Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1944 [PAGE 500]

EXTRACTED TEXT FROM PAGE:

1943]

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

497

Buildings and Grounds; (c) Legal Adviser; ( d ) Purchasing A g e n t ; (e) Director of Community Interests; ( f ) Personnel and Office Manager. A separate organization was to be set up for the Chicago Colleges of the University, entirely responsible to the Executive Dean of the Chicago Colleges. These recommendations raise very definite questions as to the completeness of internal check on the financial operations of the University. In the past this check has been maintained by the Comptroller as an officer of the Board and without responsibility for operating functions. Under the suggested arrangement, an officer with large operating responsibilities and responsible for a major share of the University's total budget would be placed in the position of maintaining budgetary control, not only over other divisions, but over his own. T h e Board has indicated its desire to continue the Comptroller as a corporate officer of the Board. In such capacity he should be responsible directly to it through the President only and not through an additional officer. As the officer primarily responsible for assistance in budgetary preparation and for budgetary control, for examination and approval of expenditures, for internal auditing, for collection and deposit of moneys, and for financial reports, the Comptroller should be responsible to the President and independently accountable to the Board. Only in this way can the Board be assured of a completely independent check on its entire budget. The Business Manager will have major operating responsibilities and will be himself responsible for a large budget. T h e same independent financial check should be provided on his operations as on those of all other University officers to whom budgetary appropriations are made. It is not sufficient to depend on a periodical examination by outside accountants to provide this check since a continuous, independent control is needed. The application of these principles would result in a modification of the plan of business organization recommended by Booz, Fry, Allen, and Hamilton by removing the Comptroller from the proposed Division of Business Manager and retaining his present relationship to the Board of Trustees and the President. Activities of a business managment character now handled by the Comptroller may be transferred to the Business Manager, including particularly the following: (a) Purchasing and supervision of storerooms. (b) Non-academic personnel matters and Secretary of University Civil Service Committee. T h e Comptroller will continue to serve as University Civil Service Appointing Officer. (c) Approval of purchases and contracts. ( d ) Functional supervision of departmental business operations. The Comptroller would retain supervision over the divisions of Bursar, Chief Accountant, Auditor, Tabulating Machines, and Retirement System, and over similar activities in the Chicago Business Office. Otherwise, the functions of the proposed Business Manager, as far as can now be seen, would be substantially those recommended by Booz, Fry, Allen, and Hamilton except as to business operations in Chicago. It is desirable that those operations should continue under the direct supervision of the Business Manager and the Comptroller at Urbana along the lines followed in the past. In accordance with these principles and comments, I am submitting the following outline of functions of the Business Manager and Comptroller in accordance with the action of the Board on June 19, 1943: Proposed Functions of Business Manager The Business Manager shall be appointed by the Board of Trustees on the nomination of the President. H e shall be a general administrative officer responsible to the President of the University. H e shall have supervision over the Director of the Physical Plant, the Purchasing Agent, the Manager of the Illini Union Building, the Director of Residence Halls, Personnel Office, and the corresponding functions in the Chicago departments of the University, and such other divisions as may be established within the scope of his responsibilities. His functions shall be as follows: 1. Management of physical plant operation, maintenance, and construction. 2. Management of all auxiliary business enterprises, such as Illini Union, Book Store, Bowling Alleys, and Residence Halls.