raise funds for similar causes whilst others can be niche charitable organisations. Sometimes donations are made on impulse motivated at times by charities playing on emotions. Other reasons people give to charity can include: • donator feels they have a connection to the charity through personal experiences • donating to charity through religious duty or spiritual requirement • the feel good factor: donating to make yourself feel better
Effective ways of giving: 1. Make a commitment to give to charity and when 2. Budget for it: add into your budget money you will give to charity. If you don’t have a budget now might be a good time to create one, not only will that mean you give to charity but also so that you better manage your finances! 3. Draw up a list of charities you are interested in knowing more about 4. Shortlist charities and find out the key areas they will be working on 5. Choose one or more to give to in the next year 6. Stay focused: letting your friends know you’re donating might encourage them to donate or if you give as a group this can help you to stay focused and motivated to give and it’ll mean the charity is receiving more money
Give better! Don’t just think about how much you want to give, but how you will give it. No matter how large or small the amount and whatever your reason for giving, your money helps your chosen charity to advance in their work and better help those it works for. All charities regardless of their size are competing for your donations and therefore taking the time to think about choosing a charity worthy of your donation can be a hard but rewarding decision to make. Rather than giving a number of smaller gifts to many different charities focus on a few charities that will do the most with your money. That doesn’t mean you can’t or you shouldn’t give on impulse but taking a more considered deliberated approach can help you choose a charity or a few charities to give to that
will allow you to take a real interest in the charity; getting to know what they are working on will help you to contribute towards something that you feel more passionate about. Did you know that AUA is a charity? The Charitable Object of the AUA, as presented in the Constitution, states: “The Object of the Association is to advance and assist in the advancement of education by fostering sound methods of leadership, management and administration in further and higher education by education, training, and other means.” The AUA is a charity registered in England and Wales (number 1030024) and with OSCR in Scotland (number SC037890). You may not be aware but we rely on your support to exist. As an unincorporated association and registered charity we fund our development initiatives and sector advocacy through income generated via our membership subscriptions, donations, chargeable events and commissioned work. Matthew Andrews, Incoming Chair and Academic Registrar at Oxford Brookes University said: “All of the AUA’s activities
AUA NEWSLINK 15
require some level of resource to make them happen. This might seem to be a statement of the obvious, but AUA’s charitable status means we are quite different to many other sector bodies. We do not receive any regular direct grant funding from government or other agencies. This means that all our activities, which enhance and develop the role of professional staff working throughout higher education, are primarily funded by our members, and by surpluses generated for investment. At the same time, we seek continually to keep the cost of membership as low as possible, and that our events are priced competitively to ensure they remain accessible to all staff from the most junior upwards. Maximising income from all sources, including from those organisations or individuals wishing to support the charitable objective of the AUA, is therefore a priority for us as well as a constant challenge.”
currently raising funds to support areas of development including: • Early careers support • Mentoring • Scholarships and Bursaries • Diversified CPD Opportunities
is a priority for us as well as a constant challenge’ perhaps now is a time for us to think about developing other forms of donation – so, if you’re thinking of completing a run for a good cause, why not think about the AUA?”
Christopher Hallas, Outgoing Chair of AUA and Director of Student Affairs at the University of Greenwich said: “I’m sure we all donate to our chosen charities and good causes in many different ways, perhaps as volunteers who donate time and skills, as funders who donate funds regularly or from time to time, or possibly as the generators of funds, undertaking sponsored activities or challenges. Of course, the AUA is a charity and it’s certainly a good cause!! We couldn’t operate without the donations of our many volunteers, for example the work of our Network Coordinators, or our PgCert mentors, or our speakers and presenters at AUA events”
Look out in future editions to read more about our charitable work but in the meantime if you would like to find out how you can help, email us at aua@aua.ac.uk
What we are raising money for? By supporting the AUA you can help us to carry on the work that we do. We are
Christopher further went on to say: “Thinking about Matthew’s comment that ‘maximising income from all sources ..
Reasons to donate to AUA: • Help us to further professionalise the identity of our members in the sector • Further support a cause you are already a part of • The important role that AUA plays within your university • The social impact you want to achieve • Your personal experience of the AUA • Your personal and career goals and how AUA can and has helped you reach them • Donating to the AUA is the perfect opportunity for you to make a difference to the work that we do
“Thinking about Matthew’s comment that ‘maximising income from all sources .. is a priority for us as well as a constant challenge’ perhaps now is a time for us to think about developing other forms of donation – so, if you’re thinking of completing a run for a good cause, why not think about the AUA?”
16 AUA NEWSLINK
Behind the scenes
A week in the life of a Head of Careers Services Name:
Liz Wilkinson MAUA
Position:
Head of Careers Service
Institution:
Royal Holloway, University of London and The Careers Group
Liz has worked for The Careers Group, University of London for 22 years. The Careers Group is a shared service, providing careers services to 16 institutions of the University of London, and graduate destination services nationally. Liz has worked at Queen Mary, Goldsmiths, LSE and UCL as a careers consultant and at Kings as Deputy Head of Careers. Since 2003 Liz has been based at Royal Holloway in Egham, Surrey where she is Head of Careers Service. In 2008 she undertook a sabbatical to investigate the scope of Web 2.0 technologies for delivering employability strategies. Liz enjoys the wider perspective on university life which she gets from being a member of the AUA and the cross-fertilization with her other professional body, the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Service. Liz is a national trainer for AGCAS, currently focusing on management training for new heads of service. Liz can be found on Linked In or contacted at elizabeth.wilkinson@rhul.ac.uk. Monday Start the day chatting with our three student careers assistants, who are invaluable to the service in so many ways. They provide an approachable face at the front desk. They collect and collate our feedback and statistics with charm and efficiency, without provoking student irritation or staff frustration. They identify suitable snippets for our Facebook and Twitter feeds so that students actually want to read them, (seems to be working, with 1800 likes on our Facebook page). The key message to send is that there are more graduate jobs out there than most people think. More of which later. The careers assistants are also my instant student feedback group for new ideas. Today’s idea is that we should sponsor an employability cup to be awarded to the student society which offers the best skills and careers development opportunities to their members. Already societies organise speaker events and dinners with alumni, and we would like to encourage such activities. We discuss what criteria we might use to award the prize, and I
am better primed for my meeting with the Students’ Union later in the week. One of the students is kind enough to let me practice my execrable Polish. Unfortunately the only appropriate phrase translates as “shocking weather”. Retrieve office umbrella before venturing out. Arrive slightly bedraggled to address a room full of history teachers on graduate opportunities with a history degree. Myth busting about graduate employment to prospective students and their influencers is an increasing part of my role. Many applicants and parents are confused about which degrees will lead to a good career, but the common advice of “do a subject you love at a good university, and start your job hunting before finals” remains sound. Feel particularly warm to this audience as my most inspirational teacher taught history. Tell them this. It seems to go down well. Having analysed the graduate destinations for the last three history cohorts, I can reassure them that history is an excellent foundation for a whole range of graduate careers. Discussion reveals that they share my experience at
Open Days of talking to students who are passionately enthusiastic about studying history, accompanied by parents who are worried that it won’t lead to a good job, so it’s good to be able to equip them with the reassuring evidence. Very satisfying afternoon but I am disappointed that I didn’t manage to weave in the simpler world of medieval career choice (you joined dad’s guild).
