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Canadian Coast Guard Integrated Business and Human Resource Plan: 2021-2022 to 2023-2024 2021-2022 to 2023-2024 -->

DFO/21-2045 Cat. No. Fs151-16E-PDF ISSN 2291-7977

Canadian Coast Guard Integrated Business and Human Resource Plan 2021-2022 to 2023-2024 (PDF, 7.65 MB)

Table of contents

Commissioner’s message, people, services and mandate, diversity, equity and inclusion, objective 1: recruitment, objective 2: training, objective 3: career management, objective 4: wellness, objective 1: delivering the new fleet, objective 2: operating and maintaining the new fleet, objective 3: vessel life extension.

• Objective 4: Shore-based assets

Objective 1: Fulfilling Coast Guard’s contribution to the Oceans Protection Plan

Objective 2: major resource projects, objective 3: reviewing levels of service, objective 4: program readiness, objective 5: modernizing marine navigation program and safety services, objective 6: enabling innovation, objective 1: strengthening national policies, processes, procedures and systems, objective 2: engaging with industry and other coast guard stakeholders, objective 3: engaging with indigenous partners, objective 4: supporting the implementation of the arctic region, budget: daily operations and long-term investments, operations sector structure, operations sector programs and services, shipbuilding and materiel sector structure, shipbuilding and materiel sector programs, personnel directorate structure, personnel directorate programs, arctic region, atlantic region, central region, western region, annex a – canadian coast guard commitments, annex b – canadian coast guard people strategy, annex c – canadian coast guard demographics, annex d – canadian coast guard financials, canadian coast guard to celebrate 60th anniversary, college is on course for distance and simulated learning.

• Engaging with Arctic communities

The CCGS John Cabot

• Four-season lighted buoys project

Partnering with Indigenous communities for enhanced emergency response

On behalf of the Canadian Coast Guard, I am pleased to present the 2021-2022 to 2023-2024 Canadian Coast Guard Integrated Business and Human Resource Plan .

Over the next three years, the Canadian Coast Guard will be undergoing one of the greatest periods of change in its history. Currently, we find ourselves in unprecedented and challenging times in light of the COVID‑19 pandemic. I have the utmost appreciation for the professionalism and dedication Coast Guard employees have shown in this unique period. As a first responder agency, everyone is doing their part and more throughout the organization. I commend you and stand with you.

Last year, the world witnessed a racial reckoning that was also felt here in Canada where we loudly heard Indigenous, Black, and other racialized peoples voicing their experiences of racism, discrimination, and inequality on a deeply personal and painful level. We are also acutely aware that it takes sustained leadership to challenge the status quo, address hard truths, acknowledge lived realities, and tackle tough issues if we want to see profound, meaningful, and lasting change. As an organization, we understand that we need to do better at attracting and welcoming a more diverse workforce so that our organization is more representative of the Canadians we proudly serve and that we continue to be a workplace of choice well into the future. It is also simply the right thing to do.

As an organization, we are proud to celebrate what we accomplish every day, 365 days a year. We are also proud of our knowledge and expertise – whether in the Arctic, in search and rescue, and along the continuum of response, in icebreaking, or in relationship building with Indigenous partners – and we continue to build upon it. The Canadian Coast Guard College, as our centre of maritime training excellence for the Coast Guard and the foundation for our longstanding success in operations, is an example of how we share our knowledge and grow our expertise. I want our employees to know that I hear over and over when I interact with our international partners the great regard for our expertise and our ability to deliver on our mandate.

The Canadian Coast Guard also contributes to Government of Canada initiatives such as Economic Recovery, the Oceans Protection Plan, the Blue Economy Strategy, Canada’s Reconciliation Agenda, and the Greening Government Strategy. The successful implementation of these initiatives will yield benefits to the Coast Guard and all Canadians and contribute to sustaining our partnerships across all levels of government, including Indigenous partners.

With this in mind, I want to convey my strong sense of optimism about the future.

While service excellence, recruitment and retention, and the renewal of our fleet are enduring priorities we require in order to fulfill our mandate and motto – Safety First, Service Always – we have also identified Canadian Coast Guard strategic pillars that link to broader Government of Canada priorities and will allow us to chart a course for all Canadians, including our employees.

Each strategic pillar in the Plan identifies objectives that need to be achieved, and each objective has at least one specific action-oriented commitment. Taken together, these strategic pillars, objectives, and commitments will hold the organization on a steady three-year course.

Our People: The Coast Guard must be inclusive and that means reflecting the population we serve. We must take care of and support each other, and create an environment where everyone can thrive. The Coast Guard will support every one of its employees in this priority area. Together, we will continue to make the Canadian Coast Guard an employer of choice, and support all our current and future employees to be the best that they can be. Included in the Canadian Coast Guard Integrated Business and Human Resource Plan is a link to an enduring people-focused plan – our People Strategy. This People Strategy continues to provide a picture of where we are today and a strategy for where we are heading.

Our Assets: With an average age of 39 years for the large vessels in the fleet, Coast Guard’s aging vessels are in need of replacement in order to meet increasing operational pressures and perform its mandated mission. Vessel repair, refit, and maintenance enable us to continue to provide critical services such as icebreaking and emergency response in Canadian waters, while providing economic opportunities for the Canadian marine sector. We remain energized by the substantial investments to renew the fleet with vessels that represent the Coast Guard of the future, including greener operations. Renewing the fleet effectively means making sure we also have the right people, skills, and shore-based assets to enable effective fleet operations and maintenance in support of program and service delivery well into the future.

Our Services: The Coast Guard is developing a strategy to advance the modernization of its marine navigation program and safety services. Following international trends to digitalize marine navigation tools and services, we will transform our service mechanisms to provide timely and standardized information to mariners, such as environmental data, ice and weather conditions, and vessel traffic. As we modernize our services, engagement with industry and Indigenous Peoples must be at the forefront of our approach. As stated in the 2019 Mandate letters of the Prime Minister, there remains no more important relationship to Canada than the one with its Indigenous peoples. Coast Guard has made progress in supporting self-determination, improving service delivery, and advancing reconciliation, and we must continue to engage with our Inuit, Métis, and First Nations partners. It will also be important to maintain strong internal and external engagement mechanisms with Coast Guard service users to ensure optimal service delivery.

Our Governance: The organizational changes we announced in national headquarters in 2019 have made us a stronger organization by better aligning our priorities, enhancing collaboration with both internal and external partners, and offering a more robust process for efficient and timely decision-making. The focus now is on ensuring that national policies, processes, procedures, and systems are clear and cohesive, remain up to modern standards, and have the foresight to leverage evolving technology and an evolving regulatory environment. This will enable the headquarters and the four regions of the Agency to function smoothly and seamlessly as one collaborative and united national institution.

Although we have many accomplishments to celebrate, we continue to push forward to meet the expectations of our service users and all Canadians. In 2022 we will be celebrating our 60th Anniversary. This is a key moment for our organization; it is a time to reflect on our rich history and celebrate our accomplishments. The theme of the 60th Anniversary is “Navigate the Future” – this represents not only a celebration of our proud and unique history, but also how we are charting a way forward in the years ahead.

This plan shows how we will navigate this future. I am proud of the course we are on.

Mario Pelletier Commissioner Canadian Coast Guard

Our organization: Who we are and what we do

Our mission is to ensure the safety of all mariners on our waters, protect the marine environment, and support economic growth through the safe and efficient movement of maritime trade in and out of Canada’s waters.

The Canadian Coast Guard operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year in some of the world’s harshest maritime conditions. Its area of operations covers 243,000 km of coastline and 5.3 million km 2 of ocean and inland waterways. The Coast Guard supports Canada’s ocean economy by enabling the safe and efficient flow of $251 billion in maritime trade, the handling of more than 342 million tonnes of critical goods, and supporting tens of thousands of jobs across Canada.

We are over 6,100 employees strong. We are deckhands, engineers, marine communications and traffic services officers, cooks, community engagement coordinators, captains, pollution response officers, search and rescue specialists, technicians, administrators, program analysts, policy advisors, lighthouse keepers, officer cadets, and more. We fulfill the Coast Guard’s role as the owner and operator of Canada’s civilian fleet. Our employees support key maritime services that include:

• Aids to navigation
• Channel maintenance
• Marine search and rescue
• Response to wrecks and hazardous or dilapidated ships
• Marine pollution response
• Icebreaking and ice management services
• Marine communications and traffic services
• Procurement of vessels and helicopters and other marine services related to vessel life extension/refit of the current fleet
• Provision of ships and helicopters in support of other federal departments’ mandates

The services we provide are mandated under legislation, including:

• Canada Shipping Act, 2001
• Marine Liability Act
• Emergency Management Act
• Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act
• Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act

Through innovation and excellence, we are a recognized leader in maritime services and safety. As federal public servants, Canadian Coast Guard members have a fundamental role to play in serving Canadians, their communities, and the public interest. By committing to our organizational and Public Service values, Canadian Coast Guard members strengthen the ethical culture of the public sector and contribute to public confidence in the integrity of all public institutions.

Public service/organizational values

Respect for Democracy: The system of Canadian parliamentary democracy and its institutions are fundamental to serving the public interest. Public servants recognize that elected officials are accountable to Parliament, and ultimately to all Canadians, and that a non-partisan public sector is essential to our democratic system.

Respect for People: Treating all people with respect, dignity, and fairness is fundamental to our relationship with the Canadian public and contributes to a safe and healthy work environment that promotes engagement, openness, and transparency. The diversity of our people and the ideas they generate are the source of our innovation.

Integrity: Integrity is the cornerstone of good governance and democracy. By upholding the highest ethical standards, public servants conserve and enhance public confidence in the honesty, fairness, and impartiality of the federal public sector.

Stewardship: Federal public servants are entrusted to use and care for public resources responsibly, for both the short term and long term.

Excellence: Excellence in the design and delivery of public sector policy, programs, and services is beneficial to every aspect of Canadian public life. Engagement, collaboration, effective teamwork, and professional development are all essential to a high-performing organization.

The Coast Guard is an asset-rich organization, and that includes our people. We are collectively committed to creating and sustaining an equitable and inclusive workplace that strives to mirror the diversity of the Canadian public we serve. We must take care of and support each other, and create a nurturing environment where everyone can thrive. The Coast Guard will support its employees in carrying out these commitments, and those in the Clerk’s January 2021 Call to Action on anti-racism, equity, and inclusion in the federal public service.

In response to the Clerk’s Call to Action, and to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #57, which calls for all levels of government to provide education to public servants on the history of Indigenous peoples, the Coast Guard will continue to improve its understanding of cultural contexts and systemic barriers within Canada by actively promoting cultural awareness training sessions and fostering learning to support a healthy, inclusive, and diverse workplace.

Commitments:

• In follow up to a 2020 Coast Guard Gender Parity Study, work with Women in Governance to develop an action plan addressing the recommendations.
• Launch quarterly national email and Fleet Communiqué updates to support diversity, equity, and inclusion across the Coast Guard.
• Develop a Diversity and Inclusion Hub on the Coast Guard Intranet to link and collect departmental and Public Service resources and communications as resources for all employees.
• Develop and pilot a Diversity and Inclusion Fleet Ambassador Program to support and highlight activities for and by seagoing personnel.
• Coordinate training opportunities to enhance awareness around inclusive and barrier-free staffing processes.
• Develop and pilot a student-centered learning series, with specific outreach to the National Indigenous Student Recruitment Initiative, to better support student integration and offer guidance for transitioning from student employment with career path-focused options to bolster retention.
• Create a Coast Guard Future Leaders Community, which among its required components will include the Canada School of Public Service courses on Unconscious Bias, to support greater cultural awareness and competency.
• Pilot and deliver an updated and redesigned work uniform, developed with a Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) lens and incorporating diversity and inclusion elements where feasible.

Canadian Coast Guard strategic pillars

Canadians expect the federal government to ensure public safety on the water, protect the marine environment, support economic growth, and support the country's sovereignty and security by maintaining a strong federal presence in Canada's waters.

The Canadian Coast Guard has a key role as the marine operating arm of the Government of Canada, ready and able to assist in the realization of Canada's maritime priorities. As Canada's civilian marine organization and the owner/operator of the civilian fleet of Canada, the Coast Guard has a critical function as on-water responder and as a visible symbol of Canadian identity from coast to coast to coast.

The Canadian Coast Guard is uniquely placed to serve this function by providing maritime expertise, Canada's civilian maritime fleet, and a broadly distributed shore infrastructure.

The Coast Guard is one of the few federal agencies that provides direct, front-line services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our programs and services have an impact on the daily lives of every Canadian by protecting and preserving our interests and priorities as a maritime nation.

In recent years, the Government of Canada has invested in the Coast Guard through initiatives such as Fleet Renewal and the Oceans Protection Plan. These investments demonstrate the value the Government of Canada and Canadians place in Coast Guard programs and services and the increasing demand for our services. The focus in the coming years will be to continue building on these investments and enhancing the Coast Guard's program and asset readiness and excellence in service delivery.

The introduction of the new fleet will bring significant changes to the Coast Guard. Ensuring the optimal fleet of the future is a priority that links closely to our other enduring priorities of service excellence and recruitment and retention. Ship operations and maintenance are integral elements of fleet renewal in order to ensure optimal operational performance throughout the vessel life cycle, and that includes addressing new requirements to effectively operate and maintain new vessels. Over the planning period, we will continue to focus on developing strategies to address existing and future operating and maintenance gaps for the new fleet, as well as the evolving skill sets associated with the operation of the new vessels.

In order to meet its obligations, the Coast Guard makes every effort to ensure that its organizational structure, processes, and procedures are optimized to support the effective and efficient delivery of services to Canadians, including its mandated programs and services, emerging government priorities, and the Minister's mandate letter commitments.

To this end, we have identified the following four strategic pillars to guide the delivery of our core responsibilities during the period covered by this plan and beyond, and to ensure that we achieve our mandate while maintaining excellence in service:

• Our Services
• Our Governance

Each strategic pillar in the Plan identifies objectives that need to be achieved, and each objective has at least one specific action-oriented commitment. Taken together, these strategic pillars, objectives, and commitments will hold the organization on a steady three-year course. Objectives and related commitments are described in each pillar. Further information on the commitments can also be found in Annex A.

The Coast Guard has taken guidance from Government of Canada priorities and the Minister's mandate letter priorities in identifying our strategic pillars.

Government of Canada priorities:

• Protecting public health;
• Ensuring a strong economic recovery;
• Promoting a cleaner environment;
• Standing up for fairness and equality;
• A stronger, more inclusive, and more resilient Canada; and
• Advancing reconciliation.

Minister’s mandate letter priorities:

• Blue Economy Strategy;
• Pacific Salmon Strategy;
• Support and protect workers;
• Implement modernized Fisheries Act ;
• Oceans Protection Plan;
• Increase investments in small craft harbours;
• Full renewal of the Coast Guard fleet;
• Creation of Defence Procurement Canada;
• Conservation of Canada’s land and oceans;
• New investments in marine science and fighting invasive species;
• Create a responsible plan to transition from open net-pen salmon farming in coastal B.C. waters by 2025 and begin work to introduce Canada’s first-ever Aquaculture Act ;
• Developing a boat-to-plate traceability program;
• Use good scientific evidence and traditional Indigenous knowledge when making decisions affecting fish stocks and ecosystem management; and
• Implement the Oceans Plastics Charter and the G7 Charlevoix Blueprint for Healthy Oceans, Seas and Resilient Coastal Communities

Departmental core responsibilities:

• Fisheries – managing Canada’s fisheries, Indigenous fisheries programs and aquaculture activities, and providing support for commercial fishing harbours while applying relevant legislation;
• Aquatic Ecosystems – managing, conserving, and protecting Canada’s oceans and other aquatic ecosystems and species from human impacts and invasive species;
• Marine Navigation – providing information and services to facilitate navigation in Canadian waters; and
• Marine Operations and Response – providing marine response services and operating Canada’s civilian maritime fleet.

Strategic pillar 1: Our People

The Canadian Coast Guard recognizes and is proud of the strength of its people. The organization attracts people who want to pursue a long-term, fulfilling career. Their commitment is at the core of our organization, and we feel a tremendous source of pride knowing that many of our employees put their lives on the line to deliver essential services to Canadians, 24/7/365 across the country.

We are fortunate to have knowledgeable, experienced, and well-motivated people across our ranks, and will continue to make our organization an employer of choice, and support all of our current and future members to be the best that they can be. The inherent challenge we face is to preserve this enviable standing by ensuring that the Coast Guard community is viewed as a desirable, rewarding, and inclusive place to work for those contemplating pursuing a career with us.

Effective professional development and assessment program activities are essential for helping us foster this environment and ensuring that all employees feel valued and equipped to perform their jobs. We will achieve this through a developmental and collaborative process that actively supports a culture that encourages us to monitor and discuss progress on a regular basis, to coach, mentor, and train others in a meaningful way, and to recognize the achievement of both personal development goals and organizational objectives.

The Covid-19 pandemic has been an accelerator for one of the greatest workplace transformations of our lifetime, making working from home a viable option for some workers while adding new complexities and challenges to service providers on the front line. It is a testament to the professionalism and dedication of Coast Guard members that program and service delivery has continued unabated, and we will take best practices and lessons learned from the pandemic and apply them to continue to ensure a safe work environment for all employees.

We are also taking steps to improve support to all fleet personnel through the use of technology: first, by rolling out new software, eTimesheets, which enables fleet personnel to submit time and labour information electronically; and second, by launching a process to find a new crewing tool to replace Coast Guard’s aging MariTime system to better fit the needs of the fleet. In addition to integrating crewing decisions with time and labour-tracking and management functionality, better reporting will help address the current chronic pay issues and enable the development of comprehensive training strategies to ensure we have seagoing employees with the certification and knowledge needed to fill new positions upcoming through the renewal of our fleet. An in-depth requirements analysis for crewing and certification will be completed, in conjunction with a review of functionality currently available in the market, including within industries that are outside of the marine domain, which will provide us with a broader range of solution options to consider.

Due to the specialized nature of our work, it is essential that the Coast Guard has the right mix of people, capabilities, and resources to deliver our programs and services nationwide. As a special operating agency with a vast span of responsibilities vital for the safety and security of Canadian waterways, we need highly trained employees with specialized qualifications. This includes, for example, fleet officers and crew, Marine Communications and Traffic Services (MCTS) officers, who are the eyes and ears of the Canadian Coast Guard, and Rescue Coordination Centres personnel.

We have completed a review of key positions and at-risk groups across the Coast Guard, and advanced our capacity to use enhanced data, data analysis, and predictability. The identification of at-risk groups and key positions, combined with better data analysis capacity, will support the development of targeted recruitment strategies, targeted learning strategies to support retention and succession planning, improved processes associated with planning for training, and better informed annual intake at the Canadian Coast Guard College (the College) for the officer training program.

In 2021-22, the proposed at-risk groups and key positions, along with supporting demographic data and recommendations to address problem areas, will be presented to Coast Guard Management Board for approval and subsequent inclusion in recruitment, retention, and training strategies. These strategies will also incorporate updated crewing factors as well as future fleet crewing requirements.

The operational nature of the Coast Guard means that the organization relies on a number of highly specialized trade skills – from ships’ officers to certified support roles. Further complicating the need for specific roles, there are several fields of study related to these positions that have a limited qualified labour pool or a small number of graduating students each year. This creates potential supply issues, should the Coast Guard be required to fill a significant number of vacancies in critical areas. Accordingly, an at-risk staffing report is being created to identify the areas of highest risk, and support the development of potential mitigation strategies and longer-term human resources planning solutions.

Given the vast number of functions and positions within the Coast Guard, a methodology was developed to compile positions based on skill sets, competencies, and certifications. To evaluate impact risk, the groups were linked to their impact on operations, i.e. whether this affects a vessel’s ability to operate. To evaluate the likelihood risk of vacancy issues, two key factors were examined: potential vacancy levels (from regular attrition, retirement timing, and existing vacancies) and difficulty in recruiting.

Recent attrition rates have necessitated the rapid career advancement of some junior officers within the fleet to more senior positions. This creates potential competency issues associated with the administrative and soft skills required of management and leadership roles. To address this need, the College is modernizing the delivery of Coast Guard command courses to provide the required and appropriate training to these individuals and others seeking to enhance their skills.

More information on this strategic pillar can be found in the Canadian Coast Guard People Strategy in Annex B, which also includes a status report on the Strategy. Annex C provides information on Canadian Coast Guard demographics.

Given a combination of attrition and organizational expansion, as well as the need for surge capacity for major incidents, recruitment is a critical priority, and requires the development of national recruiting strategies and tools.

Our specialized workforce requires targeted recruitment and promotional activities to attract new people with the right skills into the organization, as well as a focus on attracting employees from diverse communities. Recognizing the need for many specialized skill sets, the Coast Guard is targeting outreach activities to younger students to ensure awareness of the educational requirements needed to pursue various careers in the Coast Guard. We are also developing internal apprenticeship programs that complement targeted recruitment strategies as well as working with various colleges and universities to attract both co-op students and graduates to the Coast Guard.

The College is the Coast Guard’s centre of maritime training excellence and the foundation for our long-standing success in operations. To be able to attract candidates with the necessary entry requirements to its programs, the College will continue to partner with various community colleges, universities, and organizations across the country to promote the Canadian Coast Guard as a meaningful career option.

• Develop a national recruitment strategy that includes plans to leverage technology as well as social media, and addresses diversity and inclusion objectives.
• Finalize the at-risk groups and key positions report and related demographic trends data, for inclusion in targeted recruitment, retention, and training strategies.

As an operational organization, the Canadian Coast Guard is by necessity a training and learning organization. Training builds confidence and success, both personally and organizationally. It is key for some entry-level and many mid-stream positions, as is obtaining, maintaining, and retaining certain certifications. The Coast Guard’s many levels of personnel, unique positions, and operational necessities require that the organization provide technical, skills-based, managerial, safety, and team training. This training is continuous and is delivered in many ways, including formal learning, experiential learning, computer-based training, and more. As a fundamental part of the ‘life cycle management of our workforce’, a continual focus on training products, quality assurance, and methodologies is crucial.

