FAQs: Renew ANU

The University must change so it can best position itself to thrive in the future. Change is necessary and unavoidable.

The University's expenses have steadily increased, while revenue has not kept pace. The COVID pandemic impacted all Australian universities, while changes in government policy, the management of international student numbers and macro-economic forces have also created new headwinds which are unlikely to diminish. The introduction of managed growth as a policy setting constrains our domestic and international student numbers and, thus, our revenue. Without structural intervention, the University will not be financially sustainable.

Reshaping our academic structure is one way for us to position the University to more effectively, and more efficiently, serve our national mission and deliver world-class teaching and research in a sustainable way.

Under the proposed changes, we will retain all 42 existing schools, centres, and institutes, but from 1 January 2025 we will move to a six-college structure that better aligns our resources, expertise, and strategic goals.

The ANU College of Health and Medicine (CHM) will be disestablished, and three colleges will be renamed and reshaped: • The ANU College of Science will be renamed the ANU College of Science and Medicine (CSM). It will include the John Curtin School of Medical Research, and the School of Medicine and Psychology. The College will host the University's medical and science activities. • The ANU College of Law will be renamed the ANU College of Law, Governance and Policy (CLGP). It will include the School of Law, the Crawford School of Public Policy, the School of Regulation and Global Governance, and the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health. • The ANU College of Engineering, Computing and Cybernetics will be renamed the College of Systems and Society (CSS). It will include the Fenner School of Environment and Society, the Mathematical Sciences Institute and the Centre for Public Awareness of Science.

The ANU College of Business and Economics and the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences will retain their existing structures.

The ANU College of Asia and the Pacific will be focused on its founding mandate to advance our understanding of the Asia-Pacific region.

1 January 2025.

No. Staff would remain in their current locations for now.

The University is committed to consulting with staff and the union/s in accordance with the organisational change provisions under Clauses 69 and 70 of the Enterprise Agreement. In doing so, the University will give genuine consideration to matters raised about the change by affected staff and staff appointed or union representatives. Following the consultation process, the University will issue an implementation paper to staff and the union/s.

All feedback should be submitted to: [email protected]

The University's expenses have steadily increased, but revenue has not kept pace. From 2021 to 2023, there was a 10.1 per cent growth in expenses, while revenue only grew by 3.4 per cent over the same period. As a result, the University has gone from a reported surplus to a persistent operating deficit, with more than $400 million in cumulative operating deficits between 2020 and 2023.

The 2024-28 Financial Plan was designed to achieve a financially stable position and climb out of these deficits. The plan was underpinned by growth in revenue via increases in student numbers, as well as cost reductions which were designed to ensure an operating surplus by 2026. However, the University has not met the Financial Plan's 2024 target for growth or expenditure and the University's finances remain on an unsustainable trajectory. This renders the Financial Plan unviable. The University's projected 2024 deficit of $60 million is now in excess of $200 million.

Without structural intervention, the University will not be financially sustainable. Council has directed the University to reduce our recurring operating costs by $250 million by 1 January 2026. The University will take a phased and deliberate approach in this reset and make permanent reductions in salary and non-salary spending. The University will achieve the $250 million reduction in our recurring operating costs by reducing the University's non-salary spending by $150 million and its salary spend by $100 million.

Throughout Q2 and Q3 2024, the Strategic Leadership Group (SLG) introduced a range of operational controls - targeting salary and non-salary spend, as well as organisational inefficiencies and duplication. SLG introduced a centralised recruitment committee and a new set of guidelines regarding the management of financial liabilities. SLG also worked to proactively tackle our annual leave and long-service leave liabilities which currently stand at $163.4m. These measures have halted further deterioration. Furthermore, these new controls ensure an ongoing basis for better operational and financial discipline.

To be sustainable into the future, and continue providing world-class education and research, we require a $250M reduction in our recurring cost base. To reach this sustainable operating level, reductions will be made across the University's salary and non-salary spending.