Tuesday Meeting with Students’ Union. The Students’ Union are partners and supporters of the Careers Service. We host our part-time work fair in their SU hall and benefit from their promotion of our activities as their image is rather cooler than ours. (Probably even my use of the term “cool” reveals how very uncool I am). This year we have a new shared initiative in the Royal Holloway Passport Award which celebrates cocurricular activities and coaches students on how to present themselves well to employers. The meeting focuses on planning the celebratory awards ceremony. We are inviting as keynote
AUA NEWSLINK 17
speaker, Tori James, one of the two Royal Holloway female alumni to climb Mount Everest in recent years. Since Surrey is not famous for its geographical elevation, it seems surprising that we should be so well represented in the world of mountain climbing pioneers. After lunch, a ‘back to the floor’ moment. One of my careers consultants is ill so I cover some 15 minute careers quick query slots. After two hours of fielding diverse queries, such as how to get an investment banking internship, how to polish the CV of a would be theatre director and how to get into international development, I am reminded how mentally agile my careers consultants have to be. Once again I’m grateful for the resources on our digital careers library www.careerstagged. co.uk It is far more knowledgeable than my middle-aged brain cells on the latest opportunities in international development. Staff grin to see me do some “real work”. Resist the temptation to point out how preferable students are to Excel spreadsheets any day.
Wednesday No opportunities are available to masquerade as careers consultant today, so the Excel spreadsheets cannot be avoided. Today it’s graduate destinations rather than finance. I manage the statutory collection, coding and analysis of all Royal Holloway graduate destinations. It’s a year round process for which there is a job to do every month. This month we are scrutinising the early results for the critical Employability Performance Indicator population which feeds into the league tables. This task is much easier if you have a friendly statistician, and I am lucky to be able to discuss the trends with a colleague from the strategic development office. Today we drill down into the discipline comparators revealed by the Times Good University Guide. This meeting is followed by the monthly Heads of Departments lunch where we discuss matter of common interest. It’s a pleasure to be able to share some graduate destinations good news with some of them, and to discuss how we can best showcase that success. Follow up chat with the Head of English about our recently launched microplacement scheme in publishing. We have worked together to secure 7 micro-
placements in publishing, awarded by a competitive process which simulates industry practice. The scheme has attracted real interest among the English students, 42 of whom turned up for the introductory CV coaching session, and thus the positive impact of the scheme was spread more widely. Meet with a graduate recruiter who wants to discuss how their company can attract more of the right graduates for their vacancies. They are not a glamour brand so they have to work harder to market the attractiveness and potential of their graduate opportunities. Employers frequently complain that the current high numbers of poor applications makes their job harder. Hence our constant message to students: fewer but targeted applications are more likely to be effective than the spray and pray approach. Their recruitment budget is tight so we look for the most cost-effective options. They like the idea of a featured spot in one of our high profile careers weeks. We are delighted to offer our students the opportunity of interview coaching with a graduate recruiter. And we can get their opportunities on our Facebook feed today. This conversation is a fresh piece of evidence for counteracting the common, gloomy perception that there are no graduate jobs.
Thursday Today is a big day for Royal Holloway Entrepreneurs, the student society we sponsor. Royal Holloway was founded by Thomas Holloway, a Victorian entrepreneur, from the profits of his patent medicine business, so it seems fitting that we are active supporters of our students’ entrepreneurial ambitions. The Careers Service employs a salaried student President of Royal Holloway Entrepreneurs to good effect. The society has provided a launch pad for a whole range of student enterprises from the production and sale of delicious and alcoholic ice-cream, to an innovative ticket sales system for school productions and a service to turn the work of student photographers into posters to adorn student rooms. Today is the final of their Apprentice competition. Over the last fortnight teams of students have been analysing a local restaurant and refining their proposals for business improvement . We have been
filming some of their team working in the careers centre to provide the footage for tonight. One of my colleagues has taken the role of the bemused observer, though between ourselves we can’t decide whether her expressions are more Nick, Margaret or Karen. As the stage is set up for the final, huddles of students practise their sales pitch. It’s all great skills development and just the sort of thing that will impress future employers. The brave restauranteur leads the panel of judges and is encouraging, rather than scary. The students show a good grasp of business basics and banter bounces between the teams and the audience. As ever at student entrepreneurship events, I’m inspired by their enthusiasm and delighted at the buzz, so I leave on a high.
