University of Aberdeen has undergone a Governance Efficiency Review amid concerns of the financial stability and internal relational structure of the University.
The report highlights many key areas of concern following interviews with staff and members of Senate and Court.
The review, externally conducted by SUMS, a higher education consultancy firm, found that there were worrying signs of inefficiency and tension between different ranks of staff.
Senate members experienced “intimidating behaviour,” which had become normalised and confidence has been widely lost for Senate to “contribute to key areas.”
The review strongly advises that Senate, which is described as “toxic”, should seek an independent and in-depth review to help fix the broken relationships between Senate, the Senior Management Team, and Court. It also suggests that Senate should “clarify authority” and promote a more rigid structure.
A poor culture and lack of clarity within the University are emphasised throughout the report. This has been reiterated by staff employed by the university. In a recent meeting of the three staff trade unions (Unison, Unite, and UCU), representatives voiced their concerns about being left out of the planning for the new financial scheme, Adapting for Continued Success (ACS). “There is no transparency. They have totally left us out of ACS,” a representative of Unison stated.
This review comes to light at the start of Principal Pete Edwards’ tenure. The review has outlined different ways the university needs to improve to create a better culture, streamlining processes, and cultivating a better experience for staff. Professor Pete Edwards holds many positions within the ACS scheme, with the review looking at the scheme as being integral to addressing the issues highlighted.
Many staff have spoken out against the university, and have highlighted concerns over culture. One unnamed source told The Herald: “Staff are demoralised, over-worked and anxious about their jobs. I’ve never seen it so bad.”
Former Principal George Boyne was often criticised for cultivating a bad staff environment. In 2023, Boyne came under fire for saying that he wanted striking staff members to feel financial “pain along the way,” for a boycott of assessment and exam marking. Staff members at the time commented that “George Boyne should apologise unreservedly, both to his own staff, and to UCU members across the UK.”
However, there were parts to be proud of for the University. The review cites that there are “excellent examples” of chairing meetings and participation within committees. It also states that the governance team is “widely regarded as a source of excellent advice.”
The review calls on the university to undertake “urgent” independent reviews, and implement “a change program” to address the strained relationships between SMT, Senate, and Court. It also encourages senior leaders to “model openness and humility, including acknowledging mistakes and learning from them.”
I also suggests a review into the size of Court “to address concerns about its composition and operational efficiency,” after highlighting that Court often spilled into committee meetings.
A University of Aberdeen spokesperson told The Gaudie: “We commissioned an independent report to review the efficiency of our governance arrangements. The aim was to help streamline our governance framework to make us more agile as an institution and better able to respond to the challenges of the higher education sector. The University community has been engaged in this process and the findings have been shared across the institution. We look forward to taking the recommendations forward with our community as part of our new Adapting for Continued Success programme.”
