staff room special edition supplement december 2010
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Staff Room Special Edition Supplement December 2010.TRANSCRIPT
oomST
AF
F UNIVERSITY OF GLAMORGAN STAFF MAGAZINE
S U P P L E M E N T
University of Glamorgan
Prifysgol Morgannwg
BrandPerception
SurveyWe reveal what our external
stakeholders think of us
And the introduction of the
University Strategy 2010-15From the Vice-Chancellor, Julie Lydon
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
2 staffroom supplement
IntroductionIn recent years, we have undergone a significant period of change in order to raise our profile and
ensure our long-term sustainability. New faculties, new campuses and new partnerships have
been established with the aim of being a more market-facing institution, responding to student
expectations, employer and industry requirements and community interests. I am confident that
we have made a real difference locally, nationally and beyond, but it is always interesting to know
what others think – do our partners and stakeholders consider our contribution to be as
significant? And, are we in their eyes, ‘on the up?’
To provide answers to these questions, we commissioned external consultants EURO RSCG Heist
during the summer to undertake in-depth research to establish whether the reputation of the
University has changed in the eyes of our key stakeholders those individuals and groups who have
the most interaction with us, or influence opinion.
The extensive findings were presented to Directorate in early Autumn; what they reflect is the
commitment and enthusiasm of our staff in making Glamorgan an excellent institution of higher
learning. The results reveal that awareness of our activities is high and, more importantly, that there
has been a positive shift in perception amongst all stakeholders, including schools, colleges,
business, government and community groups and journalists. Almost three-quarters of
respondents indicated that our reputation has either improved or significantly improved in the last
three years. What’s more, those who are closer to the University or know more about the
University are more likely to indicate such a shift -- this is categorical proof that effective
stakeholder engagement pays dividends.
As you will see for yourself in this supplement, the findings from this exercise were largely positive.
You will also see that there are areas on which we need to reflect further and take appropriate
action to improve. We have already begun this process by considering the findings as part of the
review of our strategic direction. A strong steer from our stakeholders, one which we have always
embraced, is that maximising student employability is a fundamental role for the University going
forward. To this end, our new University Strategy, which is introduced at the end of this
publication, explicitly outlines our commitment to our students and their future employers in
providing professional, employment-focused higher education.
I trust you welcome the opportunity to see these research findings and I advocate full and open
dialogue with colleagues and your respective stakeholders in these matters. I cannot emphasise
enough the importance of effective stakeholder engagement going forward; our long term
sustainability will be contingent on a range of factors, not least our ability to adapt to an
environment in which our resources will increasingly be earned from the value and benefit we can
offer to our partners and stakeholders.
To conclude, I believe the following stakeholder statement from this research neatly sums up where
we are now:
“... it’s a good university. I think it’s got a really good history and has some great people there, but
it’s got a real chance now to give what the economy needs and work with others to do it.”
I would, of course, contend that we are an excellent University, but we do have an opportunity to
make a difference by playing to our strengths, realising the full potential of our staff and unleashing
hidden talent and enterprise wherever it can be found, for the benefit of our students, our partners
and our communities.
Julie Lydon
Vice-Chancellor
Phase one comprised 103 in-depth interviews conducted over the
telephone with five stakeholder groups. These interviews took
place during May and early June 2010.
Phase two comprised 255 short telephone interviews with the same
stakeholder groups and took place during June and July 2010. The
interviews comprised a range of closed and open questions in
order to quantify responses and also to gain unprompted feedback
from those stakeholders taking part. Phase two was designed
following an initial debrief by Euro RSCG Heist after the completion
of phase one in order to test the findings from the earlier
responses.
In both phases, respondents were invited to take part in the
research, firstly via email and with subsequent follow-up by
telephone to either make an appointment or carry out the interview
itself.
