functionality, integration and reporting. An implementation plan to deliver the recommendations of the review has been prepared and is being progressed in 2010.
The Mobile Staff Productivity project, a collaboration between QUT and Griffith University under the Commonwealth Workplace Productivity Program, successfully delivered all key outcomes including a Go Mobile website designed to assist staff with their mobile technology needs and to boost their productivity. The website allows staff to view the range of mobility services available at QUT, build an individual profile that reflects the way they prefer to work and choose tools to help them remain connected on and off campus. Video interviews with QUT staff provide ‘real-life’ stories about how people are using mobile technologies and practices to increase the productivity and flexibility oftheir work.
QUT has also recognised the importance of environmental sustainability in its operations and its impact on the University’s financial position. Over recent years the University has worked towards major improvements in energy and water efficiency, and has incorporated environmentally sustainable design principles where appropriate. During 2009 a Sustainability Working Party was established and it has led the development of a range of initiatives to improve QUT’s achievements in this important field. This work will be ongoing.
Objective 2. Support the strategic ambitions and priorities of the University, and achieve maximum productivity and comply with governance and accountability obligations.
The University produced another sound financial result for 2009 with an operating surplus of $110 million, further contributing to building a solid and sustainable resource base to support the University into the future.
The result equates to an operating margin of 14.7 per cent, which is significantly higher than the Finance and Infrastructure Plan target of 5 per cent. This result includes a significant recovery in net investment returns totalling $46.2 million; QUT’s growth in research and commercial income and several large Commonwealth grants, which under Australian accounting standards are required to be recognised as revenue in the year they are received though approximately $47 million relate to expenditure planned for future periods.
During 2009, the University continued to focus on the diversification of its income sources. Income from fee-paying overseas students increased in 2009 by
$13.5 million or 15.4 per cent. However, a change in Commonwealth government policy regarding the discontinuation of domestic fee-paying undergraduate
capacity building, the growth of multidisciplinary institutes and dedicated research infrastructure, such as the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI) over recent years. However, the strong competitive performance in Australian Government-funded research dampened diversification.
Total revenue for the year was $751.9 million, an increase of $166 million or 28.3 per cent on the 2008 year. The increased revenue was primarily driven by several large one-off Commonwealth Grants, investment returns, additional competitive research grants and international student fees:
s Revenue from the Australian Government (including HECS-HELP student payments) was $456.5 million, an increase of $48.3 million on 2008 reflecting the recognition of Commonwealth Funding for the Teaching and Learning Capital Fund, the Education Investment Fund and the Indigenous Education Leadership Institute.
s Revenue from state and local government sources was $10.8 million, compared to the 2008 figure of
$7.3 million.
s Fees and charges revenue of $132.5 million was up on 2008 ($120.4 million), reflecting increased revenue from overseas fee-paying students.
s Miscellaneous revenue generated from sources such as investments, consultancies, commercial activities and donations amounted to $152.1 million, which was significantly higher than the 2008 result of
$49.9 million. This is reflective of the strong investment income as a result of the turnaround in market conditions since March 2009 following the global financial crisis of recent years.
The proportion of funds derived from government sources in 2009 was 57.9 per cent, which is below the Finance and Infrastructure Plan target of 60 per cent.
Expenses for the year totalled $641.4 million, a
$75.9 million (13.4 per cent) increase on 2008:
s Employee benefits increased by $43.8 million (13.4 per cent), reflecting salary increases agreed through the enterprise bargaining process as well as growth in labour costs in support of research-related activities and student-staff ratios.
s Depreciation increased by $10.2 million (27.5 per cent) reflecting the demolition of several major buildings to make way for the new Science and Technology Precinct which commences construction in 2010.
The net assets of the University at the end of 2009 totalled
$1130 million, an increase of 11.4 per cent on 2008.
The University’s balance sheet remains strong and provides a very solid foundation to underpin the University’s short- and longer term development
surplus.
In terms of compliance and accountability obligations, QUT received an unqualified report from Queensland Audit Office for the 2009 Annual Financial Report.
Corporate reviews of QUT’s Faculty of Education and three administrative divisions (Division of Finance and Resource Planning, Division of International and Development and Division of Research and Commercialisation) were completed and work began to implement recommendations.
Objective 3. Infrastructure (Physical and Virtual):
QUT will be characterised by an integrated
infrastructure which supports and facilitates QUT’s high-quality learning and teaching, research, business support and community needs.
