Roles and Functions of a ULF Steering Group

Roles and Functions of a ULF Steering Group

Introduction This document is to help you understand the roles and functions of a ULF Steering Group. If your current project already has a Steering Group it can be used to help you reflect on how it currently works and help you identify areas for improvement. If yours is a new project or your current project doesn t currently have a Steering Group, it will help you look at how Steering Groups can help guide and help your project to a successful outcome. Steering groups may be given different names such as Management Committee, Steering Committee, Strategic Committee, Advisory Group etc but for the purpose of this the term Steering Groups will be used as a common term. Why does your project need a Steering Group? A Steering Group can play a crucial role in the strategic and operational development and success of a project. Strategically, Steering Groups can: Consider the whole picture Maintain an overview of project activities against project plans Link what the project is doing and planning to developments, problems and opportunities in the wider world of learning Operationally Steering Groups can: Advise, guide and inform the direction of the project Support effective project management Provide a steer for the project development, implementation and dissemination activity Ask evaluative questions about project direction and suggest changes to project activity Help the project to remain 0n-track Provide a sounding board for exploration of different ideas Offer advice on how to deal with issues/risk Play an active role in the dissemination of outputs and outcomes Provide guidance regarding sustainability of the work post ULF funding What is the Steering Group for? It is important to think about the aim of your Steering Group and how it is best to be used through the life of the project. This careful consideration will help you decide on the membership and terms of reference for the group. The purposes of the Steering Group are considered further down under Terms of Reference, however when considering the membership you may find it useful to consider members expertise such as finance, subject expertise, union knowledge and links with the wider learning and skills agenda. Membership from outside your union can provide a very useful, critical connection with external sources of information and contacts with individuals and networks which provide channels for the widest possible dissemination.

The Steering Group should: Monitor the progress of the project against its goal, and keep these goals and the overall project plan under review. Monitor the project s expenditure and the overall work of the project outcomes and finances should be reviewed at every meeting. Encourage and strengthen links between the project and other relevant bodies, which may include other parts of the union, other unions, unionlearn and other agencies and institutions. Issues to consider when setting up your Steering Group 1. Membership It is really important to consider what the membership of your Steering Group will be. It is important, if possible, to have someone senior from within the union as this will give status and credibility to the project as well as being someone who can make critical decisions. It is also a good idea to invite people who can give the project practical help, such as unionlearn, providers, employers etc. It is useful if at least one key person on the Steering Group can champion any causes and attract others (who may not necessarily be members of the Steering Group) for specific sub-groups, working parties etc. This person will also need to connect very closely within and across the union. Representatives that are already members of other key committees within the union will provide a link to those committees and enable the profile of the project to be raised across the union. Try to have a balance of people with hands-on experience and those who are in a position to bring about change from an external perspective. Members of the Steering Group who may have a wider external remit can inform the development of the project using external expertise, experience and connections. This can save a great deal of background research to ensure that dissemination is aimed at and connects with the right audiences. You may wish to consider having the option to co-opt people onto the Steering Group for specific issues and to provide additional expertise. 2. The Composition of the Steering Group The size of the Steering Group in relation to the size of the project will need to be considered and the intended impact within the union both nationally and regionally. The advantages of a small group (say up to 5) include: If comprised of relatively senior people, can make strategic decisions, provide strategic advice, and give the project influence among the intended users. A small group can maintain focus and can be convened more often than a larger group. This will enable more regular reporting, more frequent monitoring and more momentum to project activity.

