RESULTS: territorial or communal – which tribe are you?
The Times Higher Education recently quoted a report by a Dutch University, which claimed that universities could reduce estate footprint by 25% if staff become less “territorial” and shared teaching and office space with colleagues in other departments.
Development of an Academic Intern Scheme
This project will develop a professional development scheme for postgraduates interested in an academic career. This intern scheme is designed to offer an innovative and inclusive way to expose postgraduate taught and research students to wider academic skills, practices and processes, whilst providing an opportunity to see the workings of a higher education institution.
The cross-cutting themes of the ITF projects
Managers should witness first-hand how processes earmarked for improvement work before agreeing to those changes, Heather Lawrence of the University of Strathclyde's business improvement team writes. Her blogpost, focusing on lessons from the Innovation and Transformation Fund, also advises capturing feedback and communicating findings throughout the projects.
The eight wastes in higher education
Every workplace has ways in which they could improve their practices and higher education is no different. This infographic captures how problems like overprocessing, reworking and waiting affect staff, students and academic alike.
Don’t wait for Godot, start fixing things now
Inspired by the absurdist Samuel Beckett play Waiting for Godot, the University of Sheffield's Rachel McAssey issues a call to arms in her blog; instead of waiting for big change to happen, get some problem solving skills and start making small improvements.
A call for tools to measure the effectiveness of technicians
Technicians are involved in many areas of university life, yet sometimes the vital skills that they possess are not recognised within their institutions. In this blogpost, HEFCE's Steve Butcher argues that if universities want to make the most of their technical workforce, they need a tool that measures the benefits they bring.
HE Shared Legal
Subscription-based legal guidance service for UK HE institutions. Includes help desk and assistance with engaging legal advisers. Operating on a pilot basis, with HEFCE funding.
Sharing IT services and the law – Jisc Legal
Includes contractual implications, sharing personal data, ownership and Freedom of Information.
THE Leadership and Management Awards 2016
The THE Leadership and Management Awards are seeking entries for their 2016 programme. They include awards for outstanding estates, leadership and procurement teams, with the entrants for the latter category required to demonstrate how their work contributes towards the attainment of the recommendations set out in the 2011 Diamond report.
Want your staff to stay? Make training a priority
Giving workers the tools to do their jobs to the best of their ability can result in a more motivated and productive workforce, lead to improved retention and reduce the need for costly recruitment procedures, a guide produced by the Association of Accounting Technicians says. The guide gives a snapshot of the state of training in the UK and offers advice for employers considering their training needs.
