Governance: president

Position of president in Aalto University 

Along with the board and the Academic Affairs Committee, president is one of the executive bodies of the university. In this capacity, President also acts as the managing director referred to in the Foundations Act. 

The president is appointed by the board. The board also defines the duties of the president in compliance with the Universities Act. The president’s term of office is five (5) years.

Duties

The president directs the university and represents the science and art community constituted by it.

The president directs the university operations in accordance with the Universities Act, the values of the university community, the university strategy adopted by the board and the guidelines and regulations issued by the board.

The president leads the long-term strategic development and strategic partnering of the university. The president is responsible for:

1. the development and implementation of the university’s strategy,
2. the resource management and allocation of the university,
3. activities that contribute to securing the university’s future by building and maintaining strategic relationships with the government, businesses, academic partners, the public sector and alumni.

In addition, the president shall:

• approve university-level regulations and the regulations for units 
• decide on the establishment and discontinuation of degree programmes and on the number of student places offered
• award an employee of the university the right to use the title of professor and the title of docent on grounds compliant with the Universities Act,
• carry out other duties assigned by the present bylaws,
• carry out other duties assigned by the board of the university.

The president may undertake action which is far-reaching in terms of the university mission only where the board has authorised him/her to do so or where it is impossible to wait for the decision of the board without causing essential harm to the operation of the university. In the latter case, the board must be informed of the action without delay.

The president may delegate the hiring of personnel or other matters within his/her remit to another organ or person. The president may approve rules of procedure containing further provisions on the duties of the president and provost and on those of their direct reports.

The president has the right to be present and speak at the meetings of all the bodies of the university apart from those of the Nomination Committee.