Tim Sprague, Director Human Resources advises that the Macquarie University Your Say staff survey will be officially launched on March 8 by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Steven Schwartz during his Meet the Vice-Chancellor forum.

Steven’s initial communication to staff regarding the Your Say staff survey is:

Dear Macquarie colleague,

I am pleased to launch the first Macquarie staff survey - "Your Say".

The survey will give both Academic and General staff a chance to voice their opinions about how well Macquarie University is functioning. It will also assist us to track the health of our organization and identify areas for improvement.

I have asked for this survey to be run early into my time at Macquarie as one of the ways I can know the University better. One of its purposes is to take stock of how our staff feel about Macquarie and develop an understanding of our strengths and areas which need greater focus on our interactions with staff.

We are taking several steps to ensure confidentiality. The survey is anonymous and all results will be analysed by the independent Voice Project association, which has conducted similar surveys at six other universities. Only aggregated scores from groups with 10 or more respondents will be reported. Responses from individual surveys will NOT be reported. Results will be communicated to staff at Macquarie University in late May 2006.

I encourage each and every one of you to participate in the survey honestly and frankly. The more responses, the clearer the current picture of the University will be. This is a chance to have Your Say and the data we collect will contribute to our thinking on the way we shape the University into the future.

The survey will be conducted online during 13 – 27 March, you will receive further information on how to complete the survey in the near future.

Sincerely yours,

Steven Schwartz
Vice-Chancellor

Tim advises that a Your Say website has been established which includes a Key Message and Frequently Asked Questions section, as well as the link for staff to complete the survey online. This website is: www.pers.mq.edu.au/yoursay/index.html

The survey will take most people 20 – 25 minutes to complete.