JOB FACT SHEET
POSITION INFORMATION
Position Number: 14585
Current Grade (if applicable): 10
Working Title: Assistant Secretary to General Faculties Council
Faculty/Department: University Governance
Department ID: 4300001
Incumbent Name (if applicable): Click here to enter text.
Campus Address: Click here to enter text.
Campus Phone Number: Click here to enter text.
E-Mail Address: Click here to enter text.
Hours of Work/Week: 35 hrs/wk
 Actual Hours Worked (if Part-Time): Click here to enter text.
Name of Supervisor: Garry Bodnar
Title of Supervisor: Secretary to General Faculties Council
Supervisor’s Phone Number: 780 492-7433
Supervisor’s Email Address: garry.bodnar@ualberta.ca
Position Type: Regular Continuing - OPERATING
 If OTHER, please indicate Position Type: Click here to enter text.
Special Requirements:
Home Internet Access: Choose an item.
Professional Accreditation: Choose an item.
Conflict of Interest Disclosure: Choose an item.
Second Language: Choose an item.
SIGNATURES: The signatures below indicate that all parties have read and discussed the content of the JFS
EFFECTIVE DATE (if different from date signed): Click here to enter a date.
FINANCIAL AUTHORIZATION:
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INCUMBENT (if applicable):
SUPERVISOR:
DEPARTMENT HEAD/TRUSTHOLDER:
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1. SIGNIFICANT CHANGES SINCE LAST REVIEW
The unit has undergone significant change, including merging the University Secretariat with the
Board of Governors unit.
Most recently, the unit underwent a significant budget cut and roles and responsibilities for all
staff have been reviewed to align with existing resources. In addition, the retirement of two key
individuals has allowed for a timely review of the unit's positions.
This position is a key position for the University Governance, especially with regard to the
provision of services to the General Faculties Council (GFC).Enter text here.
2. POSITION SUMMARY
Reporting directly to the Secretary to General Faculties Council, the Assistant Secretary to
General Faculties Council provides strategic, anticipatory, accurate support for the University
Secretary, the GFC Secretary, General Faculties Council, and its standing committees. The
Assistant GFC Secretary manages the daily activities of a number of the GFC standing
committees, coordinates the workflow of GFC business, and liaises with a wide range of
individuals and groups throughout the institution.
The Assistant Secretary realizes the position's purpose by providing:
 Leadership concerning and management of GFC's standing committees
 Governance decision-making support for a number of GFC standing committees
 Process innovation and ensuring the effectiveness of the smooth operation of the
committee structure and associated processes
 Liaison and coordination
3. RESPONSIBILITIES/ACTIVITIES: Group activities into categories and list in point form each
duty performed until the major elements of the position are represented. Review each
statement to ensure that it accurately describes what is done and briefly, how it is done.
Please indicate the percentage of time spent on each of the major activities listed
1. LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
The GFC Assistant Secretary provides senior professional advice, support, and expertise to the University
Secretary and GFC Secretary in all aspects of a range of GFC standing committees. To do this, the
Assistant Secretary:
 Leads and manages operational aspects of the GFC standing committees for which the
incumbent provides coordination and support.
 Plans, implements, manages and monitors performance of effective administrative
resources, systems and tools, including those for:
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Information creation formats
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Information management
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Institutional memory, search, and retrieval
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Database creation and management
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Information Technology solutions for governance business
 Acts often as point of first contact for governance-related topics, problems, and challenges,
guiding issues, solving complex problems, detecting nature, complexity and urgency of Issues
requiring the oversight/action of the GFC Secretary, coordinating the unit with others in
response to high-stakes and highly-charged issues
 Provides leadership and support for ensuring the accuracy of information regarding GFC
membership including monitoring the term start and end dates, completing and maintaining
membership information and other action as determined by the GFC Secretary and the
University Secretary
 Provides expert advice to the University community on terms of reference and delegated
authority of the GFC standing committees
 In concert with the Assistant Board Secretary, takes leadership and responsibility for the unit's
website - including design, content, accuracy, and timeliness of the GFC and GFC standing
committees components of the University Governance website. Coordinates with others in the
unit as appropriate and provides timely communication about the unit's website both within the
unit, within the wider University community, and beyond.