MethodologyIndependent research company Euro RSCG Heist carried out aseries of data collection surveys on behalf of the Universitybetween May and July 2010. A phased approach to datacollection was adopted to achieve the objectives of thisProject.
staffroom supplement 3
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
Stakeholder Group
Schools (115)
FE colleges (20)
Government & Community(70)
Business (139)
Journalism (14)
General public (1013)
Example organisations/contacts
Heads of Sixth Form, Careers Advisors
Principals/Vice Principals of Further Education Colleges
AMs, MPs, HEFCW, WAG, Cardiff and RCT councils
Major employers, CBI, Business Clubs, Chamber of Commerce, Institute for Welsh Affairs etc.,plus specific named individuals
Local journalists, national HE journalists
Cardiff, Merthyr, Swansea, Newport, Bristol, Truro,Plymouth, Exeter, Gloucester, Cheltenham
Sample Size
30 Depth85 Short30% English Borders30% Valleys10% Cardiff30% Rest of South Wales
10 Depth10 Short30% English Borders30% Valleys and Cardiff40% Rest of South Wales
20 Depth50 Short
39 Depth100 Short
4 Depth10 Short
1013 street interviews10 locations
ScopeStakeholders included respondents from thefollowing groups:
• Schools – Careers Advisors, Heads of Sixth Form
• FE Colleges – Principals or Vice-Principals• Business• Welsh Government (local and central)• Journalists
Additional research was carried out among thegeneral public by Research & Marketing Plus.
The table below illustrates the scope of the survey. Numbers in brackets
indicate volume of interviews undertaken with each stakeholder group.
”“
4 staffroom supplement
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
One of the key findings of the survey shows that almost three
quarters of the University’s stakeholders consider Glamorgan’s
reputation to be better now, than three year ago. Amongst the
groups, schools show the highest level of improvement (85%) –
quoting schools’ liaison activity, appeal of courses and
accessibility as key strengths, while the 81% improvement cited
by FE colleges is built heavily on the strength of personal
relationships between institutions, according to the survey.
Graduate employability was identified as the most important
factor for all stakeholder groups except journalists, who rated it
second. As you might expect, employability was a particularly
74% of all respondents sayGlamorgan’s reputation hasimproved or significantlyimproved in the last three yearsStudent employability and staff professionalism are key factorsbehind a major shift in the University’s profile.
44% of respondents said Glamorgan graduates are moreemployable than those from other institutions in Wales.
Employability of Glamorgan Graduates (Business only)
1 - Worse 2 - Same 3 - Better 4 - Much better
Table one: Glamorgan -- Employability
4% 52% 30% 14%
strong influence for businesses and schools, who consider this
more important than league tables when forming an opinion of a
university’s reputation. Employability is an area where the
University is particularly strong, with 94%* of our graduates in
employment or further study within six months of graduation. It
is particularly pleasing to find that 44% of businesses who were
able to comment said that they considered Glamorgan
graduates more employable than those from other universities
in Wales, citing the University’s comprehensive range of
vocational courses as among the key factors. Almost half (48%)
of all respondents also stated that Glamorgan was better than
other universities in Wales at working with businesses.
staffroom supplement 5
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
Professionalism and flexibility were cited as key strengths
encountered by all stakeholders in their dealings with University
staff. The survey identified that support for the University is also
built upon quality of personal relationships and the ‘can do’
attitude of Glamorgan staff across all areas of activity. Our
relationships with schools was singled out as particularly strong,
with three quarters (75%) of schools saying they are more likely
to recommend Glamorgan as a university choice now, than five
years ago.
So what’s behind these improvements in our reputation? We
saw a real rise in satisfaction levels in some key areas in this
year’s National Student Survey (NSS). Glamorgan has the best
rated ‘overall satisfaction’ scores in Wales in many subject
areas including: Law (92%), Others in Social Studies (90%),
Marketing (90%), Nursing (91%), Forensic & Archaeological
studies (82%) (includes Forensics and Police Sciences/Studies
courses), Tourism, Transport & Travel (81%) and Social Work
(78%).
The £130m we are investing in our capital developments
programme – the new Students’ Union building; student
accommodation; the Aircraft Maintenance Centre and the new
indoor sport science teaching facilities at Glamorgan Sport Park
– is transforming the student experience at Glamorgan. These
developments are also cited by respondents as key factors in
their changing perception of the University. There have also
been improvements in other parts of the Glamorgan Group, with
new construction workshops being opened at Merthyr Tydfil
College and a £22.5m redevelopment of the Royal Welsh
College of Music and Drama.