• Develop a strategy to address evolving skill sets associated with the operations of the new vessels and associated training requirements.
• Implement a national learning governance framework, reflecting the central role of the College.
• Create a library of training resources for employees to increase awareness around corporate commitments, including mental health, diversity, and inclusion.
• Support employees in understanding the skills and knowledge required for their current roles and career aspirations through the use of tools such as on-the-job training programs, leadership development programs, and specialized training.
• Pilot a leadership training initiative to support employees in their development of key leadership competencies early in careers.
• Develop an integrated national training platform for all employees.
• Develop a concept of operations for a new centre for simulated learning.

The Canadian Coast Guard values its employees and seeks to retain them by providing a rewarding and challenging career, and the People Strategy includes innovative ways to enable all employees at all levels to find their best fit and reach peak performance and satisfaction in their jobs. To support the continuous process of career management and development, 41 competency dictionaries covering every job in the organization have been constructed to enable any employee at any level to determine the competencies required of them in their current job and to view the competencies of all other jobs to which they may aspire. When the tool is launched later in 2021-22, employees will be able to update their learning plans with specific details in support of their short- and long-term aspirations within the Coast Guard. These competencies will also be used to support staffing tools, succession planning, and recruitment activities.

The Coast Guard has also created a career development team focused on support to all members as they seek to build their careers, with a focus on leadership development as well as talent management and succession planning based on a review of at-risk groups and key positions within the organization.

• Build an online competency-based career management tool for all seagoing and shore-based employees.
• Host career management learning events for employees.

As a people-centred organization, the health, safety, and wellness of our members is the Coast Guard's top priority. Part of ensuring overall health and wellness is providing the necessary learning and support to enhance employees' personal resilience. Safety, morale, well-being, employee assistance, work-life arrangements, return-to-work processes, and awards and recognition programs are all essential elements of meeting the needs of our employees, our teams, and ultimately our organization. Put another way, readiness and retention of personnel for duty depends on how well employees are supported, and the recently created Personnel Directorate is working with the wellness teams in each region to ensure that these measures are strengthened and expanded.

• Develop a holistic wellness strategy, including the future of remote work/telework.
• Provide national access to mental health professionals and training to support Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM).

Strategic pillar 2: Our Assets

The Canadian Coast Guard owns and operates the federal government’s civilian fleet. Located across the country, these assets provide a platform supporting a wide range of marine programs and services, and serve as a nationally recognized federal presence and symbol of service and safety. From coast to coast to coast, the fleet of red and white ships covers 243,000 km of coastline, the longest in the world, and 5.3 million km 2 of ocean and inland water.

Nowhere is the Coast Guard’s approach to effective and efficient service delivery more evident than in the fleet. Most of our vessels are multitasked, and all are crewed with professionally trained mariners capable of delivering on-water programs. On any given day, for example, a vessel and its specialized crew can be optimized to support a science mission while at the same time deploying navigational buoys and serving as both a secondary search and rescue (SAR) vessel and a visible symbol of Canadian sovereignty.

This multi-mission operating philosophy offers significant economies of scope and provides the Coast Guard with a diverse fleet capable of operating in all marine areas of the country during the navigation season. The multi-tasked nature of Coast Guard operations also ensures that the organization has a coordination capability in place, on a 24-hour basis, to task the resources to the required area/program/priority.

While the fleet is undoubtedly Canadian Coast Guard’s most recognizable asset, the Coast Guard also makes use of varied and complex physical shore-based assets to deliver services to Canadians. The Coast Guard ensures their operation, maintenance, repair, and their eventual recapitalization to replace aging systems at the end of their useful service life. Doing so requires asset-management expertise that covers a wide range of functions from acquisition and maintenance to life extensions and replacement and ultimately disposal.

The Coast Guard must safeguard its assets in order to sustain its operational capabilities, fulfill its mandated programs and services, and meet Government of Canada priorities now, and in the future.

As we work to build new ships to replace our aging ones, we will be taking measures to extend the life of the current fleet through interim solutions, while also ensuring that the current fleet and the fleet of the future have the required shore-based infrastructure to support service delivery across Canada.

Renewing our assets means assessing many factors to ensure we get the requirements right, since new equipment and technology create the need or opportunity to develop new competencies and bring in new talent, as well as to look at innovation, including green technology. We need to broadly engage with stakeholders, assess outcomes of levels of service reviews and program readiness profiles, and set flexible future-looking requirements so that new assets are capable of meeting both current and emerging program and operational requirements. We must also take the opportunity to consider how our assets will be managed, operated and maintained throughout their lifecycle.

Renewing the aging Coast Guard fleet has been a Government of Canada priority for more than a decade, and this priority will ensure the Coast Guard has the assets to deliver mandated programs and services to Canadians. With an average age of 39 years for the large fleet, Coast Guard’s vessels are in need of replacement in order to meet increasing operational pressures and perform required statutory missions. With increasing shipping trade and the impacts of climate change already upon us, the demands on Canada’s Coast Guard will continue to grow. A renewed Coast Guard fleet will maintain the confidence of Canadians – and the confidence of industries that rely on Coast Guard services to remain competitive. To make sure we have a flexible fleet capable of meeting future demands, we are setting flexible forward-looking requirements with a key principle of ensuring that, where feasible, ships can do a wide range of different missions.

Following the significant investments made by the Government of Canada, the Coast Guard now has fully funded plans in place for the entire large vessel fleet. Work is already well underway to support full fleet renewal; funding announced in 2019 is being used to support procurement of up to 16 multi-purpose vessels, up to six program icebreakers, and two Arctic and offshore patrol vessels. This is in addition to advancing existing shipbuilding projects that were already part of the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).

In addition, on May 6, 2021, Canada announced that it would move forward with the construction of two Polar icebreakers under the NSS. Both will have capacity and ability beyond that of our current largest icebreaker, the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent. With their enhanced capabilities, these larger, more powerful ships will enable the Coast Guard to conduct year-round operations in Canada's Arctic. Their greater endurance will ensure they can operate at higher latitudes for longer periods, and will allow the fleet to better support Indigenous peoples and northerners, strengthen Arctic sovereignty, advance high Arctic science, and better respond to maritime emergencies. Canada’s investment in the Polar icebreakers will have a lasting impact on the Canadian marine industry, its workers, and their suppliers. Through their construction and service, the Polar icebreakers will contribute to growing Canada's blue economy and create more opportunities in our coastal communities.

As the fleet renewal program advances, the Coast Guard will need to be well prepared to manage this program year-over-year. The multi-decade timeline associated with fleet renewal increases the complexity while also providing the Coast Guard with the opportunity to adjust goals and processes to ensure that we have the ships we need to carry out our work in the years to come. The objective is to continue to deliver new vessels currently under construction on schedule, while continuing to advance plans, design, and construction engineering on other vessels in the renewal pipeline.

• Continue to deliver new SAR lifeboats under contract.
• Advance design, construction engineering, and construction of a near shore fisheries research vessel.
• Advance construction and prepare for delivery of the offshore oceanographic science vessel.
• Finalize construction engineering efforts and start construction of both Coast Guard Arctic and offshore patrol vessels.
• Advance design and construction engineering for the multi-purpose vessels and the program icebreakers.
• Advance plans for a new class of mid-shore multi-mission vessels.
• Begin design engineering for the Polar icebreakers.
• Begin construction engineering and acquisition of long-lead items to prepare for the construction of the Polar icebreakers.

While building a ship can take several years, a ship will remain in service for several decades. Ship operations and maintenance are therefore integral elements of fleet renewal in order to ensure operational performance throughout the vessel life cycle. Over the planning period, we will continue to focus on developing strategies to address existing and future operating and maintenance gaps for the new fleet, as well as the evolving skill sets associated with the operations of the new vessels.

Appropriate shore-based infrastructure is necessary to support the efficient operation of Coast Guard ships, and to that end, supporting infrastructure is an important component of the fleet renewal strategy. Consequently, we are developing a Fleet Infrastructure Availability Verification program in order to establish what Coast Guard’s infrastructure requirements are and to assess the availability of current assets to determine how they will meet our existing and future requirements. Many of the current wharves and shore infrastructure sites are classified as critical and requiring attention before they can be safely used by Coast Guard ships. This program will verify and track the condition of the shore infrastructure assets as well as clarify necessary changes needed to meet future requirements.

A joint DFO Real Property/Canadian Coast Guard working group has been created to address requirements for future projects in support of shore-based infrastructure. Considering the shared responsibilities between Real Property as the custodian and the Coast Guard as the tenant, this working group will play a key role in guiding this program. Phase one of the assessment of wharf infrastructure to support a range of Coast Guard missions is currently underway.

• Undertake fleet renewal with a key principle of ensuring mission modularity.
• Commence operations on the CCGS John Cabot for the upcoming science season.
• Update the Coast Guard’s multi-year maintenance plan to address any fleet maintenance gaps.

Older Coast Guard vessels are becoming more costly to maintain and are prone to be more frequently taken out of operation for unscheduled repairs, placing further strain on the existing fleet. To combat this growing operational risk, the Coast Guard is implementing interim measures, such as vessel life extension (VLE) work and acquiring used ships to sustain operational capabilities while VLEs are being performed to ensure the existing fleet remains operational until the new fleet is procured.

In 2019, the Government of Canada approved over $2 billion dollars in funding for VLEs to extend the operational life of more than 70 vessels over a 20-year period. The VLE program is working closely with fleet personnel to forecast VLE project timelines and ensure that the required scheduled work does not result in interruptions to operational programs and services. Other required non-VLE related vessel work packages are being incorporated into the VLE scheduled work periods in an effort to further reduce the time that vessels are out of service.

During this business plan cycle, the VLE program will continue to initiate new scheduled VLE projects using existing resources in order to meet the forecasted VLE timelines.

• Complete acquisition of one light icebreaker to assist with service continuity.
• Complete the conversion of the light icebreaker once acquired.
• Complete the conversion of the CCGS Vincent Massey .
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Kopit Hopson 1752
• Complete the bundled VLE of the CCGS Cape Roger and CCGS Cygnus
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS George R. Pearkes
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Amundsen phase 1
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Amundsen phase 2
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Griffon
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Sir Wilfrid Laurier
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent phase 1
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent phase 2
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent phase 3
• Complete the VLE of the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent phase 4
• Complete the VLE of the 47’ MLB class

Objective 4: Shore-Based Assets

The Coast Guard’s non-fleet shore-based asset base may be less publicly visible, but these assets are no less important to realizing the “Safety first—Service always” motto of the Canadian Coast Guard. Such assets include fixed and floating aids to navigation, visual and aural aids, radar, radio, and terrestrial Automatic Identification System (AIS) networks, which are delivered through more than 300 remote installations. In addition, there are primary SAR stations and environmental response physical assets used for spill containment, collection, and storage.

• Determine the shore infrastructure requirements needed to support the future fleet’s ship modularity concept.
• Update the Coast Guard’s asset and inventory protocols and procedures to ensure the integrity of the information in the asset management systems.
• Implement the Coast Guard’s asset and inventory protocols and procedures.
• Complete the implementation of the Oceans Protection Plan (OPP) SAR stations.
• Assess the condition of the Coast Guard’s shore-based facilities required to support the future fleet.
• Complete the OPP environmental response equipment procurements.
• Complete the OPP Radar and OpNet projects.
• Initiate the full implementation of the lifecycle management program for environmental response assets.
• Complete the manufacturing of the four-season buoys (52 buoys) in the St. Lawrence sector.
• Renew the College’s IT infrastructure to benefit students, increase bandwidth, and offer remote training over the internet.
• Add new operational oceanic forecast data from Environment and Climate Change Canada into the Coast Guard’s Canadian Search and Rescue program system (CANSARP) to improve surface current prediction data.

Strategic pillar 3: Our Services

As the marine operating arm of the Canadian Government, the Coast Guard delivers a broad range of mandated maritime services to Canadians and those using our waters that are aimed at saving lives, enhancing maritime safety, supporting maritime commerce, and protecting the marine environment.

By virtue of being a horizontal, multi-mission, multi-tasking organization, the Coast Guard is able to leverage the people, fleet, and shore-based assets that enable the delivery of our programs to provide a valuable contribution to other government departments and to new and emerging Government of Canada initiatives. We remain committed to implementing the OPP, supporting the Blue Economy and Greening Government Strategies, assisting partners in the science, environment, enforcement and security communities, and sustaining our partnerships with provincial, territorial, and municipal governments, and Indigenous partners, communities, and governments.

A blue economy is about harnessing the potential of our oceans, seas, lakes, and rivers — resources that Canada is privileged to have in abundance — to make life better for all. As the federal government works with valued partners and stakeholders to develop a comprehensive Blue Economy Strategy for Canada, the Coast Guard will develop a strategy to advance the modernization of marine navigation programs and safety services, including e-navigation/digital waterways initiatives, and guide investments in aids to navigation and marine communications and traffic services.

Under the updated Greening Government Strategy, the Government of Canada has committed to reducing its own operational greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. This means taking action to lower these emissions from its buildings, conventional fleet, national safety and security operations, procurement activities, as well as ensuring its operations and assets are resilient to a changing climate. The new strategy includes, for the first time, Canada’s national safety and security (NSS) fleet, which directly implicates the Coast Guard.

The implementation of the Coast Guard’s Arctic Region demonstrates our commitment to advancing reconciliation and working in collaboration with Inuit, First Nations, and Métis governments and organizations in the North. We are working collaboratively to identify the future of Coast Guard services in the Canadian Arctic as we continue to see important changes to the marine environment due to climate change, an associated increase in vessel traffic and international interest, and a longer Arctic navigation season.

Demands for our services continue to grow, and we are ever mindful of the need to listen to the various stakeholders we serve and assess how we respond to changing requirements and expectations within the context of our mandated programs and services, including the provision of ships and helicopters in support of other federal departments’ mandates. This requires exploring new ways of doing business with technological innovations such as e-Navigation and digitalization, and enhancing partnerships for program and service delivery.

Under the OPP, the Canadian Coast Guard received funding to advance a plan centering on four main priorities:

• Creating a world-leading marine safety system that improves responsible shipping and protects Canada’s waters, including new preventative and response measures;
• Taking measures to address abandoned boats and wrecks;
• Strengthening partnerships and launching co-management practices with Indigenous partners, including building local emergency response capacity; and
• Investing in oil spill cleanup research and methods to ensure that decisions taken in emergencies are evidence based.

Over this business planning cycle we will continue to fulfill our contributions to the OPP, including strengthening Canada’s MCTS centres by enhancing radar capacity and capability to monitor maritime traffic, which provides more complete and accurate maritime situational awareness and contributes to a stronger marine safety system.

With the aim of improving prevention of and response to marine pollution incidents, we will also continue implementing Alternative Response Measures (ARMs) in collaboration with key federal partners. This initiative – which is about expanding the Coast Guard’s response toolbox – would authorize the use of specific ARMs in Canada to respond to certain types of pollution events when there is likely to be a net environmental benefit. The legislative amendment process is underway, as is the development of a framework that will underpin science support for evidence-based decision-making on the appropriate use of ARMs. The interdepartmental ARMs team is working to launch public engagement on the initiative to raise public awareness on the science of ARMs and to address public questions on the appropriate use of ARMs in Canada.

The Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) initiative has significant operational relevance and impact for the Coast Guard. In collaboration with federal partners, we will continue to work to strengthen Canada’s marine safety system by establishing a national framework with key programming elements to improve preparedness and response for ship-source/mystery spill HNS releases. In parallel, we will begin training responders on HNS releases from a health and safety perspective.

We are also seeking to support increased participation of Coastal Nations and communities across the country in the marine response regime through development and implementation of a Communications Portal for Integrated Incident Response (CPIIR) to enhance collaboration during on-water emergencies, events and exercises, and provide a platform for standardized usage of the Incident Command System (ICS). As the Coast Guard continues implementing the regional response planning process developed through the OPP, CPIIR is intended to become the primary communication tool that will link the Coast Guard to its Indigenous and community partners, as well as other responsible authorities, through all stages of a marine incident. The Coast Guard will be engaging with regional Response Organizations to identify opportunities to support interoperability with systems that may be in place and consult with Indigenous partners on requirements.

Many of the projects under the OPP were conceived as a means of supplementing, enhancing or expanding existing services and functions, while others were developed as pilots and prototypes. A major focus of this business planning cycle will be to assess the results of the projects to help inform next steps, including transitioning of some projects into ongoing, “in service” programs.

Commitment:

• Produce an annual activity report, provided at the end of fiscal year.

The Impact Assessment Act and the Canadian Energy Regulator Act have established better rules for major resource projects aimed at protecting the environment and communities, advancing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, and ensuring that sustainable projects can proceed. As a result of this strengthened federal governance, the Coast Guard now has an important role to play in the process of assessing major resource project proposals when there is a marine shipping component.

We are currently monitoring or supporting the impact assessment and related processes for a number of proposed major resource and related infrastructure projects spread across each of the organization’s four regions, such as the Laurentia Project, the Tilbury Marine Jetty Project, and the Roberts Bank Terminal 2 Project (RBT2). We continue to implement and support federal coordination and governance of the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) Project, which continues to be a federal priority.

A signature initiative under the TMX is the Co-Developing Community Response accommodation measure that seeks to address Indigenous groups’ concerns about the risks of increased project-related tanker traffic to marine activities, the environment, and culturally important and sacred sites in their traditional territories. As part of this initiative, the Canadian Coast Guard identifies information, tools, and services with the objective to improve information sharing with coastal Indigenous groups and response partners and help facilitate preparedness and response capabilities and safety for eligible coastal Indigenous groups.

Over the next few years, the Coast Guard will continue to be actively engaged in a number of impact and environmental assessment processes involving marine shipping associated with proposed projects or the potential environmental effects. This involves a range of work, such as assessing information requested from proponents about project impacts and proposed mitigation measures, providing expertise and examining the impacts to Coast Guard programs and levels of service, contributing to the whole of government responses, supporting Indigenous consultation processes, and identifying timely programmatic responses to mitigate project impacts and address impacts on Indigenous rights.

• Actively contribute to an NRCan-led whole of government TMX renewal approach, and continue to coordinate implementation of TMX.

The Canadian Coast Guard is committed to providing its many clients with the best services possible within its available resources.

Established levels of service (LoS) are a cornerstone of Coast Guard service delivery and provide our clients with a clear understanding of the services to be expected. The published LoS contribute to ensuring that services are delivered in a nationally consistent, integrated, predictable, measurable, and equitable fashion over time and under normal operating circumstances.

A multi-year initiative is currently underway to update LoS for the Icebreaking, Aids to Navigation (AtoN) Waterways Management, MCTS, SAR, and Environmental Response (ER) programs. These reviews will enable us to update each program’s LoS to better reflect changes in marine navigation technology and practices and provide an opportunity to understand current user/client needs. The review process will take place within the framework of internationally and nationally mandated commitments and include input from internal and external stakeholders, including DFO and other Federal departments and agencies who partner with the Coast Guard, United States Coast Guard service partners, industry, Indigenous partners, and the general public.

The LoS have undergone an internal review by Coast Guard program experts, with the next phase focusing on the external engagement phase of the review, which includes the use of a newly developed online survey tool to gather feedback from service users and the public. The Coast Guard is seeking ideas and proposals surrounding ways to improve service delivery while balancing the needs and expectations of service users within available resources.

• Launch online survey;
• Summarize feedback received;
• Consult with internal and external stakeholders on proposed changes; and
• Publish new LoS.

Key to successfully meeting established LoS is maximizing Coast Guard program readiness, which is the organizational ability to meet program and service demands. As part of its LoS review, the Coast Guard is undertaking a readiness assessment to evaluate the potential gaps between current and anticipated future mission requirements and current resources, authority, capacity, and capability, and establish a readiness profile. This assessment will include people, assets, and governance.

• People readiness means having the right people, with the right competencies and experience, in the right place, at the right time and is a key component of our People Pillar.
• Asset readiness enables operational reach with operational sustainability and is a key component of both our Asset and Services Pillars.
• Separate from the people and assets, there are many intangible contributing factors to readiness, which govern both the relationships between, and the manner in which the other elements are used to drive program readiness. Strengthening national policies, processes, procedures, and other governance mechanisms to effectively support program readiness is a key component of our Governance Pillar.
• Develop a readiness profile for each response program (Environmental Response, Search and Rescue and Vessels of Concern) focusing on an assessment of the three principal elements of readiness (people, assets, and capacity demand) in order to identify gaps between current needs and anticipated future mission requirements.
• Develop a readiness profile for all marine navigation programs.

In support of our program readiness objective, the Coast Guard will develop a modernization strategy for marine navigation programs and safety services. Following international trends to digitalize marine navigation tools and services, the Coast Guard will transform its service mechanisms to provide timely and standardized information to mariners such as safety, environmental data, ice and weather conditions, vessel traffic, channel depths, speed restrictions, and marine protected areas.

The modernization strategy will examine how to better deliver Coast Guard's core navigation programs—aids to navigation, waterways management, icebreaking, MCTS, and e-Navigation—including leveraging new technologies, using more sensor data, and advancing our ability to collect, process, synthesize and analyze data, and readily exchange it with our partners in an integrated and streamlined way. This will require integration of existing programs, systems, and tools to deliver seamless, efficient, and real-time services to maritime clients and federal, provincial, territorial, and Indigenous partners.

Part of this initiative will look at enhancing maritime domain awareness to ensure we are equipped to continue monitoring, detecting, identifying, and responding to incidents and events in Canadian waters and internationally, as well as to support the security and enforcement community's maritime domain awareness requirements.

The modernization initiative is comprised of four elements to effectively scope, plan and implement it:

• Establish technical requirements and innovative solutions;
• Engage and mobilize Coast Guard employees to develop, shape, and implement this initiative;
• Develop and maintain strong and meaningful collaborations to ensure access to robust tools, data, and systems; and
• Provide the necessary framework to shift to digitalization of services.

Digitalizing the Coast Guard's and other federal partner's services will make marine navigation information more readily accessible to those who need it - for marine safety and navigation, environmental and marine mammal protection, increased maritime domain awareness, and in support of local, regional, and national economies.

A roadmap has been created to lay out the path forward for all e-Navigation related sub-projects, a number of which have already yielded deliverables, including the e-Navigation portal now being fully operational. The Waterways Information System (WIS) and Automatic Identification System Application Specific Messages (ASM) are also in operation, with improvements planned and required to achieve full operational capability. The Collaboration Voyage Management System (CVMS) is funded and scheduled for delivery in Spring 2023. Other initiatives on the roadmap are either in design, in the planning stage, or in the implementation stage.

