Governance roles and responsibilities

A project’s governance structure may include a combination of the governance bodies outlined in the Overview of this guideline. Each Project Team should consider the project carefully to identify a tailored governance structure suitable to the project’s:

Needs and objectives
Tier
Delivery model (Integrated delivery models such as Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) will have their own specific requirements)
Interdependencies with other projects
Designation as a Major Project
Status as a Program, Precinct or an individual project within a Program or Precinct.

More detailed descriptions of the governance entities described in the Governance structure section are provided below. An indicative representation of the relationships between these entities is shown in the diagram in the Overview.

In considering the governance arrangements and roles and responsibilities of Agencies, the Project Team should consider the extent to which governance roles may change over a project’s lifecycle in their Business Case, as outlined in Governance across Infrastructure Investment Lifecycle section.

Cabinet

Relevant for all Tiers

Cabinet (also known as the Executive) consists of the Chief Minister and all Ministers responsible for the day-to-day government of the ACT. Cabinet is the ultimate decision-making body for projects under the Capital Framework. However, in practice, Cabinet will delegate much decision making to the public service. The amount and level of delegation will depend on the project and its risk and cost. Further information about how Cabinet delegates obligations can be found on the Cabinet Office website.

The relevant portfolio Minister(s) is/are accountable for the project and for seeking Cabinet approval of it, including presenting any material changes in the project scope and risk expenditure above the project contingency allowance to Cabinet for its approval. For designated Major Projects, this accountability is shared with the Treasurer.

Project Board

Only relevant for designated Major Projects (likely to only be Tier 1 projects)

The Project Board is the highest level of governance for a project designated as a Major Project, below the relevant Minister(s) and Cabinet. The primary role of the Project Board is to provide advice on the project to Government and the Project Director. An independent Chair and other independent Board members provide objective input and an additional level of oversight and scrutiny to decision making and assurance. The Project Board should meet as required depending on the stage of the project.

For projects that Government has designed as Major Projects, iCBR will set up the Project Board when appropriate, most likely during Stage 2 – Prove. The Project Board may no longer be necessary once the project has successfully moved into operations and all matters relating to construction are complete, in which case the governance arrangements may revert to the Sponsoring Agency’s internal governance structures.

The Project Board will:

Provide strategic oversight, guidance and advice in respect of the project
Endorse (or refuse to endorse) proposed in-scope decisions of the Project Team
Endorse (or refuse to endorse) proposed Cabinet submissions or return proposed Cabinet submissions for amendment and otherwise note information provided to it
Ensure the Project Team is undertaking risk reviews and updating the project’s contingency allowance appropriately; and endorse the outcomes and required changes following a risk review
Act as the Steering Committee for the PIR (where relevant for Tier 1 projects) and review the PIR Report. Refer to the PIR Guidelines for further information
Oversee the ongoing benefits realisation of the project on a regular basis, while it remains in existence. Refer to the BRP Guidelines for further information.

Specific provisions apply to projects using Integrated delivery models. Refer to the Guidelines for Public Private Partnerships for further information.

Project Board – roles and responsibilities
Role	Description	Responsibility
Independent Chair	The Chair should be an independent, senior person from outside Government, with appropriate experience of similar projects	Chairs the Project Board Provides benefit of relevant experience, including from other jurisdictions
Treasury representative	Under Treasurer or senior Treasury delegate	Deputy Chair of the Project Board Provides input where required, particularly in relation to commercial and financial issues Informs Under Treasurer’s reporting to Treasurer
Sponsoring Agency representative	The Director-General or head of the Sponsoring Agency	Provides input as required
Other Government representatives	Other Directors-General or their delegated officers with an interest in the project and who can contribute to specific aspects of the project	Provide input as required
Other stakeholders	Some projects may require truly external stakeholders such as consumer representatives, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representatives, etc.	Provide benefit of relevant perspective and experience
Other independent member(s)	An independent, senior person from outside Government, with appropriate experience of similar projects	Provide benefit of relevant experience, including from other jurisdictions
Observing attendees
Infrastructure Canberra representative(s)	Chief Project Officer Project Director (if from iCBR) Members from the Project Team from iCBR	Proposing the agenda for the meetings Conduit between the Project Board and the Project Team Preparation of papers to the Project Board
Probity Advisor	May attend Board meetings when required at the request of the Chair	Probity advice
Other observers as relevant	Other Members from the Project Team Representatives of other Government Agencies (e.g. Treasury, Sponsoring Agency, DDTS) who are presenting papers to the Board or have a specific interest in the project	Provide input to the Project Board where required

Executive Steering Committee

Likely to be only relevant for non-designated Tier 1 and large Tier 2 projects

An Executive Steering Committee (ESC) is the highest level of governance, excluding the relevant Minister(s) and Cabinet, for a project that has not been designated as a Major Project, and for Programs and Precincts. Designated Major Projects are not required to have an ESC, as the role is undertaken by the combination of the Project Board and the senior management of iCBR.

