ICT Forum (ICTF) Constitutional Documents

1. ICT Forum Mission Statement

ICTF provides a framework that promotes and facilitates excellence incorporating the full involvement of ICT Staff in both the strategic development and day-to-day running of ICT in the Collegiate University.

2. ICT Forum Terms of Reference

ICTF is a body that represents all whose job function includes delivery or support of ICT throughout the Collegiate University.

The ICTF…

• is a representative group for all ICT Staff;
• is a group to communicate and promote the views and interests of ICT Staff in the University’s ICT Coordinated Decision Making structure;
• is a single known point of contact for bodies in the University to consult ICT Staff;
• is a professional forum for the exchange of experiences, ideas and best practices;
• gives its members privileges in contacting service providers;
• has a high priority in requesting ICT enhancements with service providers;
• is in a position to initiate its own projects deemed appropriate by its members and to seek funding for those projects where necessary;
• is a broker in introducing local projects to the wider University;
• is a broker in introducing projects from the wider University to ICT Staff;
• facilitates the exchange and trading of skills; together with access to staff development and training schemes.

3. ICT Forum Constitution

1. The ICT Forum shall exist to serve all whose job function includes support of ICT throughout the Collegiate University.
2. It shall be comprised of those who it exists to serve.
3. The list of members of the IT Support Staff Register will be the members of the Forum.
4. Open meetings of the ICT Forum shall be held at least once each term, normally in week 9.
5. The Chair shall be elected for three years by the ICT Forum. The Chair shall be eligible for a second period of office but may not then stand for re-election until a further two years have elapsed.
6. The Secretary shall be elected for three years by the ICT Forum. The Secretary shall be eligible for a second period of office but may not then stand for re-election until a further two years have elapsed.
7. At the end of the term of office of either the Chair or the Secretary there shall be an election for that post. The election will occur at the last meeting prior to the end of the term of office and the secretariat shall send notification of the election to all representatives asking for nominations at least 14 days before the meeting. If there is more than one nomination there will be a ballot.
8. The post of Chair may be held by any person and that of Secretary by any member of the ICT Forum (except members of ITS3), provided that both are in the employment of the University or its colleges.
9. The ICTF Steering Committee may at any time require the Chairman or Secretary to stand down and for an election to take place. This clause may only be enacted if at least 25 members of ICTF have signed a petition requesting the action.
10. The meetings of the ICT Forum are open to any member of the Forum, and it is suggested that at least one representative of each University Unit be present.
11. At the meetings of the ICT Forum the following will occur:
    1. service providers shall report on progress and future plans and receive members reactions to the services provided and planned. Examples of service providers are bodies such as Computing Services, Libraries Services and Business Services and Projects, but all bodies providing ICT services to the Collegiate University will be encouraged to provide reports.;
    2. the IT Support Staff Services section of the Computing Services (ITS3) will report;
    3. any representatives of ICTF on other committees and groups will report;
    4. Special Interest Groups (SIGs) may supply written reports of their activities. Representatives may highlight significant parts of their report and take questions.Notwithstanding the statutory reports, it should be clear that the primary purpose of the meetings of the ICT Forum is discussion and not reporting.
    5. The ICT Forum shall appoint a representative to be a member of the PRAC ICT Subcommittee. The position will normally be held by the Chairman of the ICT Forum.
    6. The ICT Forum will appoint representatives to other committees and groups as necessary.
    7. The ICT Forum shall have no executive authority but will make representations through its representatives (as defined in 13 above) to the PRAC ICT Subcommittee.
12. This constitution may be amended by any ordinary meeting of the ICTF, including the AGM. Proposals for such changes must be notified to the ICTF Chairman and Secretary no later than Monday of the fifth week of term so they may be discussed by the Steering Committee and then circulated by e-mail to the ICT-A (itss-announce) mailing list at least 10 working days before the meeting. A two-thirds majority vote (of those present at the meeting) is required for such changes.

4. ICTF Steering Committee

The ICTF Steering Committee (ICTFSC) will oversee the operation of the ICTF. Its functions will include

• co-ordinating with the University bodies such as the PRAC ICT SC, Director of ICT, etc., to provide members of sub groups when necessary;
• organising an annual ICTF conference;
• organising and co-coordinating training, workshops and seminars of relevance to IT Support, in collaboration with ITS3;
• Monitoring and advising on the activities of ITS3, particularly the maintenance of the ITSS register.

The Steering Committee will be led by the Secretary of the ICTF and will meet at least once a term, usually just prior to the ICTF termly meeting.

The membership of the ICTFSC will be

• The Secretary of ICTF
• The Chair of ICTF
• The Head of OUCS' IT Support Staff Services
• 6 people elected by the members of the ICTF, elected on a rolling two-per-year cycle
• Up to a further 3 people may be co-opted by the ICTFSC to serve until the next Trinity Term ICTF meeting (normally at the ICTF Conference, just after term). Such co-options should aim to increase the cross-college and department representation on ICTFC.
• People may be co-opted by the ICTFSC to fill unfilled or vacated elected posts until the next Trinity Term ICTF meeting.

Secretarial services for the ICTF and its Steering Committee will be provided by ITS3 and its staff members will attend ICTFSC meetings.

5. Glossary of Terms/Acronyms

PRAC

University top-level Planning and Resource Allocation Committee

PICT

ICT Subcommittee of PRAC

ICTC

The previous University ICT Committee, superseded by PICT.

ICTF

The ICT Forum

ICTFSC

ICTF Steering Committee

ITSSG

The previous IT Support Staff group, serving under ICTC, superseded by ICTFSC.

ITSSC

The Annual Oxford IT Support Staff Conference (to be renamed the ICTF Conference from 2008)

OUCS

Oxford University Computing Services

BSP

Business Services and Projects (part of Central Admin)

ITS3

IT Support Staff Services (part of OUCS)

OULS

Oxford University Library Services

ECE Project

Enhanced Computing Environment Project, currently working to enhance and unify desktop PC provision in Libraries, OUCS and Central Admin.

ASUC

Academic Services and University Collections Division (the division in which OUCS exists)