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Tēnā koutou katoa,
The Renewal Plan has been our most visible and urgent priority this year. We have made significant progress towards achieving our goal of a renewed and sustainable Unitec and our latest forecast indicates we are on track to achieve our targeted savings of $25m by the end of 2019.
This is in addition to the $12.6m already saved this year, prior to the introduction of the Renewal Plan, which was largely achieved in support areas through the disestablishment of the Wairaka Land Company and Project Management Office, reduction of our ELT and other senior management roles, reduction in external contracting and outsourcing, and ceasing recruitment for many vacant roles.
While we have been providing updates at each step of the Renewal Plan, we can now take a wider view to reflect on all the changes and our progress to date.
First I want to acknowledge how challenging this process has been and to thank you for your continued hard work, not only towards the Renewal Plan, but also ensuring we continue to provide a great experience for our students and keep taking big steps towards achieving our goal of a Category 1 EER in 2020.
The ELT has appreciated the level of feedback provided across the organisation as we have communicated the Renewal Plan and shared our change proposals for each area. Your feedback has played a significant role in shaping Unitec into the future.
Our Objectives
There are four main objectives in the Renewal Plan:
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To design a sustainable operating model for a minimum of 6000 EFTS (excluding The Mind Lab) for 2020 and beyond |
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To realise overall cost savings of 20 percent across the organisation during 2019 ($25m) in addition to $12.6m savings already committed in 2018 |
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To engage effectively with our people and key stakeholders throughout the process |
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To enable Unitec to recover and grow in core areas of opportunity |
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The Renewal Plan has been about more than just cost cutting. We have been working closely with each area of our organisation to address operational challenges of our existing structure and to increase clarity around roles and responsibilities. We have also been exploring opportunities for growth and innovation.
That said, reducing our spending by 20 percent has been a huge undertaking. Where possible we have targeted operating expenses through increased efficiency and sought savings through non-replacement of vacancies, and reductions in contractors and fixed term employees. However, it has not been possible to achieve sufficient savings in this way and some of our permanent workforce have been affected, resulting in redundancies. This is never a decision taken lightly. To all those affected we are very sorry for the difficult position you are in and I ask that you continue to support each other during this process.
Our Progress
Since sharing our Renewal Plan presentation with staff in late July there has been major progress made with our Services Restructure, Academic Portfolio Review, Academic Leadership Review, and ATOM. More information on these can be found on The Nest Renewal Plan page. There have also been many change proposals and structural reviews across our service and support teams which, with the exception of ATOM, haven’t been captured in our updates as part of a larger review project, but have been no less significant in their impact and the level of cost and staff reductions.
Overall, this has led to a forecast reduction in FTE of 184.8 across the organisation (including those who will be staying on for up to three years across programmes being taught out).
Combined with savings made by reducing operating expenditure and increasing efficiency, and in addition to the $12.6m already saved this year, prior to the introduction of the Renewal Plan, our forecasts indicate we are now on track to achieve our savings target of $25m for 2019 and the teach out years. Total estimated savings to date that have been identified are at $23,910,362, split across Networks ($10.8m including teaching out), Support ($8.2m), and Service groups ($4.9m). The remaining savings are anticipated to come from further consolidation of the campus and other operating efficiencies.
These cost reductions, plus the Government’s commitment to support Unitec and provision of a $50m loan option, mean we are in a much better financial position today than we were at the start of the year, or even just a few months ago.
Changes underway
We have now either completed or begun implementation of most major projects and change proposals, following consultation and feedback from staff which has helped shape our organisation heading into 2019.
Academic Leadership
From semester 1, 2019, we will introduce our new academic structure with 11 Schools to replace our current Networks and Pathways model. Each will be led by a Head of School (recruitment currently underway), supported by Programme Leaders/Managers and admin support.
> Full overview and Unitec Schools diagram
Academic Portfolio Review
A comprehensive review of our academic programmes was conducted, utilising a matrix model which was made available to staff by the Deans following the change proposal. The review affected about 5 percent of our programmes, in most cases this meant suspending new enrolments from 2019 and teaching out for existing students.
> Full overview
ATOM
The Academic Target Operating Model clarifies the ownership of academic support functions, roles and responsibilities. It addresses process gaps and aims to reduce some of the administrative load on administrative staff. Academic Administrators have now moved to join their new teams (either Operations or Te Korowai Kahurangi).
> Full overview
Services Restructure
There has been considerable change to our support services over the last few months. HR, IMS, Finance, Communications, and Facilities Management have prioritised their activities and in some cases service levels have been lowered in order to reduce costs. Operating models for these groups have also been reviewed and operating costs reduced. Change proposals are near completion for most of these service areas.
The International team will be integrated with the Marketing and Student Success teams, with functions split between recruitment and retention/support respectively. The Business Intelligence team will also shift from operating as a standalone unit with members embedded with Commercial Services, Marketing, and Te Korowai Kahurangi. An overview of these structural changes, creating focus areas of ‘Reputation and Recruitment’ and ‘Retention and Success’ can be seen in our Renewal Plan Presentation slides.
We continue to focus on providing the right levels of teaching support through our academic administration and academic operations teams.
The New Model
We expect to start 2019 with the new models and many of the roles in place across the organisation. We still have some work to do around the Programme Manager/Leader and administration positions within the academic structure and ensuring the full benefits of ATOM are realised. As all changes are finalised we will provide updates to show where services sit and supply any new contact information for teams.
While we do anticipate some disruption as everyone settles into the new structure, we also expect this to deliver a simpler, more efficient organisation, and one which is ready to tackle any challenges in the future. In acknowledging the importance of ongoing self-assessment and continuous improvement, we also make a commitment to continue to consult and communicate transparently with you, and ensure our staff and students have a strong voice in making Unitec somewhere we all belong.
Ngā mihi nunui
Merran Davis
Interim Chief Executive
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