2. GOVERNANCE DECISION SUPPORT
The Assistant Secretary to GFC provides expertise and service In key activities and process to ensure GFC
standing committee compliance with the Post-Secondary Learning Act and other legislation through
Informed, prudent, and timely decision-making aligned with legislation. To do this, the Assistant
Secretary:
 Serves as Assistant Secretary to GFC, assisting the Secretary with duties with respect to GFC
 meetings, materials, and follow-up actions
 Serves as Assistant Secretary to certain GFC standing committees, providing coordination with
members, stakeholders, and administration office staff, arranging meetings, generating and
circulating agendas, attending meetings, creating minutes/meeting summaries, providing
information for follow-up action response, and ensuring the preservation of the
legislative/corporate record of committee decision-making
 Ensures a high standard of full accurate, timely, and impartial information dissemination and
documentation, including the preparation of agendas, proposals, decision reports, and
minutes/meeting summaries for GFC standing committees
 Coordinates the activity, schedules and workflow of the GFC standing committee system and
links it within the Governance system through participation in master planning
 Ensures consistent practices and applications across the University Governance system and
works with others to ensure consistency wherever possible across the Governance system
 Assesses the quality, compliance, and impact of proposals about to enter the GFC standing
committee system and identifies problems and solutions early and accurately
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Provides information to the University and wider communities on the role, activity, and policy of
GFC standing committees
Understands, honours, and unerringly operationalizes confidentiality rules, protocols, processes,
and practices.
3. PROCESS INNOVATION AND EFFECTIVENESS
The Assistant Secretary assists the GFC Secretary to plan effectively, participate fully in creative
innovation within the unit, streamline processes and create linkages and coherence in decision-support
activities, engage others, and use resources, including technology, to enhance effectiveness. To do this,
the Assistant Secretary:
 Supports and provides innovative and creative ideas and alternatives to the GFC Secretary, who
partners with the University Secretary and Secretary to the Board of Governors to assess
structures, processes, schedules, and resources to generate new options, models, and plans that
are responsive, effective and efficient
 Provides to the unit's senior 'team' sound and accurate analyses of the current environment,
future issues, challenges and demands, and provides advice on priorities, options, models, and
plans that are responsive, effective and efficient
 Provides to the unit's senior 'team' sound and accurate analyses of the current environment,
future issues, challenges and demands, and provides advice on priorities, options, models, and
plans
 Implements, at the GFC Secretary's direction, the positive results and deliverables of projects
managed by the Assistant Secretary
 Creates, or assists in creating, a climate for change, by developing and being open to new ideas,
 evaluating possibilities, and supporting new approaches
 Plans and executes new means to create, manage, and disseminate committee information
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4. LIAISON AND COORDINATION
The Assistant Secretary collaborates with the GFC Secretary to provide unit liaison with a wide variety of
stakeholders, groups, officers, individuals, and communities who are engaged in, are affected by, or
have interest in the legislative decision-making of GFC and its standing committees. To perform this role,
the Assistant Secretary:
 Provides to the GFC Secretary a dependable, approachable, communicative, helpful, expert,
professional and neutral interface
 Establishes and maintains strong, collegial, informed and team-spirited linkages and working
relationships within the University Governance unit
 Cultivates and maintains informal teams of colleagues composed of APOs and support staff in
administration portfolios in order to plan, generate, and disseminate committee agendas and
plan committee guests and presentations
 Serves as unit representative, ambassador, expert, in various institutional or portfolio activities
 Maintains and capitalizes on the unit's position of neutrality to play a central and helpful role in
various milieu, with many parties, to solve complex problems while safeguarding the role of
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institutional governance
Advises the GFC Secretary and/or University Secretary when matters need to be forwarded to
the Office of University General Counsel
4. KNOWLEDGE: Identify the minimum formalized training/education and/or qualifications
required to prepare an individual to be functional in the position.
Required knowledge, skills and experience are typically attained through completion of a
baccalaureate degree and extensive experience in a post-secondary education academic and/or board
governance setting.
Experience will generally be at least five (5) years in a high pressure, deadline driven organization with
responsibility to produce finished deliverables. Alternate combinations of education and experience will
be considered.
Experience should have developed or prove that the following requirements are met:
 Expert ability to comprehend, interpret, and apply legislation including the Post-Secondary
Learning Act and the FOJPP Act
 Strong interpersonal, communication, and writing skills
 Strong technical and analytical skills including:
o Expertise in process design and redesign
o Ability to anticipate, forecast, and plan
o Creative skills and ability to identify and employ new technological applications to
support change
o Expert skills in use of the Microsoft Office Suite and internet applications (eg, Google)
o Comfort with various share software programs including Sharepoint
o Administrative tool development skills
 Broadly based institutional/system knowledge
 Strong analytical and synthesis skills, precision and attention to detail
 Flexibility, adaptability, ability to thrive In times of change and ambiguity
 Ability to demonstrate University values of respect, fairness, helpfulness, competence, openness
and impartiality.