Friday Chair The Careers Group meeting of Heads of Careers Services across the University of London, where we seek to prove nine heads are better than one when problem solving. Listen to a presentation by the Head of our central Graduate Research Unit on how to play it smart with the Key Information Set and how our new Destinations Interactive software can help with mapping the implications of the changing criteria. Inevitably the KIS will draw even more attention to how we streamline the quick transition from student status to graduate job. It is therefore heartening to study the outcomes of our newly launched London-wide STEP internship scheme. This has successfully encouraged smaller firms to employ graduates, and they are coming back for more. Genuine job creation and everybody wins. Very uplifting for a Friday. This uplift sustains me through a long conversation on quality re-accreditation. We are assessed against the Matrix standard triennially. Cannot believe it is coming around already. The nine heads produce an average of three bullet points each, which gives me 27 things to contemplate on Monday. Hmmm. Framing everything we do in the language of outcomes and impact seems to be key. I finish Friday dealing with that email that really cannot wait until Monday and finally head home hoping for good gardening outcomes over the weekend.
18 AUA NEWSLINK
Marketing in HE
Marketing’s hidden talents: Five things you need to know Author: Rosemary Stamp MAUA, Director, Stamp Consulting
While communication and promotion can be at the heart of the marketing process, they’re not the whole story. Marketing, now more than ever, can provide critical support, enabling institutions to plan effectively in uncertain times. Five of marketing’s “hidden talents” are outlined below. 1. Market intelligence Market intelligence is centred on identifying and interpreting information that will help institutions make effective decisions. The biggest change in recent years has been a shift in balance from a reliance on historical “market research” that assesses what has happened in the past (for example, postexperience/engagement surveys, recruitment trends, etc), to the urgent need to gain information or “market intelligence” that will assist in the prediction of what could happen in the future. This marketing function talent is now especially relevant, given the speed of change in factors such as modes of learning, the institutional portfolio, communication channels, the development of technology, the needs of knowledge economies plus shifts in the global demand for higher education. 2. Data coordination to drive coherent planning Increasingly institutions need to plan on a longer-term basis and in more complex ways, as their interests and operations diversify. The marketing function can provide the information required to enable institutions to consider future options and test out possible choices and their associated implications. This, however, demands that marketing is able to gather, access and interpret an ever greater and more diverse resource of data to meet new planning needs. The real challenge for many institutions (and one that can be tackled by the marketing function) is not necessarily finding or identifying the data, but recognising its potential, to whom it will be useful, and ensuring that diverse teams across the institution are able to work on it coherently, towards shared objectives. 3. Opportunity assessment Strategic planning is complex but evidencebased scenario planning can help institutions to make a pragmatic assessment of what might be possible for them to achieve in the future. This not only enables them to consider opportunities but also to assess the
realities of the risks or threats they may face, as the environment in which they operate develops over time. Market insight and the mapping of future trends, both of which are integral to the strategic marketing process, can provide the information necessary to identify such opportunities and prepare for emerging hazards. 4. Review…and adjust While much of the marketing process may seem to be focused on outreach, promotion or communications, the marketing function’s “review and analysis” role is never far behind. In the current economic climate this is especially important, as return on investment analysis can be key to assessing whether marketing activity has actually worked, whether to stick with it or whether to adjust for the future. For the marketing function the costeffectiveness of initiatives can be hard to calculate, as results may be dependent upon long-term operations conducted over several cycles of activity. However, it is now an essential part of every marketing strategy or implementation plan and has meant that increasingly accurate ways to assess and measure effectiveness are built into the planning process to ensure that expenditure is tracked and applied where most needed, and that it delivers effective results for the institution. 5. Competitive insight It might seem that marketing is about outmanoeuvring competitors, too, but the reality can be much more complex. The most important competitive comparison that the marketing function can achieve is not so much “what others are doing”, as that could lead simply to copy-cat or “metoo!” marketing, but, rather, what can be understood about the parameters of best practice and, of course, how this drives stakeholder expectation. Competitive insight enables institutions to move beyond what might be a focus on
simply “improving what we’re doing” in comparison with similar organisations, to a strategically valuable understanding of what best practice (in terms of experience or the institutional proposition, for example) is deemed to be by stakeholders, based on their interactions with many sectors. It is a fact of life that stakeholders engaged in higher education will not just measure up one higher education institution against another but will take their cues from a wide variety of experiences within their lives. The marketing function can ensure that the institution keeps this imperative in focus. The marketing function has a significant role to play in strategic planning and can provide valuable levels of insight to assist the institutional development process. The key to success is to make best use of those hidden talents… Rosemary Stamp advises education institutions throughout Europe on international marketing strategies, competitive brand development, location brand strategy, policy response planning and competitor analysis, and has led brand development strategies for many education and private sector organisations. Rosemary facilitates competitive briefings and strategic planning programmes for senior management teams. She also facilitates the Stamp Consulting Master Class series and skills development seminars and teaches on the Institute of Education’s MBA in Higher Education Management and the University of Warwick’s International Programme in HE Management, and contributes to the Leadership Foundation’s Leadership Development, Governor Development and Senior Strategic Leadership programmes. rosemary.stamp@stampconsulting.co.uk www.stampconsulting.co.uk Copyright © 2012 Rosemary Stamp All rights reserved. The contents and form of this article are copyright. Any unauthorised copying, distribution or editing will constitute an infringement of copyright.
AUA NEWSLINK 19
Professional Development
AACRAO SEM Conference Author: Matthew Andrews FAUA, Incoming Chair of AUA and Academic Registrar, Oxford Brookes University
The American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) is one of the AUA’s key international partners and the two organisations have long enjoyed a close relationship. I was fortunate to attend the AACRAO Conference on Strategic Enrolment Management (SEM) in November 2011, which was held in the beautiful city of San Diego on the American Pacific coast. The SEM Conference has been an annual fixture in the AACRAO calendar for twenty-one years. In 2011 it attracted approximately 600 delegates, mostly drawn from the USA and Canada, but including some attendees from many more far distant places. There were several UK delegates, which is indicative of the recognition that the model of recruitment and retention offered by the SEM approach in a competitive mature market, is likely to be useful in a UK higher education market place moving ever westward across the Atlantic. Over four days, the programme offered a rich mixture of plenary and parallel sessions, including early morning breakfast plenary sessions with high-profile key note speakers. SEM itself is a concept deeply embedded within the structures of many North American higher education institutions, from prestigious four-year colleges to smaller community colleges. Many of the elements of SEM are familiar to a UK audience: things such as good market analysis, strategic programmes of customer relationship management to help increase conversion, and well-defined intake targets. To understand SEM, however, is to understand that it is more than the sum of its parts. SEM cannot simply be defined as a series of activities which practitioners need to master (though that is part of it) but as an active and managed approach to the creation of an academic community that starts with a good strategic vision.
