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Recruitment, Selection and Appointment Procedure - Recruitment to an Advertised Position of Professor (level E)

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Preamble

Professors at the University provide academic leadership in a number of ways including research and scholarship, teaching, leadership and management, and professional and community service. Teaching, learning, research and scholarship are the cornerstones of professorial achievement.

The professorial recruitment procedure outlines the process required to be undertaken to appoint a person to an advertised position of professor at the University. Appointments must be made on the basis of merit, applying the principle of achievement relative to opportunity and adhering to the principles of equity and equal opportunity employment.

This procedure applies to the recruitment of all professorial fixed-term and continuing academic staff to the University's Australian campuses with the exception of:

fixed-term positions for less than 12 months;
direct appointments made in accordance with the Recruitment, Selection and Appointment Procedure - Direct appointments; and
eminent professorial appointments made in accordance with the Recruitment, Selection and Appointment Procedure - Eminent academic appointments.

All advertised recruitment activities should be undertaken via Rex, the University's e-Recruitment system (excluding recruitment of eminent professorial appointments).

Definitions

Achievement relative to opportunity: is an evaluative framework in which the overall quality and impact of achievements is given more weight than the quantity, rate or breadth of particular achievements. Assessing achievements relative to opportunity involves giving consideration to circumstances, arrangements, career histories and overall time available to the staff member. This in turn allows appropriate evaluation of achievements in relation to:

the quantum or rate of productivity,
the opportunity to participate in certain types of activities, and
the consistency of activities or output over the period of consideration.

Chair: is the chair of the selection committee and is the person with the delegated authority to select the successful candidate (or a nominee of the person with the delegated authority)

Dean : means the Dean of the Faculty or his or her nominee in any case where the Dean has formally nominated a person to act as his or her nominee for the purpose.

HR Business Partner: is a member of Monash HR who operates as a strategic partner responsible for providing a range of human resources services for an assigned Faculty or administrative Division. HR Business Partners are located within a HR Service Hub.

HR Service Hub: is the centre for human resources services and activities within a Faculty or Divisional Cluster.

Faculty or Divisional Cluster: refers to a cluster of Faculties and/or administrative Divisions that is serviced by a particular HR Service Hub.

Head of unit: head of an academic or organisational work unit, for example Head of School, Head of Department or where applicable, a person acting as his or her nominee.

Hiring manager: is the manager responsible for filling the vacancy, usually the supervisor of the position.

Job Request is the screen in Rex where all the necessary information relating to a particular position is recorded.

Lead HR Business Partner: is a member of the Monash HR management team who operates as a senior HR Business Partner responsible for the strategic and operational management of the human resources services and activities in a HR Services Hub.

Position description: is a description of the organisational context, primary objectives and key results areas and responsibilities of a position and the key criteria (qualifications, knowledge, experience and skills) required to perform effectively in the position.

President-led campus: refers to the University’s campuses which have local governance and independent budgetary control, including the Gippsland campus, Monash South Africa and the Malaysian Sunway campus

Professor: is a senior academic with an international reputation in their discipline who is engaged by the University to provide leadership, foster excellence in research, teaching and professional activities in accordance with the position classification standards for a teaching and research Level E appointment or for a research-only Level E appointment, as appropriate.

Relevant Enterprise Agreement: means the Enterprise Agreement that applies to a particular staff member. The Monash University Enterprise Agreement (Academic and Professional Staff) 2009 will apply to academic and professional staff at the University and, depending on the services provided by a trades and services staff member, the Monash University Enterprise Agreement (Trades and Services staff - Building and Metal Trades Staff staff) 2009 or the Monash University Enterprise Agreement (Trades and Services Staff - Catering and Retail, Cleaning and Caretaking, and Miscellaneous services staff) 2005 will apply.

Rex: is Recruitment Express, the University's online recruitment system, which administers requests to advertise, selections and appointments and generates employment contracts.

Selection criteria: specify qualifications, knowledge, experience and demonstrated abilities required to perform the duties and responsibilities of the position.

Recruitment to an Advertised Position of Professor (Level E)

The following is a step-by-step procedure for recruiting to an advertised professorial position.

Step 1: The hiring manager requests recruitment to a new or vacant position

Where there is a need to fill a new or vacant position, the hiring manager or nominee will:

ensure that the position has been established by the appropriate delegated authority
ensure that funding is available;
enter basic information regarding the requirements for the position into the Job Request in Rex; and
upload the position description, advertising text and business case summary.

Step 2: Monash HR completes all detailed information in Rex.

The HR Business Partner will complete and finalise the Job Request in Rex and will:

provide advice to the hiring manager on all aspects of the proposed position, including the appropriate mode of employment, the relevant level of superannuation and whether any pre-employment checks are required for the position;
ensure that this advice is provided in accordance with the requirements of the relevant Enterprise Agreement and University policy;
ensure that all requirements of the position are accurately reflected in the position

description and all other recruitment documentation;

provide details of where the position is to be advertised; and
upload any outstanding relevant documentation to Rex.