During 2009 the University spent $116.1 million on capital projects, including $56.1 million on major projects,
$5 million and $9.0 million on the deferred and general maintenance programs respectively, and $6.5 million on minor works projects. This expenditure represents a major commitment to the development and maintenance of high-quality infrastructure.
Major capital projects undertaken in 2009 included:
s completion of the conservation and adaptive reuse of Old Government House in time for the 150th anniversary of Queensland
s continued investment in off-campus facilities including the completion of the fit out of leased commercial space at 88 Musk Avenue Kelvin Grove, the building component on the Mackay Renewable Biocommodities Plant Project, and the commencement of the Australian Research Centre for Aerospace Automation at
Brisbane Airport
s completion of the decommissioning of the Carseldine campus and relocation of activities to the Kelvin Grove and Gardens Point campuses.
In conjunction with government and commercial partners, QUT continued to contribute to the development of the Kelvin Grove Urban Village. Construction continues on several KGUV sites, including residential and commercial projects, and student accommodation.
Grants earmarked for major capital developments under the Education Investment Fund and Teaching and Learning Capital Fund.
QUT had previously signed an agreement for the
development of Lots 2, 3, and 5 at the Kelvin Grove Urban Village. This development was to provide an additional 13 000 square metres of space for the Creative Industries Faculty. Due to the economic environment and the resulting contraction of development funding facing the nation, QUT was informed that the developer was unable to complete the project. The University commenced planning for the construction of Creative Industries Phase Two in the Creative Industries Precinct as a separate capital project.
During 2009, the AMP (IT) program had budgeted expenditure of $24.9 million in information technology project and support and maintenance activities. Major developments for 2009 included:
s continued support for the implementation of SAMS and on-going support for the existing Callista student system
s upgrade of the University’s learning management system, QUT Blackboard
s launch of a new email service for students hosted by Microsoft
s significant increase to the processing power of the High Performance Computing installation
s implementation of Estore, an enterprise data storage service
s implementation of a resilient network ring linking QUT campuses and providing high-speed connectivity and redundancy
s continued development and testing of the IT Services Recovery Plan
s expansion of AskQUT, the University’s enquiry management system
s continued investment in sustainable IT
s further development and expansion of the QUTPay web-based sales and payment application.
Further information on information technology
developments is outlined in ‘IT vision and Strategy’ later in this annual report.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENHANCEMENT IN THE AREA RELATING TO THE PLAN
The Division of Finance and Resource Planning was the subject of a corporate review in 2009. In preparation for the review, the Division undertook a self-assessment in
The review panel’s report to the University included nine commendations, five affirmations and 19 recommendations. While many of these items relate to the operations of the Division and its key responsibilities, several items which fall within the purview of the Finance and Infrastructure Plan present opportunities for enhancement, namely:
s further streamlining the planning, budget and load processes
s reviewing the whole financial policies and procedures manual
s commencing the project to evaluate and enhance the Treasury function within QUT
s upgrading to Oracle Version 12 (Financials)
s implementing improvements to the procurement and payment process
s implementing issues identified with the sessional academic staff payment process
s upgrading the budget tool
s investigating the merit of implementing a salary modelling/forecasting tool, project accounting module and salary commitment accounting
s developing drill-down capability for University key performance indicators (KPIs)
s implementing business case templates for the capital allocation process
s improving the understanding of the value drivers, margins and cost behaviours for the University’s core activities of teaching and research
s reviewing the appropriateness of items currently treated as abnormalities in the definition of the operating margin KPI
s developing a strategic procurement plan.
Actions to implement these items have been detailed in the Division’s review implementation plan. Appropriate items will be considered for inclusion in the new Finance and Infrastructure Plan, following the renewal of the QUT Blueprint in 2010.
BENCHMARKING ACTIVITIES
QUT participates in sector-wide benchmarking activities with more than 50 institutions under the Tertiary Education Facilities Management Association, including areas such as maintenance, waste management, energy consumption, security, parking and water consumption.
The QUT Bookshop participates in an annual survey by the Australian Campus Booksellers Association of campus bookshops’ performance across a range of measures.
PERFORMANCE AGAINST THE FINANCE AND INFRASTRUCTURE KPIs
The following results were recorded for the financial KPIs identified in the Finance and Infrastructure Plan: operating margin was 14.7 per cent compared to the target of 7.4 per cent; and employment costs as a percentage of revenue were 49.3 per cent (target of below 60 per cent).