The Coast Guard is also undertaking efforts to update its “ Système d'information de positionnement des aides ” (SIPA) system, which was originally implemented 30 years ago and which supports the tracking and management of information related to more than 17,000 aids to navigation, design requirements, design and review methodology, production of the List of Lights, Buoys and Fog Signals publication, and Notices to Mariners publication. The system software and interface have been modified over the years to maintain operability but are no longer compatible with current technologies and environments. The new system should have an architecture and design that would allow for exchange of information with other areas and systems specifications for aids to navigation, adhere to the International Hydrographic Organization's (IHO) requirements, and meet international shipping requirements in Canadian waters.

Considerable progress has been made to date with the next steps being to continue the efforts required to finalize the business requirements and work with other areas to establish a solution design that aligns with IHO standards, Canadian Hydrographic Services (CHS), and e-Navigation from a holistic marine navigation programs perspective.

• Develop a strategy to advance the modernization of marine navigation programs and safety systems including e-Navigation/digital waterways initiatives and guide investments in aids to navigation and MCTS.
• Complete the requirements analysis and preliminary design for renewing SIPA.

It is critical to ensure that the Coast Guard can successfully adapt to a shifting operational landscape, meet future operational requirements, and ensure continuity of service. The Coast Guard is establishing a robust innovation and experimentation approach that will accelerate the adoption of effective technological advances within the organization, designed to address future capability and needs. The goal is to support the Coast Guard’s long-term sustainable development and modernization aspirations and goals and ensure targeted investments towards tested technologies, systems, and processes, resulting in value for money for Canadians. The focus is on developing data and intelligence to support decision-making, drive strategic planning, and promote collaboration and coordination for innovation efforts across the Coast Guard and the whole of government, with investments in small-scale testing and experimentation guiding where larger investments can be made with greater confidence of success.

Innovating our program and service delivery where it makes sense to do so will increase our flexibility and capacity and provide stronger services to Canadians over the near and long term. We are deepening our efforts to foster innovation that provides practical solutions for a variety of known or emerging operational requirements that improve service delivery, reliability, efficiency, and emissions reduction.

The Coast Guard is committed to reducing emissions and environmental impacts in the areas of: fuel procurement (including low-carbon fuels); fleet procurement (including energy-efficient platforms); operational efficiency; and net-zero research and innovation. The overarching goal driving these environmental considerations is Canada’s target of net-zero emissions by 2050. The Coast Guard will work hard to contribute to the target.

Our contribution will come in various forms, including through a variety of innovative projects, research groups and task forces, and assessment of alternate power, which may contribute to the implementation of several key Government of Canada initiatives, particularly the United Nations Paris Agreement, the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy, and the Greening Government Strategy. A study on the operational impacts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) has been completed and is now in review. A fulsome study on low-emission fuels is in the planning stages.

Implementation of autonomous vehicles (including air, surface, and sub-surface) technology is a logical operational progression for the Coast Guard due to the ability of these systems to perform long-endurance missions in challenging environmental conditions. Their use increases personnel safety, reduces our carbon footprint, and allows for mission performance in conditions that may not otherwise be possible. The Coast Guard has several autonomous vehicles projects underway, including near-shore and off-shore operations supporting SAR, conservation and protection, maritime security, and icebreaking. In each case, coordination with the regulatory bodies is underway to ensure mission completion, and to better inform regulators of Coast Guard requirements. This year will see trials of a multi-sensor, rapidly deployable vertical take-off and landing drone surveillance system to be deployed on select Coast Guard vessels to test surveillance ranges for SAR and iceberg tracking missions.

• Support the development of a decarbonization plan; and
• Support the collaborative work around Greening Government Fund projects.
• Continue to engage externally across a spectrum of areas in support of long-term sustainable development and climate change mitigation and adaptation opportunities.
• Improve oversight and accountability of the Coast Guard’s Innovation program by implementing a three-year planning horizon to identify, vet, and sequence innovation initiatives supported by detailed workplans and reporting.
• Completion of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) readiness study involving multiple Coast Guard areas, designed to identify the current state of Coast Guard’s capacity to potentially onboard AI and machine learning technologies over the next decade.

Strategic pillar 4: Our Governance

The international standard on social responsibility, ISO 26000, defines organizational governance as “a system by which an organization makes and implements decisions in pursuit of its objectives.” Governance systems include the management processes designed to deliver on performance objectives while considering stakeholder interests. The Coast Guard believes that good governance is participatory, consensus-oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable, and inclusive.

The organizational changes announced for national headquarters in 2019 have made the Coast Guard a more unified and stronger national institution, as did the creation of the Arctic Region. During this business planning cycle we will continue to strengthen national policies, processes, procedures, and systems to enhance decision-making, preparedness, delivery, and accountability, and enable our headquarters and four regions to function smoothly and seamlessly as one united Coast Guard.

Stakeholder interests are at the forefront of our decision-making, and strengthening stakeholder engagement both internally and externally will continue to be a priority in all our governance undertakings.

The Coast Guard is a response organization and as such our fleet and regional front-line personnel often need to take quick action in the field. Having nationally consistent policies, standards, methods, procedures, and systems provides clarity around decision-making, enhances the effectiveness of program and service delivery across the country, and provides a framework that fosters future-looking strategic thinking. This national consistency facilitates the development of internal planning capabilities that in turn ensures we remain well-positioned for current and future implementation.

Consistent with the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat’s Policy on Results, the Coast Guard has established a governance structure to promote results-based decision-making and clear accountabilities. Internal executive board committees and sub-committees have been established across all Coast Guard directorates and regions, all of which report to the Canadian Coast Guard Management Board, which is the senior advisory body to the Commissioner.

The need for a solid governance framework extends to external partnerships as well. As an example, the Response Directorate is currently engaged in the development of a Canadian Coast Guard Mass Rescue Operations – Maritime (MRO-M) framework document, which is based on information collected over years of consultation with internal programs and external partners, including the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), and which defines the roles and responsibilities in the event of a mass rescue operation. The framework also seeks to further delineate the communication intervals and pathways required between the regions, national headquarters, and other stakeholders, to allow Coast Guard senior management and staff to carry out the swift and decisive actions needed in an incident of this scope. There is a need for common language and a mutual understanding of roles, responsibilities, intent, and reporting lines internally for the Coast Guard, and between the Coast Guard and other SAR partners and stakeholders during a mass rescue operation, and to align the plan with existing large-scale incident plans within CAF, other federal SAR partners, regional plans within Coast Guard, and provincial consequence management plans. The first draft of the framework document has been completed and is currently being reviewed by other Coast Guard programs and SAR partners prior to validating the document through exercise and finalizing it. This will provide Coast Guard staff at the regional and headquarters levels with a better understanding of the reporting requirements and intervals for effective actions during a mass rescue operation in the maritime domain and align Coast Guard and CAF operations and expectations when responding to large-scale SAR incidents.

The Canadian Coast Guard is a data-heavy organization, and the successful two-year Business Intelligence/Business Analytics (BI/BA) pilot project showcased the value of optimizing the use of that data to guide decision-making. The emergence of low-cost self-service tools make business analytics possible without significant infrastructure investments, and while the pilot focused exclusively on using integrated business management services data, it clearly demonstrated that services to Canadians could benefit immensely from automation, predictive analysis, and artificial intelligence applications to Coast Guard programs.

A further BI/BA project was recently launched that focuses on seagoing personnel data. As a result, the Canadian Coast Guard is now equipped with internal, on-demand dashboards showcasing demographics that are automatically updated daily to help inform decision-making. These dashboards have provided insight into questions regarding crewing the fleet of the future, such as employee retention, costs of leave banks, training strategies, and retirement projections.

Given the advantages of enhanced BI/BA, during the cycle of this business plan, the Coast Guard will be furthering its BI/BA strategy with a view to:

• Digitize business processes: streamlining, digitizing, and automating business processes to meet the expectations and reap the benefits of new data policies;
• Data enablement: making data that Coast Guard generates or uses accessible, understandable, actionable, and secure;
• Solutions enablement: transforming the data into valuable business intelligence or predictive analytics to support program decision-making;
• Training and support: providing training and support to employees on general data literacy as well as more technical training on BI and analytics; and
• Data strategy and governance: Creating and leading the implementation of a Coast Guard data and analysis strategy to complement the departmental strategy.

Departmental initiatives

As part of a departmental initiative, the Coast Guard has replaced its financial system with the Government of Canada standard SAP which went live in April 2021. This will enhance many of the processes the Coast Guard uses daily, including procurement, payments, managing assets and inventories, and developing budgets, and will provide valuable support to our strategic decision-making, as well as enable statutory reporting.

We are also moving ahead with GCdocs, the official electronic document and records management solution used to create, collect, and preserve information classified up to the level of “Protected B”. As an enterprise-wide platform, GCdocs facilitates the digital approach to the way Coast Guard works, replacing the vast network of shared drives with a single repository. Accessed via both desktops and mobile platforms, GCdocs fully integrates with the Government of Canada Correspondence Management System, MS Office (including email), SAP, and GCCase, and enables the digital Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) process.

The Coast Guard, in keeping with the rest of DFO, is also working towards adopting accrual budgeting as a mechanism to ensure long-term capital funding to support the investment and lifecycle management of all its asset portfolios. The adoption of accrual budgeting—which could occur during this business plan cycle—would position the Department to leverage its asset portfolio to better support the delivery of Government priorities across the spectrum of programs and services.

• Transport Canada/Coast Guard MOU – Environmental Response (ER) Annex.
• Environment and Climate Change Canada/Coast Guard MOU.
• DFO Science/Coast Guard ER MOU.
• Complete the development of the Vessels of Concern program as identified under OPP and initiate the transition into service starting April 2022.
• Define the Coast Guard incident response and incident management strategy by updating the Incident Command System (ICS) Plan for Incident Management, including amongst other aspects, greater clarity for command and control structures to effectively respond to maritime incidents.
• Develop an ICS/Incident Management training strategy, building on the successes of the ICS training approach during ICS implementation to ensure enhancements are made to ICS/Incident Management training in both official languages.
• Develop a strategy to enhance continuous improvement/lessons learned processes and procedures to inform future exercises and training activities, thereby improving mission readiness.
• Optimize the helicopter program and develop a strategy and concept of operation for the inclusion of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in Coast Guard operations.
• Work toward a more predictable costing model that incorporates a fixed salary cost for each vessel.
• Initiate a comprehensive MCTS workload analysis following the program’s modernization and consolidation projects and explore additional force development opportunities for the MCTS program including innovative solutions and options to training.
• Develop a Canadian Coast Guard-specific Agency Risk Profile that aligns with the Agency’s Integrated Business and Human Resources Plan strategic pillars and objectives.

The Coast Guard serves many different stakeholders, with varied, and sometimes competing, interests. Key stakeholders include:

• Fisheries and Oceans Canada;
• Other government departments;
• Other levels of government;
• International organizations;
• Indigenous partners;
• Coastal communities;
• The international shipping community;
• Academic institutions such as Cape Breton University, which grants degrees to Canadian Coast Guard College graduates;
• Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs);
• The Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary;
• The United States Coast Guard; and
• The general public.

The Coast Guard collaborates internally as well as externally with stakeholders through several engagement mechanisms in order to advance the Coast Guard’s mandate and Government of Canada and international priorities.

To strengthen the Coast Guard’s internal capacity to manage and benefit from engagement with industry, the Coast Guard will implement an Industry Engagement Strategy in the coming year. The strategy outlines a series of objectives to increase the Coast Guard’s collective knowledge of the marine industry, improve prioritization of partnerships and activities, enhance information flow within the Coast Guard, and more effectively engage partners and networks. The establishment of an industry engagement working group and an annual process to set and review priorities will facilitate a more coherent, coordinated approach to our relationships with industry.

One of the main mechanisms for industry engagement is the National Marine Advisory Board (NMAB), which serves as a permanent forum for discussion between the Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard and Canada’s shipping industry. Discussion is focused on the needs of marine transportation, the strategic plans and priorities of the Coast Guard, and the services the Coast Guard provides to its clients. NMAB meetings are held biannually in the spring and fall and are co-chaired by the Commissioner and an elected industry representative. NMAB currently has two subcommittees, which focus on Marine Navigation and e-Navigation.

The Regional Marine Advisory Boards (RMABs) bring together Coast Guard and industry to discuss issues of mutual concern related to operations, planning, and Coast Guard services. The boards meet in the spring and fall and are co-chaired by the regional Assistant Commissioners and an industry representative. The regional boards are the Western Marine Advisory Board, Arctic Marine Advisory Board, Great Lakes Marine Advisory Board, Maritime Seacoast Advisory Board, and the Newfoundland and Labrador Advisory Board. The Coast Guard also attends meetings of the Groupe conseil maritime as observer.

The Coast Guard also actively engages with industry through the national and regional Canadian Marine Advisory Council (CMAC), a consultative body coordinated by Transport Canada (TC) that represents parties with an interest in shipping, navigation, and marine pollution matters. Through its standing committees and working groups, CMAC advises TC on matters related to its mandate, including regulatory and legislative issues, operations, and services. National-level CMAC meetings are held biannually, with five regional CMACs organized with varying levels of engagement with the Coast Guard.

The regulatory framework that supports Canada’s marine safety regime is built on international and domestic agreements and commitments — all focused first and foremost on preventing accidents from occurring. In addition to supporting Transport Canada in the work of CMAC and the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the Coast Guard takes a lead role at the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA) by contributing to the development of international standards for marine aids to navigation and related services through active participation at its four technical committees and supporting sub-groups.

The Coast Guard participates internationally in three regional coast guard fora and one global forum, namely: the Arctic Coast Guard Forum (ACGF), the North Atlantic Coast Guard Forum (NACGF), and the North Pacific Coast Guard Forum (NPCGF), as well as the Coast Guard Global Summit (CGGS). These multilateral fora bring together coast guard and maritime organizations from relevant regions to share expertise and best practices in support of a safer and more secure marine environment.

The Coast Guard is currently advancing three bilateral cooperation plans—the Danish Joint Arctic Command (JACO), the Norwegian Coastal Administration (NCA), and the Norwegian Coast Guard (NoCG). These cooperation plans, which are national in scope, are the result of previously agreed-upon initiatives and commitments made by the Commissioner to international partners and were developed based on extensive and comprehensive consultations throughout the organization.

The Canada-United States Coast Guard Summit is an annual meeting between the Canadian Coast Guard and the USCG that brings together representatives from across both organizations to discuss issues of mutual importance. A cornerstone engagement for the Coast Guard, the summit is a unique opportunity to strengthen communication and cooperation at the senior, operational, and regional levels. Nationally, the two coast guards work closely throughout our shared waterways, including shared icebreaking duties on the Great Lakes; collaboration in marine environmental emergencies (guided by the Canada-US Joint Contingency Plan); SAR operations; vessel traffic management; and AtoN management.

On behalf of Canada, the Canadian Coast Guard is now chairing the Arctic Council’s Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response (EPPR) Working Group from 2021 to 2023 and coordinates the participation of Canadian technical experts from eight federal departments and agencies. This is one of six working groups of the Arctic Council, which is the leading intergovernmental forum promoting cooperation, coordination, and interaction among the Arctic States, Arctic Indigenous peoples, and other Arctic inhabitants on common issues related to sustainable development and environmental protection. The EPPR Working Group’s work to address gaps, prepare strategies, share information, and enable exercises for large-scale oil spill and SAR operations will be advanced via three expert groups – Marine Environmental Response, Radiation, and Search and Rescue.

In support of the Federal priority of keeping Canadians and Canadian interests secure, both at home and abroad, the Coast Guard is also strengthening its maritime security capacity-building assistance to developing countries. Coast Guard skills in maritime domain awareness empower partner nations to detect, monitor, and ultimately respond to activity in their waters, and information sharing allows for a multinational response and prevents maritime insecurity from spreading. These efforts are complemented by SAR training, enabling partner nations to mitigate heightened threats to human life stemming from illicit activity. Multinational capacity-building deployments are supported by strategic international fora, with the value of our international presence and expertise now recognized by Global Affairs Canada, who have added Coast Guard to positions with the G7++ Friends of Gulf of Guinea, G7 Roma Lyon Group, and IMO working groups. These fora provide an opportunity to influence regional maritime codes of conduct in East and West Africa and advance Coast Guard’s reputation as a credible, reliable security partner. Future engagements—strategically, bilaterally, and multilaterally—are becoming available as the Coast Guard continues to grow this influence internationally, with the goal of establishing this as an enduring program.

With almost all Coast Guard sectors engaging in international activities, the International Engagement Strategy (IES) is intended to identify coherent priorities and deliverables to guide and coordinate the organization’s engagement with international partners towards activities that provide the most value to the Coast Guard. The IES represents the first organization-wide international priority-setting exercise and will enable us to pursue a more strategic and integrated departmental approach to international engagement. The IES will also support situational awareness of international activities across sectors, articulate specific opportunities to pursue international engagements that support our mandate and priorities, and highlight tools available to support international engagement.

Consultation, engagement, and co-management are at the heart of the Government of Canada’s agenda and the Canadian Coast Guard’s governance framework. It is therefore vital that we have the capability to provide an accurate account of stakeholder encounters and relationships with various stakeholders. The partners database, which is rolling out this year, is a client relationship management tool created to record stakeholder engagements and enable us to move from planning to managing stakeholder relationships in an informed and efficient manner, ensuring continuity and relevance in its approach. It will also enable us to monitor and track progress against the International and Industry Engagement Strategies.

• Continue to engage Coast Guard stakeholders to inform Coast Guard’s priorities so we continue to better serve our clients.

Meaningful relationships and dialogue with Indigenous groups are part of the foundation of various Coast Guard fora, particularly regional governance structures that promote ongoing collaboration to exchange information and discuss shared objectives.

The Coast Guard has made progress in supporting self-determination, improving service delivery, and advancing reconciliation. To accelerate and build on the progress we have made, we will continue to engage with Inuit, Métis, and First Nations partners to advance Canada’s reconciliation agenda through practical partnerships with Indigenous peoples, and by enhancing capacity to support safety and security in Canadian waters.

Collaboration with Indigenous and coastal communities is key to strengthening marine safety and protection of the marine environment, including concerns raised in relation to proposed major resource and infrastructure projects. Our support to the Indigenous Community Boat Volunteer Pilot program and implementation of Canada’s first Indigenous-led Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary clearly demonstrate our commitment to increased participation of Indigenous communities and other partners across the country in marine incident response.

The Coast Guard has developed an evergreen Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) pursuant to the larger DFO-Coast Guard Reconciliation Strategy and the Government of Canada’s mandate to advance reconciliation. The objective of the RAP is to continue to build internal capacity to advance reconciliation through the Minister’s mandate of helping to advance self-determination, close socio-economic gaps, improve service delivery, and eliminate systemic barriers facing Indigenous peoples in matters related to fisheries, oceans, aquatic habitat, and marine waterways. The Coast Guard’s specific contributions to these endeavors involve building meaningful partnerships with Indigenous communities and finding new and innovative ways to engage with Indigenous partners to increase Indigenous involvement in core Coast Guard business lines and improving peripheral business connections through mutually beneficial agreements, procurement, and recruitment and retention initiatives. The RAP identifies concrete actions that contribute to creating an inclusive and welcoming work force and responds to the Clerk’s Call to Action on anti-racism, equity, and inclusion in the federal public service.

The Coast Guard RAP highlights commitments made by all directorates and regions to both build our internal capacity to strengthen relationships with Indigenous partners as well as to support the relationships themselves. Priority commitments will be chosen annually based upon review of any mandate updates and alignment with Coast Guard’s Strategic Framework and the Management Board-approved sequencing view, which identifies all Indigenous-focused priorities for the year.

For fiscal year 2021-2022, the Coast Guard’s three priority commitments feature increasing procurement of Indigenous products and services, prioritized recruitment of Indigenous staff, and cultural awareness training for staff.

• Collaborate with Indigenous and coastal communities to address their marine safety and environmental response concerns, including those associated with proposed major resource and infrastructure projects, (e.g., implementation of TMX accommodation measures).
• Support negotiations of reconciliation agreements, arrangements, and frameworks.
• Create a Strategic Framework to guide how Coast Guard will continue to provide ongoing collaboration with Indigenous partners.
• Through relevant Coast Guard governance structures, ensure that Indigenous concerns and interests are widely understood across the agency and increasingly embedded in policies, programs, and activities.

In a move to put Inuit, First Nations, and Métis in the North at the heart of decision-making in the Canadian Arctic, DFO and the Canadian Coast Guard created a new region focused specifically on the Arctic in 2018. This region is inclusive of all Inuit Nunangat regions in Canada, as well as the remainder of the Northwest Territories, and Hudson Bay and James Bay and the communities that reside along their shores.

One of the priorities of the Arctic Region is to advance reconciliation with its Inuit, First Nations, and Métis partners. To implement this mandate the Coast Guard is working with its partners to identify priorities, and take a distinctions-based approach to better align and enhance program and service delivery in the North.

The Canadian Arctic constitutes nearly half of Canada's landmass and a large portion of Canada's coastline, and is home to more than 120,000 inhabitants, the majority of whom are Inuit, with a smaller number of First Nations and Métis peoples. In support of Arctic community safety and protection of the Arctic marine environment, the Coast Guard works closely with partners to lead and support response in a variety of emergency situations. Demand for Coast Guard services in the Arctic and risk in the marine environment are increasing significantly due to melting ice, increased vessel traffic, increased population and local boating activity, and growing international interest in the Arctic.

As part of the priorities of the Inuit Crown Partnership Committee, the Coast Guard is establishing a governance framework in collaboration with Inuit organizations and governments to support program and service delivery priorities in Inuit Nunangat. The Coast Guard is also working in collaboration with Inuit, First Nations, and Métis organizations and government to advance the priorities under the Arctic and Northern Policy Framework, including safety and security in the Arctic.

• Develop a Coast Guard Arctic Strategy.
• Collaborate with Inuit organizations and government to support the implementation of service delivery priorities in Inuit Nunangat in alignment with the Inuit Nunangat Policy, under the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee.

The Canadian Coast Guard’s budget is determined annually. The Agency’s budget of $1.775 billion (for 2021-2022) includes $779.54 million for day-to-day operations. These funds are primarily allocated to regions to deliver front line services to mariners in lakes, rivers, and ocean areas, as well as to grants and contributions to eligible parties to build capacity and support service delivery.