Glamorgan has also developed excellent research partnerships
with other universities, industry, charities and organisations
such as the BBC, aided in part by our excellent results in the
2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), which rated more
than 70% of our research activity as being of a quality
recognised internationally for its originality, significance and
rigour.
We lead the field in hydrogen research and earlier this year
secured over £6.6m in funding to develop our expertise in this
area. This was part-funded by the European Regional
Development Fund (ERDF) through the European Union’s
Convergence programme, administered by the Welsh Assembly
Government.
Recognising the need to provide a multi-disciplinary approach
to address key issues, we are now developing cross-faculty
centres to draw together research expertise from across the
University. The first of these are in Disaster and Resilience,
Enterprise and the Digital Economy.
Significantly improved 23%
Improved 51%
Got significantly worse 1%
Got worse 1%
Neither improved not got worse 24%
74% of all respondents say we have improved
Change in the reputation of the University ofGlamorgan in the last 3 years
Table 2: Findings -- ReputationKeyFindings
74% - the overall percentage who said theUniversity’s reputation had significantly improved
or improved over the past three years. By stakeholder group:• 85% of Schools agreed - 15% no change -
0% got worse
• 81% of Further Education Colleges agreed -
19% no change - 0% got worse • 67% Welsh Assembly Government and related
agreed - 26% no change - 0% got worse • 66% of businesses agreed - 32% no change -
2% got worse
• 66% of journalists agreed – 33% no change -
0% got worse
Average Ranking (where 1 is ranked first)
1.4
2.6
3.0
3.2
3.4
3.9
4.1
4.2
4.4
4.4
5.0
2.0
4.0
4.3
5.0
Total Number ofMentions
250
217
197
228
84
124
38
9
18
9
2
1
2
3
1
University
Cardiff
Swansea
Aberystwyth
Glamorgan
UWIC
Bangor
Newport
Swansea Met
Lampeter
Trinity
Wrexham
Barry
Carmarthen
Glyndwr
Llandudno
6 staffroom supplement
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
In terms of our ranking againstother Welsh Universities…
Base: Total of 1183 Responses
NB: Those mentioned under 5 times have been shown below
the red line as the average ranking is not reliable.
Respondents were asked to mention universities they considered to be in the Top 5 in Wales, ranked in order and unprompted (i.e. not
shown a list of universities). The table below shows the total number of mentions for each university and the average ranking each was
given, where 1 indicates that it was ranked first and 5 that it was ranked 5th.
staffroom supplement 7
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
The survey reveals that Glamorgan is highly regarded by the
overwhelming majority of schools, and that there’s a direct
correlation between the level of regard a school has for the
University and the frequency of exposure they have to us,
through schools’ liaison and other activity. Frequency of contact
was cited as second most important factor amongst schools, in
forming an opinion of a university, after employability.
There was high praise for the school’s liaison service in general,
recognition that Glamorgan “goes the extra mile” in the service
we provide to schools. The outreach and liaison was described
as “professional, influential and very well received”.
This favourability correlates with an increased level of activity
undertaken by the schools liaison team over the past three
years with four main on-campus open days per year now
attracting over 4000 students in 2010 (up 8.2% from 2009) and
the team leading around 282 direct sessions up 10.5% from
2008/09 with students at schools in England and Wales, which
also has contributed some way to the 7.3% increase in
applications to courses as of 1st July 2010.
More likely 74%
Don’t know 2%Less likely 2%
No change 23%74% of schools more likely torecommend Glamorgan
Change in likelihood of recommendingGlamorgan to students in the last 5years (schools and colleges only)
Table 3: Findings -- Schools
”“Almost three quarter of schools
are more likely to recommendGlamorgan to their studentsthan five years ago.
Schools
Overall, schools perceived the University as having significantly
more strengths than weaknesses, citing capital investment both at
Treforest and at the ATRiuM, our marketing and schools liaison
work and our commitment to the Welsh language as contributing
factors to a raised profile and strengthened position as a quality
institution. There is still some negative association with the
University’s polytechnic past but this appears to be reducing.
