Centres Procedure

1. Purpose

1.1 The Centres Procedure (the procedure) supports the implementation of the Centres Policy (the policy).

1.2 The procedure also sets out specific requirements for UTS centres that are based offshore.

2. Scope

2.1 The scope of the policy applies to this procedure.

3. Principles

3.1 The principles outlined in the policy apply to this procedure.

4. Procedure statements

Centre approval and establishment

4.1 Centres may be proposed by the following:

1. Individuals representing a proposed group of researchers.
2. Teams (also lab or hub): A group of interested researchers in a school/discipline in connection with a variety of different collaborators.
3. Faculties (and divisions): Most commonly, centres are established or hosted by a faculty and made up of core and affiliate members (from inside or outside the faculty) who work in collaboration towards an identified purpose. These may be proposed by one faculty, multiple faculties or a lead faculty with a number of discipline areas across the university. These are normally proposed by the faculty dean.

4.2 Where there are multiple faculties involved in a centre, all relevant deans must be included in the business case. A lead dean must be nominated for the purposes of establishing the centre and having a single point of communication. The lead dean will undertake all responsibilities assigned to the dean (refer the policy and this procedure).

4.3 Centres may establish themselves as either a university centre or a faculty centre (refer the policy). This categorisation will determine the strategic intent, size, scope and scale of the centre.

4.4 All centres must use the business case in the Centre Establishment Guidelines (SharePoint). A centre’s business case must include the following details:

1. centre name, leadership team and proposed members
2. alignment to the principles (outlined in the policy) and taxonomy
3. strategic intent, purpose, objectives, functions and financials
4. host faculty, unit or business area
5. management responsibilities, membership eligibility and external participation terms
6. centre structure and governance arrangements (commensurate with the strategic intent, size, scale of activities and risk profile of the centre) including advisory boards and management committees if appropriate
7. space requirements and any specific facilities
8. risk assessment, including potential risks of the centre’s activities and operation and how these risks will be managed (refer Risk Management Policy and for offshore centres refer International collaboration and engagement (SharePoint))
9. objectives, outcomes, impact and proposed lifecycle (articulated with an agreed corresponding suite of indicators, including outputs, outcomes and impact)
10. planning and performance review schedule and criteria
11. for university centres, an external engagement plan that showcases the centre’s distinctive features for its external stakeholders
12. for offshore centres, any additional considerations (refer Offshore centres), and
13. exit strategy, which describes how closure of the centre will be managed. If the centre has an unspecified lifespan, and no exit strategy, then its purpose, succession planning requirements and key performance indicators must be assessed at each annual review for faculty centres and triennial review for university centres.

4.5 Where it is proposed to name a centre in recognition of substantial support to the university from an individual or organisation, the centre proposer must refer to the Honorary Titles and Awards Policy for guidance on honour naming.

Offshore centres

4.6 In addition to the approval and establishment requirements outlined in statements 4.1 to 4.5, offshore centre proposals must consider the following as part of the business case:

1. the reputation and standing of the offshore partner institution, including the nature of the activities they undertake
2. strategic alignment, in particular with the UTS Research Strategy, and benefit to UTS
3. academic freedom and integrity
4. the financial sustainability of the collaboration
5. timing and nature of annual and joint reviews in line with the policy and this procedure (refer annual and triennial reviews)
6. compliance with UTS policies, procedures, values and Australian law (refer International collaboration and engagement (SharePoint))
7. how intellectual property rights will be agreed and managed (refer Intellectual Property Policy)
8. due diligence on the proposed partnership (refer Preparing for a research collaboration (Staff Connect) or contact UTS International via email)
9. risk assessment to identify and mitigate any potential risks to meet UTS’s risk appetite (refer Risk Management Policy)
10. opportunities for staff development and exchange
11. research training and supervision
12. potential and real conflicts of interest (refer Conflicts of Interest Disclosure Policy)
13. health and safety (refer Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy).

4.7 The establishment and ongoing management of offshore centres must adhere to Australian Government requirements for international engagements (refer International collaboration and engagement (SharePoint)), including:

1. the Guidelines to counter foreign interference in the Australian university sector
2. the Foreign Arrangements Scheme
3. the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme
4. sanctions and Defence Trade Controls.

