Contact: UCI Administrative
Policies Coordinator at (949) 824-8713, ucipolicy@uci.edu
A. Introduction
UCI Administrative Policies & Procedures are maintained by Distribution
& Document Management and published electronically on the Official
University Policies & Procedures web site to ensure access to all employees.
Whenever appropriate, links are provided to related sources of authority, both
internal to the University and external, such as state and federal codes and
regulations.
B. Responsibilities
Members of the campus community are responsible for identifying the institutional
need for campus policy and procedural guideline information that addresses accountability,
resourcefulness and efficiency in meeting the University's teaching, research,
and public service obligations. Managers and their supporting staff that create,
monitor and administer policies are expected to continually seek ways to simplify
them, to eliminate those that have outlived their usefulness, and to clarify those
that are hard to understand. Efforts to streamline polices that over-control risks,
costing more to administer than potential losses warrant, are as important as
proposing new policies. Proposing and preparing new drafts that will be reviewed
by affected operating units and other constituencies, should be coordinated with
the Administrative Policies Coordinator.
Responsible Office or Administrator
Each section of the Administrative Policies & Procedures displays
the office or administrator who is responsible for ensuring that the section
is revised promptly when policy or procedure changes occur.
Responsible offices and administrators are required to review their sections
at two-year intervals to ensure information is current. The most recent
revision or review date is indicated at the top of each section.
Administrative Policies Coordinator
The Administrative Policies Coordinator at 824-8713, or ucipolicy@uci.edu,
is responsible for administration of the policies and procedural guidelines
function for the UCI campus which includes:
Coordinating campus review and promulgation of administrative policies
and procedures issued by The Regents and the Office of the President.
Developing, editing, and reviewing campus administrative policies and
procedural guidelines in coordination with campus administrative departments.
Coordinating the development and issuing of campus Delegations of Authority.
Implementation of systemwide policies issued by the President of the University
of California are approved and issued as campus guidelines by the Chancellor
or other senior executive officer. Policies unique to the UCI campus may be
issued by senior administrative management when they have campuswide applicability.
The Chancellor or Executive Vice Chancellor approves policies requiring participation
and cooperation of multiple coordinating points.
2. Procedural Guidelines
Procedural guidelines for campus functions and activities are developed by administrative
units and published on the web, or communicated to the campus via ZotMail followed
by online publication. Approval by the manager of the issuing unit should include
cross-functional consultation, as determined by the subject matter.
A policy establishes the framework for what will or will not be done on the
UCI campus. Policy statements reflect the "rules" governing the
implementation of campus processes and should not include procedural guidelines.
When the campus implements a specific UC systemwide policy, the systemwide
policy should be referenced in the campus procedural guidelines but should
not be restated as a campus policy.
Policy statements should include:
References (including policy memos and delegations
of authority)
What will or will not be done
Why the policy has been established, if appropriate
Who is responsible for implementing it
Procedural Guidelines
Procedural guidelines reflect current operational models or standards for
completing routine and exceptional business tasks. Unlike policy statements,
guidelines should include whatever level of detail is necessary for users,
the persons who must follow the procedure, to complete the task properly.
Procedural guidelines evolve over time as new tools emerge, new processes
are designed, and the risks associated with a campus process changes in response
to internal or external environmental changes.
Procedural guidelines should include:
References (including policy statements, memos,
and delegations of authority)
Definition of the task to be accomplished
Statement of specifically required steps or authorizations
Process example (how the task may be successfully completed)
Forms (or links to forms) and appropriately completed samples
Contact information and resources available for assistance
Language and Format
Plain English
should be used that is clear, concise, and streamlined to convey a message
without additional officious or redundant wording.
Avoid gender-specific pronouns by making the pronoun and its antecedent
plural or try rewording the sentence. Use "their" in place of
"he/she."
If an action is mandatory "must, or will" is used; whereas "shall"
is avoided unless there is a legal requirement. If the action is recommended,
then "should" is used. If the actionn is permissive, "may"
is used.
In most cases, the present tense is preferred.
References
should include links to:
External sources, such as state and federal codes and regulations.
Relevant UC systemwide policies, directives, or letters. (If not available
on the web, some restatement may be necessary within an introductory statement.)
UCI policies, procedures, and related documentation.
Introductory statements
may be included, when appropriate, to:
Clarify campus implementation of UC systemwide policy
State key components of UCI campus policy
Summarize major aspects of UCI procedural guidelines
Uniform, standard outline format
is used after the references and any introductory statement:
A., 1., a., (1), (a), (i), (aa)
Online reading
behavior should be considered and an appropriate style used within the
outline format and throughout the document.
Use lists where possible. Indentations, bullets and the vertical arrangement
of data aid reading sequential topics.
Avoid long paragraphs. If the information can be placed in a visual
element, like a table or graph, it may be more effectively communicated.
Within the outline format, logically "chunk" information.
Include important facts near the top of the first paragraph where users
can find them quickly.
Limit the amount of information under a heading to one screen size.
This helps the user retain navigational control of the document.
Use links for supplemental information, but do not construct a sentence
around a link phrase such as "click here for more information."
A sentence should be normally written and links placed on the most relevant
word in the sentence.
For lengthy documents, create a mini-menu at the top so the user is
able to jump to a desired topic.
E. Administrative Organization Charts
Campus Administrative Organization
Charts show senior campus administrators for each UCI coordinating point.
They are published on the Official University Policies & Procedures web site
and are considered current, with the date of last revision indicated in the top
right corner. Although coordinating points are sent an annual reminder to update
their charts, they are encouraged to communicate changes as soon as they occur
to the Administrative Policies Coordinator at 824-8713 or ucipolicy@uci.edu.