AW-21 · Learning Activity and Event Operations: Intake, Resources, Logistics and Close-out

1. Purpose and scope

Purpose. To take every IoL learning activity from request through a financial study, an Operational Committee resource decision, academic approval of its content and final approval under the DOA Manual, to deliver it inside the purchasing window, within one budget entity and through the approved routes for venue, purchasing, payment, pricing, branding and personal data, and to leave behind a named attendance record captured on the day and a reconciled cost. An activity whose attendance was estimated afterwards is worth nothing to WF-23 and cannot be defended to the Ministry.

Scope statement. This procedure manages the administrative lifecycle of a learning activity from receipt of the request to the archived close-out file, including the hand-over to and return from the academic approval process, using the SDO activity request log, Oracle GRP (Government Resource Planning) for purchases and the registration platform provided with HQ IT.

Applies to. All IoL programmes, courses, diplomas, workshops, conferences, public lectures, community events, CPD and CME activities, ceremonies and internal events with external suppliers, for internal or external audiences, inside University premises, at a Dubai Health site, at an external venue or online.

Does not apply to. Needs analysis, programme design, content development, academic speaker selection, CE Committee procedures, accreditation and certification (WF-21); whether an event qualifies for OBEF, its classification and its register row (WF-23); pricing and invoicing of external activities (AW-12); routine teaching sessions booked through AW-14 with no supplier.

Rules that hold throughout. Every IoL programme, content item and diploma requires CE Committee approval and Operational Committee resource approval. No resources are committed, suppliers contacted or speakers engaged before the final approval at step 7, a DOA Level 4 authority exercised by the HAO, or by the Dean above the HAO's limit. Inside University premises catering is managed by the University venue; outside them SDO manages logistics and purchases catering under AW-10. Purchases for activities falling between October and March are raised inside the purchasing window, April to October, and before the cut-off date published under AW-02. Each activity is charged to a single budget entity, University or DAHC. A request returned for revision and not resubmitted within 10 working days is closed. Attendance is captured at the event by name and handed to WF-23 within 10 working days whatever the state of the close-out.

2. Trigger, boundary and interfaces

3. Roles and accountability

Process owner. Head of Administration and Operations (HAO). Custodian. Administration Affairs (SDO), whose Program Operations Officer operates the procedure and keeps its records.

University Facilities is consulted at steps 3 and 8 and operates the venue at step 11; HQ Communications and HQ IT are consulted at step 10. The Chair is consulted on logistics and informed of the committee decision, the final approval, the reconciliation and the close-out; the Dean and the Operational Committee are informed at close-out. An activity requested by the Dean is approved by the Dean's superior, named in AW-05.

[CONTROL] Segregation. The Program Lead who raises the request approves neither its resources nor the activity. The SDO Program Operations Officer coordinates but approves neither purchases nor payments; purchases follow the AW-05 tier under AW-10, payments AW-11, income AW-12. The SDO Head of Finance prepares both the financial study and the reconciliation, and the HAO, not the Head of Finance, accepts the reconciliation. The attendance record is captured by a named person at the event and is not altered after the day; any correction is a separate dated note.

[CONTROL] Delegation tiers. Final approval of an educational event is a DOA Level 4 authority: the HAO approves within the HAO's limit and the Dean above it (AW-05). Resources are allocated only by the Operational Committee within the approved budget. Short-course prices are approved at Level 2 (CEO) under AW-12 and visiting professors or experts at Level 2 (CEO) under AW-11. Purchases arising from the activity are approved at the AW-05 value tier under AW-10: tier 1 SDO Head of Finance within the internal limit, tier 2 HAO, tier 3 Dean; above the Dean, Level 3 through HQ. The tier values are stated in AW-05 [HAO to state].

4. Procedure

1. Receive and triage the request. The SDO Program Operations Officer receives the request by email, request form or department submission, logs the requester, topic, target audience and proposed dates, then classifies the activity type, owning department, internal or external audience, venue location, academic calendar alignment and purchasing window implications. The triage says whether the activity is a CME activity and, where it is intended to count for OBEF, the intended event type so that WF-23 can run its qualification check at step 5. Next: step 2.

