1718 – Quadrennial Review for Academic Registry - External Adviser
We provided expert advice, as the External Adviser, to a strategic review of the Academic Registry functions:
part of a quadrennial cycle of reviews for all Schools and Professional Services. The review considered all
activities within the Academic Registry and assessed how they will contribute to the future delivery of the
University Strategy.
NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY
1715 – Research Costing Process Review - Medical Schools
The University of Newcastle asked SUMS to lead a process review of the research costing process in the
Medical Institutes within the Faculty of Medicine & Health. The review coincided with wider University
reviews of the overall research process.
SUMS delivered a series of workshops with stakeholders and users of the research costing process. As a
large proportion of research applications are undertaken in partnership with Newcastle University Teaching
Hospitals, the review involved some consideration of costing processes within the trust and how they
interface and align with University-led applications.
Our review identified significant variation in the way the process operates in each of the institutes. The
review identified that, whilst there were opportunities to improve performance through developing a more
consistent, streamlined and simplified process flow, resolving the wider structural and governance issues
should be the initial priority for the University. Our diagnosis indicated that the research costing process was
operating under considerable pressure due to role confusion, process complexity, process dynamics and
process oversight.
As a result of our review, the Medical Faculty has developed a research facilitation role and the University is
exploring the feasibility of a centralised research costing model.
Activities
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