About
Direct Appointment Policy
DIRECT APPOINTMENT RULES AND PERMISSIBILITY
Direct Appointment
A direct appointment refers to the regular appointment of a person, where the normal advertising and competitive selection process is not applied, and Institutional business needs support this approach for an appointee whose unique skills and qualifications are documented. Upon approval for a direct appointment from the Institution’s Chief Human Resources Officer (“CHRO”) and the Institution’s President all employment policies (including background checks) must be followed and adhered to. Nominations and recommendations for direct appointments of staff or faculty can be made by a Vice President (or comparable senior level administrator as approved by Institutional procedures) and above.
This section is generally not applicable to internal, acting appointments, or promotions within the existing unit or reporting upline. However, all rules are applicable if and when an interim is assigned to the role on a regular basis. Each Institution is responsible for creating a process to ensure direct appointment rules are followed.
Direct appointments may be possible as part of the hiring process to:
• appoint an internal candidate with relevant knowledge, skills and experience who uniquely meets the requirements and criteria for the role as specified in the position description;
• appoint an external candidate with significant leading status or international recognition in their field or a rare, exceptional skillset; or
• appoint a candidate who was a previous applicant for the same or similar position within the past 12 months.
All nominations or recommendations for appointments under this procedure shall contain the following information and require the relevant approval prior to commencing the appointment process:
• the written rationale for the appointment, explaining why a direct appointment process is preferable to a standard, competitive recruitment process;
• satisfactory evidence of how the proposed appointee meets the qualifications and possesses the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities as delineated within the position description;
• rationale explaining how the appointment is expected to contribute to the Institutions’ strategic vision;
• the candidate’s CV or resume, qualifications, appropriate references, and details of their current position (if applicable) within another organization or Institution.
Please note it is the Institution’s responsibility to use this option judiciously and ensure that all requirements are met and recorded for audit, as requested by internal or external agency requests.
The justification materials for the direct appointment nomination or recommendation may also be used for the HRAP Advanced Salary Increase request when necessary.
Approvals
The following approvals are required prior to directly appointing a candidate:
• President
• Chief Financial Officer
• Dean and the Provost (for faculty positions and staff within a reporting unit)
• Chief HR Officer
• University System Office official, as appropriate by policy where there is shared reporting to the system office.
Appointment Notification and Offer Letters
Prior to approval of the appointment, all information and supporting documentation as referenced above must be submitted to the Office of Human Resources.
In consultation with the Hiring Manager, the HR Office will ensure that all policies and requirements are met and will subsequently issue an Offer of Employment to the preferred appointee and provide all information relevant to the appointment.
Procedural Fairness
Whenever the discretion not to advertise is exercised in accordance with this procedure, care must be taken to ensure that there is no other member of staff in the Institution, and in particular, the Department or School concerned, who could be deemed a suitable candidate for the position. Where this may be the case, it is recommended that the role is advertised internally, allowing all staff to be equitably considered for the role.
Conflict of Interest
Particularly where the nominated appointee is an internal candidate, the staff member who is proposing a direct appointment must declare any conflicts of interest prior to commencing the appointment procedure process. (Reference BOR Policy 8.2.18.2 Conflicts of Interest, Conflicts of Commitment, and Outside Activities)