The remaining amount includes a capital budget of $950.27 million, which supports the Coast Guard’s five-year integrated investment plan. This includes investments in:

• Vessel life extensions
• Refurbishing and replacing infrastructure, equipment, and systems
• Implementing initiatives under the Oceans Protection Plan
• Supporting major projects such as the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) Project

See Annex D, for additional information on Canadian Coast Guard financials.

The Coast Guard is a Special Operating Agency – the largest in the Government of Canada – within Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

The Coast Guard is led by the Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard who is supported by two Deputy Commissioners within headquarters (Shipbuilding and Materiel, and Operations), the Director General, Personnel, as well as Assistant Commissioners for each region (Atlantic, Arctic, Central and Western).

Figure 1: The organizational structure of the Coast Guard and the senior management reporting relationships.

The following chart depicts the organizational structure of the Canadian Coast Guard and the senior management reporting relationships. The Coast Guard is led by a Commissioner who is supported by a Deputy Commissioner, Shipbuilding and Materiel, a Deputy Commissioner, Operations, and a Director General, Personnel. The Coast Guard is comprised of four regions spanning coast to coast to coast and includes the newly established Arctic region, along with the Atlantic, Central, and Western regions. Each region is led by an Assistant Commissioner who reports to the Commissioner.

Coast Guard sectors, directorates, programs and regions

The Coast Guard organization includes its headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario, and four regions.

Headquarters is responsible to provide functional leadership to the regions in support of program delivery to ensure consistency in the design and delivery of programs nationally.

Regions are responsible for regional program delivery, in support of national program objectives, including the building and management of relationships with partners and other stakeholders, and the provision of regional expertise in the design and delivery of national programs. While all four regions deliver core Coast Guard programs, the focus in each region is different, depending on climate, geography, and client needs.

Operations Sector

The Operations Sector, headquartered in Ottawa, includes three Directorates: Fleet and Maritime Services; Response; and Innovation, Planning and Engagement.

The Fleet and Maritime Services (FMS) Directorate has national functional authority for the fleet, operational planning, maritime security—including maritime domain awareness, support to security partners, maritime cybersecurity, and international capacity building—and marine navigational programs, which includes management of aids to navigation, marine communications and traffic services (MCTS), and icebreaking.

The Directorate focuses on: developing operational requirements for the new classes of ships identified in Coast Guard’s fleet renewal plan; ensuring operational capability and readiness of Coast Guard’s fleet of ships and helicopters; ab-initio training, a national program that benefits all regions in recruitment for MCTS centres; stabilizing the work on e-Navigation within the Coast Guard; initiating a comprehensive MCTS workload analysis following the program’s modernization and consolidation projects; progressing the levels of service review for Coast Guard’s Icebreaking program; and the modernization of marine navigation and safety services, and implementing the Coast Guard’s involvement in national maritime security efforts.

The Response Directorate has national functional authority for the response programs: Environmental Response (ER), Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR), and the implementation of the new Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act that aims to address Vessels of Concern, and is the organizational lead on Incident Management. The Directorate focuses on: the safety and well-being of employees; stabilizing their organizational structure; developing and strengthening relationships within Response, the Coast Guard, external partners and other government departments; supporting the development/operationalization of the Arctic; advancing an emergency management structure within the Coast Guard; research and development to optimize the way we do business; and continuing to support, develop and implement Ocean Protection Plan initiatives.

While the Coast Guard regions deliver the Response and Fleet and Maritime Services programs, the headquarters Response, and Fleet and Maritime Services teams support them through strategies and problem solving to support effective and efficient delivery.

The Innovation, Planning and Engagement Directorate provides national leadership for the consistent integration, management, and coordination of the Canadian Coast Guard’s strategic and horizontal planning, which encompasses budget planning, corporate and performance reporting, and risk management. It also leads internal communications and public events, external engagement with domestic and international partners and service users and Indigenous partners, and innovation initiatives, both technological and process oriented.

The delivery of Canadian Coast Guard operational programs and services involves seamless collaboration between the individual program centres of expertise and the Fleet Operational Capability program. The result of this collaboration is the optimal delivery of programs and services on the water using Coast Guard vessels, air cushioned vehicles and small craft, and in the air and on land using Coast Guard helicopters. It falls to the individual program areas to determine the service user needs, the required geographic coverage, and the appropriate prioritization of the service delivery. The front-line delivery of services on the water or in the air is the responsibility of the fleet.

To accomplish this, a key priority of the sector is to ensure that Coast Guard has the right people, equipment and training to meet growing expectations and respond effectively.

To build on that commitment, the Coast Guard must continue to strengthen the strong relationships we have developed with our partners to ensure interoperability and a common, consistent approach, both domestically and internationally. Domestically, this is accomplished through a variety of partnerships, including DFO Science and Conservation and Protection, Transport Canada, National Defence, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the Canada Border Services Agency, and Environment and Climate Change Canada. Our Marine Security Operations Centres (MSOCs) are representative of our collaborations with other departments and agencies, where we work together to share information and intelligence in support of a whole-of-government response to potential marine threats and incidents. Internationally, the Coast Guard is enhancing its leadership at both the Arctic Council via the Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response Working Group and at the various Coast Guard fora.

The emergence of the global COVID‑19 pandemic has illustrated the importance of preparing our organization for a dynamic, unpredictable future. This includes developing scenarios for fleet needs in 10, 20, 30 years and beyond. To do that, Coast Guard Operations will continue to evolve as an agile, innovative sector aligned with operational requirements and practical applications.

These complex, uncertain times require an unprecedented level of leadership, cooperation, and forethought. Now, and in the coming years, Coast Guard Operations will take proactive, decisive action to address whatever challenges lay ahead.

Fleet Operational Capability

The Fleet Operational Capability program includes fleet operations, fleet management, and the staffing of fleet personnel. The program ensures that certified professionals safely operate vessels, air cushioned vehicles, helicopters, and small crafts and are ready to respond to on-water and marine-related needs.

The program is guided by a number of international conventions and domestic marine-related regulations such as the International Safety Management Code, the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code, and the International Labour Code (applicable to seafarers).

Search and Rescue

The Canadian Coast Guard’s maritime SAR program leads, delivers, and maintains preparedness for the maritime component of the federal SAR system. The Coast Guard’s international responsibilities include a 5.3 million km 2 area including inland waterways, the high Arctic, as well as the mid-Atlantic and Pacific. This is accomplished with the support of stakeholders and partners, including the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). In addition to dedicated primary Coast Guard SAR vessels and a seasonal inshore rescue boat program, every Coast Guard vessel has a secondary responsibility to support maritime SAR. Through communication, coordination, and the delivery of maritime SAR response and operational awareness, the program increases the chances of rescue for mariners caught in potentially dangerous on-water situations.

The Coast Guard’s SAR program:

• Jointly operates with the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) three Rescue Coordination Centres located in Victoria, British Columbia, Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Trenton, Ontario;
• Operates two Coast Guard Maritime Rescue Sub-Centres located in Quebec City, Quebec, and St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. All maintain an around-the-clock watch, poised to coordinate a joint Coast Guard/CAF response;
• Assists the Department of National Defence and other agencies in response to aeronautical and humanitarian incidents; and
• Maintains contribution agreements with six volunteer Coast Guard Auxiliary not-for-profit corporations, supporting a cadre of over 1,000 vessels and more than 4,000 volunteers.

Environmental Response

The Coast Guard’s Environmental Response program ensures an appropriate response to marine pollution incidents within 200 nautical miles of the coast of Canada. Its objective is to minimize the environmental, economic, and public safety impacts of marine pollution incidents.

As lead for the federal government responsible for marine ship-sourced and mystery spills, the Environmental Response program:

• Works with polluters and partners, including Indigenous partners, provinces and territories, response organizations, and other government departments, to coordinate responses to marine pollution incidents;
• Ensures there is an appropriate response to ship-source and mystery-source marine pollution incidents in Canadian waters, including oil and other pollutants; and
• Manages a response when polluters are unknown, unable or unwilling to respond.

Icebreaking Services

Canada is a maritime nation with two icebreaking seasons – the Canadian Arctic in the summer and Southern Canada (Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of St. Lawrence, St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes) in the winter. Given the challenges and extremes of Canadian geography and climate, icebreaking services are essential to facilitate safe and accessible navigation by Canadian and international commercial marine transportation sectors, keep Canadian Southern ports open during the winter, and to support community re-supply in the summer, and fishers through and around ice-covered Canadian waters.

The Icebreaking Services program:

• Provides ice-related information, operational awareness, and icebreaking support to vessels transiting through Canadian waters;
• Escorts ships through ice-covered waters and frees vessels beset in ice;
• Monitors, prevents, and breaks up ice jams for flood control;
• Facilitates the transportation of goods/supplies to northern communities; and
• Advances Arctic scientific research by providing support to government agencies, and industry operating in Canada’s Arctic.

Aids to Navigation

Canada’s aids to navigation system is the backbone of marine safety, accessibility of waters and efficiency of vessel movements. The program includes visual aids (such as buoys, lighted beacons, and light stations); aural aids (fog horns); radar aids (reflectors and beacons); and the testing of Automatic Information System (AIS) aids to navigation. The program is also responsible for the publication of marine safety information for public and industry consumption.

On a day-to-day basis, the Aids to Navigation program helps mariners navigate safely and efficiently by:

• Operating a robust system of floating, fixed, and digital aids to navigation;
• Monitoring and reviewing the reliability and relevance of the Canadian aids to navigation system;
• Designing aids to navigation systems to mitigate risks based on volume and type of traffic;
• Ensuring the application of national standards for aids to navigation;
• Providing marine safety information that pertains to the Aids to Navigation and Waterways Management programs, such as the Notices to Mariners (NOTMAR) and Canada’s List of Lights publications; and
• Regularly engaging with clients to gather data and discuss concerns or potential changes to any aids to navigation system to ensure that users’ input is taken into account.

Waterways Management

Canada’s waterways and maritime channels are the trade routes that ensure the safe, secure, and efficient movement of goods to Canadian and overseas markets. This program:

• Reduces marine navigation risks;
• Conducts channel maintenance and monitors channel beds;
• Manages water depth of commercial channels;
• Produces guidelines to ensure safe design and use of commercial navigation channels, based on international standards from the Permanent International Association of Navigation Congresses (PIANC); and
• Strengthens environmental protection for the commercial navigation.

The Waterways Management program supports the Canadian Coast Guard’s efforts for channel maintenance, as stated in the Oceans Act , by:

• Managing channel bottom surveys and providing information related to bottom channel conditions including depth of channels;
• Maintenance dredging of the St. Lawrence River shipping channel, on a cost-recovery basis, and portions of the Great Lakes connecting channels; and
• Provision of information on channel bottom conditions and available water level and forecasts, to ensure optimal and safe use of the available water depth in the commercial navigation channels.

The Waterways program is also a member of the International Joint Commission's Operations Advisory Group that contributes to the international control of water levels in the St. Lawrence River. Operations of the Waterways Management are working towards addressing industry ambitions to use larger vessels and supporting Canadian industry to remain competitive with global markets.

Maritime Security

In 2004, the Government of Canada identified the Coast Guard's on-water resources and maritime information collection capacity as having a key role in the support of national security. Under the Oceans Act , the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans, and the Canadian Coast Guard has the mandate to support other government departments and agencies by supplying ships, aircraft, and marine services. This includes Coast Guard support to federal security and law enforcement organizations.

As a maritime security partner within government, Coast Guard's Maritime Security program:

• Contributes to national maritime domain awareness by providing and analyzing data from the Coast Guard's Long-Range Identification and Tracking (LRIT) system, terrestrial Automatic Identification System (AIS), MCTS radar, and radio and observations made by its vessels and aircraft;
• Supports law enforcement by providing crews and vessels to the joint RCMP - Coast Guard Marine Security Enforcement Teams (MSETs) and in support of DFO Conservation and Protection;
• Provides strategic situational awareness and command, control and communications support to Coast Guard leadership through the 24/7 National Command Centre (NCC);
• Works collaboratively with other Canadian government maritime stakeholders and international partners to advance maritime cybersecurity in the face of ever-increasing threats;
• Manages the Coast Guard contribution to Canada's three marine security operations centres (MSOCs); and
• Supports maritime security capacity-building initiatives to develop skills, abilities, and processes to exercise power at sea to assist nations in developing maritime skills ranging from small boat operations and maintenance to SAR and environmental response procedures, while advancing Government of Canada international priorities.

Marine Communications and Traffic Services

Marine Communications and Traffic Services (MCTS) is a national program that provides communication for ships in distress, reduces the probability of vessel collisions and groundings through the monitoring of vessel traffic movements and is the cornerstone infrastructure for the collection and dissemination of marine information in Canadian waters. The MCTS program ensures a reliable communication system is available 24/7/365 to contribute to the safety of life at sea, the protection of the marine environment, the safe and efficient navigation of shipping in Canadian waterways, and maritime domain awareness.

Services include:

• Providing distress and safety communications and coordination to detect distress situations, and ensure timely assistance;
• Managing vessel traffic by providing timely information and assistance to vessels;
• Providing vessel screening to prevent the entry of unsafe vessels into Canadian waters;
• Managing an integrated marine information system that initiates the emergency response network and supports other government departments;
• Providing data on vessel positional information to the Coast Guard MSOCs, where it becomes an important component of maritime domain awareness used to enhance Canada’s maritime security; and
• Monitoring the Canadian NORDREG zone on behalf of Transport Canada.

e-Navigation

e-Navigation is defined by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) as the “harmonized collection, integration, exchange, presentation, and analysis of marine information on board and ashore by electronic means to enhance berth to berth navigation and related services for safety and security at sea and protection of the marine environment.”

The Canadian Coast Guard is the lead government agency for the implementation of the Canadian e-Navigation initiative, which includes:

• Leading and collaborating with marine industry and government partners through the National Marine Advisory Board national and regional e-Navigation Subcommittees to ensure Canadian e-Navigation initiatives are in line with international objectives and Canadian e-Navigation priorities;
• Enabling Canadian Coast Guard digitalization of Coast Guard Marine Services;
• Testing e-Navigation solutions and providing guidance and expertise to Coast Guard programs and fleet;
• Coordinating and implementing pilot initiatives at national and regional levels to bring new technology to Full Operational Capability (FOC) status within existing Coast Guard programs;
• Staying current with emerging maritime technologies and collaborating with other government departments (OGDs) to evaluate how digitalization may enhance and improve government marine services; and
• Maintaining a leadership role in international work related to e-Navigation standards, strategies, implementation, technology, and development, always considering potential impact and usage in Canada.

Vessels of Concern

The Coast Guard’s Vessels of Concern program manages risks posed by various hazards represented by vessels and wrecks in Canadian waters. In so doing, the program contributes to the health and safety and socio-economic interests of the Canadian public, as well as to protecting physical infrastructure and the marine environment. As laid out by the Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act , the Coast Guard Vessels of Concern program works closely with Transport Canada, which is responsible for abandoned and dilapidated vessels and those that represent obstructions to navigation, and with Small Craft Harbours, which is responsible for vessels of concern within their operational domain.

As part of the Coast Guard’s incident response continuum, the Vessels of Concern program operates closely with Search and Rescue and Environmental Response programs, but can also proactively take action to prevent, mitigate or eliminate hazards posed by vessels or wrecks found anywhere in Canadian waters.

The program:

• Under the new Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act , addresses all hazards associated with problem vessels or wrecks in Canadian waters;
• Manages an evergreen national Vessels of Concern inventory which tracks problem vessels and wrecks across Canada, and applies a risk-based approach to their remediation; and
• Provides comprehensive Coast Guard-specific training to ensure our officers are appropriately prepared and designated to utilize new Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act authorities to hold owners responsible for hazards posed by their vessels.

Innovation, Planning and Engagement

The Innovation, Planning and Engagement (IPE) Directorate provides national leadership for the consistent integration, management, and coordination of the Canadian Coast Guard’s:

• Strategic and horizontal planning, which encompasses budget planning, corporate and performance reporting, and risk management;
• Internal communications and public events; and
• External engagement with domestic and international partners and service users.
• Innovation, Reconciliation and Program Integration: leading innovation, long-term planning, relationships, and alignment with federal initiatives, while providing national direction, guidance, and oversight on reconciliation policy.
• External Relations and Industry Engagement: Advising and supporting senior management on strategic engagement of corporate, international, domestic, and industry partners to strengthen relationships and assist decision making.
• Integrated Business Planning: Delivering strategic business advice through business and financial planning to support senior management decision-making. Also responsible for corporate planning and reporting.
• Major Resources Projects: Working across the Coast Guard and with other government departments to support Coast Guard priorities as they relate to major resource and related infrastructure projects.
• Internal Communications, Event Management and Publications: Leading internal communications, internal and public events, multimedia projects, and publications (general and technical) to support our people and fulfill our mandate.

Shipbuilding and Materiel Sector

The Shipbuilding and Materiel Sector, located in headquarters, includes two directorates: Vessel Procurement and Integrated Technical Services.

The Vessel Procurement Directorate is responsible for the acquisition and delivery of large vessels, helicopters and small vessels, as well as the development of new classes of vessels, vessel design, program management, business analysis, and policy support.

The Integrated Technical Services Directorate delivers technology integration solutions in order to ensure that the Coast Guard’s complex and varied physical assets – managed at optimal life-cycle costs – are capable, reliable, and available to deliver Canadian Coast Guard programs to Canadians.

Operational excellence demands technical readiness. The Shipbuilding and Materiel mandate is the “cradle to grave” materiel responsibility for fleet and shore-based Coast Guard assets to generate operational capability. This important mission spans the spectrum from building new classes of ships to effecting on-going maintenance for a varied fleet and shore-based asset base to enhancing life-cycle management practices to disposing of surplus materiel in a responsible manner. In the execution of this mandate the sector works closely with headquarters and regional operational staffs to understand the requirement as well as with the support of a wide range of other government departments stakeholders. The sector links naturally with Public Service and Procurement Canada contracting managers and Transport Canada regulatory officials and relies on the expertise of domestic ship building and ship repair industry, always mindful of the requirement to derive value for money for Canadian taxpayers.

Now more than ever Coast Guard has the resources and expertise to recapitalize its fleet assets to support an Agency mandate that continues to grow in terms of scope and demand. Billions of dollars have been committed for new Coast Guard vessels and helicopters and the Coast Guard will be building ships for the next 20 to 25 years. This generational opportunity involves not simply replacing aging ships with the same capability and similar technology, but introducing “multitaskable” ships with emerging and environmentally sensitive technologies such that the new ships serve the Coast Guard for the next 40 years.

The Sector is also responsible to manage the resources available to maintain the current fleet until new ships are delivered into service and for lifecycle management of fleet and shore-based assets, which requires understanding their condition, analyzing the risks, and proactively addressing identified risks to promote safe operation and generate technical readiness. In doing so, it has a commitment to working diligently and collaboratively to further institutionalize the concepts of technical risk management, project and program management, life-cycle management, and stewardship of public funds.

Fleet Procurement

The Fleet Procurement program is responsible for the management of the design and construction of new large and small vessels, air cushioned vehicles, and helicopters. It is also responsible for the management of procurement based interim measures to support the operational requirements identified in the Fleet Renewal Plan and the Integrated Investment Plan.

The program provides project management support to ensure effective and efficient project integration, scope, time, cost, quality, human resources, communications, risk, and procurement. Activities associated with fleet procurement are guided by a number of international and national trade agreements; legal instruments such as the Financial Administration Act and Government Contract Regulations, as well as policies, directives, and guidelines provided by Treasury Board, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, and Public Services and Procurement Canada.

Fleet Maintenance

The Fleet Maintenance program ensures that Coast Guard’s vessels, air cushioned vehicles, helicopters, and small craft are available and reliable for the delivery of Coast Guard programs. The program also ensures the availability and reliability of these assets through life cycle investment planning, engineering, maintenance, and disposal services.

Activities associated with fleet maintenance are guided by a number of international and national trade agreements, legal instruments such as the Financial Administration Act and Government Contract Regulations, as well as policies, directives, and guidelines provided by Treasury Board, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, and Public Services and Procurement Canada.

Shore-Based Asset Readiness

The Shore-Based Asset Readiness (SBAR) program ensures that the non-fleet assets are available and reliable to deliver Coast Guard programs. The programs supported by SBAR are Aids to Navigation, MCTS, Icebreaking, and Environmental Response.

These non-fleet assets include fixed and floating aids to navigation, such as visual aids (e.g. buoys and daymarks), aural aids (e.g., fog horns) and radar aids (e.g., reflectors and beacons), and long-range marine aids, such as the Differential Global Positioning System. They also include the electronic communication and navigation systems delivered through a network of radar, microwave dishes, radios, the information technology tools delivered via more than 300 remote installations and environmental response physical assets used for spill containment (e.g., boom), collection (e.g., skimmers), and storage (e.g., barges).

The Shore-Based Asset Readiness program ensures the availability and reliability of these assets through life cycle investment planning, engineering, acquisition, maintenance, and disposal services.

Personnel Directorate

Based on the recognition of the dedicated planning and resources that are needed to support our people, the Personnel Directorate was created to integrate the College, Operational Personnel and Certification, and Career Development and Wellness. The Personnel Directorate has been hard at work building a system within the organization that supports the recruitment, retention, career development, and wellness of employees.

The Personnel Directorate includes three branches: the College, Career Development and Wellness, and Operational Personnel and Certification:

• The College, located on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, is the national centre of training excellence for the Coast Guard and the foundation for our longstanding success in operations.
• Career Development and Wellness works to support the recruitment, retention, career development, and wellness of employees.
• Operational Personnel and Certification includes force generation and outreach, operational personnel management, personnel development and certification, MariTime solutions, and uniform implementation.

The Coast Guard is a people-focused organization; dedicated to recruiting and developing a diverse, highly-trained, professional at-the-ready workforce — for today and tomorrow.

The role of the Personnel Directorate is to support the Coast Guard’s more than 6,100 employees, wherever they work, and no matter how long they’ve served. That means understanding their current and long-term needs, and anticipating how to best serve future generations of employees that will enter the ranks of the Canadian Coast Guard.

Over the next three years, the Directorate will strive to meet the needs of Coast Guard employees across the regions and at national headquarters and continue to prioritize all the essential components of a supported workforce — safety, morale, well-being, employee assistance, work-life arrangements, return-to-work processes, awards and recognition programs, and supporting physical and mental health and wellness.