The basic concept of SEM is that an institution can achieve its optimum student population. The practical aspect of SEM is an understanding that there are tools and processes which an institution can use to achieve this. And what is an optimum student population? That is up to each institution! It’s not just about target numbers, but goes beyond simple numbers to define the characteristics of the student population from socio-demographic considerations, through academic ability, to ultimate completion rates. Rather than feel powerless and at the command of greater market forces way beyond an institution’s control, SEM methodology suggests that an institution can define its optimum student population and work towards its achievement.
to the desired outcome in the short term, and the realisation settles in that the task is harder than was first appreciated. A more ‘tactical’ approach is therefore adopted. With a more refined understanding of the desired outcome, that optimal student population, the institution starts to align its recruitment and admission activities behind its clearly defied goals (and vice versa). Finally, having traversed through these stages, an institution reaches the ‘strategic’ level ground, where it understands the market, has understood and articulated its own targets, and has put in place the joined-up procedures to achieve its optimum student population. And because the ultimate objective is achieving the student population which the institution has set out as its preferred position, SEM is about creating academic communities.
Several stages of evolution towards a mature SEM approach can be identified: an ascent from ‘denial’ through to ‘strategic’. An institution in denial feels that nothing can be done to control the number or nature of students which choose to resort to it. Eventually frustration with this realisation leads to the ‘nominal’ position, when an institution recognises it needs to do something, though has not yet worked out what that something is. Then comes a ‘structural’ phase, as the institution implements various measures to help improve its ability to achieve its various intake targets; but these initiatives tend not to lead
An enormous amount has been written about the SEM methodology – just try a quick on-line search! – but there’s no better way to understand the concept and tools than to spend four days at the AACRAO SEM conference.
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Issues in Brief
Grade Point Average Author: Matthew Andrews FAUA, Incoming Chair of AUA and Academic Registrar, Oxford Brookes University The UK degree classification system has been around two hundred years in the making but still fails to satisfy. One oft-cited model to replace the degree classification is the Grade Point Average (GPA). But how is it different? The GPA is easy to describe: essentially all it involves is the grading of work on a scale of A to D, and calculating a mean average where A = 1, B = 2, and so on. The traditional basis of the UK degree classification system is a series of end point summative assessments. The aim of the classification is to capture and band students’ ability. More recently this approach has been combined with the inclusion of continuous assessment
in determining the classification. The basis of GPA is in some ways the reverse of the degree classification system. The GPA is based on the module (rather than the overall course). Each module counts equally when the GPA is calculated. Modules which have been failed count as zero and modules which are re-taken still have the mark for each occasion they are taken included. The GPA attempts an overall representation of the entirety of the student’s programme. As the primary unit of assessment is the module, not the course, the GPA can be calculated over different ranges of modules, for example, allowing students to demonstrate their ability in their final
year, or in a single subject. The philosophical foundation to each system has distinct strengths and weaknesses but it is important to understand these differences because the forms of single judgment represented by the GPA and degree classification are more divergent than is often or easily appreciated.
Would you like to read more? The full article is available on the Newslink section of the members’ area of our website:
members.aua.ac.uk
Distinctiveness in higher education Author: Anna Myers, Communications and Project Manager, Distinct project The concept of distinctiveness has become increasingly prevalent in sector discussions over the last year. But is it achievable in the HE context? With so many institutions competing for students, resources, reputation
and income, how can you stand out from the crowd? The ‘Distinct’ project has spent the last couple of years conducting research to support universities with these issues. In 2009, Oxford Brookes University, working in partnership with Bournemouth University and the University of Bradford, won funding from HEFCE’s LGM fund to establish this project. With a remit to look both within and beyond the sector for lessons on how organisations have achieved distinctiveness, an understanding of the journey involved has emerged. It’s worth being clear about what distinctiveness is – in a sector that has until recently been pushed towards homogeneity, through league tables and funding requirements among other reasons, it is helpful to have clarity on
this relatively new concept. To quote the project publication, “becoming distinctive does not consist of rhetoric and promotion through the re-design of a logo or other marketing material. It is about encapsulating the core strengths of an institution and communicating that effectively to the people that matter.” The project team have used their research findings to create The Distinct Framework, a tool to support universities as they grapple with their own sense of identity. Case studies have been compiled to provide examples of how other organisations have achieved distinctiveness, and briefing notes have been created to support university staff with particular issues. To explore these resources for your institution, please visit www.distinct.ac.uk
AUA NEWSLINK 21
Professional Development
Student at Large Author: Haydn Barclay, Studying for a MChem in Chemistry at the University of Sussex
I’m the first person in my family ever to embark on a university journey and thus it was at the application stage that I had my first interaction with HE managers/administrators. I held in my possession an offer from UCL, being awe-inspired that such a prestigious institution would want to offer me a place. However because it was purely the prestige that appealed to me, it was not until I went on an open day to the University of Sussex, that I realised that actually my future education lay at Sussex, not UCL. And this is where my dilemma began; I had accepted a place at UCL without giving it too much thought, which of course was entirely my own fault. It is at this point that I first interacted with HE administrators. I had to contact staff from both universities to explore just how I would go about being released from the UCL offer, thus allowing me to go to the University of Sussex. I’m not sure exactly what had to happen behind the scenes to allow this swap but I couldn’t possibly be more thankful for what happened. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made, and it wouldn’t have been possible had it not been for the tireless efforts of the relevant admissions staff. My interaction didn’t stop there; towards the end of my first term at Sussex I received an email recruiting for Student Ambassadors. Having read the job description, I felt I would be perfect for the job and after seven
Through the role I’ve had to carry out public speaking, as I sat waiting to give my first talk my heart was pounding as I grow into the role, I get less nervous and more enthusiastic about delivering the talk and enthusing the prospective students.