4.8 An offshore partner agreement (refer Definitions) must be developed for all offshore centres. Usually, a memorandum of understanding and a joint research centre agreement will be required (refer Joint research centres (SharePoint)). Other agreements (such as a collaborative doctoral degree agreement) will be required if this is an activity of the centre (and outlined in the business case).

4.9 The Research Office is responsible for the drafting of all offshore partner agreements.

4.10 UTS will only enter into an agreement when it is confident that the partner has comparable standards of academic integrity and a similar focus on high-quality research outcomes and impact.

Operations, governance and resourcing

4.11 Centres must only conduct their activities as approved by the Provost. Any changes to the category (that is, a university centre or a faculty centre), purpose, governance, function or performance of a centre must be re-submitted for approval in line with the policy.

4.12 Centres may conduct award courses and short forms of learning only where these courses are managed, governed and delivered in line with the university’s and faculty’s normal requirements (refer Student Rules, the Award Course Approval Policy and the Short Forms of Learning Policy) and the requirements outlined in statement 4.7.

4.13 Staff and affiliates with responsibility for centre management, research and/or other activities must have this reflected in their annual workplan, including the need for training or additional support.

4.14 All UTS staff working at an offshore centre remain employees of UTS and are bound by UTS policies and behavioural standards. UTS must be certain that there will be no undue influence on UTS research.

Annual and triennial reviews

4.15 Faculties must conduct a review for each centre on an annual basis focused on the centre’s annual key performance indicators. The annual review is undertaken to:

1. ensure that the centre is on track to achieve its vision and purpose (as outlined in the business case), and
2. identify any changes or adjustments that need to be made in order to meet its agreed outcomes (as outlined in the business case).

4.16 University centres will undergo a triennial review in place of the annual review every third year. The triennial review is led by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) with the involvement of all deans responsible for the centre (refer the policy and Centre Review Guidelines (SharePoint)). The triennial review will take in:

1. progress in achieving strategic intent, purpose, objectives and performance targets
2. governance structure
3. membership and participation
4. resourcing and cost/benefit
5. risk profile, and
6. the centre’s continuation or disestablishment.

4.17 Any changes to the centre’s purpose, governance, function or performance to arise from the triennial review must be re-submitted for approval. 

4.18 Where an annual review identifies any significant issues or changes, including the need for a faculty centre to be recategorised as a university centre (or vice versa), this should be submitted to the office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) for consideration and to the Provost for approval.

4.19 In addition to the annual and triennial reviews, offshore centres must undertake joint reviews with offshore partners in accordance with a timeline outlined in the offshore partner agreement.

5. Roles and responsibilities

5.1 Procedure owner: The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) is responsible for enforcement and compliance of this procedure, ensuring that its principles and statements are observed.

5.2 Procedure contact: The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and the faculty deans are responsible for the day-to-day implementation of this procedure and act as primary points of contact for advice on fulfilling its provisions. UTS International support the Research Office on offshore centre requirements.

5.3 Implementation and governance roles:

In line with the policy and this procedure, faculties, via the deans, are responsible for the:

1. management and performance of their centres, including governance, reporting, annual and triennial reviews, compliance and risk management, and
2. management of offshore partnerships, managing partner relationships and undertaking joint reviews (this may be nominated to the approved centre director).

6. Definitions

The definitions outlined in the policy apply for this procedure. The following definitions are in addition to those definitions. Definitions in the singular include the plural meaning of the word.

Honour naming is defined in the Honorary Titles and Awards Policy.

Joint research centre (JRC) is a centre established to facilitate collaborative research between groups of researchers at UTS and a partner institution.

Lead dean is the dean named in a centre’s business case for the purposes of establishing the centre and having a single point of communication. The lead dean is responsible for the ongoing governance, management, annual review and coordination of triennial reviews in line with the policy.

Network (or centre network) means a group of scholars who connect various existing hubs and centres from across the university to connect with industry, government and the community to create opportunities for collaboration and impact. Networks can be proposed by existing centres and do not need further approval. Networks may also exist without the involvement or inclusion of centres.

Offshore partner agreement means, for the purposes of this procedure, the contract or other written agreement(s) with an offshore partner(s) to operate an offshore centre, including, but not limited to, memoranda of understanding, joint research centre agreements and collaborative doctoral degree agreements. For more information about offshore partner agreements refer Commercial Activities Policy.