2. Endorse the concept. The Department Chair confirms alignment with the departmental plan. Decision point. Endorsed: step 3. Returned to the Program Lead for revision: the revised request re-enters at step 1. Timeout. Not resubmitted within 10 working days: the request is closed. Declined: the request is closed and the Program Lead informed.

3. Prepare the financial study. The SDO Head of Finance prepares the financial study covering venue, catering, materials, speakers, travel, staffing, budget entity, budget availability, purchasing lead times against the window and the funding or attribution model, consulting the Program Lead, the SDO Program Operations Officer and, for venues inside University premises, University Facilities. [CONTROL] The study names one budget entity, University or DAHC; an activity is never split across the two. Next: step 4.

4. Operational Committee resource decision. The Operational Committee reviews the financial study, confirms the operational requirements and decides. Decision point. Approved, or approved with conditions recorded in the decision: step 5. Deferred: step 3 for a revised study, or step 4 at the next meeting, as the minutes state. Rejected: the request is closed and the Program Lead and Chair informed. Matters beyond the committee's authority are escalated to the HAO and the Dean and minuted under AW-01. [CONTROL] Resources are allocated only through an Operational Committee decision within the approved budget.

5. Hand over to the academic process. The SDO Program Operations Officer issues the hand-over record containing the committee decision, the approved resource envelope and the timeline to the Program Lead and to WF-21, under which academic development and CE Committee approval proceed. Where the activity is intended to count for OBEF the same record goes to WF-23, which runs its qualification check (type, openness to students, minimum attendance and duration) before promotion opens. Next: step 6.

6. Receive the CE Committee outcome. The SDO Program Operations Officer records the CE Committee decision returned by WF-21, consulting the Program Lead and informing the Chair. Decision point. Approved within the resource envelope: step 7. Approved with a scope that exceeds the envelope: step 3 for a revised financial study and a fresh committee decision. Not approved: the request is closed and the Program Lead and Chair informed.

7. Final approval of the activity. The SDO Program Operations Officer assembles the approval pack (financial study, committee decision, CE Committee outcome, budget entity, dates) and the HAO, or the Dean above the HAO's limit, approves the activity under DOA Chapter 9, Level 4, confirming budget, dates and budget entity. [CONTROL] No resources are committed, suppliers contacted or speakers engaged before this approval is signed. Decision point. Approved: step 8. Not approved: the Program Lead and Chair are notified and the request is closed.

8. Prepare the logistics plan and run sheet. The SDO Program Operations Officer prepares the run sheet covering the venue booking under AW-14, catering (the University venue inside University premises, AW-10 outside), materials, speaker payments, visiting experts and staff travel under AW-11 with the engagement letter on file before travel is booked, accessibility arrangements under AW-19, the AW-17 safety check for any layout beyond the venue standard, the event, media, filming and branding approvals obtained through AW-22, timings, responsibilities, the named person who will capture attendance and the incident contact. External venue terms beyond a standard booking go through AW-23. [CONTROL] For a CME activity, sponsorship or commercial support is handled only under a written agreement through AW-23 in line with the ACCME Standards for Integrity and Independence; its terms never reach content, faculty selection or the evaluation. The run sheet is issued to all activity staff 2 working days before delivery. Next: step 9.

9. Process purchases. The SDO Procurement Officer raises every purchase for the activity under AW-10 inside the purchasing window and at the AW-05 tier for its value, with purchases for October to March activities raised before the cut-off date. [CONTROL] Verbal orders to suppliers are not IoL orders; no commitment is made before the purchase order. Sponsored or in-kind provision is recorded at receipt with its valuation basis and handed to WF-24, as AW-10 requires. Partner logos appear only where the agreement (AW-23) permits. Next: step 10.

10. Set up registration and communications. The SDO Program Operations Officer sets up registration, invitations and the participant list with HQ Communications and HQ IT. The form collects the minimum data needed (name, affiliation, email, learner status where the activity must be open to students, accessibility requirements) under an AW-16 privacy notice stating that attendance will be recorded and may be reported to the Ministry by name. Prices for external participants are processed under AW-12 and no price is quoted before its approval; visible material carries branding approved by AW-22. [CONTROL] No participant list is held outside the registration platform or exported to personal devices. Next: step 11.