months of countless admissions days and open days, I have just completed a week’s worth of undergraduate and postgraduate enquiries. It has really hit home to me what an important role HE administrators play in the functioning of a university. As a chemist I learn new skills by engaging with a course. As an ambassador I’ve moved from the lab to the office and picked up a much wider range of skills! In my new role I’ve had to carry out public speaking and although my heart was pounding before giving my first talk, I now get far less nervous. In fact I love delivering a talk and enthusing prospective students. As the first in my family to go to university, I have always been a massive advocate of demonstrating that universities are accessible to everyone, which is where my role as a Student
Ambassador comes in. I am someone who is ever-present on open days or school visits and in my element. Telling prospective students about what I do, and the journey I’ve made is something I enjoy and the role has opened up new opportunities for me. When I did my first school visit sitting in front of 60 A/S students, I was so nervous and could feel my heart rate rising. However, by increasing the number of school visits I do, I get less and less nervous. I feel that HEI managers are often invisible. Had I not applied for a job as a Student Ambassador, I don’t think I would have had any idea of who they were or what they do. So HE managers - do yourselves justice and make it clear to the uninitiated just exactly what it is that you do, rather than remaining the unsung heroes of a university community.
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Networks
AUA/SPA Applicant Experience Network The AUA/SPA Applicant Experience Network was launched in March 2010 for all staff in higher education who are involved in the whole ‘Applicant Experience’ - from outreach and widening participation through application, transition and onto the student experience. It aims to discuss and share views, disseminate current issues and developments and increase understanding of the applicant experience within the HE provider institution at a strategic and practitioner level. The group meets three times a year, attracting members from a wide range of institutions across the UK, and is convened by Janet Graham, Director of SPA (the independent Supporting Professionalism in Admissions Programme). It provides a fantastic opportunity for staff to share experiences and good practice, to discuss issues of mutual interest/concern and to network with staff from SPA and other institutions who are involved in admissions in its widest sense. Practitioners can engage with the work of SPA, providing a sounding board for recent work on the post-applicant engagement phase of the applicant experience. As an example, members from the University
of Huddersfield provided a case study based on their student journey communication plan, which has been included in the Post-application phase of SPA’s Applicant Experience Strategy. Recent meetings have focused on student number controls and the issues these raise for the applicant experience as well as how institutions are managing the monitoring and tracking of targets; working with UCAS and the role that UCAS can play in supporting a good applicant experience; evaluation of the applicant experience via questionnaires and surveys; how institutions deal with different types of students and ‘Strategic Enrolment Management – views from the USA’.
The group’s secretary Christine Matthewson (University of Strathclyde) delivered a workshop at the recent national AUA Conference on ‘The Applicant Experience – recommendations for good practice’ which was very well received. Membership is open to anyone who is interested in this wide-ranging area and would like to learn more about and contribute to professionalism within it. How to join For further information see www. aua.ac.uk/pigroups-1-ApplicantExperience.html or contact the AUA National Office at aua@aua.ac.uk. SPA’s work is at: www.spa.ac.uk
International Higher Education Network The network aims to raise awareness of the international dimension to higher education. It supports the network of AUA international links with partner organisations in other countries and works on developing new links. The network supports its members to travel internationally and to disseminate best practice. We offer 1 Travel awards: The AUA/AHUA travel awards are designed to cover travel and subsistence costs of up to £1000 for AUA members to undertake intensive study visits overseas with the aim of enhancing career and professional development and to promote best practice in the higher education administration and management. Application deadlines are on 15 January and 15 July 2013. For more information please go to: www.aua.ac.uk/pigroups-12-Travel-Awards.html 2 Study Tours: The network organises annual international tours. The next trip goes to South Africa and applications are now open. For more information please go to: www.aua.ac.uk/pigroups-13-Study-Tours.html 3 International Higher Education Seminar: The network organises an annual one-day conference to discuss areas of shared interest around the international dimension in higher education. These seminars give participants the chance to listen to lectures from experts in their field, participate in discussion groups and network with their peers. Get involved We currently have three vacancies for International Link Coordinator positions. For more information, please go to: www.aua.ac.uk/news-40-Link-Coordinator--applications-now-open.html How to join For further information or to join this network, please visit www.aua.ac.uk/pigroups-4-International-HigherEducation.html or contact the AUA National Office at aua@aua.ac.uk
AUA NEWSLINK 23
AUA Events The events programme during 2011-12 offered you a range of opportunities to network, learn and develop. With a broad range of activities, from one-day multi-themed conferences held throughout the UK and Ireland, to specialist and themed network events and of course Annual Conference, there was something to appeal to everyone. The events programme for 2012-13 looks to be even better, with four major events (two of which are new for next year) plus the usual choice of one-day themed and multi-themed conferences and workshops offering cost-effective opportunities to develop yourself, your skills and your knowledge. They will be based around the three aspects of the CPD Framework, self, others and sector. If you have never attended an AUA event before, now is the time to give yourself the chance to stand out from the crowd. As the year progresses, also look out for opportunities to learn and develop online, ideal for those constrained by time or budget.
2012-13 snapshot To whet your appetite on the range of activities and events for this year: • 17 October 2012 – Development Conference (NEW), Birmingham • 17 October 2012 – 18.00-19.00 Annual Lecture, Birmingham • 25-27 March 2013 – Annual Conference and Exhibition, Edinburgh • June 2013 – Managing Self, Managing Others, Managing Change (NEW) Throughout the year there will also be network events across the country as well as a relaunched Telecoms conference, Planning Forum and other specialist one-day events. Watch out for more details in your AUA Update or register your interest now!
Flexibility and choice
provide. At a time when budgets are tight yet the development of HE is continuing apace, choosing the sector experts to develop your team could be just what you need.