To address the salary expenditure, the University realigned several professional service areas earlier in 2024, including finance, human resources, and information technology, and disestablished the Division of Shared Services. These realignments were made to provide service improvement, standardisation and connectivity in professional service functions. We will continue to realign professional services in the broader University ecosystem. This includes services supporting research, education, governance, facilities, marketing, communications and engagement. The University will streamline professional support services through a realignment and focus on consistent and equitable service delivery to ensure the "One ANU" model with clear accountability and responsibilities.

The proposed reorganisation of our academic college structure would assist with reducing our salary expenditure.

We have also taken measures to address the non-salary expenditures. Some of these measures result in temporary reductions in spending, and the University needs to turn its focus to permanent expenditure reductions, changes in processes and operations, standardising approaches and working towards whole-of-university solutions. We have established an Expenditure Task Force, led by the Chief Operating Officer, to identify opportunities for permanent expenditure reductions and to drive whole-of-university solutions. The Task Force draws on expertise from across the University. Initially, it will be focused on non-salary spend of: information technology (including licensing), procurement, facilities and travel.

If the university wished to pursue this action, it would require the proposal to be put to a vote to all eligible staff covered under the Enterprise Agreement. This would require a majority of all those who voted to support that motion.

This is not under consideration currently.

Budgets will be developed and issued across the months of October and November with Council signing off in early December.

This change will certainly help put us on a more sustainable financial footing and reduce the gap between our revenue and our expenditure. The exact number of roles that will be affected will not be known until the Implementation Plan is released. Even at that time, a number of staff may be successful in securing redeployment options. Once the change is complete, this will be clearer.

There is no hiring freeze at ANU. We still need to recruit people to help us be a university of quality and distinction. However, we recognise the need to be considered about the numbers of people we hire and the positions we hire them for. That's why we introduced a centralised recruitment committee that reviews all hiring decisions. This operational control ensures an appropriate level of oversight on our appointments, so that we operate within our financial means.

The college system is young and still evolving. It was first formed in 2006 and there have been multiple iterations since then. The ANU College of Health and Medicine (CHM) itself was created in 2018.

Changing the composition of our colleges will help our financial sustainability while also positioning us at the forefront of education, research and engagement.

Disestablishing CHM allows us to transfer the John Curtin School of Medical Research (JCSMR) and the School of Medicine and Psychology (SMP) to the new College of Science and Medicine (CSM), and the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health (NCEPH) to the new College of Law, Governance and Policy.

There are significant benefits to these realignments: • Collocation of infrastructure-intensive schools within CSM maximises funding opportunities and responsible use of nationally funded resources. • New research and education opportunities through collocating JCSMR and SMP with CSM. • New policy education and research opportunities through collocating NCEPH with the newly renamed College of Law, Governance and Policy (CLGP).

Yes, the Review will continue and Professor Christine Nixon's report to the Provost is still expected by the end of the year. Information about the Review, including how to contribute, can be found here.

The University's highest priority is the health, wellbeing and safety of our community. We aim to provide our community with support so we can help each other get through this challenging time.

Staff and their family members can access free support and counselling through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) which can be reached on 1800 808 374 (this number operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week).

Staff can also contact the ANU Advisers to Staff who provide free, confidential and professional counselling and advice to staff on-campus in dealing with work-related or personal issues that may be affecting their work.

These services are available to us all and can help provide you with advice about the things that you can do to help support you during times of change.

See also this list of support services.

Yes, you can provide feedback by emailing [email protected] by the closing date shown in the plan. Please clearly indicate which change plan you are commenting on in the title of your email.

Final outcomes will be communicated to affected staff after consultation for the change plan closes, and before the release of an implementation plan, which is the next stage in the change process. Until then, you should continue to perform your usual role.

There is a two- week consultation period after release of the change plan, unless otherwise indicated. The University will be reviewing the feedback after the closing date and preparing an implementation plan which summarises the feedback and sets out the final structure and impacts. The release of an implementation is usually no later than three weeks after consultation closes.

Yes, the unions have been briefed and will also be provided with a copy of the change proposal and have the opportunity to provide feedback.

