Management Excellence

During 2009-2010, the department will place a priority in the following Management Excellence agenda areas:

• Public Service Renewal
• Performance Measurement
• Integrated Risk Management

Best management practices in the public sector, just as in the private sector, are constantly evolving. However, demonstrating that decisions are grounded in a strong culture of values and ethics, and that there is accountability, good client service and value for money, is among the standards by which today's high-performing public sector organizations are measured.

Overall, WD is recognized by our stakeholders and our staff to be well-managed and responsive to issues that arise . WD finds new ways to work collaboratively with others to ensure that government initiatives are managed efficiently and effectively. In fact, the department demonstrates a strong commitment to working with partners and leveraging its investments, and this commitment allows WD to have a far greater impact with its investments, policies and programs than would otherwise have been possible. The department, although relatively small, is involved in numerous horizontal policy and program initiatives (e.g., the North American Platform Program, the delivery of federal infrastructure programs in the West, co-chairing federal councils in each region), and shared administration systems.

There are many specific management initiatives underway across the department, which are referenced and accounted for in the more detailed regional and corporate branch plans.

The department is responsible for managing itself within a framework of organizational excellence established for the entire federal public service. In part, WD uses its Management Accountability Framework assessment to set management priorities for the upcoming year.

For 2009-2010, WD will focus on the following management priorities:

Public Service Renewal

Why this is a priority?

• To ensure the department continues to have the people, knowledge and skills to effectively deliver on its mandate and contribute to Government of Canada priorities.
• Public Service Renewal has been a priority of the Government of Canada for the past two years as outlined in the Public Service Renewal Action Plan.

Plans for meeting the priority

WD will sustain the necessary complement of qualified, motivated and knowledgeable staff by focusing on the following:

• Integrated business and human resource planning.  This will be accomplished by:
  • Developing a human resource strategy specific to the implementation of the CAF and RInC programs in the first quarter of the fiscal year; and
  • Identifying and risk-ranking human resource gaps and prioritizing necessary measures to fill them.
• Employee engagement, career development, talent management, and succession planning.  This will be accomplished by:
  • Department-wide implementation of succession planning and EX talent management initiatives;
  • Implementation of a three-year strategy for learning and development;
  • Analysis of the results of the 2008 Public Service Employee Survey and development of an action plan to address results requiring attention; and
  • Promotion of the WD Official Language Training Policy to ensure employees' ability to work in their language of choice, and to assist with succession planning.
• Strategic recruitment and the accomplishment of public service renewal initiatives will be accomplished by: 
  • Developing and implementing strategies for the recruitment, retention and promotion of employment equity groups based on labour market availability;
  • Recruiting ten new professionals by March 31, 2010 (eight will meet employment equity definitions); and
  • Sourcing and hiring new professionals using student bridging programs and direct recruitment through outreach to western Canadian universities.

Performance Measurement

Why this is a priority?

• To ensure value for money and to enable understanding and communication of program impacts, WD is committed to effective performance measurement.
• 2008-2009 was the first year of target setting for the Program Activity Architecture.
• To ensure a high quality Performance Measurement Framework that meets the requirements of the Management, Resources, and Results Structure Policy as it continues to be implemented. 

Plans for meeting the priority

To support improved performance measurement, WD will focus on addressing challenges through:

• Reviewing performance measures to ensure relevance and appropriate measuring;
• Further developing WD's project database system, Project Gateway, to more effectively track data related to performance measurement; and;
• Introducing a performance reporting process, which will track progress against established performance targets and support organizational decision-making.

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Integrated Risk Management

WD's Integrated Risk Management Framework has been developed to provide the department with tools to support the department's governance responsibilities, accountabilities, analytical processes, and advice needed to ensure that risks are appropriately identified and mitigated. Our risk framework has been applied throughout the organization, from individual project assessment and management strategies, to the Corporate Business Plan.

WD's Corporate Risk Profile (CRP) gives consideration to environmental risks, feedback received through the Treasury Board Secretariat Management Accountability Framework Assessment, recommendations from audits and evaluations, risks identified in delivering on departmental priorities, and the Program Activity Architecture.. A summary of the CRP is included as Annex C. Each year, and more often as required, the department will re-assess its key risks, and adjust its plans and responses (management strategies) accordingly.

