Team players: Members of the Institutional Planning Department are, Jane Hendry, Vakele Nobongoza, Fiona Gibbons, Rochelle Speller, Judy Favish, Elaine Hendricks, Ashraf Conrad, Kimi van der Byl, Sonwabo Ngcelwane, Zone Mdledle and Lindi Tlou.

This department is made up of four units, the Institutional Information Unit (IIU), the Academic Planning Unit (APU), The Quality Assurance Unit (QAU), and the Social Responsiveness Unit (SRU). The teams do work together on common projects, however, to build on the synergies between them. Judy Favish is the director fo the department, assisted by Rochelle Speller and Elaine Hendricks.

The Institutional Information Unit (IIU)

Who works in the unit?

The unit is made up of chief information officer Jane Hendry, senior planning officer Ashraf Conrad, and planning officers Fiona Gibbons and Kimi van der Byl, with the support of Elaine Hendricks, the administrative officer.

What do they do?

Their tasks include overseeing the university's planning and budgeting process, alongside the Finance Department. The unit also provides critical management information and supports the university's planning, monitoring and review processes, among many duties.

The Quality Assurance Unit

Team members are quality assurance manager Lindi Tlou and qualityassurance officer Zone Mdledle.

What do they do?

The unit's work is promoting quality assurance within UCT, be that the quality of programmes offered by faculties, or how PASS departments go about their day-to-day operations. To this end, the unit has set up a database of good practices, showcasing those departments who have and are setting up exceptional processes and practices.

The Academic Planning Unit

Team members are IPD director Judy Favish and planning officer Vakele Nobongoza.

What do they do?

The unit is where academics and departments turn to for advice, guidance and the right paperwork should they wish to set up a new programme or qualification. The unit looks specifically – and has to swear to – issues like staff development and qualifications, as well as infrastructure requirements. It also helps steer departments through the veryparticular Higher Education Quality Committee accreditation system.

The Social Responsiveness Unit (SRU)

Judy Favish, IPD director, and planning officer Sonwabo Ngcelwane lead the work of the unit, assisted by IPD secretary Rochelle Speller.

What do they do?

The unit is responsible for overseeing, championing and boosting the profile of social responsiveness at UCT. It is also the face of UCT in its engagement with the Provincial Government of the Western Cape (PGWC) and the City of Cape Town through the Cape Higher Education Consortium (CHEC). The unit is responsible for the publication of the IPD's Annual Social Responsiveness Report.

What were the highlights of the IDP?

Over the past five years, the IPD has been responsible for a number of innovative projects designed to support the university's strategic objectives. These include the quarterly dashboard reports covering a scorecard of performance indicators, the annual Teaching and Learning Report, and overseeing the development of UCT's three-year Quality-Improvement Plan, with clear targets set for each year.