An ESC may not be necessary in Stage 1 – Develop, but it may be appropriate for it to be set up during Stage 2 – Prove. An ESC may no longer be necessary once the project has successfully moved into operations and all matters relating to construction are complete, in which case the governance arrangements may revert to the Sponsoring Agency’s internal governance structures.

The ESC should:

Determine the strategic direction of the project
Oversee the operations of the Project Team at a high level
Ensure the Project Team is undertaking risk reviews and updating the project’s contingency allowance appropriately; and endorse the outcomes and required changes following a risk review
Consider and determine preferred positions on key commercial and policy issues, including the content of key documentation
Considers recommendations on short-listed and preferred proponents in the procurement process
Make recommendations to Cabinet through the responsible Minister and Treasury on key policy and commercial matters
Act as the Steering Committee for the PIR (where relevant for Tier 1 projects) and review the PIR Report. Refer to the PIR Guidelines for further information
Oversee the ongoing benefits realisation of the project on a regular basis. Refer to the BRP Guidelines for further information.

ESCs can operate at either a project or Program or Precinct level. The size of the ESC should be appropriate to facilitate effective discussion and decision making between participants. An ESC can also oversee the delivery of multiple similar, smaller, less risky or interrelated projects, such as Tier 3 projects.

An ESC for a Program or Precinct should undertake similar roles to the project ESC, but with oversight of the entire Program or Precinct. ESCs may be established at an individual project level for one or more of the individual projects that make up a Program or Precinct. In these instances, the Program/Precinct level ESC will sit above the ESC(s) for the individual project(s). Depending on the nature and scale of the individual project(s), the ESC for the full Program or Precinct may be the same as the ESC(s) for the individual project(s) that make up the Program or Precinct. The Project Team should determine whether this is an appropriate governance arrangement in discussion with iCBR, FABG and ICA.

The frequency of ESC meetings will be driven by both the stage of the project and the delivery model selected. The ESC should determine the frequency of its meetings, as well as that of any PRC/RCMC/PCG and should document the agreed frequencies for the relevant governance committee(s) in a Terms of Reference.

Only Government decision makers should be active participants on the ESC. However, external stakeholders may sit on the ESC to provide advice or information if required for the project. These external stakeholders should not have a role in making decisions about the project.

ESC – participants, roles and responsibilities
Role	Description	Responsibility
Chair	The Chair should be a senior official of the Sponsoring Agency, appropriate to the value of the project and the quantum of the risks being managed. The following level of seniority is recommended for the Chair across each Tier level: Tier 1 – SES Band 3 or 4 Tier 2 – SES Band 2 Tier 3 (if relevant) – SES Band 1 or Senior Officer Grade A	Chairs the ESC Responsible for briefing the relevant Minister(s) on the progress of the project(s)
iCBR representative	Representative from iCBR	Provides input to the ESC where required iCBR is generally responsible for procurement and contract management activities
Treasury representative(s) (Tier 1 projects and selected Tier 2 projects)	May be required depending on the size and significance of the project. The representative may be from FABG and/or ICA	Provide input to the ESC where required, particularly in relation to commercial and financial issues Inform Under Treasurer’s reporting to Treasurer
Other Government representatives	Other senior officials with an interest in the project and who can contribute to the specific aspects of the project	Provide input as required
Other committee members	Project Director Other senior officials from the Sponsoring Agency External stakeholders (where required)	Provide input to the ESC where required
Observing attendees
Other observers as relevant	Members from the Project Team Representatives of other Government Agencies (e.g. Treasury, Sponsoring Agency, DDTS) who are presenting papers to the ESC or have a specific interest in the project	Provide input to the ESC where required

Project Review Committee, Risk and Change Management Committee and/or Project Control Group

Relevant for all Tiers to varying extents

The role of the PRC, RCMC or PCG (or equivalent) is to review and approve or, for more material matters, endorse in-scope changes in the project and risk expenditure within the project’s contingency allowance, prior to consideration by higher level oversight governance committees, and then Cabinet (refer to the Guidelines on Risk Analysis for further information). The PRC, RCMC or PCG reports to the Project Board or ESC (for Tier 1 projects and larger Tier 2 projects) or to the Sponsoring Agency’s internal governance structures (for smaller Tier 2 projects and Tier 3 projects).

For Tier 1 projects and larger Tier 2 projects, any one of a PRC, RCMC or PCG may be used, with each entity having essentially the same roles and responsibilities as outlined in this section. However, it may be helpful to separate the role of the PRC or PCG from that of the RCMC, with the latter solely considering project risks and changes.

For smaller Tier 2 projects and Tier 3 projects, the governance is likely to be limited to only a PCG. The PCG is likely to report to the internal governance arrangements of the Sponsoring Agency in lieu of an oversight project governance committee. Agencies may have an internal steering committee which oversees and manages a portfolio of similar projects which the PCG may also report into.

For out-of-scope changes, the role of the PRC, RCMC or PCG is to review and endorse the changes (prior to consideration by the Project Board or ESC, and then Cabinet). However, it has no approval authority.

Generally, the Project Director will chair the PRC, RCMC or PCG, which will consist of representatives (usually at Executive Group Manager or Executive Branch Manager level) from the Sponsoring Agency and other interested Agencies.

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