No

Category

Description

Impact if not Mitigated

Pr

Scale

Impact

Mitigation Strategies

1

Financial

Insufficient income from tuition and residence fees to cover operational and  lifecycle costs

Inability to meet safety standards, maintain fixed assets, increasing bad debt

3

3

9

Plan to meet the revised enrolment targets being developed; revision of student fee options under way; financial viability plan approved by Council; enhanced and comprehensive debt collection plan being implemented

2

Infrastructure

Poor state of many of the campus buildings as per the CSIR campus infrastructure condition assessment

Academic project at risk, and in certain instances, a risk to health and safety of users of the particular buildings

3

3

9

Need for adequate levels of budget allocation; urgent items have been identified, prioritised and scoped, and are receiving attention as budget becomes available - budget allocation increase factored into sustainability plan. High-level 5-tier maintenance budget model has been established

3

I&TS Staffing

Inability to attract and retain IT staff

Decline of campus IT capacity and support – both infrastructural and levels of service provision

3

3

9

Strategy and plan to be developed

4

Financial

Insufficient cashflow during Jan to Mar period prior to payment of 1st subsidy payment due to recent MIP/registration concessions

Inability to pay salaries/wages, inability to pay creditors

2

3

6

Overdraft facility from bankers (R100 million) approved. Financial viability and sustainability plans approved by Council. Academic size and shape plan currently being developed to operationalise the financial viability plans

5

Financial

Very low (non-existent) level of financial reserves

Threatens "going concern" status of RU; inability to co-fund for example DHET infrastructure funding grants.

3

2

6

Addressed in the viability and sustainability plan

6

Infrastructure

Poor state of campus electrical reticulation system and fire safety infrastructure

Power outages of varying degrees - worst case = total campus blackout

2

3

6

Program established to address electrical certificates of compliance and reticulation upgrades over 5 years, cost of R20m per annum built into budgets. Gap analysis under way to establish fire safety compliance needs

7

Municipal services supply

Inability of Makana Municipality to provide basic services (water, electricity, sanitation)

Range from inconvenience to health risks to total campus shutdown

2

3

6

Ongoing engagement and partnership with Makana Municipality

8

Business processes and systems

Many of RU's business processes have become obsolete and unfit for purpose, as have the business systems

Increasing levels of inefficiency and unproductivity; human resource heavy, expensive and bureaucratic administrative support services

3

2

6

A task team has been established to co-ordinate the process of modernisation across the institution

9

Procurement

Procurement policy has been adopted, but due to budget constraints the Buying Office cannot be brought to the level of a Procurement Office

Inability to comply with legislative requirements; adverse audit reports

2

3

6

Application for additional staff was withdrawn due to budget constraints. "Making do" with existing posts is being explored. Procurement business process and system has been developed and is currently being rolled out across the institution

10

Staff remuneration

Inability to attract and retain high calibre academic and professional staff

Threat to standards

2

3

6

Strategy and plan to be developed

11

Campus safety

Being an open (unfenced) campus makes it vulnerable. Recent protest action highlighted vulnerability of the residence system in particular

Student and staff safety is compromised

2

2

4

Installation of video monitoring system. Monitoring trends and occurrences

12

Transformation

Issues of institutional culture (including staff equity) and curriculum transformation require reviewing

Levels of frustration and anger will increase; possibility of fines if employment equity targets are not met

2

2

4

Implementation of recommendations of institutional transformation summit are in process

13

Academic research reputation

RU remains amongst the top research performing institutions in the sector. However, increased opportunities for research misconduct increasingly present themselves, and competitive salaries to retain top quality academic staff remain a concern

Loss of intellectual reputation, leading to decreased ability to attract the best quality of staff and students, and to attract research and scholarship funding

1

3

3

Quality assurance mechanisms are in place (ethical standards processes, higher degrees committees, and peer review of proposals and papers), and a review of the remuneration policy is in progress

14

Academic teaching reputation

Rhodes University enjoys one of the highest pass and graduation rates of any SA university. However, negligence or misconduct of academic staff pose risk

Threats to academic reputation

1

3

3

Assessment policies are in place. CHERTL provides nationally recognized support and training to academics to improve their teaching and assessment capabilities