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Glossary Procedure

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Section 1 - Purpose

(1) The purpose of this Procedure is to support the implementation of the Glossary Policy by defining the steps required to establish terms for inclusion in the University Glossary. 

Scope

(2) This Procedure applies to:

  1. all Macquarie University staff including:
    1. consultants and independent contractors (and their employees) engaged by Macquarie University and its controlled entities;
    2. employees of corporations engaged by Macquarie University under a contract to provide services to Macquarie University; and
    3. volunteers of the University.
  2. all Macquarie University students;
  3. all Macquarie University campuses and locations and controlled entities; and
  4. all Macquarie University physical and online operations and processes.
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Section 2 - Policy

(3) Refer to the Glossary Policy.

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Section 3 - Procedures

Roles and Responsibilities

(4) Terms approved and managed within the Macquarie University Glossary must follow the Glossary Term Life Cycle Model.

(5) Terms must be managed in accordance with the stages documented in Table 1 Glossary Life Cycle Stages below:

Life Cycle Stage
Step
Responsibility
Process Details
1) Proposed
Propose Term
University Community
Glossary term (with or without a proposed definition) is submitted for inclusion in the University Glossary. This can be done by anyone.
Validate Proposed Term
Data Governance Analyst
Proposed term is reviewed to see if term already exists with different definition or different name, noting:
  1. if term exists under different name, the definition is reviewed with Proposer to confirm definition is same;
  2. if definition is different, the new term name must be changed; or
  3. if term does not exist, the term is submitted for prioritisation.
Assign to a Data Governance Group
Data Governance Analyst
Agree ownership of term and assign to one of the four Data Governance Groups (Students and Teaching, Research, Professional Services, or MQ Health) or establish new Data Governance Group if required.
Prioritise Proposed Term(s)
Data Governance Group
Proposed terms are reviewed within the relevant Data Governance Group (Students and Teaching, Research, Professional Services, or MQ Health).
Priority for inclusion in the University Glossary is established.
2) Assigned
Assign to a Custodian
Data Governance Group
Assign a Data Custodian to approve the term on behalf of the Data Governance Group.
Research / Analysis
Data Governance Analyst
Collect existing definitions of term, analyse, and identify inconsistencies.
Verify use of term in existing Macquarie University policies.
Verify terms and definitions against industry definitions and regulatory definitions e.g. Tertiary Collection of Student Information (TCSI), Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA).
3) In Development
Develop Definition
Data Governance Analyst
Apply Definition Standards.
Collaborate with Data Custodian and identified stakeholders (and Working Group if established) and:
  1. conduct workshop if necessary (for difficult or contentious terms); and
  2. record necessary attributes of term e.g. custodian, related terms, review cycle.
Proposer Engagement
Data Governance Analyst
University Community
Engage with the Proposer of the term  to develop the initial definition.
Custodian and Stakeholder Collaboration
Data Governance Analyst
Data Custodian
Identify any additional stakeholders of the term.
Collaborate with the Data Custodian and relevant stakeholders to develop the definition.
Establish Working Group (if required)
Data Governance Group
Establish a Glossary Term Working Group if required (upon recommendation of Data Governance Analyst and / or Data Custodian).
4) Reviewed
Submit Definition for Approval
Data Governance Analyst
Quality check draft definition against the Definition Standard before term is submitted for approval.
Submit recommended term definition to Data Custodian for approval, noting:
  1. if term is used by multiple areas (i.e. has many stakeholders), agreement must first be obtained from the relevant Data Governance Groups; and
  2. if definition cannot be agreed, term definition is escalated to the Data and Information Governance Committee and / or the Vice-Chancellor.
Review Definition
Data Custodian
Term definition is reviewed.
Review period is set if required.
Periodic Review
Data Custodian
Data Custodian and Data Governance Analyst are notified of approved terms that are due for review or if term definition is challenged after approval.
A term may be challenged  by contacting the Data Governance Analyst in the Business Intelligence and Reporting team.
Term definition is reviewed with the following outcomes:
  1. definition is confirmed, and term remains approved;
  2. definition requires update, Data Governance Analyst is notified, and term is put back to ‘in development’ stage; or
  3. term is archived i.e. term is no longer fit for purpose or replaced by a new term.
5) Approved
Approve Term
Data Custodian
Data and Information Governance Committee and/or the Vice-Chancellor
Term definition is approved.  In approving a definition, the Data Custodian certifies that there has been appropriate consultation and research involved in the writing of the definition.
If a definition cannot be agreed in the review stage, the term definition is escalated to the Data and Information Governance Committee and / or the Vice-Chancellor for approval.
All new or revised definitions communicated to identified stakeholders in the University Community.
Once approved, a definition is official. Definition mandate is set, noting:
  1. a grace period may be given for compliance; and
  2. the definition mandate will establish the date upon which the definition must be adhered to. Process for monitoring adherence must be established.
Where a term is already defined within a policy, procedure, guideline, or rule that term will apply for the purposes of that document. However, the Glossary term must be considered for use within the document when the document is reviewed.
Archive Term
Data Custodian
Glossary term is archived i.e. term is no longer used and / or is replaced by a new term.
If replaced by new term, term is tagged as replaced by new term, link to new term established.
Retired terms communicated to University Community.

Management of University Glossary

(6) The Macquarie University Glossary will be managed by Business Intelligence and Reporting as the official repository and source of truth. Approved terms will be published within Policy Central by Governance and Compliance Services. All enquiries should be directed to Business Intelligence and Reporting analytics.request@mq.edu.au.

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Section 4 - Guidelines

(7) Nil.

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Section 5 - Definitions

(8) Definitions specific to this Procedure are contained within the Glossary Policy.