View from the centre

1. View from the centre Presentation to Irish Universities Association 12th Annual HR Conference 4 October 2013

5. Some questions • A view from a centre? • Who are we? • How did we get here? • Where do we go next?

6. Where’s the centre? • The authorising environment • Confers legitimacy • Provides resources • Expresses expectations • Requires accountability

7. Where’s the centre? We all have to account to someone…….. ……..and that’s just as well

8. Where’s the centre? • So our centre isn’t really the centre • It’s our corner of the authorising environment • Or maybe just our ivory tower

9. Who are we? • The dead hand of bureaucracy?

13. Who are we? • Or agents of the people?

14. How did we get here? • Crunch, crash and crisis • Decision point for Government • Internal or external devaluation • All else followed from that

15. How did we get here? • Complete reliance on Troika • Complete commitment to Stability Programme • Close deficit; cut spending

16. How did we get here? • Deficit closed significantly • But further adjustments still needed • To restore economic sovereignty

17. How did we get here?

18. How did we get here? • Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus • - Aneurin Bevan, 1952

19. How did we get here? • Not random or arbitrary • Part of a clear strategy • Theory E over Theory O • Directive over participative

20. Participative?

21. Directive?

22. Where do we go next? • A regulator • A service • Co-operation and compliance

23. Where do we go next? Differing short term and long term perspectives

24. Where do we go next? Theory E and regulation to manage financial crisis

25. Where do we go next? Theory O and service to maintain and develop educational provision

26. Where do we go next? • A willingness to listen • An obligation to oversee • Compliance with the law our red line

27. The challenge How do we – together – ensure that regulation a measure of last resort?