A conflict of interest occurs where a person’s personal interest could improperly influence, or may appear to improperly influence them when making a work-related decision/s as outlined in the University’s Managing Conflicts of Interest Procedure.

A conflict of interest exists whether it is:

Where an actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest occurs within the Recruitment and Appointment process, the following steps must be undertaken.

The authority to establish new positions or fill vacant senior staff positions must be in accordance with the Delegations - Contract, Financial, Staffing and Tender Procedure.

Within each area of responsibility, Delegated Officers have authority to create new positions, establish parameters of a position, and initiate the recruitment and appointment process. Establishment of positions are subject to Finance approval.

Final authorisation of positions and approval of appointments may be at the discretion of the Vice‑Chancellor.

A Recruitment Agency may be invited to contribute to the appointment process. Any engagement must be approved by the Director, People and Culture.

The recruitment and appointment process for all positions within the scope of this procedure will be coordinated by People and Culture.

As a general rule, it is the University’s position that all jobs should be advertised in order to ensure that the best person is selected through an open and competitive process. However, there are some circumstances where advertising may not be required. One such circumstance is where there are special and exceptional circumstances to directly appoint a person into a position.

The recommended advertising period is two weeks. Where international sponsorship has been approved, advertising must meet the required conditions, for further advice please contact Human Resources.

People and Culture will advise the Chair of the Selection Committee of any senior managerial directives applicable to the recruitment activity i.e. the application of special measures.

Candidates may be contacted and interviewed throughout the duration of the advertising period in order to expedite decision-making.

For senior appointments, the composition of the Selection Committee will be at a minimum in accordance with the following table and should include reasonable gender balance.

The Selection Committee must remain unchanged throughout the recruitment and appointment process unless approved by the Director, People and Culture or Vice-Chancellor as appropriate. It is the responsibility of the Chair to ensure all internal Selection Committee members possess awareness and education of Recruitment and Appointment Policy and supporting Procedures.

Please review the Academic Level D and Level E Recruitment and Appointment Procedure for further detail regarding professoriate appointments and the Academic Leadership and Appointment Procedure for further detail regarding Institute positions of Director, Industry Cooperation, Director, Learning and Teaching, Research Adviser and Discipline Lead and Research positions of Director, Research Centre/Group, and Associate Dean.

The Vice-Chancellor may approve changes to the composition of the committee for senior appointments, for reasons such as, but not limited to, organisational change, reasonable gender balance or cultural representation.

All internal members of the Selection Committee are required to participate in the shortlisting of applicants for senior appointments, external committee members may be invited to participate in shortlisting.

The Selection Committee must ensure that all candidates selected for interview align to the Key Selection Criteria and the University’s Living Values Charter.

Interviews are a required component of the selection process for most University positions.

The requirement to hold an interview may be waived for senior appointments, where the position meets the parameters for a Direct appointment whereby the Direct appointment procedure must be adhered to.

Candidates must be asked a series of behavioural based questions aligned to the key selection criteria and the University’s Living Values Charter.

At the discretion of the Chair, other experts may be requested to provide an assessment following the first interview. However, the Selection Committee remains responsible for providing the recommendation for appointment.

Preference for appointment will be given to University employees but appointment decisions will be based on merit using equitable and transparent processes, and on achievements relative to opportunity.

In some circumstances, in consultation with People and Culture, it may be appropriate to request applicants to complete pre-employment assessments.

Appointment decisions will be based on merit using equitable and transparent processes, and on achievement relative to opportunity.

At the conclusion of the interview process, and after considering referee feedback, supplementary selection assessments and checks (where applicable), a Selection Committee report must be completed and signed by all internal committee members and presented to the Delegated Officer for approval.

Where the committee reaches consensus, the Chair of the Selection Committee (or nominee), may advise the first ranked candidate that they are the preferred candidate for appointment. However, they must advise that any offer of employment is subject to delegated approvals, pre-employment requirements and a completed employment contract.

While it is desirable that recommendations are by consensus, a Minority Report can be submitted by any member of the Selection Committee outlining the reason/s why they dissent. The Minority Report must be submitted with the Selection Committee report for approval by the Delegated Officer.

Approval of senior staff appointments must only be undertaken on the authorisation of the Delegated Officer in accordance with the Delegations - Contract, Financial, Staffing and Tender Procedure.

The Delegated Officer will review the recommendation of the Selection Committee and supporting documentation (and Minority Report where applicable) to determine approval of appointment.

Following the Delegated Officer’s approval, the Chair of the Selection Committee (or nominee), will make a verbal offer of employment to the preferred candidate.

Following the verbal acceptance of the offer, People and Culture will issue an employment contract.

Staff who are a High Managerial Agent must also complete a Fit and Proper Person form and/or declaration in accordance with requirements under ASQA, TEQSA and/or VRQA and submit to People and Culture.

If the successful applicant is a continuing University employee, and the position is fixed-term, the employee may request to be appointed on a secondment basis.

Employment may be conditional on the satisfactory completion of pre-employment checks, such as:

The University reserves the right to withdraw the offer of employment if we receive information of any relevant criminal convictions, or knowledge that the applicant has been investigated for any other behaviour that would be incompatible with the position, or which may adversely affect the University's reputation if subsequently disclosed, conflict of interest or contrary medical information, or to take other action in the event of the candidate's failure to disclose such information prior to appointment.

This will be determined by the Vice-Chancellor or nominee, and the candidate will be informed in writing of the outcome, and if employment has commenced, the employment relationship will cease.

Unsuccessful applicants that have been interviewed must be verbally notified by the Chair. Notification to the unsuccessful applicants who were not interviewed will be sent by People and Culture.

If a successful applicant is required to relocate, they may be eligible for reimbursement to an agreed value of expenses incurred.

For further information, see the Relocation Allowance Guidelines.

Where an appointee does not hold permanent or temporary residence in Australia, the University may sponsor the employee for permanent or temporary residency. In these circumstances, the University will pay the nomination and visa services fees, and the employee will be responsible for the payment of all other associated expenses. These include, but are not limited to, visa application fees for the appointee and any dependent family members (such as spouse and wholly financially dependent children) and may include expenses associated with English language tests, health examinations and private health insurance (if applicable).

New staff may apply for recognition of prior service. See the Recognition of Prior Service Guidelines.

Re-employment of previous staff, following resignation or redundancy, is based on the merit-based selection process described above, provided that re-employment with Federation University Australia is not in breach of any legislation regarding taxation or superannuation.

Staff whose employment at Federation University Australia has ceased due to redundancy (whether voluntary or otherwise) will not be re-employed within the exclusion period.