The Personnel Directorate is responsible to monitor trends and ensure that Coast Guard is nimble enough to adapt and re-tool skillsets if, and when, those changes are required. This work takes into account ongoing needs to maintain older technologies that continue to serve the organization well and ensure knowledge transfer from experienced employees to the future officers of the organization. At the same time, the Directorate is continuing to investigate and adopt new technologies, training, and processes, such as software that helps fleet employees receive their pay on-time and accurately.

During this business plan cycle, the Personnel Directorate will continue to support the Coast Guard to increase diversity and inclusion through all aspects of recruitment, retention, training, mentorship and sponsorship, healthy workplaces, and more. The Coast Guard is working to address systemic barriers to ensure all Canadians are given an equal opportunity to be welcomed as employees of the Canadian Coast Guard family.

Canadian Coast Guard College

The College has been a centre of maritime training excellence since 1965. It is a national, bilingual, degree-conferring training institution offering a multitude of training regimes, including the officer training program, a comprehensive four-year training program to develop marine engineers and marine navigation officers for the Coast Guard Fleet. Located on Cape Breton Island, the College was established to ensure a reliable source of professional marine officers and crew for the Coast Guard. The College has been training qualified and professional Coast Guard marine officers and operational personnel for more than 55 years.

In addition to the officer training program, the College trains MCTS officers, who receive 24-week intensive training programs consisting of mixed theory, practical, simulated, and virtual learning. It also offers operational training to personnel in electronics and informatics, environmental response, and SAR.

As the national training organization for the Coast Guard, the College is committed to delivering the highest quality training to support our operational personnel. With new modernized learning platforms, such as OnCourse, the College is poised to meet the evolving training needs of the organization. This is essential to ensuring that our people receive the operational training they require to better serve Canadians for years to come.

Regional overview

While the Coast Guard plans and sets policies at a national level to ensure consistency in the delivery of its services, it is the fleet and shore-based personnel in our regions who deliver Coast Guard services. While all four regions deliver core Coast Guard programs, the focus in each region is different depending on climate, geography, and client needs.

The Canadian Arctic environment is vast, with 162,000 km of coastline and a harsh and challenging climate. Interest and activity in the Arctic continue to rise with growing populations in many of the isolated and remote communities, increased ship traffic, and growing international interest. This leads to a challenging operational environment where less than 14 percent of navigable waters have been surveyed to modern standards. The effects of climate change, including extreme weather and melting permafrost, are leading to increased navigation risk, while Canada is seeing more vessels in the Canadian Arctic.

This directly impacts food security, marine safety, cultural, and harvesting activities of Arctic communities. There are increased demands to improve marine infrastructure and Coast Guard services, and implement climate change adaptation measures to mitigate increased risk and potential impacts.

Coast Guard is working closely with Inuit, First Nations, Métis, and Northern partners in the Arctic Region to develop innovative and alternative approaches to service delivery that best meet the needs of communities.

In addition to contributing to the delivery of national priorities, including reconciliation, the region will focus on continued engagement with local partners, the development of alternative service delivery models, developing plans for the expansion of Coast Guard services, developing an Indigenous recruitment strategy with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and reflecting Northern priorities in policy and program design and implementation.

Increases in Arctic vessel traffic, especially from cruise ships and adventure tourism, international attention on the Canadian Arctic, a growing domestic Arctic population, interest in resource development projects, marine conservation targets, and a rapidly changing climate are all having a profound impact on the Canadian Arctic and Coast Guard services.

We expect the demand for marine services in the Canadian Arctic to grow significantly in the coming years. The implementation of our Arctic region is meant to help us address these important issues, while advancing reconciliation with our Inuit, First Nations, and Métis peoples in the Arctic, through a collaborative approach to increasing the Coast Guard’s presence in the Arctic.

The Canadian Arctic is vast and diverse, and meeting shared safety, security, environmental, and economic goals requires cooperation. The Coast Guard has a deep, ongoing commitment to working with Inuit, First Nations, Métis peoples, provincial and territorial governments, mariners, and international partners to support marine safety and the protection of the environment on Arctic waters. In the Arctic, we work with partners on a nation-to-nation basis, and from the lens of how to support implementation of settled land claims, which apply to most of the region.

Arctic communities have expressed their concerns about increasing vessel traffic and its impacts on wildlife, habitat, and traditional activities. Communities also want to be empowered to participate with the Coast Guard in search and rescue and environmental response activities.

In the coming years, the Coast Guard is committed to:

• Including Indigenous knowledge in decision-making;
• Leading the planning of future services from the North with Northerners;
• Removing employment barriers and creating job opportunities for Northerners;
• Co-developing climate change adaptation strategies; and
• Infrastructure development.

The Coast Guard is developing and implementing a human resources plan that ensures Inuit, First Nations, Métis, and Northerners join the Coast Guard and guide the Arctic region’s operations and future program development. The Arctic Region is increasing diversity though the establishment of the Arctic Youth Council, the hiring of Community Engagement Coordinators, and building internal capacity on the applicability and principles of local and Indigenous knowledge in service delivery and corporate culture. The Arctic region is implementing cultural learning into its training and development plans to build an inclusive, dynamic and diverse team, and attract new talent in the Arctic.

Priorities for the next three years include:

• Development of a collaborative governance framework that seeks to enhance the delivery of programs and services to better serve Arctic communities;
• Planning for the future of Coast Guard services by geographic area and community;
• Continued implementation of a fully operational Arctic Region; and
• Continued implementation of Oceans Protection Plan initiatives including the low impact shipping corridors, the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary in the Arctic, and the Inshore Rescue Boat North in Rankin Inlet.

The Atlantic region operates in a vast geographical area comprising the four Atlantic provinces, and it encompasses JRCC Halifax’s Area of Responsibility for SAR, for which this program included the eastern half of Quebec, and the northwest quadrant of the Atlantic Ocean. The region delivers services covering more than 29,000 km of shoreline, 2.5 million km 2 of continental shelf, and 5 million km 2 within the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization Regulatory Zone (2.3 million km 2 inside the 200 nautical mile limit, and 2.7 million km 2 outside the 200 nautical mile limit).

The Atlantic region includes many small coastal communities, and everyone has a connection to the water. The Coast Guard is well known and is embedded in every community – this is one of our strengths in the region. Another is that we have a long history of working organically with community members and leaders, as you do in smaller communities. For example, some of the local leaders we work with are also members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary. They have a depth of understanding of what we do, and this is incredibly valuable.

Now and in the future, we are formalizing community engagement and continuing to build these relationships. Whereas in the past we engaged primarily on operational concerns – and we continue to do so – we are also focused on strategic priorities that range from reconciliation and building our partnerships with Indigenous peoples to advancing the oceans economy and economic recovery.

The demand for our services is increasing and the expectations of what the Coast Guard can and should do are high. There is a strong demand for the Coast Guard to be part of decision-making tables. Whether it is helping to protect marine mammals such as North Atlantic right whales or addressing vessels of concern, we are part of the marine conversation with leaders in each of the Atlantic provinces, whether that is Indigenous leadership, mayors and city councillors or with provincial or federal representatives and groups.

Like other regions, our workforce needs are top of mind. During the planning period we will focus on recruitment and retention, find ways to build up a qualified workforce pipeline and address issues that are deeply important like the pay system, workload management, classifications and staffing delays.

From an operational perspective, in each of the provinces we operate in marine environments that have their own challenges. In Newfoundland and Labrador, this includes Placentia Bay and Strait of Belle Isle; in Nova Scotia, the Strait of Canso; in New Brunswick, the Bay of Fundy; and in Prince Edward Island, the Northumberland Strait. Some of our regional risks are ongoing due to a massive and varied operational area — one that faces extreme weather. We operate in an environment that includes year-round commercial activity and seasonal traditional use. We continue to plan and implement measures that address these risks.

The Central region operates in a unique context covering the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence waterway, and the northern half of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which includes maritime movements impacting one hundred million people who receive goods by sea. This is a vital transportation network for goods traded between North American and more than 59 overseas markets. More than 100 commercial ports and wharves are operational within the region. These activities represent $35 billion in economic activity and 238,000 jobs in Canada and the United States.

The Central region encompasses more than 50 coastal Indigenous communities and organizations in Ontario and Quebec, with a wide range of priorities and concerns related to Coast Guard’s mandate. The region operates within a context of significant heritage, social and ecological value, and a unique ecosystem of great biological richness.

Some of our biggest risks are related to the increase in the density of vessel traffic, in part driven by major projects, and increasing vessel size. In addition, there are ongoing demands from industry for an extended shipping season, and for more icebreaking, as well as to effectively maintain dredging volumes.

These risks are being mitigated in a number of ways. Operationally, we are maximizing the zonal approach to icebreaking, and supplementing our capacity through icebreaking contracts, as well as supporting increased use of electronic navigation. We are taking a proactive approach to communication and engagement with industry to ensure we work together on these issues.

We have also made progress in building relationships with Indigenous partners. There are a wide range of priorities and concerns that will require continued effort and collaboration, and we will continue to identify collaboration opportunities, such as training and exercising, and ways to better share information, and focus on contribution agreements and procurement opportunities that encourage and facilitate Indigenous participation.

Recruitment and retention will continue to be a challenge. In order to compete, it will be important to demonstrate the value in joining the Canadian Coast Guard and to ensure that we provide the support to our employees including providing a more family-friendly work environment and work-life balance.

The Central region is a bilingual region, which is both a challenge and a strength. Learning a second language requires an ongoing investment of time and a high level of commitment from the employee, both on and off the job. These requirements can create barriers to the internal development of the workforce and adversely affect employees’ motivation. Our region will continue to support bilingualism by encouraging language training.

As more than 25 percent of the shore-based workforce is eligible to retire in the next five years, it will be a priority for the region to implement robust knowledge transfer before those employees leave the organization and to develop remaining and new staff through talent management plans. We are in a period of growth and increasing professionalization. What is already in motion for the Coast Guard of the future is a more robust structure, processes, and governance that build organizational maturity. More than ever, we are strongly focused on regional operations, and on fully supporting our operational posture.

The Western region comprises a large landmass (four provinces and the Yukon Territory) as well as 27,000 km of coastline and international search and rescue obligations out to the mid-Pacific. The Western region does not experience large swings in on-water seasonality like the other regions (sea ice is non-existent) and therefore experiences a consistently high volume of activity on the water. Almost 50 percent of all Marine Communications and Traffic Services (MCTS) national vessel traffic movements take place in the Western region.

The recognition of Coast Guard’s efforts, value, and consequently our morale has grown exponentially. In part, this has been part of the national and international spotlight put on Coast Guard in Western region in recent years. This includes emergency situations and major development projects where Coast Guard had a critical role to play, not only in operational aspects, including planning and preparedness, but also in public awareness, and confidence in our ability to respond.

Over the next few years, the region will continue working with Indigenous and other coastal communities as partners in the marine safety system. We have an opportunity to continue to build and expand lasting relationships and partnerships with the more than 60 First Nations along the coast, and personnel in the Region are committed to building on aspects such as joint training opportunities, the community boats program, and much more.

In terms of operational concerns and priorities, the region is focused on the Portland Canal and mining exports, including how that will affect big ship traffic and the concerns and rights of Indigenous partners.

For the inside passage, the region is looking at what assets are needed related to tug traffic. In the Kitimat Corridor, areas of concern include the impacts of liquid natural gas (LNG) developments and route management. Seymour Narrows is an area where there is substantial cruise ship and tug traffic thus increasing operational risks. We will continue to assess and respond to these risks, and to integrate an all coast/all hazards review of gaps and mitigation.

One of our greatest advances in Coast Guard is learning and building on how we can work together to expand our delivery of services and meet shared goals. Adopting the Incident Command System is one of those methods, as the Region has experienced firsthand how including Indigenous, provincial partners, and others into the shared decision making of Unified Command makes for a much more effective response.

The coming years will include increasing the diversity and inclusion of the workforce and leveraging the ingenuity of all Coast Guard personnel. These are essential to the Region’s mission, as is the promotion of innovation. There is a lot of attention paid to how the public service can and should be innovative, willing to take risks, and learn from those endeavors. Our skilled tradespeople in the Coast Guard, and in our mariner community, are and will continue to be masterful in that regard.

Learn more about the Canadian Coast Guard People Strategy in the 2020-21 Canadian Coast Guard Integrated Business and Human Resource Plan (PDF, 2.7 MB) .

Figure 2: CCG regional distribution of employees as of March 31, 2021

Figure 3: Student hires

Students employed as of March 31, 2021: 48

Figure 4: Employment equity representation

Figure 5: Distribution of employees by region

Figure 6: Distribution of sea-going employees by region

Figure 7: CCG total budget by program M($) for fiscal year 2021-2022

Figure 8: Operating budget by region M($) for fiscal year 2021-2022

Figure 9: Capital budget by project type M($) for fiscal year 2021-2022

Figure 10: G&C Initiatives by percentage of total budget for fiscal year 2021-2022

• Total CCG references levels of $1,775M excludes Vote Netted Revenue budget of ($40M). The exclusion of revenue allows the reader to see the funding used by CCG to cover operating, capital and contribution expenditures.
• New in this year’s reporting is the breakout of direct Internal Services budgets. In previous reports, these budgets were within the Fleet Operational Capability program as they represent the direct overhead costs to maintain CCGs programs.

Vote 1: Operating budget is based on FY 21-22 initial allocations.

• Capital budget is based on FY 21-22 initial allocations.
• Procurement of new ships is for all major vessel projects, including the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).
• Funding for OPP and TMX are related to specific TB Submissions, as per FY 21-22 ARLU (including any prior year Reprofiles).
• VLE budget includes all funding for life extension projects planned for CCGs existing fleet.
• Refurbishment and replacement includes funding for all shore based assets and other assets outside the CCG fleet (example: floating aid, towers, sites, etc.)
• CCG’s contribution funding is larger than prior years, and future years, as TMX funding is for a limited time.
• CCG Auxiliary funding is ongoing (permanent).

Figure 11: CCG future reference levels by vote ($M) for fiscal years 2021-2022, 2022-2023, 2023-2024

• Vote 1 budget drops by $68M from FY 21-22 to FY 22-23. This is due to sunsetting portions of programs like OPP ($30M), OFSV ($21M), TMX ($6M), and PIER ($2M).
• Vote 5 and 10 budgets are subject to change in future years depending on future Treasury Board submissions and reprofiles that may be requested.

Figure 12: Historical spending by vote and core responsibility for fiscal years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021

Figure 13: Historical spending by core responsibility and vote for fiscal years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021

Showcase items

The Canadian Coast Guard will celebrate its 60th Anniversary on January 26, 2022. The anniversary theme of “Navigate the Future” was selected not only to celebrate the past accomplishments and rich and unique history of the Organization, but also to convey a sense of the work we are undertaking to chart our course for the future and ensure we do all we can to continue to meet the service expectations of Canadians and all who use Canadian waters, from coast to coast to coast.

The graphic identifier for the anniversary that will be used to help promote and celebrate this important milestone was selected by vote by Coast Guard employees. It includes a number of key elements from the Coast Guard badge, including: blue, white, and red to symbolize water, ice, and the red maple leaf; the two golden dolphins that represent Coast Guard vessels; and the rope frame with a knot tied at the base, which signifies a proud maritime organization.

Celebrating Canadian Coast Guard’s history

While the Canadian Coast Guard was officially formed on January 26, 1962, its origins can be traced to as far back as the 1700s when the first lifeboats and lighthouses were established in Eastern Canada. The various governments that preceded a unified Canada had their own patrol vessels, which began to appear along the eastern seaboard and in the Great Lakes in the 1800s.

In 1868, one year after Confederation, the federal government established the Department of Marine and Fisheries. This department assumed responsibility for marine affairs, including the operation of government vessels, and for various elements of marine infrastructure. In 1936, responsibility for marine transportation shifted to the Department of Transport.

The official organization was created on January 26th, 1962, when the Honourable Leon Balcer, Minister of Transport, rose in the House of Commons and announced that the Department of Transport fleet of ships would, in the future, be known as the Canadian Coast Guard.

In 1995, the Coast Guard transferred to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) in order to gather the two largest civilian fleets within the federal government under one department. DFO Science vessels and the Fisheries Conservation and Protection Fleet were incorporated with the Coast Guard Fleet.

To better serve Canadians, the federal government began investigating the possibility of giving the Coast Guard more independence by transforming it into a separate agency within DFO, and in 2005, the Canadian Coast Guard was officially declared a “special operating agency” of DFO.

Today, the Canadian Coast Guard is not only responsible for the longest coastline of any given country, but it is also responsible for the safe circulation of international commercial ships who cross our borders, the Canadian citizens who take pleasure in navigating our lakes and oceans during boating season, and for providing services to our Northern communities.

Learn more about the History of the Canadian Coast Guard .

The Canadian Coast Guard College reacted quickly as the COVID‑19 pandemic swept the globe, pivoting from in-person to distance learning.

OnCourse, the College’s learning management system, has evolved from its launch in May 2020 to a robust online learning platform that now hosts courses from a variety of Coast Guard College departments, including the Officer Training program, Marine Communications and Traffic Services, Operational Training and SAP. Given these successes, the College is prepared to assist other areas of the Coast Guard that are looking to collaborate with the OnCourse team in the design, development, and hosting of their training requirements. In particular, OnCourse is proving to be a key tool in the development and delivery of a number of organizational training offerings including, but not limited to, Search and Rescue, Emergency Response, Aids to Navigation, Maximo integration, logistics, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and ship’s crew certification studies.

Instructors have been instrumental in the development of the online curriculum, working with the instructional design team to ensure that course material is structured to support an online delivery method that meets course learning objectives. Solutions include: instructor-delivered synchronous fully online courses; blended face-to-face and online learning courses; fully online, self-paced courses; and interactive online study guides that assist trainees in preparation for certification exams. The College continues to work closely with both national headquarters and regions to develop priorities associated with the training needs of the Coast Guard.

The College has also been actively engaged in the enhancement of simulated learning, with a number of new and planned training simulators for various operational disciplines. While this has already improved training opportunities, the ultimate goal is to create a simulated learning environment that enables the simulators to be housed together, and to interact with each other, making multi-level and integrated exercises and other training scenarios possible. Multi-mission/program scenarios are critical to replicating real-world scenarios which are complex, multi-dimensional, and often evolve along the continuum of response.

It’s critical to remember that different teaching methodologies – such as in-class learning, distance, and simulation – are not standalone methods. The College is well placed to ensure that the organization has access to blended and modernized approaches to learning to help ensure that our personnel, from coast to coast to coast, are trained to the highest standards of excellence for years to come.

Engaging with Arctic Communities

The Coast Guard is committed to continuing to build its partnerships with Inuit, First Nations, and Métis governments and organizations to ensure appropriate re-alignment of programs and services to better serve communities, provide new opportunities to participate in decision making, and increase representation of Indigenous peoples in the Coast Guard.

Recognizing that community engagement is crucial to achieving these objectives, DFO and the Coast Guard have recruited Community Engagement Coordinators (CEC), located in communities across the Arctic. The coordinators support capacity building and help the organization to better understand the priorities and capacity within the Arctic region and enhance the delivery of Arctic programs. The CECs are providing invaluable assistance to the Coast Guard Arctic Region in its ongoing efforts to include local knowledge in decision-making, remove employment barriers and create job opportunities in northern communities, and co-develop solutions to advance maritime safety and environmental priorities.

To date, there are seven CECs located across the Arctic. The CECs act as a liaison between the Coast Guard and communities in the north, and provide advice and recommendations to DFO and Coast Guard Arctic Region on northern programs and service delivery, as well as recruitment and retention, and reconciliation. They have also delivered presentations on Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (Inuit Traditional Knowledge) to Coast Guard Management Board and Extended Regional Management Board to educate and build knowledge of cultural values and support diversity in the Department.

Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit—which is often abbreviated as IQ—is often translated as “Inuit traditional knowledge” or sometimes “Inuit traditional technology.” Some key concepts of IQ include:

• Inuuqatigiitsiarniq (respecting others);
• Tunnganarniq (being open);
• Pijitsirarniq (serving);
• Aajiiqatigiingniq (consensus decision making);
• Pilimmaksarniq (skills and knowledge acquisition);
• Qanuqtuurungnarniq (being resourceful to solve problems);
• Piliriqatigiingniq (working together for a common purpose); and
• Avatimik Kamattiarniq (environmental stewardship).

DFO and the Coast Guard are also establishing an Arctic Youth Council (AYC) to promote and increase Indigenous recruitment and retention in the department. An AYC Coordinator, located in Iqaluit, is leading the initiative, which will bring together young people in local communities to promote opportunities within the department, supporting the department’s inclusion and diversity initiatives.

This year will see the first science mission of the new offshore fisheries science vessel, the CCGS John Cabot , which travelled more than 7,500 nautical miles during its four-week journey from the Seaspan Shipyards in Vancouver, British Columbia, where it was built, through the Panama Canal to its home port of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

The 208-foot-long vessel will carry out fishing and acoustic surveys, collect information on the amount and location of various species, and gather data on marine ecosystems and the impact of human activity on fish and habitats. While the vessel is primarily focused on science and research, it also has the capability to support search and rescue and environmental response operations.

The ship was named after John Cabot (c. 1450 – c. 1500), an Italian navigator and explorer recognized as the first European since the Norse colonization of North America to land on the continent, officially at Cape Bonavista on the island of Newfoundland, in 1497. The CCGS John Cabot , along with sister ships the CCGS Capt Jacques Cartier and the CCGS Sir John Franklin —which were both launched in 2019 and also named after former scientists and explorers who made a significant contribution to the history of Canada—were built as part of the federal government’s National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).

The three ships are the Government of Canada’s first vessels purposely designed and built for offshore fisheries science and monitoring, and have been designed to serve as state-of-the-art floating laboratories. Each is equipped with four types of labs and will enable Fisheries and Oceans Canada to collect key information necessary for the sustainable management of Canada’s oceans and aquatic resources for the benefit of current and future generations.

The delivery of this third and final offshore fisheries science vessel marks the completion of the first class of large ships built under Canada’s NSS. This is a significant milestone in the renewal of the Coast Guard fleet, and supports Canadian technological innovation, bringing jobs, and prosperity to many communities across the country.