The adjectives used to describe Glamorgan by schools included
“friendly,” “accessible,” and “supportive.” It’s plain that the close
relationships built up with schools pay dividends when it comes to
teachers recommending Glamorgan to their students, seemingly
overcoming our relatively low league table ranking to become a
first choice destination. 74% of schools now say they are more
likely to recommend Glamorgan to their students than five years
ago.
The improved perception of Glamorgan has also migrated to
schools in the English border regions, with 81% saying they are
now more likely to recommend Glamorgan to their students.
”“
8 staffroom supplement
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
FE Colleges
Amongst FE colleges, there was some concern with a
perceived move away from widening participation and at the
speed of the University’s franchise withdrawal. Although 81% of
respondents from this sector still felt that Glamorgan’s
reputation has improved in the last three years, the survey
highlighted the need to do more to help our partners understand
our strategic direction.
Journalists
Welsh Government
Business
FE Colleges
Schools
Factors affecting the impression of a University (mean scores out of 5)
1 2Not at all important Very important
3 4 5
3.73.6
3.82.5
2.6
4.383.76
3.423.72
2.8
2.77
2.43
4.28
4.14
4.383.65
3.623.16
2.96
3.663.49
3.17
3.513.513.54
Employability of graduates
Frequency of contact with a university
Position in league tables and rankings
How close the University is to your location
How long the institution has had University status
Table 4: Employability is critical
“The University of Glamorgan is trying to raise perceptions of its
academic standing. It’s trying to change from a recruiting
institution to a selecting institution. It’s trying to change from a
teaching institution to a research institution. As somebody who is
involved in the widening participation agenda all of those things
are contributing to make it more remote to the work I am trying
to do.” Neath Port Talbot College
Almost all stakeholder groupsrated employability as the mostimportant factor affecting theimpression of the University.
staffroom supplement 9
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
Business
Businesses show a high level of satisfaction with Glamorgan
where they have had personal contact with the University – 82%
saying they’re satisfied or very satisfied with the professionalism
of the University; 65% with our proactivity and two thirds (66%)
with our range of services on offer, including the training,
consultancy, innovation and technology and knowledge transfer
activities operating through the University’s Commercial
Services Office (CSO). “Helpful”, “open”, “proactive” and
“professional” were some of the words most frequently used to
describe Glamorgan as an organisation that makes an effort and
puts energy into its activities. When asked to comment on their
dealings with Glamorgan Business School and CSO, a very
impressive 89% said they were satisfied or very satisfied with
their experience, compared to a very credible 72% who felt that
the University responded well, or very well to the needs of
Welsh businesses.
This stakeholder group also placed personal experience over
league table rankings, valuing local access and the number of
local students being recruited to Glamorgan over our academic
research.
“I think they have a strength in being able to go into a business and deliver.You tend to think of training providers being good at that and I think theUniversity of Glamorgan is one of the first universities that have managedto build a reputation for being able to do that.”
Royal Mint, Training Manager
Importantly, the status of the University as a former polytechnic
was not a concern to this group, with some respondents
referring to us fondly as “Glam poly”. As you would expect, the
employability of graduates is everything to business, citing it as
the most important factor in forming an impression of a
university. Encouragingly 44% of businesses who had
experience of employing Glamorgan graduates said they were
more employable than those from other Welsh universities, with
a further 52% saying they were ‘as employable’ and only 3%
saying not as good. Looking to the future, there is optimism
amongst business stakeholders that Glamorgan is well-placed to
meet the challenges of the current economic difficulties.
Respondents were keen to see a match between courses
offered, employment opportunities and skills shortages, with a
significant emphasis for capitalising on the strong base for
delivering vocational courses and skills. The University’s key
areas of strength to focus on in the future were considered as
“hard technology” such as electronics, digital media and
physics.