11. Support delivery and capture attendance. The SDO Program Operations Officer coordinates the venue, catering, suppliers and attendance during delivery and keeps the delivery log. [CONTROL] [CAPTURE] Sign-in by registration scan, QR code, signed sheet or platform export, with names, is captured at the event by the named person on the run sheet; the count is taken from the sign-in record, never from registrations or the room. Where names genuinely cannot be captured (an open public stand), the counting method, counter and count are recorded as WF-23's exception route requires. The evaluation instrument agreed with the Program Lead is issued at or within 2 working days. Attendee lists are personal data under AW-16; incidents follow AW-17. Next: step 12.

12. Hand attendance and evaluation to WF-23 and the academic lead. Within 10 working days of the activity the SDO Program Operations Officer hands WF-23 the attendance record with names, the counting-method note where used, the promotional material, the approvals and the evaluation summary, and hands the Program Lead as academic lead, and CORE [SDO to define: CORE], the same attendance and evaluation data. [CAPTURE] This hand-over is due whatever the state of the reconciliation or the close-out. [CONTROL] The Officer confirms the hand-over in the activity file; WF-23 closes its register row. Next: step 13.

13. Complete the financial reconciliation. The SDO Head of Finance confirms that supplier and speaker payments have been made under AW-11 and income and sponsorship received under AW-12, reconciles actual cost against the approved budget with an explanation for every variance, and the HAO accepts the reconciliation. [CONTROL] Every activity is reconciled against its approved budget and its single budget entity. Next: step 14.

14. Administrative close-out. Within 30 days of delivery the SDO Program Operations Officer issues the close-out report covering attendance, cost against budget, issues and lessons learned to the HAO, the Dean, the Operational Committee and the Chair, and archives the activity file. End: close-out report issued and file archived.

Exception routes. Cancellation or postponement: the SDO Program Operations Officer notifies suppliers within the contract terms, registrants the same day, WF-23 so that the register row is flagged, and the SDO Head of Finance so that committed cost is reconciled; an activity postponed across the purchasing cut-off returns to step 9. Change of scope after final approval: step 3 and, where the envelope changes, step 4; the final approval is renewed at step 7 before any further commitment. Supplier failure on the day: no route exists in IOL-OPS-010 v0.1 [HAO to confirm whether the process owner may authorise a replacement up to an emergency limit, with the AW-10 requisition raised within 2 working days and the emergency recorded]. Activity inside the blackout not in the annual purchase plan: the AW-10 emergency route where one is confirmed, otherwise deferral to the next window. Incident at the activity: AW-17 takes precedence.

5. Service standards

6. Records, retention and controls

Records are kept in the Administration Affairs (SDO) central repository and in the systems named below, and retained for a minimum of seven years or the period required by the Dubai Department of Finance, whichever is longer.

Key controls. (1) Resources are allocated only by Operational Committee decision within the approved budget. (2) No commitment, supplier contact or speaker engagement before the Level 4 final approval. (3) CE Committee scope beyond the envelope returns for a revised financial study. (4) One budget entity per activity. (5) Purchasing through AW-10 inside the window, October to March activities before the cut-off; payment through AW-11; income and external pricing through AW-12; the Program Operations Officer approves none of them. (6) Registration collects the minimum data under an AW-16 privacy notice. (7) Attendance is captured at the event by a named person and not altered afterwards. (8) Hand-over to WF-23 within 10 working days, confirmed in the file, independent of the close-out. (9) In-kind and sponsorship valuations carry a documented basis for WF-24. (10) CME commercial support sits under a written AW-23 agreement and never reaches content or faculty selection. (11) Every activity is reconciled against its approved budget with variances explained.

OBEF touchpoint capture rule. The attendance record is created on the day, from sign-in, with names, by the person named on the run sheet, and handed to WF-23 within 10 working days. It is never reconstructed from registrations, photographs or memory; Appendix B lets the Ministry ask for names, and the record must be able to answer. The 10-working-day rule is stricter than the 30-day close-out and applies to attendance regardless [SDO to confirm: IOL-OPS-010 v0.1 hands attendance to the academic lead and CORE at close-out with no timing; this procedure keeps the 10-working-day hand-over because KPI 6.1 and 6.2 evidence must exist before the WF-23 register row can close].

7. Performance measures

8. Change control