The following payments apply to continuing staff covered by the Enterprise Agreement, whose positions are made redundant and who are not redeployed into an alternate role following a 12 week period of redeployment and the relevant notice period (Clause 57 of the Agreement): • For academic staff: a redundancy payment of three weeks' salary for each year of service with a minimum payment of five weeks' pay and maximum of 68 weeks' pay; and • in recognition of the longer lead time for academic recruitment and engagement, an Academic Employment Transition Payment of up to 16 weeks' salary for academic staff, provided that the total of the redundancy payment for academic staff does not exceed 78 weeks (excluding accrued annual and long service leave). • For professional staff: a redundancy payment of three weeks' salary for each year of service with a minimum payment of five weeks' pay and maximum of 64 weeks' pay. • All staff: payment of accrued annual leave and long service leave.

Please email [email protected] if you would like a copy of a redundancy calculator to help you determine a potential redundancy. Please note this is only applicable to continuing staff. If you are a fixed term employee and you want to know more about your potential entitlements, please contact your local HR Practitioner for further advice.

The option for redundancy would be available to continuing staff whose positions are confirmed surplus at the implementation stage of the change. If your role is declared surplus at this stage, you will receive written notification of this from People and Culture and would have the option at that point to express interest in redundancy.

For continuing staff whose positions have been declared redundant, a redeployment process will be initiated which aims to assist staff in being redeployed into a suitable alternate position within the University during a 12 week redeployment period, where such positions are available.

During this 12-week period, staff will need to apply for positions and go through merit based selection processes. If at the end of the 12 weeks the staff member has not been redeployed into a suitable alternate position, the staff member will be provided with relevant notice that employment with the University will cease, and the staff member will receive a redundancy payment at the end of the notice period. For those staff covered by the Enterprise Agreement this is set out in Clause 57 of the Agreement.

Where the University cannot identify a suitable alternative position, the staff member may elect to seek redeployment to other positions, including positions at a lower classification. If a staff member is successful in obtaining a position by demonstrating that they meet the selection criteria and agree to being transferred into the role, the staff member may be redeployed into a lower classified position. Where a staff member agrees to be redeployed to a position with a lower classification, salary maintenance of up to 26 weeks for professional staff and up to 12 months for academic staff may be paid at the pre-transfer salary rate.

This depends on the type of fixed term contract. Individual advice will be provided on entitlements if the contract is terminated early at the time the change is implemented. If you have any immediate questions about your contract, please contact your local HR Practitioner.

All staff will continue to receive information regarding any proposed changes to their local area and position, regardless of whether they are on extended leave (or not). If any staff that are currently on extended leave and their position is made redundant, they will be formally notified in writing and provided with all relevant information. The University will work with staff directly in regard to options, which include offering redeployment opportunities, working around leave dates or responding to any requests from staff for an early separation.

If a staff member's substantive continuing position is made redundant, they will be formally notified and the University will work with the staff member on redeployment opportunities and other options. Depending on the end date of the temporary transfer, this date may have to be reviewed and adjusted if a staff member is successful in being permanently redeployed into a suitable alternate role during the formal redeployment process. The University will work with both local areas to finalise an outcome. If a staff member is not successful in being redeployed into a suitable alternate role during the formal redeployment timeframe, the staff member will be provided with formal notice that their employment with the University will terminate at the end of notice period and the staff member will receive a redundancy package. If this date is prior to the expiration of the temporary transfer, the temporary transfer will expire early.

If the temporary transfer position is made redundant, the University will work with staff on options. Dependent on the end date of the temporary transfer, there may be an opportunity to return to the staff member's substantive position early, however this is not guaranteed - especially if the substantive position has been backfilled. Alternate temporary transfer opportunities can be explored until such time that the staff member can return to their substantive role, however a vacancy would need to exist for this to be facilitated.

The proposed college realignment is one part of our journey to get us on a sustainable footing by the start of 2026. There are also changes happening in our professional staff areas, and further changes expected along the way. Ultimately, when we reach our goal, we'll be able to more effectively serve our national mission of delivering world-class teaching and research.

Please email [email protected]