Building your professional profile Attending any AUA event demonstrates a real investment in your development, meaning it is an ideal component for working towards Accredited Member or Fellowship status. You can also build up your personal development record and reflect on how your attendance at an event has helped your professional practice by using the ePD facility on the members’ only website.
Autumn Development Conference – new for 2012-13 Wednesday 17 October, Birmingham We are excited to launch a new addition to the AUA events calendar for 2012-13: the Autumn Development Conference. Offering a low-cost, one-day format to complement the flagship Annual Conference, this conference will appeal to a broad crosssection of AUA members. Based around three key themes – understanding HE, professional practice and mentoring, there will be a choice of sessions delivered by key figures in the sector.
Who should attend? If you are...
You can now register your interest for any AUA event and we will contact you when the event is scheduled. Go to the events pages at www.aua.ac.uk/Events.aspx and select from the list of workshops, enter your preferences for location and time of year, and we will contact you when an event matches your needs.
...new to working in HE Providing context, background and key information from a range of sector experts, there will be a choice of sessions which will provide you with the knowledge and understanding to help you get the most out of an exciting career. Those undertaking Graduate Trainee Programmes will also benefit from the sessions offered.
Just for you and your team AUA offers a range of bespoke and consultancy services tailor-made to meet the changing needs of your team or organisation. Contact aua.events@aua.ac.uk for more information on the services we
...interested in your own development or the development of others Combining relevant working sessions with the chance to plan and manage your own personal and professional development,
as well as plenty of opportunities to network, you can tailor the programme to meet your needs. ...a PgCert participant Offering a choice of sessions closely related to your knowledge areas, in addition to participant-only Q&A sessions and opportunities to meet assessors and members of the Programme Team, this is a key development event to help you on your way to graduation! ...a PgCert mentor, or interested in becoming a mentor A dedicated mentoring strand will provide opportunities to refresh your skills or learn new ones, whilst also being able to mix and match sessions from the other strands to create an event suited to your own interests and needs. ...interested in the CPD Framework Sessions offered will include case studies from those already using the Framework in a variety of settings, for a variety of purposes. Those involved in one of the pilot groups for the CPD Framework implementation project will also have specific sessions with the project consultants. ...usually unable to attend the Annual Conference Can’t get childcare; can’t get the time away from the office; can’t raise the funds...sound familiar?? The Development Conference is a one day low-cost alternative with many benefits for you and your development.
With the Annual Lecture to finish the day (which will still be available free to all members, regardless of whether they attend the Development Conference too) this promises to be a fantastic opportunity to develop yourself alongside learning more about the sector. For further details and to book your place visit the Events pages at www.aua.ac.uk/ Events.aspx.
24 AUA NEWSLINK
Gill Hinson MBE for AUA Ruth Carter FAUA, Institute of Education (IOE), University of London is delighted to be able to spread the news that Gill Hinson, Head of Academic Affairs at the IOE, has been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List. Gill has been awarded the MBE for services to higher education and teacher education. Gill has been a member of the AUA since its foundation, and of the CUA before that. After 37 years at the IOE, Gill retires this Summer. After studying at Central London Polytechnic for an external University of London BSc Econ degree, Gill began work at the Institute of Education in 1975 as Executive Officer for the Standing Committees Department. In what now sounds like a history of HE administration, Gill took other jobs as the opportunities came along, working through the following roles: 1979 Head of the Department of Collegiate Committees 1982 Assistant School Relations Officer 1984 Initial Teacher And School Relations Officer 1988 Training Officer 1992 Directorate Administrative Assistant 1994 Department of Policy Studies Administrator 1995 Part-time Administrator, Policy Studies 1995 Part-time Administrator, Deans’ Office In 1999, Gill took on the role of Quality Assurance/Equal Opportunities administrator in the Deputy Director & Deans’ Office; the role evolved into Head of Academic Affairs in the Directorate. This is a broad and demanding role which involves her serving on a number of key committees, providing advice across the Institute, and composing key documentation in relation to many areas of QA. Gill has always demonstrated her commitment and dedication to the advancement of teacher education, and has been instrumental in guiding the Institute through a number of official reviews and inspections, and her knowledge and expertise in a number of complex areas has contributed greatly to the Institute’s successful outcome in each of these. Gill is known for her energy, her enthusiasm, and her sense of humour;
she can often be found lightening the mood of her colleagues in times of stress. She provides invaluable guidance and support to a range of staff. Having worked across a large section of the Institute, Gill has a wealth of knowledge in many areas of Institute life and is always happy to share this knowledge and expertise with others.
Gill kindly covered as AUA BC for me when I was on maternity leave, and she manages to be involved in the wider life of the Institute; as a member of the Staff Association and on the IOE’s University and Colleges Union (UCU) Branch Executive, where her huge experience at the IOE means that her honest and incisive views have been of great value.
Gill has been a member of the AUA since its inception and was involved in CUA prior to that. She has attended numerous AUA conferences and has contributed at a number of them. Gill and I ran a session together in 2006 in Belfast on “Dealing with Student Complaints”. She has always been great company at conference.
Gill is also the Bedell for the IOE (which, for anyone who doesn’t know, means that she is the mace bearer at the Institute’s award ceremonies).
The IOE contingent at the 1998 conference in Birmingham. Left to right: Chris Brewer (now a Church of England Curate in a London Borough), Gill Hinson, MBE, Sue Cranmer (now a Research Manager at Futurelab), Ruth Carter (Coordinator for Initial Teacher Education - still at the IOE!), Carol Macaskill (now Head of Marketing and Communications for the charity, Open Road), Lying down: Peter Rosenberg (now Departmental Manager, University of Sheffield). Looking back at the records I inherited as BC, Gill is often on the list of conference attendees, going back many years. A memorable AUA event which Gill arranged with William Mortimer in 1997 consisted of a visit to Homerton College in Cambridge to see how things were done there. It was a useful visit – and excellent strawberries and cream were provided!
