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| Rural Industries |
Objectives
To ensure RIRDC funds are directed and managed effectively.
To provide effective support and services for associated
R&D Councils.
Goals
To achieve an overall benefit-cost ratio of at least
2.0 for funds invested in Corporation management.
To provide a high level of accountability for funds
expended.
Strategies
1.Involve industry groups and research agencies in the
development of effective R&D projects and programs.
2.Develop systems that ensure the key constraints to
productivity improvement and product quality are fully
addressed when selecting R&D projects and program
for funding.
3.Utilise cost-benefit analysis techniques wherever
practicable to identify potentially high payoff R&D
projects and programs.
4.Improve the information base for effective decision
making at all stages of the R&D process.
5.Evaluate completed projects to assess their contribution
to the Corporation's mission and objectives.
6.Establish methods, programs and initiatives which
enhance RIRDC's catalytic and co-ordinative role in
the rural change process.
7.Develop an organisational structure that ensures the
Corporation's objectives are met.
8.Develop a cohesive staff group which is motivated
to work with management to fulfil the Corporation's
vision.
Overview
The Corporation aimed to be proactive and innovative in its approach to R&D management and to coordinate its effort with counterpart investors in research wherever efficient and appropriate to do so during 1994-95.
Corporation staff welcome feedback response from industry collaborators and from researchers on the positive and negative impact of RIRDC's operating systems on their ability to productively get on with their job and have fine tuned RIRDC's procedures accordingly.
The operating environment continued to be difficult. Financial stress, exacerbated by drought conditions through much of eastern Australia, limited industry's capability to contribute financially to research projects. At the same time, many research projects were delayed or failed due to drought and will have to be repeated at extra cost to all parties. Rural research agencies continue to adjust to new operating environments and under financial pressure to reduce their operating budgets.
The Corporation has embarked on an ambitious program to establish formal five year R&D plans for all of its programs and sub-programs by 30 June 1997. Many are already well-advanced in collaboration with industry associations and research agencies. Others will require the clarification of industry goals before R&D needs, priorities and specific objectives can be established.
Industry response to the Corporation's initiatives has been pleasing and has resulted in increases in industry involvement and financial commitment to RIRDC managed programs.
In May, the Corporation decided to move its Canberra offices from NFF House, where RIRDC had been for five years, to the AMA Building in Macquarie Street, Barton. While initially disruptive for all staff, the decision has allowed the Corporation to establish more appropriate corporate headquarters facilities for the foreseeable future. RIRDC's computing and communication facilities will be enhanced during 1995-96 following on from the move and to network Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane based program managers into corporate information systems.
Administrative efficiency in Corporation activities continue to be sought by staff through benchmarking RIRDC activities against R&D Corporation counterparts and other organisations with comparable activity. At the same time, the Corporation is concerned about many government stakeholders actions and requests which could make R&D Corporations more bureaucratic, more risk adverse, less efficient and less flexible than they currently are.
Figure 7
1994-95 OPERATIONAL STATISTICS
| New projects initiated | 198 |
| R&D projects under management | 427 |
| R&D Council projects under RIRDC | 186 |
| Final reports received | 87 |
| Scholarship applications received | 63 |
| Scholarships awarded | 1 |
| Travel applications received | 64 |
| Travel grants awarded | 33 |
| R&D proposals received - preliminary | 586 |
| R&D proposals received - full | 222 |
The program management team was strengthened during the year by the appointment of a Project Administrator to oversee the day-to-day administration of research proposals and projects and particularly, to improve and facilitate the future use by Directors and staff of the Corporation's Program Management Information System. The latter is computer-based and will become the Corporation's key tool in processing and monitoring research proposals and projects through its geographically dispersed team of Directors and program managers. An additional program assistant was appointed to help the team cope with increased accountability requirements and the increased workload resulting from Chicken Meat, Egg Industry and Honeybee becoming RIRDC programs.
An increased amount of the team's time was spent on liaison with industry stakeholders and major research providers with the aim of encouraging joint planning and collaboration. This resulted in several new collaborative projects
Table 2
EXAMPLES OF COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS SUPPORTED BY RIRDC
| Project | Research Agency |
| Optimising an innovative method for cultivating exotic mushrooms | HRDC |
| Evaluating Indicators for sustainable and profitable tropical beef production systems | MRC |
| Community participation in regional land-use planning | LWRRDC |
| Farm injury prevention: the identification and removal of barriers | IWS, MRC, GRDC |
| Alley farming in Australia: current research and future directions | LWRRDC, FWPRDC |
| Farmline: accelerated adoption of research on a national basis | IWS, GRDC, DPIE |
| Towards a nationally focused mouse control program | GRDC |
| Managing the plant protection aspects of the rural/urban interface | SRDC |
Corporation Finances and Financial Performance
RIRDC operates as an investment agency in research and development on behalf of Australian rural industry and the Commonwealth Government.
Corporation staff work closely with industry to determine industry goals, research needs and priorities, and liaise with public and private research agencies to generate R&D programs and projects to address industry needs. We also organise and manage R&D investment funds from industry and government, assess project proposals or commission R&D research to specification, monitor progress to agreed milestones, and evaluate outcomes and further R&D needs. A key function is to follow-up and report back to industry at regular times in the R&D cycle.
The diversity of RIRDC's programs necessitates liaison not only with the NFF but also with many specific industry associations and community groups across Australia.
The length of the R&D cycle, which may extend from several months to several years (for instance, ten years for plant and animal breeding projects), means that at any time Corporation staff are assessing outcomes from completed studies, managing current programs and projects, and planning future activities.
In 1994-95, Corporation staff managed $20.2 million in income, $19.8 million in expenditure and $8-10 million in reserves as part of RIRDC core activities and on behalf of its R&D Council affiliates.
Corporation commitment to individual projects ranges from around $5,000 pa to $250,000 pa.
The Corporation seeks an industry commitment to programs and projects in which it invests. Some industry commitments are in kind - that is, where either facilities and/or labour are provided by the industry partner. However, other contributions are in cash and these are made payable direct to the research agencies rather than through RIRDC accounts. The value of industry commitments (not including industry levies) to RIRDC programs totalled $4.7 million in 1994-95.
Corporation reserves have been increased in line with forward commitments on R&D projects, cash flow requirements and government accounting policies.
Communication plays an important role in the life of the Corporation in ensuring that RIRDC's programs are addressing priority R&D needs for industry and the community and that the results of our work are meeting stakeholder expectations.
Baseline reviews, industry workshops and regular contact with industry associations are our principle modes of contact on R&D needs and priorities. Regular newsletters, fact sheets, research reports, newspaper and journal articles, radio interviews, seminars, workshops and conferences are all used to communicate the results of RIRDC's work.
Communication with RIRDC's diverse and widespread industry stakeholders is a real challenge in the Corporation. During 1994-95 this was achieved through, for example:
The Corporation communicates with research agency stakeholders through a quarterly newsletter, research reports, the ARRIP electronic database and personal visits by Directors and program co-ordinators.
RIRDC Reports Published in 1994-95
Last updated: 9 August 1996
Copyright © RIRDC
http://www.rirdc.gov.au/pub/anrep95/anrep7.html