Professionalism
Understanding ofyour needs
Quality of graduates
Ability to contact a relevant person in the
University
How proactive the University is in working
with you
Range of services offered to you
Business satisfaction with the University of Glamorgan
Table 5: Business Satisfaction
1 - Not all satisfied 2 3 4 5 - Very satisfied
1% 12%
19% 38% 28%
45% 37%
3% 4%
11% 33% 12%1% 2%
17% 37% 27%1% 8%
21% 33% 32%4% 6%
20% 44% 22%3% 3%
10 staffroom supplement
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
”“
Government and Community
Glamorgan scored highest amongst this group for awareness,
with 80% of respondents stating they know more about us than
any other University in Wales. This, along with the two thirds
(67%) of the group who regard our reputation to have improved
or significantly improved, suggests a high regard for the
University. However, the survey showed a poor understanding
of the University’s current position, with some respondents
having almost a nostalgic view of Glamorgan as a former school
of mines and a Valleys-only provider which “provides a
University for those who might not have thought it was
achievable.” This was coupled with concern over a perceived
move away from widening access. Local press coverage and
PR activity has helped to build our reputation, but there is lack
of awareness and knowledge about the characteristics of the
University today.
Glamorgan is seen as an important resource in the region and
there is an established authentic emotional attachment with
local people; the flipside is concern about the number of
international students and how this may impact on the
community and local recruitment. These underlying tensions
need to be addressed by developing closer ties with the
community, including local councillors, who were often not well-
informed about the work of the University.
The good news is that the quality of relationships with
Glamorgan compared favourably to relationships with other HE
institutions, but there is a huge opportunity here for more
engagement and relationship-building. There was repeated
mention amongst stakeholders of the possibility of an ‘open
day’ for the local community.
80% of respondents in thisgroup stated they know moreabout us than any otherUniversity in Wales.
On the street
Face-to-face interviews were carried out with over 1,000
members of the public in ten locations in South Wales and the
south-west of England. The findings showed many regional
differences with, as expected, respondents in Wales much more
likely to know about the University and what it offers than their
English counterparts.
In prompted responses, Glamorgan is the third most well-known
university in Wales, but only two-fifths (39%) of those
interviewed could accurately pinpoint our location. It is also of
concern that there was a relatively low level of awareness about
the ATRiuM, with just a third (35%) of those who had heard of it
associating it with Glamorgan, compared to over half (51%) who
associated it with Cardiff University. Overall, the public
respondents had a positive but rather bland view of Glamorgan,
providing generic comments that could apply to any institution.
Two fifths were unable to offer any comment about us at all,
suggesting we need to improve our ‘distinctiveness’ agenda in
order to gain a greater recognition for what we do, in the minds
of the public.
“A third of respondents 33% described the university as modern and only11% of respondents used negative descriptions.” (Street responses only).
staffroom supplement 11
Brand Perceptions and Awareness Survey
Journalists
This is a particularly important stakeholder group, as journalists
have so much influence over how Glamorgan is viewed by other
stakeholders and opinion formers. The fact that two thirds
(66%) felt our reputation had improved and none thought it had
deteriorated over the past 3 years is therefore significant. Many
respondents in other stakeholders groups said they used the
media to obtain information about, and to evaluate, universities.
Journalists were the only group in the survey to regard league
tables as the most important factor affecting the impression of a
university – possibly a reflection of the fact that the tables are
largely media-generated – the challenge now is to persuade the
media to cover Glamorgan in a more rounded light.
Swansea University
Cardiff University
Aberystwyth University
UWIC (University of WalesInstitute Cardiff)
University of Glamorgan
University of Wales, Newport
Swansea MetropolitanUniversity
Knowledge of universities in Wales (Journalists only)
Table 6: Journalists
Never heard of it Heard only of the name Know a little about it Know a lot about it
20% 80%
50% 50%
40% 50%10%
50% 40%10%
20% 70%10%
30% 60% 10%
20% 70%10%
There was agreement amongst all the journalists questioned that
Glamorgan has the best media relations operation of all the
Welsh universities, with the press office praised for its pro-
activity, relevance of stories and responsiveness to queries. This
is the University’s greatest strength amongst this stakeholder
group and further opportunities lie in us continuing to develop
our experts in certain subject areas to further strengthen our
leverage with journalists.
”“100% of stakeholders agreed
that Glamorgan has the bestmedia relations operation of allWelsh universities.
