Enabling functions
New panel members David Fienberg, Rob Taylor and Jodi McLean getting to know one another at the GRDC’s panel induction dinner. Photo: GRDC
The GRDC’s two enabling functions—Corporate Services and Corporate Strategy & Program Support—are responsible for key operational activities in relation to:
- corporate strategy
- information management systems
- corporate communication
- risk management
- quality management
- human resource management
- finance and administration
- corporate governance and legal services.
These activities provide essential support for the corporation’s responsibilities under the Primary Industries and Energy Research and Development Act 1989 (PIERD Act) and the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 (CAC Act), and equip individual output groups to deliver their targeted outputs.
Outlined below and throughout this annual report are key activities undertaken by Corporate Services and Corporate Strategy & Program Support during 2007–08.
Regional panel selection
In February 2008, the GRDC advertised widely seeking grain growers, researchers, farm advisers and consultants from across the grains industry to apply for membership of the regional panels. Some incumbent members’ terms expired at the end of the 2007–08 financial year.
Interview committees, comprising members of the GRDC Board, a GRDC executive manager and grower representatives, assessed applications, conducted interviews and made recommendations to the Board. The Board approved the appointments of successful applicants for a three-year term ending in June 2011.
The new panels began their important role in July 2008. They will bring a fresh approach as they work with GRDC management to develop the R&D portfolio and draw together local, regional and national grains industry issues from their extensive networks.
Portfolio monitoring and reviews
‘Portfolio monitoring’ is a broad term that covers a range of activities undertaken by the GRDC to ensure that individual projects achieve their objectives and scheduled milestones, and that the R&D portfolio as a whole continues to address industry and government stakeholder priorities. The portfolio in 2007–08 included around six hundred projects, at various stages of development, spread across four output groups.
The portfolio monitoring system includes internal guidelines and/or procedures for:
- identifying and managing risks associated with individual projects during the planning and implementation stages
- evaluating progress reports for project performance against objectives
- developing business cases, terms of reference and time frames for a limited number of formal reviews of targeted investment areas from across the entire portfolio.
At the project level, portfolio monitoring involves an annual assessment of each project, by way of an annual progress report that identifies progress against the aims and milestones of the project. Satisfactory progress reports must be submitted to the corporation before further payments are made to research providers.
Other GRDC portfolio monitoring activities in 2007–08 included:
- external visits to research providers’ facilities, including research laboratories and sites where field trials are carried out
- internal monitoring procedures to assess the performance and efficiency of administrative activities associated with managing the large investment portfolio. This includes tracking the status of progress reports against internal performance targets and producing summary reports for the Board, management and staff.
Disaster recovery
In 2007–08, the GRDC developed and implemented an information technology (IT) Disaster Recovery Solution to complement the existing backup solution. The GRDC decided on a solution that would deliver the maximum recoverability for the GRDC IT systems in case of a full IT disaster.
The Disaster Recovery Solution ensures that in the case of a major outage of IT services the GRDC is able to relocate staff and maintain a normal level of operations until a new site and/or new equipment have been obtained.
Phone system
The GRDC successfully installed a new telephone system in 2007–08. The new system is a robust and reliable solution that is capable of handling all GRDC telephony requirements into the future. The project took three months to complete, from design to delivery and installation.
As part of the project, the GRDC’s phone lines, phone numbers and internet connection were upgraded. The new internet connection has improved the speed and reliability of the GRDC’s data communications.
Electronic document and records management system
The GRDC evaluated responses to an ‘Expression of Interest’ for an electronic document and records management system and selected iCognition Pty Ltd to implement the TRIM Context application. Preparatory work is progressing and implementation is expected to be completed by the end of 2008.
Business process review
GRDC general counsel Geoff Budd (left) and GRDC corporate services executive manager Gavin Whiteley (right) were presented with the NAB Agribusiness Risk Management Award for Excellence by Tony Pititto (centre) from Ernst & Young. Photo: NAB
As part of the GRDC’s rollout of business process review recommendations, a technical committee was formed in 2007–08 to implement recommendations that were aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of GRDC operations. The committee concentrated on the top priorities raised through GRDC core business processes 2 (Design, procure and contract required R&D) and 3 (Manage the R&D portfolio through pathways to market), which required changes to systems and processes, namely:
- updating eForms for application and reporting processes
- upgrading the Clarity system to capture new and revised datasets and to improve reporting capabilities
- purchasing an ideas module for Clarity.
Those changes have improved the GRDC’s ability to track areas of the portfolio because they have emphasised risks and benefits, extension, commercialisation, better classification of information and plain English/scientific reporting abilities. Relationships with other internal systems were also considered during the implementation process.
A detailed communication plan was developed in 2007–08 to advise investment partners and customers of the changes.
Portfolio analysis
In 2007-08 the GRDC continued to undertake R&D portfolio analysis. One of the primary goals of the GRDC portfolio management is to achieve a balanced portfolio of projects in terms of the following parameters:
- project type: pure basic, strategic basic, applied, experimental development, deliver outcomes of R&D in products and services to stakeholders, capacity building
- delivery time to growers of R&D outcomes (Long-term projects versus short)
- probability of overall success (High-risk long shots versus lower risk sure bets)
- benefit cost ratio
- induced spillover benefits from investment.
The GRDC R&D portfolio was grouped under 24 clusters based on common themes and/or outcomes as follows:
- Practices: Biosecurity, Conservation Agriculture, Crop Protection, Environment, Extension, Farming Systems, Soils, and Tactical Crop Management
- Varieties: Gene Discovery, Germplasm Enhancement, Enabling Technologies, Barley Breeding, Wheat Breeding, Oilseed Breeding, Pulse Breeding, Other Cereal Breeding, Summer Crops Breeding, and National Variety Trials
- New Products: Biopesticides, Grain Storage Farm/Off farm, Instrument Products, New Grain Products—Food, New Grain Products—Industrial, and Soil Biology.
Several matrices were developed to analyse the GRDC’s portfolio, including risk vs reward matrix and risk vs time to delivery to grain growers matrix. GRDC portfolio analysis will result in a more effective and efficient selection and management of projects.
Different approaches will be used to monitor, evaluate and manage projects depending on project characteristics; for example, evaluation and management approaches to projects having standard GRDC research agreements will be different from approaches to incorporated and unincorporated joint ventures.
Photo: Arthur Mostead