At the highest level, this ensures that the Corporate Business Plan and the Report on Plans and Priorities respond to the risks identified. Once the departmental risk and management strategies are identified, more detailed plans for the department are developed for the next fiscal year. These include: the Change Management Plan; the Information Management and Technology Plan; the Values and Ethics Plan; the Financial Plan; the Official Languages Strategy; the Procurement Strategy; the Asset Management Strategy; and the Sustainable Development Strategy, as well as the individual regional and corporate branch plans. At this more detailed level, each plan is consistently aligned with the department's strategic outcomes and Program Activity Architecture and the risk management strategy. The reporting framework follows the same logic model, but lags by one year or reporting cycle.

Why this is a priority?

• Reviewing, updating and more fully integrating risk-based decision-making into all elements of management continues to be of importance to the department to ensure sound and well-informed decisions.
• New expectations for integrated risk management have been articulated in updated Treasury Board policies such as the Transfer Payment Policy, and the Policy on Internal Control.

Plans for meeting the priority

The department will make progress against this priority by:

• Reviewing, updating and more fully integrating risk-based decision making into all elements of WD management practices; and
• Creating risk management tools and training employees on risk management practices.

Key management excellence work already underway

In addition to these priorities, there is important work underway in other key areas of the department that support efforts to achieve WD's strategic outcomes and commitment to management excellence. This includes, but is not limited to:

• As part of its Values and Ethics Plan, and based on the results from the National Employee Survey, regional and departmental action plans will be developed to address areas of concern for by fall 2009.
• As part of its Change Management Plan, the department is focusing on three major organizational change initiatives. These include:
  • The continued implementation of priorities that resulted from the visioning and consultation initiative in 2006;
  • The change that results from the public service/human resource renewal agenda; and
  • Significant organizational changes implemented to strengthen WD's accountability regime and reporting capacity.
• As part of the Information Management and Technology Plan, the department continues its commitment to both Project Gateway development and the information management agenda (with a focus on electronic document management in 2009-2010).  These two significant initiatives directly support the department in its due diligence, management, results reporting and proactive disclosure of information.
• The WD Official Languages Strategy is fully integrated in the strategic priorities and outcomes of the department.  As part of its Official Languages Strategy and its commitments under the Official Languages Act, the department is focused on the following priorities: the provision of services in both official languages, fostering a work environment that encourages the use of both official languages, and supporting and facilitating the economic development of Official Language Minority Communities (OLMCs) in the West.  Through the Economic Development Initiative of the Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality 2008-2013, WD will receive $3.2M over five years to foster the development of new business expertise through innovation, entrepreneurship, partnerships and diversifying economic activities.  The pursuit of these priorities will contribute to policies and programs that are sensitive to western OLMCs, thereby encouraging diversified, competitive, innovative OLMC economies that are sustainable.
• As part of its Communications Plan, the department will focus on the provision of strong strategic communications support, development of a sustainable approach to communications, implementation of CAF and RInC initiatives, establishment of a mechanism to maintain evergreen content on the Internet and a focus on results reporting and accountability.
• As part of its Risk Based Audit Plan, WD selects and prioritizes audits based on risk exposure, risk significance, and the quality of internal controls to mitigate risks. The audits will independently assess the department's governance, risk management and control practices, and provide assurances therein. Where applicable, the audits will also provide recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of those practices.
• As part of its five-year Evaluation Plan for 2008-2013, WD will achieve 100 per cent evaluation coverage of all WD direct program spending during this period, as specified in the updated Treasury Board evaluation policy.  Evaluation projects and engagements included in the plan were based on a combination of risk assessment, needs assessment, and a consultation, analysis and prioritization process. The evaluation projects will provide a neutral assessment of the relevance, cost-effectiveness and success of WD's program spending.
• As part of its Sustainable Development Strategy, the department will facilitate the development, commercialization, adoption and adaptation of new environmental technologies and processes within Western Canada, and facilitate a greater awareness of Government of Canada sustainable development concepts and opportunities.

All of these management activities and priorities are necessary to ensure that the department can achieve its strategic outcomes, and make a positive contribution to the western Canadian economy and the Government of Canada's performance as a whole.