12 staffroom supplement
University Strategy 2010-15
My appointment as Vice-Chancellor in April provided anopportunity to take stock of our significant progress in recentyears within the context of dynamic external and internalenvironments and thereafter fine-tune the University’s strategicdirection – its mission and purpose – where appropriate.
This is why, during summer 2010, I consulted with students,staff and key stakeholders (via the brand survey) on thefollowing fundamental questions:
• Where are we now?• What makes the University distinctive in a national and
global context?• What are our core values? • What will ensure our long-term sustainability?
The survey results that you’ve just read and the feedback frommy consultation exercise both strongly indicated “employability”and “innovation and business engagement” as key themes thatwill differentiate the University and could provide a focus for
shaping innovative, professional services that meet the needs ofour students and stakeholders. The employability of ourgraduates will indeed, going forward, be a key indicator of ourcontribution to the social and economic wellbeing of Wales anda tangible return on their investment in studying at Glamorgan.Acknowledgement of our emerging research capability, forexample through membership of the St David’s Day Group, hasbeen a source of inspiration for our staff in recent years; the keytask going forward will be to channel this capability towardsactivities that will drive innovation and business engagement,enabling us to make a major contribution to the economicrenewal of Wales and beyond.
The outcome of these exercises, allied to consideration ofexternal and internal situational analysis and best practice fromother universities and sectors, was the development andsubsequent approval by the Board of Governors on 15thNovember 2010 of a new University Vision and Strategy for theperiod 2010-15.
Julie Lydon
The Board has determined that the University must be boldwith its vision for the period 2010-15:
“By 2015, the University of Glamorgan will beunrivalled for its professional, employment-focused education and research-informedinnovation and business engagement.”
If we are to raise our reputation and profile whilst ensuring ourlong-term sustainability during what will be challenging times,
we will need to focus our activities, be distinctive and createvalue for our students and key stakeholders. In addition,focused collaboration will also be critical; existing partnershipswill be reinforced and innovative collaborative activitiesdeveloped.
A new University Strategy – including a new mission statement,core values, strategic priorities and revised Critical PerformanceIndicators – will be implemented based on the balancedscorecard approach. A “Strategy Map” has been developed toillustrate this as follows on page 13.
Our Vision and Strategy
”“The employability of our
graduates will be a key indicatorof our contribution to the socialand economic wellbeing ofWales. Julie Lydon
“”
14 staffroom supplement
University Strategy 2010-15
Specifically, delivery of the University Strategy will be channelledthrough the following strategic enablers, which illustrate theorganisational efficiency and effectiveness necessary to achieveour vision and strategic priorities and provide a focus forplanning activities:
• Professional Higher Education
• Excellent Learning and Working Environment
• Financial Sustainability
• Our People
• Effective Partnerships
• Our Reputation and Profile
Glamorgan BalancedScorecardWithin the higher education sector, there has recently beenincreasing interest in the balanced scorecard approach whichtransforms an organisation’s strategic plan from an attractivebut passive document into the "marching orders" for theorganisation on a daily basis. It provides a framework that notonly provides performance measurements, but helps managersidentify what should be done and measured.
Each strategic enabler has a list of aspirations or objectives thatwill be taken forward through key University strategies or, moregenerally, the faculty and corporate department strategic plans.
This approach will ensure alignment between our long-termstrategy and our short-medium term operations, i.e. translatingthe content of the strategy into more immediate activities andtargets. In this way, each part of the University will make acontribution to the achievement of our vision and strategicpriorities as laid out in the University Strategy.
we will need to focus ouractivities, be distinctive andcreate value for our studentsand key stakeholders.
Vision & Strategy 2010-15
staffroom supplement 15
University Strategy 2010-15
VisionBy 2015, the University of Glamorgan will be
unrivalled for its professional, employment-focusededucation and research-informed innovation and
business engagement
MissionTransforming lives through professional,
employment-focused higher education and distinctive research and innovation relevant to
economic, social and cultural needs
Long
-ter
m s
trat
egy
Sho
rt-m
ediu
m t
erm
op
erat
ions
Our Students
CPIs
Our Research, Innovation &Knowledge Transfer
CPIs
Our Engagement
CPIs
Strategic Enablers
Table 7: The Glamorgan Balanced Scorecard