1. Grahame Cooper The Workload Balancing Model: Feedback and Review Background to the Model

2. Grahame Cooper Aims of the Approach (May 1999) Equity in workloads Not absolute workload Provide data for TRAC Important, but not the core purpose Acceptable spread of workloads amongst academic staff –initially within each school –ultimately across the whole University Targets of acceptable variation: –School:10% variation  5% variation –Faculty:15% variation  10% variation

3. Grahame Cooper Issues Addressed Purpose, Policy, Model (tool), Norms, Process Units of workload –Not directly time (though there is a relationship) Research –Pounds (projects), Papers, Postgrads and Presence Teaching –Many models were looked at. “Normal Workload” –determined by reference to the mean workload across the faculty Commercial & other work (AE) –Handled as individual activities outside normal workload

4. Grahame Cooper Basic Structure of the Model Staff Mary Fred Alice George Nichola Edgar 95 18 13 Activities Course tutor Module 1.2 - Knitting... “Effort” 14 13... Single “currency” for all activities (nicknamed: “Wammie”)

5. Grahame Cooper Research Allocation Research Plans Research Targets Workload Allocation Research Outputs Appraisal Research Plans Research Targets Workload Allocation Research Outputs Appraisal Year N-1 Year N All defined in terms of 4Ps: Projects, Papers, PhDs, Presence Allocations assessed by Research Institutes Expressed as % of workload. 50% Maximum

6. Grahame Cooper... Discussions, Focus on Teaching Contact hours V credits & student numbers –Traditions (Religion?) –Encourage efficiency and effectiveness Teaching weighted by level? –“Final year should be worth more!” –“First year should be worth more!” Formulaic approaches –Balance (Modules, Credits & Student Numbers) –Linear or non-linear variation –Variability: Some topics more intense than others

7. Grahame Cooper Credits & Student Numbers First approximation to module workloads. Quantifiable variables identified: –Credits (C), Student Numbers (N) Workload = W 0 + W C *C + W N *N + W CN *C*N –To first order. (Linear variation assumed) Assumption (reasonable approximation): –double Credits  double Workload –Implies: W 0 = W N = 0 Formula adopted: (Initial) Workload = W C *C + W CN *C*N

8. Grahame Cooper Credit & Student Based Calculation 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 Student Numbers 40 Credits 20 Credits 10 Credits

9. Grahame Cooper … but leave room for common sense Calculation gives initial estimate only Some factors not easily quantifiable Student Number Credits Initial Figure Adjustment Actual Figure Explicitly stated academic grounds.

10. Grahame Cooper Estimating Actual Numbers Many trial calculations done. –1700 hour year assumed. –Various teaching styles looked at. –Estimates from all schools (est. hours worked):

11. Grahame Cooper Example Calculations

12. Grahame Cooper Teaching “Norms” Calculated “Standard Lecture Course” –Credits factor ~ 0.4 to 0.7 (mean: 0.6) –Students factor ~ 0.002 to 0.008 (mean: 0.006) “Intensive Lecture Course” –Credits factor ~ 0.2 to 0.65 (mean: 0.5) –Students factor ~ 0.005 to 0.017 (mean: 0.013) Other areas looked at: –Dissertations –Labs and team projects –Some management roles

13. Grahame Cooper How Prescriptive? Even roles with the same name are different in different Schools. Different demands of subject areas –Between Schools; Within Schools Different development priorities –Research-active / less research active, etc Schools have a high degree of freedom within the common model –(Everything in spreadsheet configurable.) Other forces may bring balance in Faculty/University. (See next slide).

14. Grahame Cooper Forces affecting workload units Activity Workload Pressures Tendency to inflate Quality Procedures Quality of provision matters Activity Costs Tendency to drive down (or activity is not viable). Workload Units Quality

15. Grahame Cooper Background - Summary Distribute and sum approach Staff Mary Fred Alice George Nichola Edgar 95 18 13 Activities Course tutor Module 1.2 - Knitting... “Effort” 14 13... Teaching: Standard for first approximations Discretion by Head of School over all parameters (subject to financial viability) Interim approaches for research (i.e. research ratings) and commercial activities. Replaced by four Ps Mechanisms in place for activity costing& TR But main emphasis on workload balancing

16. Grahame Cooper The Workload Balancing Model: Feedback and Review The IT System

17. Grahame Cooper IT System Design Principles Based on model presented earlier –(and informed the development of that model) Structured primarily to support School operations –Additional structure to support summary/review Support local variations within model Support University-wide analysis & coordination –Including inter-school activities –Support for mapping data into TRAC Central database subordinate to School spreadsheets –The School spreadsheet is the master document. –Central database provides linking, reports & backup

18. Grahame Cooper The Workload Balancing Model: Feedback and Review The Spreadsheet

19. Grahame Cooper Basic Structure of the Spreadsheet

20. Grahame Cooper Activity Summary Table Mapped into TRAC return headings

21. Grahame Cooper Module Workload Coefficients Define up to 3 sets of coefficients to approximate different learning/teaching methods Coefficients set by the School –Flexibility (subject to viability) (Initial) Workload = W C *C + W CN *C*N

22. Grahame Cooper Tools: Building a Spreadsheet Add a new heading Activity with a fixed workload Add activities with calculated initial workload (3 coeff sets) Activity provided to another school Add a new column Change method of a teaching activity Delete a row Delete a column Activity with a % workload

23. Grahame Cooper Tools: Using a Spreadsheet Calculate new standard workload Allocate all or part of the current activity (inserts a formula) Show or hide columns Set or clear the activity leader

24. Grahame Cooper The Workload Balancing Model: Feedback and Review Integration – The Central Database

25. Grahame Cooper Integration School1School2Faculty2School3School4 Database Faculty1 Workload Information Inter-School Information

26. Grahame Cooper Tools: Database Operations Link (unlink) an external activity in this spreadsheet to (from) an activity in another school/unit. Must be on the University network to do these. Specify the school/unit and year to which this spreadsheet relates. (New sheet.) Rebuild spreadsheet from the data in the database. Exchange data with the central database

27. Grahame Cooper Reports Individual staff workload profiles Inter-school activities Status report Staff workloads summary Workload allocations by activity List of activities More can be added later Database

28. Grahame Cooper Workloads Chart ±5% about standard workload

29. Grahame Cooper

30. Process Monitoring

31. Grahame Cooper Inter-School Provision Report