5. INDEPENDENCE OF ACTION: Describe the initiative required, the creativity and original
thought, and also the amount of direction and control received from the supervisor or standard
practices and precedents.
A. What types of decisions are made independently?
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The Assistant Secretary undertakes projects or activities to support the University and
GFC Secretaries
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The Assistant Secretary has a major role with the work of GFC standing committees, the
testing ground for proposals and the jurisdiction within which a high degree of GFCdelegated authority is exercised, with significant Institutional consequences
This position reflects a high degree of trust, independence, requirement for broad
institutional knowledge, awareness of best practice for good governance in Canada and
emerging trends and issues, sound judgment in high-stakes issues, extensive knowledge
of and expertise in institutional issues and processes, ability to offer informed, sound,
and timely advice to the University and GFC Secretaries on critical decisions of
consequence in highly-charged environments
B. For what actions is it necessary to consult someone? Are approvals or instructions verbal or in
writing?
Before agreeing to the following, the incumbent should consult verbally with the GFC Secretary or
University Secretary:
o Unusual requests which are not covered by policy
o Requests for an e-mail vote
o Requests for walk-on items at meetings
o Anything which appears to have major legal, financial, or compliance consequences
6. CONSEQUENCE OF ERRORS: Identify the extent of losses which result from mistakes in
judgment or poor decisions (typical instances, not rare or extreme ones), and the responsibility
for safety of others.
The actions and performance of the Assistant Secretary have direct consequences to the reputation of
the University of Alberta, its institutional governance system (including its committees and those who
actively participate in governance), the GFC Secretary and the University Secretary.
7. CONTACTS: Identify the contacts and the purpose of the interaction.
A. Inside the University
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Direct contact with vice presidents, their directors and senior administrative officers, and Office
of President senior staff
Direct and frequent contact with GFC members (including GFC standing committee Chairs and
members) and other University stakeholders
Student leaders; undergraduate and graduate students
Deans and Associate/Assistant Deans; Department Chairs; unit APOs
Faculty and support staff
On rare occasion, Board of Governors members
B. Outside the University
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Potential University students and their immediate families
University stakeholders and the general public
C. Information Sources
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Acts often as point of first contact for GFC (academic governance) topics, problems, and
challenges, guiding issues, solving complex problems, detecting nature, complexity and urgency
of issues requiring the oversight/action of the GFC Secretary, coordinating the unit with others
in response to 'high-stakes' and highly-charged issues
Provides expert advice to University community on terms of reference, delegated authority of
GFC standing committees (and, on occasion, Board standing committees), and advice regarding
governance paths for items/issues going forward
University of Alberta Policies and Procedures (UAPPOL) - frequently
Post-Secondary Learning Act (PSLA) - frequently
GFC Policy Manual - frequently
University Calendar - frequently
Rules of Order (Robert's) - on rare occasion
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIPP) Act - occasionally
Senior Administration and their staff - frequently
Other Governance staff - frequently
University publications and Web sites - frequently
GFC and standing committee terms of reference - frequently
Board and standing committee terms of reference - frequently
8. SUPERVISION: If this position is not required to supervise staff, please indicate “n/a”.
A. Describe all aspects of formal supervision required of this position. Please be sure to complete
Part B.
Position provides functional supervision of Governance Assistants when being supported by one.
B. Please indicate how many staff members are supervised by the position.
Full-time employees: N/A
Part-time employees: Position may have responsibility for function supervision of a temporary
support staff, as required.
Casual employees:
9. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: Describe the degree, frequency, severity, intensity and continuity of
physical activity and/or intense visual concentration required.
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A. Activities
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Seated at workstation and computer use
Sitting in meetings of 2 to 4 hours in duration and scribing detailed notes
Ability to work a long day when required due to meetings and special functions
B. What types of equipment or tools are used in the job?
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Computer
Computer/data projector
Fax machine
Telephone
Photocopier
Scanner
10. WORKING CONDITIONS: Describe the disagreeable aspects of the job environment in
relation to employee safety and comfort, and the severity and frequency of exposure to
workplace hazards.
Standard office environment
11. SIMILAR POSITIONS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA: Please list any position numbers,
titles, departments or incumbent names that may be considered to be similar.
Assistant Secretary to the Board of Governors
12. ORGANIZATION CHART: An organization chart is mandatory for the evaluation process to
be completed. You may include this as a separate attachment or file may be pasted/
embedded below
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