The CCGS John Cabot entered into service in spring 2021, with Fisheries and Oceans Canada scientists and crew having an opportunity to train on the vessel and its science systems.

Four-Season Lighted Buoys Project

The Canadian Coast Guard’s successful project to replace seasonal navigation buoys in the St. Lawrence River between Traverse Nord downstream of Quebec City and Lake St-Louis upstream of Montreal with modern lighted four-season buoys (4SB) will continue during this business planning cycle, with a projected end date of March 2022.

The deployment of 4SB in place of traditional seasonal navigational buoys will reduce costs and enable the Coast Guard to operate more efficiently and effectively. Seasonal navigational buoys provide only six to eight months of lighted navigation, need to be deployed every spring and switched out every fall, and once out of the water must be inspected and repaired. The new 4SB, which remain in the water year-round and only require service and maintenance every two to four years, improve navigational accuracy and efficiency, as well as personnel and environmental safety.

The project is deploying 4SB on 183 positions using three buoy models — small, medium and large — each suited for different conditions. Both the large 1.3 metre and the small 0.7 metre buoys have already been manufactured and deployed on 152 positions, while the new medium 1.0 metre buoy is in the final stages before its production, with several prototype buoys already in the water which have been monitored and measured to ensure optimal performance. Once delivered, the medium buoys will be deployed on the remaining 31 positions. The 1.0 m buoy has a lower weight-to-performance ratio than the large buoys, and the Coast Guard is awaiting the full results and analysis of the field trial data to determine whether the medium buoys may therefore be appropriate for use in other sectors in the future.

Given the success of the 4SB project in the St. Lawrence, consideration is being given to expanding the solution to the Great Lakes sector. A parallel study is also being undertaken to investigate options to improve the performance of the lantern technology, following feedback and consultations with many of the system users with whom the Coast Guard’s Aids to Navigation program staff interact with on a regular basis.

Under Canada’s Oceans Protection Plan (OPP), the Canadian Coast Guard has been successful in supporting Indigenous communities along British Columbia’s (BC) coast to build marine emergency response capacity through various projects. This continuum of support ranges from training for community members with little marine emergency response capacity to full integration into the system as responders.

One such effort is the Indigenous Community Response Training (ICRT) project, which provides hands-on, on-water training and experience to Coastal First Nations in BC, in areas including marine search and rescue (SAR), environmental response, and the application of the Incident Command System (ICS). This project has been well received by Indigenous communities throughout BC and has enabled communities to integrate into the Coast Guard’s emergency response efforts. Documented cases include trainees saving lives in their communities and the hiring of one of the Coastal Nations’ SAR graduates; a member of the Heiltsuk First Nation. Between 2017 and 2020 the Coast Guard’s Indigenous community response training initiative has trained more than 400 First Nation participants from more than 33 nations, in SAR, marine advanced first aid, small vessel operations, and ICS 100 (Introduction) and 200 (Basic ICS for Single Resources and Initial Action Incidents).

The national Indigenous Community Boat Volunteer Pilot program has funded successful Indigenous applicants to purchase vessels and other equipment that is required in order for applicants to become volunteer members of the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary. To date, eight First Nation communities in BC have been provided $2,117,791 in funding to integrate into the Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary (CN-CGA).

The Coast Guard also provided additional funding under the Auxiliary program to support the incorporation of the CN-CGA, which commenced on-water operations in fall 2020 in the territorial waters of Ahousaht and Heilsuk First Nations, becoming the first Indigenous-led Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary in Canada. This Auxiliary organization now has membership in five Nations (Ahousaht, Heilsuk, Gitxaala, Nisgaa, and Kitasoo). The ICRT and Community Boat Volunteer projects have played an important role in providing training and equipment to aspiring members of the Auxiliary.

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Audit of the Management of Procurement Services

Presented to the Departmental Audit Committee (DAC) July 11, 2022

Table of Contents

Introduction, areas for improvement, internal audit conclusion and opinion, statement of conformance, audit purpose and objectives, audit considerations, approach and methodology, governance and compliance, procurement processes.

• Human Resource Planning and Training

Transition to the new Directive on the Management of Procurement

Appendix a – audit criteria, executive summary.

The procurement function serves as a mechanism for organizations to acquire the goods and/or services they require to advance organizational needs and priorities. Procurement methods include: sole-source contracting, competitive contracting, supply arrangements and standing offers, purchase orders, and acquisition cards.

Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is subject to a suite of procurement-related instruments that include legislative, policy, and regulatory instruments, which are managed by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) and its central purchasing agents, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) and Shared Services Canada (SSC). These instruments outline the responsibilities for managing and executing procurement activities. Of note is the ongoing departmental transition to a new overarching Treasury Board (TB) policy and associated directives that cover the management of procurement. Fully effective May 13, 2022, the new Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments and the Directive on the Management of Procurement serves as the main procurement related policy suite.

Within NRCan, the Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) of the Corporate Management and Services Sector (CMSS) is the Senior Designated Official (SDO) with authority and functional responsibility for procurement related activities. The SDO is responsible for supporting the Deputy Minister’s accountability for all requirements detailed within the TB Policy and Directive on the Management of Procurement.

Within CMSS, the Finance and Procurement Branch (FPB) is responsible for the core operations of the procurement function. All managers across all sectors have delegated contracting authority; however, it is restricted. The Lands and Minerals Sector (LMS) through the Surveyor General Branch and the Polar Continental Shelf Program, and the Communications and Portfolio Sector (CPS) hold increased procurement-related delegated authorities for specific purposes, such as procuring land surveys and printing services. While the FPB holds primary responsibility for procurement oversight and activities, all sector business owners are responsible for planning their procurement activities and ensuring that requests are submitted for action.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of management processes related to the procurement function, and the adequacy of governance over procurement operations, as it relates to meeting the needs of the Department.

Overall, FPB has established oversight mechanisms for procurement activities at the operational level to facilitate compliance with policy requirements, and procurement activities and processes generally comply with government policy requirements. The Department has also made progress in implementing action plans to address the recommendations from the recent Office of the Procurement Ombudsman (OPO) Review. In addition, FPB has made significant efforts to implement the COVID-19 Vaccination Policy for Supplier Personnel, which came into effect in November 2021.

The Department has also designed and implemented processes and procedures in support of procurement activities, and this information is readily available to sectors/business owners. Despite delays in processing, business owners conveyed their overall satisfaction once their procurement requests were actioned.

As part of the transition to the new TBS Directive on the Management of Procurement, the Department has developed a Procurement Management Framework.

There is a need to enhance governance for strategic and integrated procurement planning and to encourage active participation by the sectors. Improvements are needed to better define the roles and responsibilities of the Procurement Policy, Analysis and Reporting Unit (PPAR) and the Procurement Services Unit (PSU), to enhance communication and collaboration.

In addition, changes are required to ensure that procurement-related guidance is regularly reviewed and updated, constraints in the current procurement processes are examined, and service standards are evaluated for relevance and potential data gaps to address any performance challenges. Further, there is a need for FPB to improve and strengthen its communication mechanisms with sectors.

Additional work is required to document FPB’s human resources (HR) and succession planning and monitoring processes; to enhance staff training requirements; and to strengthen processes for knowledge transfer and sharing. These actions would support resourcing needs, enhance the staff training complement, and ensure that potential knowledge disparities between staff members are reduced.

In my opinion, the Department has elements of an effective procurement function and some adequate oversight mechanisms but a number of improvements are required to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of management processes. Additional opportunities exist to formalize and strengthen HR and succession planning processes, and training initiatives.

In my professional judgement as Chief Audit Executive, the audit conforms with the Institute of Internal Auditors' International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing and the Government of Canada’s Policy on Internal Audit, as supported by the results of the Quality Assurance and Improvement Program.

Michel Gould, MBA, CPA, CIA Chief Audit and Evaluation Executive July 11, 2022

Acknowledgements

The audit team would like to thank those individuals who contributed to this project and particularly employees who provided insights and comments as part of this audit.

The procurement function serves as a mechanism for organizations to acquire the goods and/or services they require to advance organizational needs and priorities. Procurement methods include: sole-source contracting, competitive contracting, supply arrangements and standing offers, purchase orders, acquisition cards, and temporary help services.

Within the Government of Canada, procurement activities are governed by a complex series of legislative, policy, and regulatory instruments, managed by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) and its central purchasing agent, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC). Integral instruments for financial management and procurement activities include: the Financial Administration Act (FAA), Government Contracts Regulations, and the Treasury Board (TB) Contracting Policy. Additional policies and directives support these instruments, such as the TB Policy on Green Procurement, the TB Directive on Government Contracts, including Real Property Leases, in the Nunavut Settlement Area, and requirements defined to ensure that legal obligations are adhered to in modern treaties (Comprehensive Land Claim Agreements) relating to procurement activities. These instruments serve to provide direction, and when in compliance with these instruments, procurement activities would be conducted in a fair and transparent manner, provide value for money, and demonstrate sound stewardship.

Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is subject to these instruments, including the TB Contracting Policy.  Fully effective May 13, 2022, a new overarching policy, the Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments and its associated directives covers the management of procurement, investment planning, real property, and materiel management. This new policy suite and associated directives replace the TB Contracting Policy, and previous policy coverage in the listed areas.  They serve as the main procurement related policy suite. Currently, NRCan is in the process of transitioning to the new policy suite and its associated directives, which includes designating a senior official (termed the Senior Designated Official - SDO) to be responsible for supporting the Deputy Minister’s accountability for all requirements under the new Policy, and developing and implementing a departmental Procurement Management Framework (PMF).

NRCan has designated the Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) of the Corporate Management and Services Sector (CMSS) as the SDO with authority and functional responsibility for procurement related activities. These activities are managed by the Finance and Procurement Branch (FPB) and its functional units, the Procurement Services Unit (PSU) and the Procurement Policy Analysis and Reporting Unit (PPAR). Outside of FPB, the Lands and Minerals Sector (LMS) through the Surveyor General Branch and the Polar Continental Shelf Program, and the Communications and Portfolio Sector (CPS) hold additional procurement related delegated authorities beyond those held by other sectors. These delegated authorities are held for specific purposes, such as procuring land surveys and printing services. While the FPB holds primary responsibility for procurement oversight and activities, all sectors are responsible for planning their procurement activities and ensuring that requests are submitted to PSU for action.

Generally, items below a monetary threshold of $5,000 can be acquired through the use of an acquisition card. As of May 24, 2022, this limit was increased to $10,000. All other procurement requests must be submitted to FPB through the eProcurement contracting system, except for those initiated and managed by sectors with special procurement delegations for specific purposes as stated above. The eProcurement system is a request intake system used by CMSS that interfaces with the AMI system to track and assign requests to procurement officers. NRCan’s delegated authority for procuring goods, services, and construction internally, without the support of PSPC, is $3.75M for services sourced competitively ($200K sole source), $750K for construction sourced competitively ($100K sole source), and for contractual arrangements, $500K for services and $25K for goods. Requests exceeding these thresholds are processed by PSPC unless specific authorities are obtained through a TB Submission.

The Office of the Procurement Ombudsman (OPO), an independent office within PSPC that assesses whether procurement practices support the principles of fairness, openness, and transparency, recently completed an external review of NRCan’s procurement practices as part of its five year review process that includes 20 federal departments. This external review assessed NRCan’s procurement activities and compliance, in particular for areas in evaluation criteria and selection plans, solicitation documents, and evaluation of bids and contract award, for contracts awarded between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2019. Given this recent review, the audit took into account the review results, including recommendations and actions taken by CMSS, in order to avoid duplicated efforts in these areas.

During the audit’s scope period (January 1, 2020 to March 31, 2022), 13,849 procurement requests were submitted through the eProcurement system; 8,972 requests were completed; 273 requests were in progress; 1,263 requests were recalled by the originator; 188 were not yet assigned; 136 were pending IT review. This totals $218,104,928.18 in completed requests for this period. This excluded contract amendments and task authorizations, which do not normally go through eProcurement.

Table 1 – Procurement Requests

The audit team recognizes that this scope period coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted the regular operations of the procurement function. However, this did not impact the ability to carry out the audit within the planned timeframe.

This audit was included in the 2021-2026 Integrated Audit and Evaluation Plan, approved by the Deputy Minister on May 5, 2021.

The objective of the audit was to assess the overall adequacy of governance, management processes and controls supporting the implementation of a department-wide plan to fulfill the Department’s Open Government obligations and further facilitate the delivery of its broader mandate.

Specifically, the audit assessed whether:

• Adequate governance and oversight mechanisms exist to provide strategic and operational guidance, enable the transition to the new policy suite, and facilitate compliance with GOC policies and guidance;
• Effective and efficient business processes and communications mechanisms are in place, and are operating effectively to support NRCan’s procurement needs and activities; and
• Effective resource planning, succession planning, and capacity building processes and mechanisms exist, and that they are operating effectively to support NRCan’s procurement function.

A risk-based approach was used in establishing the objectives, scope, and approach for this audit engagement. A summary of the key underlying potential risks that may impact the effective management of NRCan’s procurement services include:

• Adequate governance structures and efficient business processes to manage the Department’s procurement function and activities in compliance with relevant government policy instruments;
• Effective processes and mechanisms to transition to the new TB policy suite;
• Clearly defined roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities pertaining to procurement processes and activities;
• Effective mechanisms that enable frequent and timely two-way communication between sectors and the procurement function;
• Effective human resource planning, including succession planning, capacity building, and training to ensure that the Department’s procurement activities are well supported; and
• Effective knowledge transfer processes to ensure that pertinent information is retained within the procurement function. 

The scope of the audit focused primarily on FPB/CMSS procurement processes and activities in compliance with existing government policy requirements, their capacity to advance departmental procurement priorities and needs, and their ability to support sectors in delivering on their objectives through procurement activities. The audit also included the procurement activities managed by sectors who hold special procurement related delegations. Further, the audit examined FPB’s activities for transitioning to the new Directive on the Management of Procurement.

The audit examined procurement activities from January 1, 2020 to March 31, 2022, in order to include the most recent activities and processes. The audit did not assess or provide an opinion on procurement evaluation results as this was assessed in the OPO external review, and did not include construction contracts or procurement activities that fall outside of the scope of NRCan’s authorities, such as those procured through PSPC or Shared Services Canada (SSC). However, the audit examined the advice provided to sector clients and internal processes that are used for requests sent to PSPC and SSC.

The scope of the audit did not examine acquisition cards and related processes, due to recent and ongoing continuous audit coverage in this area, nor did the audit examine the directives within the new TB policy that do not pertain to procurement. 

In addition, the audit considered the methodology and results of recent internal control assessments conducted by the Financial Policy, Reporting and Internal Controls Division within CMSS.

The results of other previous advisory, audit, and evaluation projects on related topics were also considered where deemed relevant in order to inform the audit and reduce duplication of efforts.

The approach and methodology used in this audit followed the Institute of Internal Auditors' International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing (IIA Standards) and the TB Policy on Internal Audit. These standards require that the audit be planned and performed in such a way as to obtain reasonable assurance that audit objectives are achieved. The audit included tests considered necessary to provide such assurance. Internal auditors performed the audit with independence and objectivity as defined by the IIA Standards.

The audit approach included the following key tasks:

• Interviews with key FPB personnel and sector representatives;
• A review of selected key documents, business processes, and communication materials;
• File review of a sample of procurement requests and completed files - a judgmental sample of 25 procurement files (10 sole source contracts for goods under $25K and services under $40K, 15 competitive) was reviewed and assessed for appropriate levels of financial signing authority, sufficient documentation on sole source contracts, evidence of solicitation for competitive contracts, completion of security requirements where applicable, and proactive disclosure where applicable; and
• Walkthroughs of key procurement processes, such as the contracting process and the quality assurance process.

The criteria were developed based on key controls set out in the Treasury Board of Canada’s Audit Criteria related to the Management Accountability Framework – A Tool for Internal Auditors, in conjunction with the TBS Directive on Procurement, and relevant associated policies, procedures, and directives. The criteria guided the fieldwork and formed the basis for the overall audit conclusion.

Appendix A summarizes the detailed audit criteria.

The conduct phase of this audit was substantially completed in March 2022.

Please refer to Appendix A for the detailed audit criteria. The criteria guided the audit fieldwork and formed the basis for the overall audit conclusion.

Findings and Recommendations

Summary finding.

Overall, FPB has established oversight for procurement activities at the operational level to facilitate compliance with policy requirements. While governance structures and mechanisms to manage the Department’s procurement activities are in place, they are not adequate to provide strategic and operational guidance, and are not being leveraged or used consistently. There are also opportunities to enhance the annual procurement planning process to ensure that procurement priorities are communicated and utilized to support strategic and integrated procurement planning.

Roles, responsibilities and accountabilities related to the procurement process are clearly defined, documented, and communicated; however, they are not all up-to-date. In addition, PPAR and PSU have an opportunity to better define their internal roles and responsibilities in order to improve communication and collaboration.

Procurement activities and processes generally comply with government procurement policy requirements. In addition, FPB has made progress in implementing action plans to address the recommendations from the recent OPO Review, and is on track to meet most timelines. FPB has also made significant efforts to implement the COVID-19 Vaccination Policy for Supplier Personnel, which came into effect November 2021.

Supporting Observations

Effective governance and oversight mechanisms should be in place to provide strategic direction and to ensure compliance with Government of Canada policies and guidance. The audit examined whether governance structures and mechanisms for procurement activities are clearly defined, provide strategic and operational direction, and provide oversight for the Department’s procurement activities, including compliance with relevant government policy instruments. Further, the audit examined whether roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities related to the procurement process are clearly defined, documented, and communicated to relevant parties.

Governance and Oversight

At the operational level, the primary oversight mechanism over procurement activities is the quality assurance (QA) function conducted by PPAR. Procurement files are reviewed and assessed to ensure compliance with government policy instruments. Deficiencies in the processing of procurement files are identified and efforts are made to correct issues through training and awareness. Files are generally reviewed and assessed after completion; however, there are instances where PPAR conducts QAs prior to tendering to ensure that required elements are included when processing the procurement requests. PPAR also monitors and reports on departmental procurement activities; this includes mandatory reporting such as on procurement activities related to Comprehensive Land Claim Agreements and other modern treaties to Indigenous Services Canada, and discretionary reporting.

There is currently no designated governance committee being used for strategic procurement planning. Previously, the ADM-level Procurement Review Board (PRB) served as the governance body for reviewing and providing recommendations or direction on complex and high risk procurement activities, with the ADM CMSS/ Chief Financial Officer (CFO) making the final decisions. As the number of decisions being brought to PRB declined, and as the committee was mainly being used for secretarial approval of procurement activities, it was dissolved in 2020.

The ADM-level Departmental Operations Committee (DOC) was identified as the appropriate forum for the ADM CMSS/CFO to bring forward procurement issues for discussion as needed, at their discretion. Since the DOC’s inception in April 2021, there have been no specific discussions on procurement issues. The audit team noted that procurement issues have been discussed at the DG-level Finance and Real Property Committee (FRPC). This includes an update on procurement, such as completed, ongoing, and planned actions for addressing the high volume of unassigned requests and workload. Procurement issues are also discussed as part of CMSS’ sector management committee meetings, and at a recent Senior Management Committee meeting held in early 2022. These efforts provide a degree of oversight over procurement activities; however, they are not sufficient to provide strategic direction for the function.

Strategic Procurement Planning

FPB leads an annual procurement planning exercise in consultation with most of the sectors. Requests for information (call-outs) and a procurement planning template are sent to Directors General at the beginning of the fiscal year to solicit information about anticipated complex procurement requirements. The template contains information on required procurement, anticipated contracts with former public servants, and information on anticipated procurement in the Nunavut Settlement Area. This information is intended to enable the PSU to plan, prioritize, and manage their requests by ensuring capacity, managing workload, and optimizing bulk purchases or standing offers for efficiencies, and to support PPAR with their various reporting requirements. Guidance information on the planning exercise is provided to employees on the departmental intranet, The Source.

Although there is a documented procurement planning process, the exercise has not been leveraged or used consistently, and procurement planning information is not effectively solicited/or received from sectors. FPB indicated that many sectors do not respond to the request for procurement requirements, and those that are returned to FPB often do not contain a complete list of planned procurement requirements. Ideally, these plans would allow PSU to inform sectors’ needs and priorities into their own activities and allow them to assess internal capacity requirements. Without a collaborative approach and sector participation to gather information for procurement planning, this may limit procurement planning at the strategic level, and procurement prioritization at the operational level.

Sectors indicated that procurement planning happens at the working level within sectors and is not well integrated with other planning functions in the Department. Over the past year, FPB has made efforts to meet with sectors to acknowledge and to address the backlog of procurement requests by holding engagement sessions at sectors’ management committee meetings. These discussions include prioritization of unassigned requests, the state of procurement, and a broader discussion about the results of the Department’s integrated business planning exercise.

As per the TB Policy on the Management and Planning of Investments, departments are required to ensure that departmental investment planning is integrated with other functions, including procurement, real property, and materiel management. NRCan has been making progress towards developing an investment plan management framework that includes procurement considerations and alignment with department's integrated business planning activities. These actions are in response to the findings and recommendations from the recent Audit of Strategic and Operational Planning Process (2019) and the internal controls assessment on investment planning (2020). As part of implementation of the framework, the Department will be initiating a pilot approach to investment planning, which includes an enhanced and more integrated procurement planning exercise.

Roles and Responsibilities

The key participants in the procurement process are the sectors/business owners and the contracting authorities. A business owner (or sector client who uses FPB’s procurement services) is an individual who is responsible for the business or program area for which the project, procurement, or program is established. A contracting authority is a person who has delegated contracting authority to enter into a contract or contractual arrangement on behalf of a department or agency. The procurement officers within the PSU are all contracting authorities. Programs with special delegations for procurement are also contracting authorities. PPAR provides policy guidance on the operations of the procurement function.

Roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities related to the procurement process are clearly defined documented and communicated to relevant parties via the departmental intranet, The Source. However, this information has not been updated since 2020, with some documents last updated in 2015 and 2018. Business owners interviewed during the course of the audit indicated that they are aware of their roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities relating to procurement, but they expressed a need to be informed of any relevant changes.

