46 Annual Report
between the Commission and the Minister. The priority accorded each
project within the work programme is a matter that is determined
following discussion with the Minister. If a new project is added to the
work programme part way through the financial year this can involve
a reprioritisation of resources and staff with a consequent impact on
project timeliness and costs.
Once on our work programme each project is supervised by two
Commissioners, with one taking the lead role and overall responsibility
for the quality of the research, as well as the legal and policy analysis.
The legal and policy resources assigned to a project are usually related
to its priority in the work programme and its size in terms of legal and/
or policy complexity. The General Manager is responsible for the
management of staff and financial resources, and works closely with the
President and Deputy President to ensure projects are sufficiently
resourced in accordance with their priority status. The General Manager
also takes responsibility for work programme management and for
ensuring that project disciplines are applied to meet and maintain
performance standards across all Commission projects.
In general terms, all projects require a project plan that identifies the
project objectives, scope, constraints, schedule, linkages and
dependencies, project structure (including internal review and external
peer review processes, as appropriate), consultation and communication
approaches, and project monitoring and controls. The project
management process is supported through regular project team meetings,
in which the relevant Commissioners, legal and policy advisers meet
with the President and the General Manager. The General Manager
reports on the overall progress of the work programme at the monthly
Commission meeting and four monthly work programme reports are
provided to the Minister.
Timeliness
The Commission is committed to completing its work within the
timeframes specified in the annual work programme, as agreed with the
Minister at the start of the financial year. Inevitably as work progresses
through the year, circumstances will dictate the need to modify original
dates and deadlines. This situation has arisen in the year under review,
as the review of the regulatory framework relating to the sale and supply
of liquor was added to the Commission’s programme in August 2008 and
required a significant resource commitment. The election of a new
Government also made a significant impact on the Commission’s work
programme. The new Minister identified the Government’s priority
projects within our work programme and directed the Commission to
deliver a number of these within revised timelines. At year end the actual
status of projects as against the SOI forecast timelines was as