Our Staff and Ways of Working
Address staff diversity and inclusivity
We are proud of our staff community and the fact that there are 20 nationalities represented in the Faculty. Yet we acknowledge that we have much to do still and are committed to promoting greater diversity to create a more equal and inclusive working environment.
Over the next three years, we will:
• establish an Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Committee
• include a more detailed EDI statement on the Faculty website and in all job advertisements in respect to equality of opportunity in line with international standards of best practice
• increase training and development opportunities for staff in respect to the meaning and benefits of EDI principles
Over the next three years, we will:
• establish a working group on the recruitment and retention of international academic staff
• fund professional workshops/activities related to mindfulness and stress/anxiety for all staff using expertise from within the Faculty
• work with the Human Resources Office to review the recruitment and interview process in the Faculty to see how it may be further enhanced
• institute birthday leave, a single day to be taken on or within one month of a birthday, for all administrative and support staff as a token of appreciation for their hard work and commitment to the Faculty
• promote work-life balance across the Faculty through encouraging flexible working practices that also respect colleagues’ right to disconnect from out-of-hours email communication
Strengthen recruitment, retention, and staff well-being
Rapid social and political changes and the Covid-19 pandemic have had an impact on the recruitment and retention of both local and international academic staff including emigration. Therefore, we need to take measures which will positively support staff happiness and well-being and strengthen recruitment and retention wherever possible.
Improve post-pandemic ways of working
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to significant changes in the working environment of staff in universities across the world. Working practices need to be further enhanced through streamlined processes, devolving authority for decisions to the right level, less reliance on paper-based ways of working and clear, accurate and succinct communication.
Over the next three years, we will:
• establish a team-building education and development day for administrative and support staff
• establish a learning circle for administrative and support staff
• review workflows to identify more efficient working practices, including devolving decision-making authority to staff at the right level; promoting the use of accurate, succinct and clear communication; making soft/electronic copies the default way of working, and using software to streamline processes which are currently heavily reliant on email
• encourage all staff to attend at least one University-based job-related training workshop each academic year to keep abreast of new skills and knowledge