Within the procurement function, PPAR and PSU have an opportunity to better define expectations of their internal roles and responsibilities in order to improve communication and collaboration, especially with the changes to procurement procedures resulting from the implementation of the new Directive. This includes a disparity in expectations regarding updating and maintaining procedural and guidance documents (e.g., desktop procedures), and for engagement with business owners on changing procedures.

Procurement activities and processes tested as part of the audit generally comply with government procurement policy requirements. Specifically, testing included: verification of a valid Section 32 approval; security requirements checklists on file; Contract Planning and/or Advance Approval (CPAA) on file; verification of sole source justifications (where applicable); and proactive disclosure requirements. This testing did not duplicate the efforts of the OPO external review, which focused on procurement activities and compliance with government policy requirements, in particular for areas in evaluation criteria and selection plans, solicitation documents, evaluation of bids, and contract award. In addition, the oversight provided by PPAR, through the QA review function and the monitoring and reporting of procurement activities helped facilitate compliance. There were no significant deficiencies or noncompliance identified in the sample files reviewed for the audit.

FPB has established an internal working group and distributed tasks to procurement officers for implementing action plans in response to the eight recommendations from the recent OPO external review. At the end of March 2022, two recommendations regarding clarity on Indigenous requirements and updating Desktop Procedures were self-assessed by FPB as complete and the other six were in various stages of implementation. The outstanding recommendations include:

• establishing a quality control process to ensure mandatory criteria for bids are defined and communicated;
• updating internal guidance for the development of bid evaluation criteria and bid selection methodologies;
• establishing a process for and documenting communication to suppliers for prior to bid closing, for contract aware notices, and for sending regret letters;
• establishing processes to ensure consistent instructions for bid evaluators; non-compliant bids are disqualified and not further assessed; and technical evaluations adhere strictly to the evaluation criteria and scoring grids in solicitations;
• establishing processes to ensure bid evaluations and procurement files are appropriately documented; and
• establishing a process to review planned procurements to ensure aggregate requirements are not inappropriately divided to circumvent controls and / or existing agreements.

The implementation of all action plans related to the OPO Review, such as updating internal guidance for the development of evaluation criteria, establishing processes to ensure that evaluations are appropriately documented, and updating Contracting Desktop Procedures, will allow FPB to continually assess its operations and maintain updated documentation for compliance and alignment with government policy instruments. FPB has indicated that they are on track to meet most implementation timelines.

In November 2021, the COVID-19 Vaccination Policy for Supplier Personnel (the Vaccination Policy) came into effect. Under this policy, departments are required to ensure that solicitation and contracts for new procurement requirements include appropriate clauses regarding vaccination certification; that solicitation documents for active procurements (not yet closed) be amended to include the clauses related to vaccination certification; and that suppliers of existing contracts within the scope of the Vaccination Policy be issued letters regarding the new requirements. Guidance from TBS and PSPC continually changed as departments were responding to these requirements. NRCan’s FPB took immediate steps to address the Vaccination Policy by communicating the requirements and implications to business owners and contracting authorities on how to apply the policy; revising and updating existing templates for bid solicitation; notifying suppliers from existing contracts to obtain signed certification if applicable; and verifying and tracking bidder responses in a central repository for monitoring and reporting purposes. FPB has, therefore, made significant efforts to implement the Vaccination Policy, in light of short timelines and changing requirements. This was done while managing existing operational requirements for procurement and while preparing for the transition to the new Directive on the Management of Procurement.

Risk and Impact

In the absence of a clearly defined governance mechanism for procurement, a collaborative approach and sector participation to gather sector information for procurement planning, departmental procurement activities may not be integrated and aligned with overall sector and departmental objectives and strategies.

A lack of clarity on roles and responsibilities within FPB for updating information, guidance, and templates, and for engagement with business owners may result in inaccurate and/or outdated information being utilized by procurement staff throughout the process, and business owners not receiving the support and guidance they require.

Recommendation

Recommendation 1: It is recommended that the ADM of CMSS:

• Define and implement a governance mechanism for strategic procurement planning, including leveraging the pre-existing committees for oversight and direction;
• Establish a mechanism to solicit sector input to enhance strategic and integrated procurement planning; and
• Define and clarify roles and responsibilities between FPB’s PPAR and PSU.

Management Response and Action Plan

Management agrees with Recommendation #1 .

A: The NRCan Procurement Management Framework (PMF) will identify the existing Finance and Real Property Committee (FRPC) as the primary governance body that can provide strategic oversight and direction; as well as the Departmental Operations Committee (OC) where FRPC or the Senior Designated Officer (CMSS ADM/Chief Financial Officer) may present high-risk procurements, as needed, for consideration. The PMF and FRPC Terms of Reference will be presented to FRPC and the SDO for endorsement by September 2022.

Position responsible : Senior Director, Finance and Procurement Services

Timing: September 2022 for the NRCan PMF to be completed and the FRPC Terms of Reference updated and endorsed.

B: In June 2022, FPB launched a new comprehensive Annual Procurement Plan exercise, including soliciting and considering sector input, that both supports how the Department plans and manages investments while reflecting a strategic approach to departmental procurements. It is part of the implementation of the TBS Directive on the Management of Procurement and is also consistent with the messages shared during the Integrated Business Plan (IBP) exercise that information gathered would be broadened to enhance planning. Procurement Planning processes for FY 22/23 are aligned with Financial Situation Reports (FSRs) and will continue to be aligned with the FSR exercise going forward. In preparation for the next IBP cycle (FY 23/24), FPB will work collaboratively with the Planning and Operations Branch, leverage the same tool and advance planning further.

Timing : Completed June 2022. The mechanism to solicit sector input to enhance strategic and integrated procurement planning (i.e., Annual Procurement Plan) was developed and launched on June 8, 2022. The process is ongoing and aligns with FSRs.

C: The NRCan PMF will outline the roles and responsibilities between PPAR and PSU as well as those of Business Owners.

Timing : September 2022 for the NRCan PMF to be completed and endorsed.

Overall, documented processes and procedures have been established in support of procurement activities; however, certain elements are not working efficiently or effectively to support the timely execution of activities, resulting in significant delays within the process that impact business owners’ ability to meet their needs and attain their objectives.

In addition, opportunities exist to ensure that guidance (including procedural documentation, flowcharts, and templates in support of procurement activities) is regularly reviewed and updated to ensure that business owners are leveraging the most current materials in support of their activities. There is also an opportunity to evaluate service standards for relevance, address potential gaps in the data collected, and leverage this information to address performance challenges.

FPB has established mechanisms and processes in order to communicate with business owners; however, there is an opportunity for FPB to improve and strengthen its communication mechanisms and to provide business owners with more consistent and timely communications.

Efficient and effective business processes should be in place to support the management of procurement needs and activities. The audit examined whether planning, prioritization, and communication processes and mechanisms existed, and whether these were being effectively utilized to address and manage business owners’ procurement needs and activities. Further, the audit examined whether processes existed to address procurement requests and conduct procurement related activities to support business owners in delivering on their objectives.

Documentation of Procurement Processes

FPB has defined and documented both internal procurement procedures to be utilized by staff members, and external processes to be leveraged by all business owners with procurement needs. Internal procedures include the PSU desktop procedures, the PPAR reporting standards, QA procedures, and a QA template tool. Internal procedures are sufficient and enable FPB staff to effectively execute their procurement-related responsibilities.

External procurement processes are in place for planning, purchasing goods and services with CMSS’ support, and contract amendments. Further, FPB has developed templates in support of processes, and visual process flowcharts depicting business owner and other party involvement, such as IT, vendors etc. Information available on the departmental intranet, The Source, provides guidance and expected service standards for processing requests to business owners to support them with their procurement needs and activities, and adequately highlights their roles and responsibilities throughout the process. This information is communicated to all sectors via The Source, however, this information is not regularly reviewed or updated to ensure its continued accuracy and relevance. In some instances, FPB has provided guidance to sectors with special delegations, however, there is no specific and updated guidance readily available on The Source or through other information sharing forums.

Procurement Planning and Prioritization

During the audit scope period, the procurement planning process was not regularly conducted or operating as intended, and was subsequently impacting PSU’s ability to adequately plan, prioritize, and manage procurement related needs and activities. This has resulted in procedural ‘bottlenecks’ that are occurring before procurement tickets are assigned to officers for processing. Further, it was indicated by PSU that the information yielded from this exercise is not adequate to allow for the effective management of procurement requests and planning of resourcing needs. As a result, the eProcurement system is the primary mechanism leveraged by FPB to plan, manage, and manually assign tickets to staff. Ticket assignment is based on a first in, first out process, the complexity of the ticket, and staff availability. Staff further prioritize their requests based on workload and ticket urgency. In light of the increased procurement request volume and internal FPB capacity issues, FPB engaged with senior management to proactively prioritize their procurement needs, including needs relating to new programming.

FPB does not regularly solicit the procurement plans and priorities from business owners, apart from the annual planning exercise with limited sector participation. Most business owners interviewed for the audit indicated that the planning process does not meet their needs. Some business owners indicated that they are proactive in sharing their needs with PSU. In the absence of effective planning processes, some business owners will attempt to bypass the system used by PSU in order to escalate the priority of their requests, through direct inquiries to PSU management. This is not a sustainable model, as it ultimately impacts and causes further delays in the processing time for other sector requests.

PPAR is seeking to implement additional planning-related enhancements, such as holding quarterly meetings with business owners to reconfirm their priorities and to set procurement expectations that are feasible. Implementation timelines for this initiative have not yet been established.

Procurement Processes for Requests and Activities

The procurement process involves sectors submitting their procurement needs to PSU via the eProcurement system. PSU will then review requests, seek additional information and documentation, and assign requests to procurement officers for processing. The end result includes a contract awarded for the delivery of services or goods being procured. Although there are sector procurement advisors assigned to provide support, business owners indicated that their need for guidance and direction are not always met. Prior to request submission, the advisors act as a point of contact between business owners and the procurement function, and help answer general procurement questions. The advisors are not regularly involved or invited to sector procurement planning discussions.

Although the established process is being followed, based on the audit process walkthrough and for sampled files, there are delays and ‘bottlenecks’ that impact the efficiency and effectiveness of certain elements of the process. Delays occur within the process at two main points: during the procurement planning process (detailed above), and at the outset of the procurement process, specifically, the time lapsed between sector request submission to PSU and request assignment, and the time required for PSU to obtain all relevant documentation from sectors. FPB management indicated that internal capacity issues impact their ability to assign requests to available procurement officers. Delays within these main process points result in additional time expended at the outset of the process, ultimately impacting and impeding the timely completion of the entire process. On April 26, 2022, updates were implemented to the eProcurement system, which require relevant information and documentation to be included when a request is submitted, instead of afterwards. These enhancements are intended to improve the efficiency of the process by eliminating the time required to obtain outstanding documentation.

Diagram 1 – High-level Procurement Process

Diagram 1 – High-Level Procurement Process This colour-coded diagram outlines the Natural Resources Canada procurement process at a very high level. The objective of this table is to visually display the process, outline who is involved in the process and when, and to highlight where delays are occurring within the process.

A colour-coded legend is provided that defines what parties are included in a given step of the process. The colour orange indicates PSU involvement; the colour green indicates Business Owner Involvement; the colour blue indicates both PSU and Business Owner involvement; and the colour red indicates where delays are occurring within the process.

Each row represents a step within the process. There are a total of nine rows. The steps of the process include:

• Consult with PSU if required – Business Owner involvement;
• Submit requests into the eProcurement System – Business Owner involvement;
• Obtain S. 32 approvals – Business Owner involvement;
• PSU to verify completeness and sufficiency of documents – PSU involvement (delays are occurring within this step);
• PSU to assign and prioritize requests – PSU involvement (delays are occurring within this step);
• Verify with IT and assets management, if required – PSU involvement;
• Select procurement vehicle and send to PSPC or SSC if required – PSU involvement;
• Bid solicitation and evaluation, if required – PSU and Business Owners involvement; and
• Obtain good and / or issue contract – PSU and Business Owners involvement.

Finally, between steps four and eight defined above, there are ongoing discussions between PSU and Business Owners.

FPB has implemented procurement service standards, tracks and monitors this information, and reports quarterly to CMSS management on whether standards were met. Some of the information tracked internally by FPB, however, is not relevant to and does not align with the standards shared with business owners. Information shared and tracked differs based on the number of categories tracked, monetary thresholds used, and days for completion (see table below).

Table 2 – Service Standards

The target for meeting the service standard is 75%; this means that if requests are processed within the specified time frame 75% of the time, the standard has been met. During the audit scope period, service standards for all categories were met, with the exception of contracts under $25,000 for Q4 of 2020-21 (37%), and Q2 for 2021-22 (39%) and Q3 for 2021-22 (13%). This was reflected in the audit sample testing, where there were four instances where service standards were not met within the twenty-five procurement requests tested. Interviews with PSU attributed these low scores to a lack of resourcing within PSU and the challenges with the volume of requests submitted for home office and IT equipment. The audit team found that service standards information is currently used for reporting purposes, however, it has yet to be meaningfully used to address performance gaps and improve processes.

Audit interviews with business owners highlighted that the procurement process does not meet their needs due to the delays within the process. They indicated that these delays have had corresponding impacts on the achievement of business objectives and priorities. Despite the delays, overall satisfaction with the procurement process increased from 2017 to 2021, per the results of the PSU satisfaction surveys for these periods. Business owners proposed the following improvements to the procurement process during audit interviews: sharing pertinent information of outstanding procurement requests; better communicating changes to the process that have an impact on business owners and ensuring that available information is up to date; and revising guidance to ensure that it is current.

Communications in the Procurement Process

FPB utilizes a variety of mechanisms to communicate with business owners regarding procurement processes and activities, including: information on The Source; sectors engaging with their assigned sector procurement advisors; sectors completing client satisfaction surveys; business owners contacting PSU to enquire about the overall status of their requests; and business owners and the procurement officer meeting to discuss the next steps for processing their requests. The primary mechanism for communicating with sectors is The Source; however, this information is outdated and, in some cases, does not provide accurate information on procurement activities. For example, flowcharts depicting procurement processes are dated 2015, and some of the information on the procurement planning process was last updated in 2018.

The communication mechanisms utilized by FPB largely promoted one-way communication with business owners, and there are limited proactive actions taken by PSU to inform sectors of the status of their requests. Business owners interviewed indicated that often no communication with PSU will occur after request submission until the request has been assigned to a procurement officer for action. Some business owners indicated that they will proactively communicate with PSU in order to receive status updates on their procurement requests prior to request assignment.

Two-way communication primarily occurs after tickets are assigned to procurement officers for processing, and this was confirmed through audit testing. Business owners indicated that communication between them and procurement officers occurs to discuss requests, obtain missing and/or incomplete documentation, and to respond to general questions about the process. This communication provides sectors with additional information on their requests, and an understanding of file progression and expected completion.

While FPB has established mechanisms and processes in order to communicate with business owners, there is an opportunity for FPB to improve and strengthen these mechanisms and to provide all business owners with more consistent and timely communications.

When processes are not reviewed and updated regularly, there is a risk that business owners may not be equipped to efficiently and effectively execute their procurement duties, affecting the overall processing of requests and timelines, and ultimately impacting the achievement of business owner priorities and objectives.

A lack of efficient and effective procurement processes, including request prioritization, may result in delays, affecting the overall processing time and limiting the achievement of business owner priorities and objectives.

Without accurate and precise data collected and used to support the monitoring and tracking of procurement service standards, insufficient information may limit the ability to detect and remediate issues and performance gaps.

Without a consistent approach to inform business owners of the status of their requests before they are assigned and throughout the procurement process, there is a risk that the expectations for file initiation and processing time may not be clear, resulting in business owners not having the required information to make informed decisions to meet their needs and objectives.

Recommendations

Recommendation 2: It is recommended that the ADM of CMSS:

• Develop and implement a prioritization process for procurement requests, including engaging with business owners;
• Review current procurement processes to identify and analyze any procedural constraints, and devise mechanisms to promote continuous process improvement;
• Review service standards for relevance, address potential gaps in the data collected, and leverage this information to address any performance challenges; and
• Enhance communications mechanisms between contracting authorities and business owners, including assessing the feasibility of an automated mechanism to provide regular status updates throughout the procurement process and to clarify timelines.

Recommendation 3: It is recommended that the ADM of CMSS review, update, and communicate guidance to business owners, including flexibilities in procurement approaches offered in the new TB Directive, to ensure that information available is current, clear, and provides sufficient information to enable business owners to execute their duties.

Management agrees with Recommendation #2.

A: Prioritization and engagement  

• FPB is working with the Financial Systems division to enhance the reporting capability within the AMI system and enhancements to eProcurement to better support and communicate to Business Owners to allow them to regularly review requests, clarify timelines, and confirm sector priorities; and to determine if additional flexibility can be built-in to improve functionality and reporting.
• FPB is developing criteria to prioritize procurement requests; i.e., prioritization amongst all the requests received from the various sectors.
• FPB has enhanced engagement between programs and procurement, for meaningful discussion and integration of procurement considerations into the planning of programs, projects and service delivery; e.g., via recurring attendance at senior management meetings and program specific discussions. Furthermore, FPB has included within the Annual Procurement Plan exercise the opportunity for sectors to prioritize their requirements. The Procurement Plan will be reviewed and updated by Business Owners at the same time as the FSRs. In addition, presentations to OC and FRPC on procurement status and progress have also occurred.

Timing : A (i) November 2022 for system, e-request and reporting enhancements; A (ii) October 2022 for prioritization criteria and recommendation process; A (iii) initiated during fourth quarter of FY 21/22 and ongoing.

B: Continuous process improvement

• FPB will be reviewing its triage/internal assignment process to find efficiencies and implement them, where feasible and will examine whether client-recalled procurements are occurring due to constraints in the process and whether an enhancement of the e-procurement system could address this issue.
• Training and awareness sessions will be developed and delivered to provide education to Business Owners on the end-to-end procurement process and legislative constraints that guide the process.
• FPB will review and streamline procurement processes as new initiatives brought forth by Central Agencies are implemented.

Timing : B (i) December 2022 for triage pilot; B (ii) May 2023 for the delivery of training; B (iii) ongoing.

C: In May 2022, a comparative analysis was undertaken to benchmark how NRCan measures against Other Government Departments (OGDs) Service Standards (e.g., GAC, PSPC, Transport, RCMP and others). This information will be leveraged to address any performance gaps and challenges. NRCan remains in line with OGD processing times based on existing analytics. While it has been challenging to consistently meet Services Standards this past FY, initiatives brought forth by Central Agencies could impact processing times (e.g., social procurement and new security requirements); as such, NRCan Procurement Service Standards will remain the same in FY 22/23, pending further assessment.

A new Service Standards Review will be conducted in September FY 23/24.

Timing : Completed and shared with senior management (via email) and FRPC members on June 7, 2022. The new Service Standards Review will be conducted in September FY 23/24. D: Enhance communications mechanisms to provide regular status updates throughout the procurement process and to clarify timelines - 

• FPB has enhanced engagement between programs and procurement, for meaningful discussion and integration of procurement considerations into the planning of programs, projects and service delivery; e.g., via recurring attendance at senior management meetings and program specific discussions. In addition, FPB has included within the Annual Procurement Plan exercise the opportunity for Sectors to prioritize their requirements. The Procurement Plan will be reviewed and updated by Business Owners at the same time as the FSRs.

Timing : D (i) November 2022 for system, e-request and reporting enhancements; D (ii) completed initiated during fourth quarter of FY 21/22 and ongoing.

Management agrees with Recommendation #3.

To evolve the suite of documents already available on NRCan intranet, a client-centric web-based collaborative platform (such as SharePoint) will be developed that will house procurement guidance information, relevant notices from central agencies, required forms, service standards etc., which should provide current, clear and sufficient information to enable business owners to execute their duties. Notifications to Business Owners for updates and changes will be explored.

Timing : April 2023 for a client-centric web-based collaborative platform.

Human Resources Planning and Training

Overall, opportunities exist to formally document and strengthen HR and succession planning mechanisms for the procurement function, and associated monitoring processes. These processes are largely informal and monitoring is conducted on an ad hoc basis.

Training and guidance provided to staff are sufficient and enable staff to adequately execute their duties. However, there are opportunities to strengthen training and awareness through the addition of fraud-related and other complementary topics, and monitoring of attendance/training completion to reduce potential knowledge disparities among FPB staff.

With respect to knowledge sharing and transference in support of capacity building, there is an opportunity to ensure that mechanisms are strengthened and regularly utilized for information sharing purposes.

Effective HR and succession planning processes should be in place to support the management of procurement activities. The audit examined whether the procurement function had articulated and planned for current and future human resources needs, including the required skills, knowledge and competencies, and whether these needs were effectively implemented and monitored. Additionally, the audit examined whether those with procurement related responsibilities were equipped with adequate training, knowledge, tools and guidance necessary to fulfill their roles.

HR Planning and Succession Planning Processes

FPB leverages formal and informal processes to meet their current HR needs. Processes and mechanisms leveraged to support HR-related needs included word of mouth initiatives, utilizing pre-established resourcing pools, the Federal Internship Program for Persons with Disabilities, Student Bridging, and formally launching HR processes to seek required resources. Management indicated these processes were utilized on an ongoing basis during the audit scope period to address capacity challenges; however, in FY 2020-21 staffing processes were typically initiated once resource departures were known versus conducting them in advance. Further, management indicated that they utilize the Financial Situation Reports (FSRs) to plan for known departures and planned staffing as part of their salary forecasts.

FPB does not have formally documented succession plans in place that articulate key positions, required skills, competencies and knowledge in support of medium to long-term HR-related needs. Processes that are in place are largely informal. In addition, monitoring processes and mechanisms over HR and succession planning are conducted on an ad hoc, as needed basis.

Within PSU, formal and informal HR processes are leveraged to support and meet current HR-related needs. In this unit, there are no formally documented HR and succession plans in place. During the audit scope period, PSU indicated that there was significant turn-over within their unit; however, throughout the course of the audit, PSU was able to enhance existing resource levels by hiring 18 new full-time equivalents (FTEs). Obtaining qualified resources at the appropriate levels and having a full staff complement was noted as a challenge for PSU, who further indicated that the labour pool for procurement officers is competitive and limited. In addition, PSU recently conducted a review and revision of their Statements of Merit and Criteria (SOMCs) to ensure that defined job requirements align with current needs and activities.