Step 3: The delegated authority approves the requisition

Once all the details have been finalised by the HR Business Partner and approved by the Lead HR Business Partner, the completed Job Request will be sent electronically via Rex to Senior Academic Appointments. Senior Academic Appointments will conduct a quality review of the position description, advertising text and business case before sending them on to the Provost who must approve the requisition prior to the advertising process commencing. Senior Academic Appointments will approve the Job Request in Rex on the Provost's behalf once it is approved.

Step 4: Monash HR advertises the position

The HR Business Partner will advise the hiring manager of any recruitment restrictions or senior managerial directives applicable to the particular recruitment activity.

In cases where a search firm is to be used to source candidates, the HR Business Partner must contact the Manager, Senior Academic Appointments for advice.

Where the position is to be advertised, the recruitment advertising team (Recruitment, Design and Delivery, Monash HR) will administer the process for advertising the position. This includes:

liaising with the University’s Placement Coordinator to identify any suitable redeployees (in accordance with the Leaving Monash Procedure - Redundancy and redeployment);
advising the HR Business Partner on any current advertising restrictions or other relevant operational practices;
providing advice on the appropriate sourcing of candidates;
liaising with the HR Business Partner on any particular advertising requirements for the position; and
administering the placement of online advertisement/s.

Any print advertising must be arranged in consultation with the Advertising Office (Advancement). The standard advertising period is six weeks.

There will no cost to the Faculty for any advertising on the University’s internal job board and various external job boards with which the University has a standing account (eg. Seek, UniJobs). Any advertising on job boards that are not centrally-funded or in the print media must be approved by the Dean and subsidised by the Faculty.

Step 5: The Selection Committee is convened

The HR Business Partner will:

seek the Dean’s nomination of faculty members and an external member for membership of the Selection Committee;
ensure that the proposed Selection Committee membership meets the requirements of this procedure;
record the Selection Committee members in Rex; and
provide procedural advice and support to the chair throughout the selection process.

The Professorial Selection Committee is chaired by the dean who will ensure that the selection process in conducted in accordance with the requirements of this procedure.

The membership of a professorial Selection Committee is as follows:

Dean or (Chair);
Provost or nominee;
two professors of the faculty (or other senior academic staff member from a relevant discipline;
President of Academic Board or nominee;
member of Council (external) if available; if unavailable an external person nominated by the Chancellor; and
an external member.

For appointments at Gippsland and other president-led campuses, the Pro Vice-Chancellor is included as a member of the Selection Committee.

In particular circumstances, additional member(s) may be co-opted to ensure sufficient disciplinary or academic focus expertise.

In the case of an education-focused position, the membership should include the Associate Dean (Education) or a member of the faculty or campus Education Committee or an alternative representative with education expertise.

At all stages of the selection process, the Selection Committee is expected to ensure that:

the selection process is given a high priority in order to effect a timely resolution;

the selection process is based on merit and consistent with the University’s equal opportunity and ethics principles;

the achievements of all candidates are assessed relative to opportunity (for further information on “achievement relative to opportunity” see the Guidelines for Decision Makers on Assessing Achievement Relative to Opportunity);
all personal information is protected and only used for the primary purpose of assessing the suitability of the candidate for the position (for more information on privacy see the Conduct and Compliance Procedure - Privacy);
all selection materials are returned to the HR Business Partner at the end of the selection process; and
any potential actual or perceived conflict of interest is declared (for example, if any of the applicants is a relative or close friend - see the Conduct and Compliance Procedure - Conflict of Interest).

Step 6: The Selection Committee shortlists applicants for interview

The Selection Committee will meet to review all the applications and shortlist applicants for interview.

For the purposes of short-listing only, the quorum for the Selection Committee is:

the dean (or nominated chair);
the two professors of the faculty (or other senior academic staff member from a relevant discipline); and
an external member.

In short-listing, the Selection Committee must:

objectively and impartially assess each applicant against the selection criteria;
assess the achievements of the candidates relative to opportunity (for further information on “achievement relative to opportunity” see the Guidelines for Decision Makers on Assessing Achievement Relative to Opportunity);
decide which applicants will be interviewed (usually by consensus but by majority vote where there is disagreement and with the ultimate decision resting with the chair); and
confirm that all candidates selected for interview meet the eligibility criteria.

The HR Business Partner will attend the short-listing meeting.Following the meeting, the HR Business Partner will:

notify any external candidates in writing who have not been selected for interview;
ensure that the Chair contacts any internal candidates to personally advise them that they have not been short-listed for interview;
contact the nominated referees requested by the Selection Committee (after seeking the short-listed candidate's approval to do so) and request written references for short-listed candidates;
coordinate interviews with the candidates who have been selected for interview; and
discuss visa issues and requirements for international candidates with Immigration and Global Mobility, if required.