A small group may engage more fully with the activity of the project, develop a sense of ownership and pride in the efforts of the project team. However, there can also be disadvantages to small Steering Groups: A small group may not provide breadth of experience and perspective. Busy senior staff and external partners may not be able to give enough time to the Steering Group and therefore sporadic attendance at meetings and/or non-engagement with the project as it develops will have a significant impact on the functioning of the Steering Group and ultimately the project delivery and outcomes. Loss of a member of a small Steering Group may have a significant impact on the coherence, direction and continuity of a project overall. A small Steering Group working with a project which has a large remit will not be able to fully support all aspects of the project plan. The group may utilise many opportunities to co-opt expertise but it then may be difficult to maintain the overview or big picture of project activity and strategic direction. The advantages of a larger Steering Group include: Wider inclusion of key people from within the union and externally. A greater range of members can be included. For example: o Key senior people from within your union o Key project staff o External representation with a national profile which can give further credibility to the project o Representation from external partners eg. providers, nextstep, employers etc. A wider range of experience can thus be tapped both internally from within your union and externally from partners. There are also disadvantages from to large Steering Groups: The group can sometimes lose its effectiveness by its size The dynamics of the membership can be difficult to manage There is more risk of losing members and replacement staff can find it difficult to engage fully with a well established group Meetings can be difficult to arrange (and conduct!) Larger groups tend to be more formal and therefore can be restricted by this formality and may offer less pro-active advice to project staff. 3. Terms of Reference Some projects choose not to have formal terms of reference. However it is really useful for members of your Steering Group to understand what they are signing up to. Things to consider when drawing up Terms of Reference are: The membership or constitution of the group Roles of the members Responsibilities of the group and who it is accountable to The purpose of the Steering Group The frequency of meetings

What information should go to the group Reporting procedures (formal minutes or notes and who should receive them) How will the group feedback into the wider union and beyond What are the functions of a Steering Group? The Steering Group can provide a particular function for your project. Some suggestions are below. Keeping the project on track Providing a forum for discussion Providing a high level of debate, which draws on members experiences Helping the project see more effective ways of making progress Motivating project staff and contributors Providing a forum for discussing evaluation Helping to determine the strategic and operational direction with the project team Supporting the project to meet the terms of its contract with unionlearn Providing a channel of communication between the project and the wider union Assisting the project to achieve a high profile within the union and the wider world Overseeing budget activity Agree project reports by the project team for external organisations eg: evaluation reports to unionlearn Overview and direction of functions such as monitoring, evaluation and dissemination What makes a Steering Group work well? It is important to make clear to members what their likely responsibilities and time commitments to the group will be before inviting them to be a member of the group. Make clear the connections and benefits to them and to any other related work they are involved in. Consider who will be the Chair. Ideally this will be a senior person within the union. The Project Manager should not chair the meeting as they are submitting reports etc and will be open to questioning from other Steering Group members on the content of those reports. A strong chair will promote the project development and give a strong steer regarding the direction of the project. Include external representation to allow different perspectives. Ensure clarity of both individual and group roles. Produce minutes which include clear action lists showing who will take each action. Create time for debate of the issues of the meeting. Issue papers at least a week before the meeting to allow members time to prepare. Secure agreement of the membership and terms of reference at the first meeting. Under the ULF contract the Steering Group must meet at least twice a year. However, you may wish to meet more often say onece every two months - to enable members to keep abreast of the progress of the project.

Provide a schedule of meetings early in the project life for the whole of the first year of the project. Try not to cancel and rearrange. Ensure agendas, papers and minutes are uploaded onto the ULF database. Not only is this a contractual requirement it also provides useful information for the ULF team. How to engage your Steering Group Many projects find it difficult to involve members of the Steering Group between meetings. Try and give members as much notice as possible if you wish to secure their involvement in further activity. Some examples of how to keep your Steering Group members actively involved in the project are: Make Steering Group members feel valued. Remind them they are at the cutting edge of workplace learning developments If the project is producing deliverables such as toolkits, websites, strategy documents etc ask Steering Group members to view drafts and give feedback before meetings Ensure members take an active role in any project events that you run in order that they identify with the project and keep up to date with developments in it. Involve your Steering Group in appropriate staff development and/or team building activities Conclusion The success of the Steering Group is dependent on the people that make it a group. Careful planning and preparation goes some way to ensure that relevant expertise is guiding the project in the right direction for the right reasons.