HEFCE Project

Introduction
A partnership which includes Northumbria University has been awarded £142k by the HEFCE Leadership Governance and Management Fund. Northumbria University (HR Department and Newcastle Business School) in collaboration with, Oxford Brookes University and University College London will complete the project. The project is being funded over 18 months (November 2009 to April 2011).

What is it about?
To develop a toolkit for evaluating academic and support staff learning and development in HE.  The project outcome will be a framework of flexible evaluation tools which can be used to seek the value of staff development initiatives at the individual, functional and corporate levels, (is enhanced skill/knowledge tangible?  has it contributed to school/department objectives?  what ‘£’ value in terms of business impact?).

The tool kit will be informed by best practice across public and private sectors, supplemented through a review of best practice literature along with focus group work and pilots within the project partner institutions.

Demand for the Project
The recent downturn in the economic climate has placed an ever increasing focus and pressure (within and without HE) on ‘Return on Investment’ and ‘business impact’ (CIPD 2008) of staff learning and development. Many HR Departments are reporting or are expecting a decrease in investment for staff development activity as a result of general financial pressure within businesses and the economy.

Discussions with colleagues in HE have indicated a need for a bespoke HE tool that evaluates beyond the reaction (how the delegate ‘rates’ the event) and the perceived outcomes (what delegate thinks they may have learned) for a measurable outcome (an ability to measure the effects on the individual and the business).

Evaluation of the impact of the Rewarding and Development Staff monies (which were injected into the sector c 2002-2005 has further highlighted the need for an evaluation toolkit for HE as it would appear that evaluation was restricted to inputs (the amount of money spent, and on what it has been spent) rather than outputs (little or no formal measurement of increased knowledge, capability or behaviour improvement) or outcomes (the impact or effects on the business).

The above clearly highlights the need for HR in HE to establish a range of tools which will support HE to explore methods for assessment of the value of staff learning and development to institutions, in order that senior managers (and HEFCE ref RDS monies or similar investment bodies) have clearer measures/evidence of value for money/cost effectiveness of resources allocated to staff development.

It is anticipated that project outcome will be the production of an evaluation tool kit that offers a range of tools to evaluate across a wider range of delivery, e.g. from developing pedagogic content, to how to do research, to how to lead and manage to respecting and valuing equality and diversity.

The project will be delivered in 5 key stages:

Stage 1 Critical review of theoretical models and literature along with environmental scanning (public, private and voluntary sector)Months 0-4
Stage 2 Pilots and data collection within partner institutions Months 5-9
Stage 3 Data Analysis Months 10-13
Stage 4 Analysis of critical review and theoretical findings Months 11-14
Stage 5 Development of toolkit and dissemination of project Months 15-17

Contacts