Only referees who have been nominated by the candidate may be contacted. Where the Selection Committee wishes to consult other persons, the candidate must be informed who they are and provide consent before the person is contacted.

Step 7: The Selection Committee interviews the candidate

The HR Business Partner will provide the written references to the Selection Committee and coordinate the interviews for the Selection Committee.

The Selection Committee will:

determine and finalise the interview questions prior to the commencement of the interviews;
ask each candidate the same core set of questions to provide a consistent basis for comparison;
assess the achievements of the candidates relative to opportunity (for further information on “achievement relative to opportunity” see the Guidelines for Decision Makers on Assessing Achievement Relative to Opportunity); and
treat candidates in an equal and uniform manner consistent with equal opportunity principles;

The recommendation of the Selection Committee should ideally be unanimous. Where there is disagreement, the decision will be made by majority vote. However, ultimately the recommendation will rest with the chair. Selection decisions must be endorsed by the Vice-Chancellor acting on the recommendation of the Provost before an offer is made to the candidate. The Lead HR Business Partner will help the Chair facilitate the endorsement process where required.

Where there is no preferred candidate identified, the chair will liaise with the Provost and the Lead HR Business Partner to determine the best way to proceed.

Step 8: The Selection Committee chair advises all candidates of the outcome of the interview

The chair of the Selection Committee or nominee should telephone all candidates who were interviewed to advise them of the outcome of the interview.

If the preferred candidate indicates acceptance of the verbal offer, the Chair or nominee (in consultation with the HR Business Partner) should discuss the next steps in the recruitment process, including:

the anticipated start date for the incumbent; and
the remuneration package, including the base salary being offered.

Step 9: Monash HR issues the formal offer of employment

For standard Level E appointments, the HR Business Partner will then::

complete the Appointment Form in Rex to generate the letter of offer; and
forward the letter of offer and associated documentation to the incumbent through Rex.

Non-standard offers will be referred to the Remuneration and Senior Professional Appointments team for actioning.

The HR Business Partner will co-ordinate the appointment process through to induction and onboarding.

Maintaining recruitment records

At the end of the recruitment process, the Selection Committee members must ensure that:

all hard-copy interview forms, notes and referee reports are returned to the HR Business Partner and
copies of applications are either returned to the HR Business Partner or securely destroyed.

Monash HR will ensure that:

all records relating to the successful candidate are retained for two years; and
all records relating to the unsuccessful candidates are securely destroyed after six months.

Information relating to the recruitment activity should not be included on the incumbent's personnel file.

Responsibilities

Vice-Chancellor

The Vice-Chancellor is responsible for endorsing the selection decision.

Provost

The Provost is responsible for approving the request to advertise a professorial position and endorsing the selection decision.

Hiring Manager

The hiring manager is responsible for:

ensuring that the position is established by the Provost (via Senior Academic Appointments) and that funding is available;
providing position-specific information via Rex and Senior Academic Appointments; and
as supervisor of the position, being a member of the Selection Committee.

Chair of the Selection Committee

The chair is responsible for ensuring that no declared conflict of interest can influence the outcome of the application and that there can be no reasonable perception that it might have done.

The chair is ultimately responsible for recommending the successful candidate for endorsement by the Provost and Vice-Chancellor.

Selection Committee

The Selection Committee is responsible for:

reviewing all applications and short-listing candidates for interview;
interviewing short-listed candidates in accordance with the requirements of this procedure;
notifying all interviewed candidates of the outcome of the interview (preferably the chair);
representing the University appropriately to all candidates.

HR Business Partner

The HR Business Partner is responsible for

completing all the relevant requisition information in the Rex Job Request;
ensuring the requirements of the position has been approved by all relevant approvers;
establishing the Selection Committee and ensuring that the Committee membership meets the requirements of this procedure;
sending the relevant meeting papers to the Selection Committee;
attending short-listing meetings;
contacting the nominated referees and requesting written references for short-listed candidates;
coordinating interviews for the Selection Committee;
on notification of the successful candidate administering the appointment process;
providing advice to the hiring manager and the Selection Committee throughout the recruitment process;
managing the appointment process through to induction and onboarding; and
ensuring the proper execution and quality of this procedure for all recruitment activities

Manager, Senior Academic Appointments

The Manager, Senior Academic Appointments is responsible for:

ensuring the quality of the position description, advertising text and business case before submitting them to the Provost for approval; and
providing expert advice to the HR Service Hubs on the proper execution of this procedure.

Recruitment, Design and Delivery (Monash HR)

The Recruitment, Design and Delivery team in Monash HR is responsible for:

maintaining this procedure and all related recruitment procedures and guidelines;
arranging the advertising of the position;
providing expert advice and support to the HR Business Partner on best practice recruitment techniques and practices;
administering and maintaining the Rex e-Recruitment system; and
providing reports and data from Rex, on request.