In terms of the economic dependency target (on Australian Government funds) the 2009 result of 57.9 per cent was below the target of 61.1 per cent.
The 2009 liquidity ratio of 3.1:1 was above the target of 1.8:1 due to the obligation to maintain in secure and liquid investment products the large grant funds pertaining to commercial, research and capital projects which were received in advance.
In 2008, performance against the University Student Technology Access KPI exceeded target (4.5 against a target of 4.8), a similarly positive result is expected for 2009.
HIGHLIGHTS
s Commencing total EFTSL (equivalent full-time student load) fee-paying overseas students (FPOS) increased by 22.2 per cent in 2009 compared to 2008.
s Enrolments of international higher degree research (HDR) students increased to 464 in 2009, representing an increase over 2008 of 21.47 per cent. QUT established a new position of Director of International Graduate Research to strengthen the University’s focus on attracting international HDR students.
s In terms of diversity, FPOS enrolments were drawn from 111 source countries in 2009. Undergraduate and postgraduate FPOS enrolments accounted for 59.8 per cent and 39.2 per cent of FPOS student enrolments respectively. Non-award FPOS enrolments accounted for the remainder.
s Revenue from international fees, including both the QUT International College and non-reportable sources, totalled $104 million in 2009, representing 13.8 per cent of the University’s total revenue base.
s QUT International College (QITIC) University Entry Programs EFTSL increased by 15 per cent in 2009;
94 per cent of successful QUTIC students progressed to QUT degree programs; and QUTIC received the Queensland Education and Training International (QETI) Award for Outstanding Student Support.
s The total number of outbound students (exchange and short-term) in 2009 was 400 (246 exchange, 154 short-term). This represents a 49.8 per cent increase on 2008 across both categories of outbound mobility.
s Two QUT students were recipients of the nationally competitive and prestigious Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Endeavour Awards for outbound mobility.
s Forty-four new international cooperation agreements (ICAs) were signed in 2009, with QUT signing new ICAs with universities in Poland and Columbia for the first time.
s In 2009, 55 research projects, involving research collaboration with international partners, commenced at QUT.
s In June Queensland’s first Confucius Institute (CIQ) was opened at QUT’s Kelvin Grove campus by the Premier of Queensland. The CIQ promotes the teaching of Chinese language and culture and in 2009 hosted 128 students.
OUTCOMES AND ACHIEVEMENTS AGAINST OBJECTIVES OF INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY Objective 1: A global outlook.
Key performance indicator
includes QUTIC students. Excluding QUTIC, the fee-paying overseas commencing EFTSL for 2009 was 20.2 per cent of all commencing EFTSL.
Finalised 2009 EFTSL will be available with the completion of the QUT submission to the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) (end of March 2010).
Prepare students to live and work globally
Initiatives in the faculties of Business, Built Environment and Engineering, Health, and Creative Industries, as well as assistance provided via the Vice-Chancellor’s Short Term Outbound Mobility scholarships supported QUT students to undertake overseas study experience.
Two QUT students (from the Faculty of Health and the Faculty of Built Environment and Engineering) were recipients of the nationally competitive and prestigious Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Endeavour Awards for outbound mobility.
The total number of QUT outbound students (exchange and short-term) in 2009 was 400 (246 exchange, 154 short-term). This represents a 49.8 per cent increase on 2008 across both categories of outbound mobility (in 2008, 153 exchange, 114 short-term). This increase is the result of the addition of a number of new and attractive exchange partner destinations, more intensive on-campus promotions and briefings, enhanced funding particularly for short-term exchange opportunities, and increasing participation of partner institutions at QUT’s annual exchange fairs.
Queensland’s first Confucius Institute was opened at QUT by the Premier of Queensland and Deputy Directors-General of the Office of Chinese Language Council International Confucius Institute Headquarters of the People’s Republic of China. The Confucius Institute at QUT provides a range of professional programs for the learning of Chinese language and culture.
The Faculty of Business initiated the Global Advantage Program in 2009 with the first offering to be available in Semester 1, 2010. Global Advantage is linked with the successful Business Advantage program and is designed to improve students’ intercultural and international outlook with support for international experiences.
Attract and retain a diverse and academically able international student cohort at QUT
In terms of diversity, fee-paying overseas student enrolments were drawn from 111 source countries in