Policy Statement

The University’s mission and values are reflected in its institutional and compliance policies. The institutional policies protect the University’s mission, reputation, integrity, accountability, and transparency. They also support the management in overcoming possible institutional risks. All University policies must be developed, amended, approved, and published according to the standard procedures outlined in this policy. All policies must be published on the Policy Development Unit (PDU) website https://www.psu.edu.sa/en/policy-and-procedures

Background and Justification

The policy on policy development is designed to offer practical guidance and advise on the proper steps in the policy-development process and procedure at the PSU. It is important for the initiator, or the owner of the policy to follow the steps and procedures of the policy-development , review, approval, implementation and evaluation.

Scope and Purpose

The purpose of the policy development is to help the Management and any office/department or unit prepare high quality proposals based on relevant information and analysis in order to pass through the different steps of review and adoption.

This policy addresses the process for developing, issuing, approving and implementing the Prince Sultan University’s policies. The policy shall apply to all university departments, faculty, staff, and students. Internal policies that apply to the operations of colleges, departments, or offices should not conflict with PSU policies but can be more restrictive.

This policy also provides guidelines for creating, revising, and publishing PSU policies. It ensures that all approved policies which are in alignment with the PSU mission and vision are maintained centrally and accessible to all stakeholders.

Principles of the Policy

• The policy should be aligned with the vision and mission of the University.
• The policy should be consistent with other existing policies of the University.
• The policy should not be of conflict with the Saudi laws.
• Policy must be written clearly, and in a simple language; it must be directive, actionable, consistent and should adopt the designed template to ensure the policy is clear to the readers.
• The policy should be communicated and disseminated to the relevant stakeholders. This is the responsibility of the Compliance Office.
• The policies, if necessary, should be reviewed every year.

Definitions

Policy: A statement of basic principles and associated guidelines, formulated and enforced by the governing body of an organization, to direct and limit its actions in pursuit of long-term goals.

Principle: It is the rule that must be followed while a policy is a guideline that can be adopted.

Procedure: A statement that describes the actions to be taken to conform to and implement an established policy.

Policy Owner: The Policy owner is the university official whose jurisdiction covers the subject matter of the policy.

Institutional Policy Committee: This committee appointed by PSU President is responsible for initiating new policies, reviewing, and approving the policies before seeking the final approval from the university council. The IPC is headed by the Compliance Officer and consists of representatives from different colleges and administrative officers.

Compliance & Legal Office: It is the office that is responsible to develop compliance programs, reviewing the institutional policies if needed, and advising the management on the possible risks. https://www.psu.edu.sa/en/compliance-office

Policy Development Unit: This Unit is the custodian of the policies and is responsible for overseeing the creation, revision, and management of university wide policies.

Responsibilities and Implementation Strategies

• The implementation of this policy involves three main players; : IPC, PDU, and the University Council.
• The IPC is responsible for scrutinizing, reviewing and giving comments on the draft of policy submitted to its office. The IPC shall give feedback and provide the necessary support to the policy owner in introducing the new policy or amending the new policy.
• The University Council shall review the proposal from the policy owner, which is submitted through the IPC.
• The University Council has the right either to approve or disapprove or approve with amendments/comments.
• The PDU is responsible for publishing the approved policy on the University’s website.
• The IPC is responsible for communicating with all colleges, departments, and units in PSU on this policy and providing them with necessary information relating to this policy.
• For the process and procedure; please refer to Appendix 1.

Procedures for creating a new and revising PSU Policies

• The policy owner shall use the Policy template (Appendix 2 of this policy) and strictly follow the content requirements.
• The policy owner may set up a committee at their college/department/center/unit levels to study and review the necessity of proposing the new policy or amending the existing policy.
• A literature review and benchmark may be relevant for this purpose.
• The policy owner then shall proceed with the draft of the policy after consulting relevant practices and materials
• The said draft shall be submitted to the IPC for feedback, comments, and opinion.
• The policy owner shall incorporate comments/review provided by the IPC (if any) and revise the draft policy.
• The draft policy shall be submitted again to the IPC, who shall then submit it to the University Council.
• The University Council may approve or approve with comments or disapprove.
• Upon approval of the policy, the IPC shall submit it to the PDU for the purpose of publishing it on the website.

References

Appendices

• Procedures for creating a new and revising PSU policies
• Template for new/reviewed policy

Policy Enactment & Approval

Appendix 1

PROCEDURES FOR CREATING A NEW AND REVISING PSU POLICIES

POLICY DEVELOPMENT

CONSIDERATIONS BY THE POLICY OWNER

APPROVAL PROCESS BY THE UNIVERSITY COUNCIL

PSU Policy Code:

Original adoption:

POLICY STATEMENT

BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION

SCOPE AND PURPOSE

PRINCIPLES OF THE POLICY

DEFINITIONS

RESPONSIBILITIES AND IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES

PROCEDURES FOR HANDLING POLICY VIOLATION

REFERENCES