In her spare time, Gill is sometimes a bus driver! She owns a number of vintage buses, which she and her husband drive to special events, including a Christmas lights tour of London, which they organise. Gill’s working life has assured and enhanced the quality of the IOE’s provision, and many thousands of students have indirectly benefitted from her work to constantly improve the quality of the learning experience. I am sure that all AUA members will join me in congratulating Gill on the award of the MBE, and in wishing her a long and happy retirement. Ruth Carter FAUA is Coordinator for Initial Teacher Education at the Institute of Education, University of London.
AUA NEWSLINK 25
Network News
Bucks New University holds fifth annual professional service employees conference Buckinghamshire New University has held its fifth annual conference for professional service employees and this year’s theme was all about discovering more about the University and its future.
Farwell, also featured workshops led by staff from Bucks Students’ Union, the Careers, Employability & Diversity team, Counselling Service, International Office, Partnership Hub, and Student Experience Directorate.
The conference, called ‘Discover more about…yourself…your university…our future’ in the University’s landmark Gateway building, at its High Wycombe Campus, attracted more than 100 delegates from across the University, and featured workshops and presentations.
Liz Bell, conference organiser and Principal Registrar in the University’s Academic Quality Directorate, said the format of the day mirrored the format of the annual conference held by the Association of University Administrators (AUA).
Managing Director Sally Hindmarch and professional actress Annie Farr, of the firm Partners With You Ltd, which works with actors and actresses to train business people on how to get their messages across, coached staff on issues including conveying the correct body language. The day, opened by Bucks New University’s Vice Chancellor, Prof Ruth
Liz said: “It was a little like a regional conference at branch level. It provided sessions to update delegates, no matter what their area of expertise, on what is happening in the sector, to learn how institutions are responding to the challenges, and to debate what we might be doing at Bucks New University. “Delegates enjoyed the presentations and felt that they were each able to take something positive away with
them. Sally Hindmarch encouraged participants to think about their futures, both personal and professional, and to start actively planning small actions that could help bring their aspirations a step closer using a simple planning tool. Everyone found this very useful”. One of the delegates, Ann Van Duzer, Faculty Operations Manager in the University’s Faculty of Society & Health, said the day was ‘invaluable’ for finding out more about the University and putting faces to names for many colleagues. Ann added: “It was really good to find out more about other areas of the University and to meet colleagues you may only ever have contact with by phone or email. “I particularly enjoyed the session run by a professional actress, which made you think about the way you come across to people before you even open your mouth.”
East Midlands Conference – 28 June 2012 The East Midlands held its second Conference, on the topic of ‘New Perceptions: Higher Education and a New You in a New Era’ on 28 June. Despite the thunder and heavy rain, the mood was not dampened and over 45 delegates from across the region and the UK attended the event, this year hosted by University of Derby at their Enterprise Centre. The event was formally opened by Geoff Green, East Midlands Co-ordinator and the Vice-Chancellor of University of Derby, Professor John Coyne which provided a perfect start for the rest of the day. The welcome was followed by a plenary by Tony Seymour on the Art of Being Brilliant, an interactive and thought-provoking presentation on positive psychology and emotional intelligence.
The afternoon session included a Panel Debate with June Hughes and Julie Stone from University of Derby, Sandra Mienczakowski from University of Nottingham, Baljinder Johal from Nottingham Trent University and Nick Allen from The University of Northampton who outlined their careers in higher education and hurdles and challenges they had faced. Two parallel sessions linking back to the topic of the conference took place during the morning and afternoon with workshops on networking, personal development, confidence, becoming a reflective practitioner and how to turn challenges into opportunities giving delegates food for thought as they returned to their work settings. Despite our final plenary speaker being unavoidably delayed due to the adverse weather conditions, the day
was an overall success. As the final ‘East Midlands’ Conference, the conference organising team look forward to working with our colleagues from the West Midlands on the development of the new Midlands Conference in due course. If it is similar to the 2012 East Midlands Conference, it will be a Conference not to miss!
26 AUA NEWSLINK
Network News
Insights to the AUA Annual Conference and Exhibition 2012 London Business School opened its doors to AUA members for London post Conference event on 17 April. Welcome drinks were followed by a programme of key Conference topics and reports developed and hosted by Helen Uglow FAUA.
membership categories and AUA network. The new tiered membership categories will support career development and CPD whilst the networks will increase member involvement and co-ordination and consistency at branch level.
Christopher Hallas FAUA, Outgoing Chair, reported on the AGM and changes to the
The AUA/AHUA Japan Study Tour, presented by Emelie Helsen MAUA and Laura Thomson MAUA explored quality assurance and enhancement, employability and the graduate job market, internationalization and the student experience. ‘Lean Training’ (Cardiff University) was presented by Sally McKinley MAUA who talked about the ‘5 principles of lean’, mapping the value stream and identifying ‘7 wastes’ to maximize value.
London Business School values champion Eleanor Eiserman MAUA talked about the school’s vision and process of embedding the five values it created. ‘Professional Gardening- the Art of Successful Networking’ was presented by Sue Carrette MAUA, providing a framework for nurturing professional identity and building networks. Attendees stayed on after the presentations to put Sue’s networking advice into immediate effect, and left with renewed enthusiasm for all that the annual conference has to offer in advancing and promoting professionalism in higher education. Esta Adams MAUA London Business School
Annual Awards Following the huge success of our Jubilee Awards in 2011, we’re continuing the spirit of celebration with the AUA Annual Awards. The ongoing success of the AUA is very much premised upon the considerable good work undertaken by our members. To celebrate and recognise outstanding achievements and commitment the Association will be presenting six awards which include a brand new award. In order to recognise not just the commitment to our Association, but to the wider overall improvement of higher education administration, we’re introducing the Administrator Award. Administrator Award Awarded to the AUA member who has shown sustained or exceptional service to the administration of their institution, which is over and above what it normally expected of their role. AUA Advocate Awarded to the AUA member who has made an outstanding contribution to raising the profile of the Association.
