Updated Delegations of Authority Policy and Register

The Delegations of Authority Policy and Register establishes the principles and scope for devolved decision-making across the university under the authority of the Senate, the university’s governing body.

ACU’s Senate approved amendments to the Delegations Policy at its meeting on 8 April, and the updated document is available for you to view online. All staff are responsible for ensuring that they are familiar with the document and understand how it applies to their day-to-day functions.

The Delegations Policy sets out authorisations conferred by the Senate on officers and bodies of the university and committees of Senate for the purpose of carrying out their functions across 13 key areas. The exercise of individual delegations is governed by a series of principles. These principles provide guidance to university officers in exercising their decision-making authority in a robust and accountable manner.

As a living document, the policy is updated on occasion to meet the university’s changing needs as our strategic and operational priorities develop over time.

What’s new in the revised Delegations Policy?

• Changes of title and position as a result of multiple change plans across the organisation following MYEFO and the budget impact response.
• Changes designed to refine and clarify the exercise of operational functions across various areas of the university.
• A series of extraordinary academic delegations in the new Schedule 1 due to the declaration of COVID-19 as a Critical Incident under ACU’s Critical Incident Management Framework.

How do I suggest changes to the Delegations Policy?

Changes to the university’s strategic and operational objectives or its organisational structures mean that the Delegations need to be updated periodically for currency and efficacy.

To suggest or discuss changes to the Delegations Policy, please lodge a request with the Governance Directorate through Service Central. Changes will be considered by the Responsible Officer, Dr Stephen Weller, but cannot be guaranteed given Senate’s role in approving amendments to the Delegations Policy.

How are breaches of the Delegations Policy managed?

Breaches of the Delegations Policy are treated seriously given that they represent a deviation of Senate’s delegated decision-making authority.

If you are concerned about a potential breach of the Delegations Policy, please contact Dr Diane Barker, Director of Governance at Diane.Barker@acu.edu.au for advice. Following an appropriate investigation process, all established breaches are reported to Senate.

More information and training

The Delegations Policy is available on the ACU website. Director of Governance, Dr Diane Barker, offers business units and teams personalised training in relation to the Delegations Policy in the context of their operational functions.

If you would like to organise a training session, or have a general query about the operation of the Delegations Policy, please lodge a request with the Governance Directorate through Service Central.