CUT Annual Report 2008

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• Strategy 13: Internationalisation (internationalising the CUT) A presentation was made to a number of Southern African Development Community (SADC) vice-chancellors under the auspices of the Southern African Regional Universities Association (SARUA) on integrated planning and capacity-building and the project was well received; The CUT has partnerships in Germany with Aalen University. Memorandums of understanding (MoUs) have been signed with the National University of Rwanda and the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), with the KIST MoU being planned for implementation in 2009 with at most four master’s and doctoral students from there registering; there are ongoing recruitment drives in the SADC countries mentioned, especially Lesotho; some partnerships with the CUT are being explored through the High Commissioner towards setting up UoT programmes in Lesotho; a collaboration with the Organisation for Social Science Research in Eastern and Southern Africa (OSSREA) is being explored. • Strategy 14: Transformation (transforming the CUT from a technikon into a university of technology) The CUT Transformation Framework has been developed and consulted amongst the various stakeholders; this also refers to achievements under Strategy 2 above; work has started on the production of a CUT qualifications framework to align with the new Higher Education Qualifications Framework (HEQF). • Strategy 15: Engagement, strategic partnerships and advancement (making these part of a UoT’s core business) Strategies to diversify the CUT’s support base for the institution – moral, social, financial and otherwise – have to be devised; engaging with various stakeholders and creating strategic partnerships with them should be the focus; increased institutional advancement and better financial sustainability should result from these engagements; reorganisation of our centres and business-oriented units should be pursued. A number of the strategies above talk to this overarching goal; examples are Strategies 10, 11 and 12 on commercialisation, business/industry and government partnerships; community engagement should also be a focus. A number of projects have been introduced in Jacobsdal and other places in the Free State as part of the Poverty Alleviation Strategy of government. Aspects relating to Management/Administration This section deals with managerial/administrative aspects of the institution’s operations, including new senior executive/administrative appointments. It was reported in 2007 that Council had decided on an institutional restructuring exercise in 2005, which could only be implemented as from 2007. The focus in 2007 was on Phase 1: Executive Management. All executive appointments had been made by May 2008. As such the full team consisting of the Vice-Chancellor and Principal, two Deputy Vice- 8
Chancellors, an Executive Director and a Registrar, was in place throughout most of 2008. The next phase of the restructuring process, Phase 2: Middle Management Restructuring was initiated through Council’s acceptance of Management’s proposals in March 2008. A new middle management structure was finally approved in September 2008. Work towards populating the new structure then started immediately. The implementation process was set to proceed at the beginning of 2009. Savings achieved from Phase 1 total about R3 million as from 2008 when the new structure was put in place; and given the new middle management structure, savings of around R12 million are expected from 2009 onwards. An additional allocation of about R10 million (R8 million for academic and research appointments and a 300% increase of R3 million for the Library and Information Centre from the 2008 budget) was provided for in our 2009 budget in lieu of savings from restructuring and our subsidy grant. This has resulted in the salary budget ratio of academic:support staff improving from 49:51 in 2007 to 55:45 in 2008. In this way, the CUT is beginning to shift resources towards its core business. Administrative structures and resources This section deals with achievements in the administrative structures and resources, both personnel and systems, which should be assessed in terms of realistic expectations. • Risk management and the internal audit function The internal audit function was outsourced to KPMG towards the end of 2007. The year 2008 was the first year of operation for KPMG. As a result, the CUT now has a proper Risk Register and a three-year rolling Audit and Risk Management Plan. Various audits were conducted and reports produced. The KPAs for executive managers have been adjusted to include all the risk issues relating to their divisions. The intention was stated that after a year of operation, the outsourced internal audit function would be reviewed early in 2009 in order to give the CUT evidence that supports the continuation of the outsourced function or other strategies to deal with this function. • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems ICT systems are one of the most complex systems for most executives in that there is usually not much expertise at executive level to make informed decisions. Whilst periodic reviews are the norm in academic affairs, for many years administrative systems at the CUT have been running without periodic reviews. The CUT’s Institutional Planning Unit has produced a framework for periodic reviews for administrative units. As part of this process, the ICT Unit was reviewed in October/November 2008. Due to the complex nature of such a review and a lack of internal capacity, an external service provider with all the necessary expertise had to be engaged. A commitment was made to monitoring the improvement plan closely during 2009. • Financial and Investment Management Strict control over finances was exercised throughout the year. The salary budget has been managed to within 64.5% of the total of subsidy and tuition fees, down from a budgeted 72% in 2007. The 2007 report presented some measures that were taken in 2007 and which resulted in the curbing of salary expenditure to within about 67% at the time. In the area of investments, the CUT has not performed too poorly, despite the serious global financial problems. The CUT’s total investment portfolio stands at about R280 million. Long-term investments have grown from about R106 million as at 31 December 2007 to about R128 million as at 31 December 2008, a 20% increase. Short-term investments of about R151 million consist of about R61 million of the DoE grant for infrastructure development. The long-term investments, unaffected by the DoE grant, remain a testimony to more prudent management of the CUT’s investments. • Procurement (Supply Chain) Management The year 2007 saw the development of a new procurement policy and procedure. This helped to build a strong foundation for the CUT. However, the implementation of this policy has been fraught with problems due to a lack of administrative capacity. Significant support – both human and financial – has been given to the CUT’s Procurement Unit. The Vice-Chancellor and the Executive Director: Vice-Chancellor’s Office have spent substantial amounts of time clarifying the criteria and devising formulae to be used in the process of scoring bidders in a fair and scientific manner. 9
Page 1 and 2: CUT Annual Review 2008 Thinking Bey
Page 3: Motto THINKING BEYOND captures the
Page 6 and 7: 1Message from the Vice- Chancellor
Page 8 and 9: Vice-Chancellor and Principal’s R
Page 10 and 11: 6 • Strategy 6: Enhancing Science
Page 14 and 15: 3 Significant Student Data and Rele
Page 16 and 17: The table below presents the studen
Page 18 and 19: 4 Campus Development Closure of Pre
Page 20 and 21: 6 Financial Statements For 2008 the
Page 22 and 23: INCOME STATEMENT for the year ended
Page 24 and 25: Research and Development 7A major i
Page 26 and 27: Innovation Fund A valuable support
Page 28 and 29: Completed master’s degree studies
Page 30 and 31: 8Community Engagement The CUT espou
Page 32 and 33: 10Significant Developments Signific
Page 34 and 35: 30 11 The Unit for Academic Develop
Page 36 and 37: 12 Highlights Special Events of bro
Page 38 and 39: 34 13 The Student Services Section
Page 40 and 41: Residence Life A total of 34 House
Page 42 and 43: Ireland, visited the Hotel School t
Page 44 and 45: 14 Working with industry is present
Page 46 and 47: supervisor and postgraduate student
Page 48: Visit us at: www.cut.ac.za or call

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