AUA Newcomer Awarded to the AUA member who joined the Association on or after 1 August 2011, and who has shown exceptional initiative in getting involved in the Association’s activity. Contribution to Career Development Awarded to the AUA member who has either: • made a sustained contribution to the career development of others, or • used the AUA’s services, tools and resources to enhance their own career Most Innovative Involvement in AUA Time to get creative! Awarded to the person or team who can show the most creative and innovative way in which they have been involved with or raised the profile of the Association. Branch Good Practice These are the non-competitive awards which reward the contribution and commitment made by branch teams to promote the profile of
the Association and help develop members in their branch. Nominations are welcome from full and associate members of the AUA. So if someone you know deserves one of our Annual Awards then get your nomination in now! The Awards will be presented at our celebratory Awards Ceremony at the Annual Lecture on 18 October 2012 in Birmingham. Applications will close at 4pm on Friday 31 August. The awards will be judged by a panel of AUA members made up of the Board of Trustees, Council, Fellows and Network Coordinators. For more information on the entry criteria and how to apply for any of the awards, visit www.aua.ac.uk/ news-44-AUAAnnualAwards.html.
AUA NEWSLINK 27
AUA News
Out and About
Once again your Trustees and National Officers continue to the further the work of the AUA and represent your interests and . tionally interna and UK Association within the On 30 April Christopher Hallas FAUA, Outgoing Chair, and Melissa Bradley FAUA, AUA Trustee, presented on the AUA and professional development at the first Universities at Medway Network event, the launch of a programme of future events.
July. Matthew also represented AUA at the opening of the AMOSSHE Conference. Christopher represented AUA at the PARN (Professional Associations Research Network) conference on new approaches to membership of professional associations on 25 April 2012.
Christopher represented AUA at the LFHE Members’ Advisory Group meeting held on 2 May.
Matthew presented to the AHUA London and AHUA Midlands Regional Groups, and the ARC Council on the new strategic direction for the AUA.
Christopher participated as a member of the judging panel for the THE Leadership and Management Awards 2012, held on 9 May, leading the judging on the departmental administration category. On 21 June Christopher represented AUA at the THELMA’s award ceremony and presented the award for departmental administration. He also represented AUA at a THE sponsored meeting to consider a HEI “happiness” project on 13 June. On 8 June Christopher and Matthew Andrews FAUA, Incoming Chair, presented on AUA developments at the ARC business meeting and later had discussions with the Chair of ARC, Paul Travill, and Chair-Elect, Sue Grant, and other ARC Executive members on the on-going AUA-ARC service partnership. Christopher represented AUA at two HE sector conferences – the UHR Conference 16-17 May and the AMOSSHE Conference 11-13
Nick Allen MAUA, AUA Trustee, attended and participated in the East Midlands Conference on 28 June. On April 27 Kathy Fowler FAUA, AUA Trustee, attended the launch of a global network called ‘Changing Universities’ on behalf of the AUA Board of Trustees and Managing Change in HE Network. Kathy also attended and presented at the Managing Change Open Forum on 6 July. Tessa Harrison MAUA, AUA Trustee, attended and presented at the South Network event on 30 May. AUA Trustees Melissa Bradley FAUA and Rachel Birds FAUA hosted the Organisational Development Network Conference on the 16 May 2012. Melissa represented the AUA at the CAUBO “Risky Business” Conference in Montreal, Canada from the 16 - 19 June 2012.
Meet the AUA National Office Name: Emily Harris Position: AUA Events Assistant After finishing my first year at Leeds Metropolitan University I was determined to find a job for my placement year that best suited me, that will give me the vital experience I need, can teach me business related skills and will enable me to grow as a person. When I saw the AUA were recruiting students I jumped at the chance to be a part of their team; I knew this company could fulfil my placement experience. Since starting at the AUA I have been welcomed so warmly by everyone here at the National Office, and have been given the chance to work at a real life event on only my second day!
Emily H arris
My decision to study Events Management stems from my enjoyment of organising low key events around my local area, High school and College in particular and from work experience. I was never someone who was 100% sure about which career path to follow and thought if I channel what I enjoy, into a career I would be sure to find my feet. When I found that there was such a degree that develops the skills I enjoy I knew I would fit into the industry well. The course at Leeds Metropolitan University sets Industry standards and I have gained so much knowledge within the sector from them. I am now extremely excited about developing and putting into practice these skills within the AUA organisation. This is such a fantastic opportunity so early on in my studies to enable me to gain a much more enhanced understanding of the industry, and I am so privileged to be working within such a reputable and respected company, and I will continue the high standard of events set by placement students before me.
Name: Kane Hughes Position: Finance and Operations Officer
ughes Kane H
in the public sector for councils. I have gained six years accounting and finance experience working within the public sector in Ipswich I began my career as a finance assistant and worked my way up in a finance role. I joined the AUA in Co-op the joined and ago months 14 ster Manche before I moved to be part of. The role varies on a day to May 2012 and have found the higher education sector a pleasure about the role and AUA. I thrive learning tly constan am to day basis which I like, it is also challenging and work. of pieces on on conclusi a to come you upon this and is very satisfying when forward to continuing my personal Working for the AUA it’s a great opportunity for myself and I look qualification from September. I have CIMA towards studying and ce experien development both with work es and some AUA members, I am already built contacts and close working relationships with my colleagu looking to continue this the more I grow into the role.
AUA Members are individually and collectively committed to: • the continuous development of their own and others’ professional knowledge, skills and practices; • actively championing equality of educational and professional opportunity; • the advancement of higher education through the robust application of professional knowledge, skills and practices; • the highest standards of fair, ethical and transparent professional behaviour.
AUA National Office Staff Laura Ashcroft Project Officer: Membership and Networks Richard Carr Administrator: Communications and Events Brenda Dakers Project Officer: Professional Development Emily Harris Events Assistant Kane Hughes Finance and Operations Officer Catherine Lillie Professional Development Manager Kim Mellor Administration Assistant (maternity cover) Kathy Murray Communications & Operations Manager (maternity leave) Noreen Muzaffar External Relations Officer
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The AUA exists to advance and promote the professional recognition and development of all who work in professional services roles in higher education, and to be an authoritative advocate and champion for the sector.