Within PPAR, a formally documented HR plan exists; however, this plan is dated November 2016, and does not reflect PPAR’s current HR-related needs. A formally documented succession plan is also not in place; however, informally, PPAR has identified a successor for the PPAR Manager position. In addition, PPAR’s SOMCs are outdated; however, they indicated that there will soon be an initiative to review and update these SOMCs to reflect current needs and activities.

There is an opportunity for FPB to formalize and operationalize HR and succession plans that identify short and long-term resourcing needs. Ideally, these plans should identify key positions, and define the required skills, knowledge, and competencies required. Further, there is an opportunity for FPB to regularly monitor and review these plans to ensure that they are updated and/or actioned where required.

Training, Guidance, and Knowledge for Procurement

Training and guidance for FPB staff is provided through a variety of formal and informal mechanisms and processes that support staff in the execution of their duties. PSU and PPAR have each developed lists detailing relevant training that new staff members are required to complete. Documented guidance is also readily available to staff through the PSU Desktop Procedures and the PPAR Reporting Standards and associated tools. In addition to formal training and guidance, PSU and PPAR provide informal training and guidance through on-the-job learning, job shadowing, and mentoring opportunities. PSU and PPAR staff indicated that both formal and informal training and guidance received has equipped them with sufficient knowledge to execute their duties. Going forward, PSU is seeking to formalize and strengthen mentoring opportunities for their staff at all levels. These efforts should support and aid with knowledge retention and transfer, and capacity building, which is especially important during periods of high staff turnover.

Training and awareness pertaining to procurement fraud is important for ensuring that procurement staff are sufficiently equipped to identify potential procurement related red flags and fraudulent schemes. Both the PSU and PPAR training requirements for new staff members do not specifically incorporate this type of training. In addition, PSU and PPAR staff training requirements are not the same. A lack of consistent training may result in knowledge disparities between the two units, which are intended to work in tandem in support of the procurement function and operations. This may also hinder PPAR’s ability to provide appropriate advice and guidance to PSU, which may impact PSU's ability to make procurement decisions. Further, completion of training requirements is not formally tracked and monitored, resulting in the potential for greater knowledge disparities between the two units.

Processes and mechanisms for sharing additional knowledge, such as procurement needs of the sectors, new programming requirements, and specific information on sector requests, is mostly conducted on an ad hoc basis. Information of this nature may be shared by sectors through sector procurement advisors or the PSU manager, who may not always share pertinent information with the procurement officer responsible for processing the request. PSU indicated that sectors will sometimes request a specific procurement officer with previous knowledge of the program/sector to process their requests. Program/sector information sharing is important for knowledge retention and transfer, and capacity building purposes, and enables staff to have a stronger understanding of the context surrounding procurement requests and activities. Further, this is important to ensure that sectors’ needs are well understood and to avoid repetition of previously shared knowledge.

Without sufficiently documented HR and succession plans, there is a risk that FPB may not be able to attain their current and future HR objectives, limiting their ability to adequately identify and acquire necessary skills and competencies, and potentially impacting their capacity to support procurement needs and activities.

Without complementary training and awareness sessions on procurement related topics, there is a risk that FPB staff are not sufficiently equipped to identify potential risks, fraud indicators, and red flags, and potentially resulting in fraudulent activities going undetected and unnoticed.  

A lack of monitoring and tracking of the completion of FPB staff training may result in knowledge disparities in the team, and potentially result in different information being disseminated to sectors.

In the absence of regularly utilized knowledge sharing and transfer processes, there is risk that staff will not have a consistent understanding of sector activities, needs, new programs, and requests. Further, without consistent knowledge within the team, there is risk that valuable corporate knowledge will be lost during periods of high-turnover.

Recommendation 4: It is recommended that the ADM of CMSS:

• Develop and implement HR and succession plans for FPB, and regularly monitor and update these plans as needed;
• Require that FPB staff participate in consistent training and awareness activities, including fraud, bid-rigging, green procurement, Indigenous considerations in procurement and other complementary topics, and monitor attendance and completion of training; and
• Strengthen and use knowledge sharing practices within FPB.

Management agrees with Recommendation #4.

A: While informal resource and succession planning successfully occurs on an ongoing basis, and both PSU and PPAR units have design structures that allow for talent management and succession, FPB will work with HR to brainstorm on recruitment, retention and PG development programs, formally documenting these plans and strategies as appropriate. Of note, the PMF will be updated to recognize HR staffing, training and succession planning initiatives.

Timing :  September 2022 for the NRCan PMF to be completed and endorsed; May 2023 and ongoing for formally documenting HR, succession plans and strategies as needed.

B: PSU and PPAR staff will be encouraged to participate in consistent training and awareness activities for all of the areas indicated in the audit recommendation on an ongoing basis, including events offered by the Canadian Institute for Procurement and Material Management, the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) and other fora. This is in addition to the mandatory procurement courses required for them to receive functional procurement authority as per the Delegation of Procurement Authority Instrument and mandatory training found on the HR Learning Platform Mandatory Training | The Source (nrcan.gc.ca) (Accessible only on the Natural Resources Canada network). The tracking of completed training is currently housed in PeopleSoft and monitored by HR. FPB will also monitor PeopleSoft entries to ensure appropriate attendance and training completion.

Complementary awareness sessions will be delivered on an ad hoc basis, such as Recognizing Bid Rigging, an information session offered by the Competition Bureau.

Since March 2022, FPB has had a membership with the Canadian Public Procurement Council (CPPC) , a municipal-provincial-federal council that supports the sharing of best practices, staffing processes, industry trends/challenges, networking opportunities, etc. and this membership will be promoted to PSU and PPAR staff.

Timing : Ongoing, mandatory training for procurement employees will be updated as it is completed and HR PeopleSoft entries will be monitored by FPB; ongoing for information/awareness sessions.

C: Strengthen and use knowledge sharing practices -

• To evolve the suite of documents already available on the Intranet, a client-centric web-based collaborative platform (such as SharePoint) will be developed that will house procurement guidance information, relevant notices from central agencies, required forms, service standards etc. which will provide another forum for knowledge sharing and to access to up-to-date information.
• The bi-weekly Procurement All Staff meeting will be the main forum for the sharing of best practices between PPAR and PSU and for knowledge download to Buyers. Meeting Minutes will be kept in GCDocs. The collaboration space in MS Teams will be promoted within both divisions as a tool to further enable knowledge sharing. 

Timing : C (i) April 2023 for a client-centric web-based collaborative platform; C (ii) July 2022/ongoing.

As part of the transition to the new TB Directive on the Management of Procurement, the Department has developed a Procurement Management Framework (PMF) and an updated set of roles and responsibilities for sectors. Additional work is required to ensure that sectors are aware of and understand how the new requirements will impact their procurement activities.

The audit examined whether NRCan had developed and implemented an approach to transition to the new TB Directive on procurement. The new Directive is less prescriptive and encourages departments to consider collaborative, innovative, iterative, and outcomes-based procurement approaches where appropriate. Additionally, the new Directive requires departments to identify a senior designated official (SDO) responsible for implementing the requirements of the new Directive, including the development, implementation, and maintenance of a PMF for the Department's procurement function and activities. TBS has been providing guidance to departments on how to implement the new Directive, and will continue to do so through the SDO Council and the interdepartmental platform GCpedia.

The latest draft of NRCan’s PMF (March 2022) is generally in alignment with the requirements of the new Directive. The PMF explains and describes existing NRCan activities and processes that demonstrate compliance with the new Directive. It also explains new initiatives that will be put in place to ensure alignment and compliance. These include the SDO endorsement of high risk procurements (in lieu of the dissolved Procurement Review Board), an integrated approach to procurement and investment planning, and additional reporting requirements per the new Directive (e.g. 5% target for procurement with Indigenous businesses). Essential elements to meet the needs of business owners are outlined in the new Directive, such as workforce capacity, departmental procurement planning, and requirements for contracting authorities and business owners. At the completion of the audit, limited work has been done to date by FPB to address these elements. TBS released guidance on the transition to the new Directive in February 2022. Additional guidance is expected to be provided in the summer and fall of 2022.

Workforce capacity for the procurement function is included in the PMF. This aligns with the Directive's requirement for SDOs to identify and address the Department’s needs with respect to the necessary competencies, capacity, and professional development for procurement management. However, the ability to implement this requirement may be impacted by the challenges with HR and succession planning identified earlier in the audit. The annual procurement planning exercise is also included in the PMF for resource allocation and procurement strategy planning. However, as was indicated, this exercise has not been leveraged, and there are challenges with soliciting information from sectors.

Efforts have been made to engage and consult with sectors on the changes for contracting authorities and business owners as outlined in the new TB Directive. This includes additional requirements for contracting authorities’ regarding contractual arrangements; limitation of liability; and an outcomes-based approach for procurement. FPB has developed and indicated that they will communicate revised roles and responsibilities to sectors. Additional work is required in order to ensure that sectors are aware of and understand how the requirements impact their procurement activities. Business owners and contracting authorities will benefit from training and / or awareness activities in order to understand and adopt the new flexibilities in the Directive for procurement approaches. Based on information provided by CMSS and documents reviewed by the audit team, the focus has been on other departmental procurement priorities, and NRCan has not yet fully transitioned to the new Directive.

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of management processes related to the procurement function, and the adequacy of governance over procurement operations, as it related to meeting the needs of the Department.

The following audit criteria were used to conduct the audit:

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Digital Operations Strategic Plan: 2021–2024

From Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

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Document purpose and what’s new, message from the chief information officer of canada, context: a rapidly changing digital landscape, digital government, our strategy: transitioning to a more digital government to improve client service, our strategy in action: priorities for the next 3 years (2021–2024), appendix a: related policy instruments, guidance, plans and strategies, appendix b: minister of digital government mandate letters, appendix c: government of canada service and digital target state enterprise architecture, appendix d: progress report on 2018–2022 dosp strategic actions.

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Table of contents

Priority 1.1. strengthen the overall health of the government’s application portfolio, priority 1.2. provide modern, reliable and secure networks and infrastructure, priority 2.1. improve the service experience of all clients, priority 2.2. maximize public value of data and information, priority 2.3. build and use secure common solutions for digital service delivery, priority 3.1. manage and use data and information as strategic assets, priority 3.2. plan and govern for the sustainable and integrated management of service, information, data, it and cybersecurity, priority 3.3. deploy modern and accessible workplace tools and devices, priority 4.1. support fully digital delivery by managing a government-wide culture shift, priority 4.2. build a workforce for digital first delivery.

The Government of Canada (GC) Digital Operations Strategic Plan (DOSP) for 2021–2024 fulfills the responsibility of the Chief Information Officer of Canada, set out in the Treasury Board Policy on Service and Digital , for “approving an annual, forward‑looking 3‑year enterprise‑wide plan that establishes the strategic direction for the integrated management of service, information, data, information technology (IT) and cybersecurity.”

Developed by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS), the 2021–2024 DOSP builds on the 2018–2022 one. In line with the GC Digital Standards , TBS designed the plan with users in mind. It incorporates feedback received on previous strategic plans and complements other key policies, guidelines, plans and strategies that set out the requirements for departments’ planning processes ( see Appendix A ).

The latest DOSP consolidates the 6 strategic themes of the previous one into 4 strategic pillars that support the government’s digital transformation.

This DOSP recognizes the progress achieved, sets government‑wide priorities and lists key activities for departments and agencies, Footnote 1 including those that serve other government organizations by working to modernize service delivery, improve sustainability and promote digital stewardship. These priorities and activities will help departments move toward digital program and service delivery for Canadians. The updated DOSP was developed by the Digital Government team, with support from Public Services and Procurement Canada and the Canada School of Public Service.

Departments will develop their own integrated plans that align with the DOSP and that support their departmental mandates and requirements. TBS will update the DOSP annually, to address any emerging priorities and actions, and will prepare an annual progress report.

The 2021–2024 DOSP supports Canada’s Digital Government Strategy , led by the GC’s first Minister of Digital Government ( see Appendix B for the Minister’s mandate letters). The strategy will help improve service delivery by accelerating the GC’s digital transformation and increasing collaboration with all levels of government. To align efforts across the GC and build a consistent digital experience, the Minister leads the Digital Government team, which includes, TBS (specifically, the Office of the Chief Information Officer, Digital Transformation Office and Canadian Digital Service) and Shared Services Canada. 

I am pleased to release the Digital Operations Strategic Plan (DOSP) for 2021–2024 at this pivotal time for Canada and Canadians.

The COVID‑19 pandemic significantly accelerated the global shift to online services and the trend toward remote work. From the onset of the pandemic, public servants rose to the occasion, working across traditional divides and innovating to rapidly deliver essential services digitally to millions of Canadians, including emergency benefits and the COVID Alert app. Shared Services Canada worked tirelessly with departments and agencies to maintain quick, efficient and secure delivery of critical front‑line services.

As Canada’s economy recovers from the pandemic, the need for digital government is more pronounced than ever: a government that is more open and more collaborative and that provides improved digital‑first, user‑centred services and programs.

To make digital government a reality in an unpredictable environment, we in the Government of Canada (GC) must modernize how we manage technology and technological change to keep government responsive and resilient so that it meets the changing needs and expectations of Canadians and Canadian businesses.

Since the 2018–2022 DOSP, we have introduced important changes to our digital governance, policy suite and management practices to set the foundation for a digital government across all ministries. We are on track to launch the OneGC platform, which will allow individuals and businesses to use a single identity and password to access federal government services through a single window on Canada.ca.

Going forward, we need to eliminate long‑standing institutional barriers to digital acceleration, leverage innovative technologies and put users at the heart of all we do, in line with the GC Digital Standards. We must also implement lessons learned from our response to the COVID‑19 pandemic.

The 2021–2024 DOSP provides the strategic direction for the GC’s integrated management of service, information, data, IT and cybersecurity. It sets out priorities and actions to accelerate our efforts. Given our shifting operating environment, we will review this document annually.

Our priorities include:

• making investments so that the GC has easy‑to‑use, reliable, modern and secure IT systems, networks and infrastructure that support whole‑of‑government operations
• developing and delivering services that, by design, put users first by being accessible, inclusive, secure and easy to use, and that respect privacy and choice of official language
• improving data-driven decision‑making
• getting the most value for the public from the data and information the GC holds
• modernizing funding and procurement approaches to support more agile execution practices
• acting ethically and in environmentally sustainable ways

Our employees remain our most valuable resource. We need to attract and retain top‑notch talent. We will make sure that our multidisciplinary workforce has the right digital skills, that these skills are put to use in the right place, and that employees have modern tools and are supported by enabling leadership. We will also continue to strive to make our workforce inclusive and diverse.

The journey to fully digital service delivery requires collaboration, experimentation and continual improvement across the GC. I am humbled and proud to be on this journey with you, working together to make digital service delivery better, faster, greener and more reliable.

Marc Brouillard Acting Chief Information Officer of Canada

Today’s digital landscape is marked by change of unprecedented pace and scope. Rapid technological, digital and data transformation are now part of Canadians’ daily lives, revolutionizing the way they access information and services and the way they live, socialize and work.

Canadians expect to be able to access any government service, at any time and on any device. Most citizens agree that personal information should be shared between GC departments to enable faster, more accurate service. Footnote 2 However, while they recognize the potential of technological, digital and data transformation, citizens are concerned about how the GC uses and manages their personal information and about what it does to ensure their privacy and security. Footnote 3

In the 2020 Speech from the Throne, the government committed to ensuring that all Canadians, no matter where they live, have access to high-speed Internet. It also committed to making generational investments to update outdated IT systems to modernize the way government serves Canadians, from the elderly to the young, and from people looking for work to those living with a disability.

Canada plays a leadership role on digital government internationally, through forums such as the Digital Nations, the International Council for Information Technology in Government Administration (ICA), the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD), and the United Nations.

In recent years, Canada has also emerged as a leading voice in the global open government community. Since 2012, it has been a member of the  Open Government Partnership (OGP). This multilateral initiative by 75 member nations and a number of sub‑national government members aims to secure concrete commitments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance, in partnership with civil society and the private sector. So far, Canada has released three OGP action plans outlining how it will make government more open. A fourth action plan is under development.

The world is moving toward using cleaner technologies. The 2021–2024 DOSP goes hand in hand with the Greening Government Strategy, which seeks to make GC operations low-carbon through green procurement and clean technologies.

The need to accelerate government digital transformation

Good government in the 21st century means seamlessly delivering programs and services that, by design, are digitally enabled, client‑driven, inclusive and accessible, and that address security and privacy concerns. The GC needs to accelerate its digital transformation to meet changing public expectations, optimize value, and become nimbler so that it can adapt faster.

By thoughtfully designing policies and programs to meet people’s diverse needs and by providing effective digital service delivery, the GC can help close gaps for those who face systemic and other barriers to social and economic inclusion and success.

The COVID‑19 pandemic has highlighted the need for digital transformation and has brought about major changes. One such change is the shift to online services and to employees working remotely. The GC must build on the momentum of these changes and adopt an agile, user‑centric mindset to meet the diverse needs of Canadians and to make digital government a reality. It must also actively prepare to respond to other disruptions that may lie ahead.

To lead the transition to a more digital government and make Canada a leading digital nation, the GC’s first Minister of Digital Government released Canada’s Digital Government Strategy in spring 2021. The 2021–2024 DOSP supports this strategy.

Opportunities and challenges

New and emerging technologies and digital solutions offer significant opportunities to help us make this digital transformation. We have made investments and progress in areas including big data, sophisticated analytical tools and cloud computing. We need to do more to ensure that we make the right investment decisions and continue to remove institutional barriers to transformation.

Our siloed operations and the complex flow of data and information get in the way of a positive user experience because they make it difficult for users to find, navigate and use government services. Because many IT systems and infrastructure components are outdated, complex and costly to maintain, it is difficult to change them quickly, and they have increased performance and security risks. Also, real human, financial management and procurement capability and resource limitations remain barriers to digital change.

We continue to dismantle barriers to accessing government information and services, and to build a diverse and inclusive workplace that helps us better understand the needs of Canadians and deliver quality, user‑centric services. Nevertheless, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, Black people and other racialized minority individuals and women continue to face systemic barriers.

This DOSP will complement ongoing work in this area, including the implementation of the Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada and Canada’s Anti Racism Strategy 2019–2022 .

Our progress so far

The 2018–2022 DOSP laid out an ambitious agenda. Since 2018, we have made significant progress toward our goals. In 2019, the government reaffirmed its commitment to a more digital government and better service delivery, a commitment strengthened by the Prime Minister making digital government a separate portfolio with its own minister. Recent accomplishments focused on putting in place the frameworks for horizontal decision‑making such as new Treasury Board policy instruments, stronger governance structures and other strategic plans and initiatives to achieve our goals.

GC Digital Standards: our DNA

Design with users. Iterate and improve frequently. Work in the open by default. Use open standards and solutions. Address security and privacy risks. Build in accessibility from the start. Empower staff to deliver better services. Be good data stewards. Design ethical services. Collaborate widely.

• The Government of Canada Digital Standards , co‑created with the public and with key stakeholder groups, outline the guiding principles for how all public servants must work in the digital age. The standards place users and their needs at the heart of our services, programs and operations, and require that we leverage digital technologies and methods to deliver the high‑quality services Canadians expect. To improve the adoption of these standards by departments, TBS will develop guidance and tools.
• The Policy on Service and Digital and the Directive on Service and Digital , developed with stakeholders from across Canada, came into effect on April 1, 2020. Along with their supporting instruments, they articulate how GC organizations are to manage service delivery, information and data, information technology (IT) and cybersecurity in the digital era. The policy focuses on the client and, for the first time, requires departments to name a senior official responsible for service management and cybersecurity. TBS is working to adjust the existing policy suite to accelerate digital transformation and to address emerging needs and priorities. It is also developing new directives and standards.
• Deputy minister committees were struck to make policies more coherent government‑wide and to promote a whole‑of‑government approach to management, human resources and policy planning. These committees include committees on digitization of services; enterprise priorities and planning; core services; and governance in a digital age, which focuses on issues such as privacy and data use, and strategic procurement for complex programs.
• The Government of Canada Enterprise Architecture Review Board (GC EARB) has continued with its mandate, set out in the Policy on Service and Digital , to “define current and target architecture standards for the GC and review departmental proposals for alignment.” The GC Service and Digital Target‑State Enterprise Architecture, endorsed on October 22, 2020, will help us better coordinate our transformation efforts and focus on users and service delivery when considering new IT solutions and when modernizing older ones. It will also help us align our IT investments with business services. The document is now the primary architecture reference for all departments (as applicable) for the digital enablement of GC services. See Appendix C for a visual representation of the Service and Digital Target‑State Enterprise Architecture.
• The GC Data Strategy Roadmap , published in November 2018, sets strategic priorities for a unified and collaborative approach to managing government‑wide data as an asset while respecting privacy.
• The National Action Plan on Open Government (2018–2020) was released in December 2018. This is the fourth iteration of this plan and details the GC’s commitment to making government information, data and services open and inclusive for all Canadians. The GC will co‑create the fifth iteration with civil society and publish it later in 2021.
• The GC‑wide greening IT working group was launched in July 2020. Chaired by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS), this working group of departmental chief information officers (CIOs) has produced a series of initial recommendations for ways departments and central agencies can scale greening IT policies, actions and strategies. The GC will develop targets, standards and procurement criteria for government IT that supports the updated Greening Government Strategy.
• Canada signed the Digital Nations Charter in February 2018, joining leading nations in a mission to harness digital technology to benefit citizens. The 2020 charter commits Canada to working toward core principles of digital development, with a focus on user needs, open government and a commitment to share and learn from member nations.

Appendix D is a progress report on the strategic actions from the 2018–2022 DOSP.

A digital government puts people and their needs first. It is accountable to its citizens and shares information with them. It involves them when making policies and designing services. It values inclusion and accessibility. It designs services for the people who need them, not for the organizations that deliver them.

The Government of Canada is an open and service-oriented organization that operates and delivers programs and services to people and businesses in simple, modern and effective ways that are optimized for digital and available anytime, anywhere and from any device.

Digitally, the Government of Canada must operate as one to benefit each and every Canadian.

The DOSP aligns with Canada’s Digital Government Strategy to lead the transition to a more digital government.

Our strategy for transitioning to a more digital government has 4 strategic pillars. These pillars are the enduring objectives that we will pursue to make digital government a reality and to help us provide a fully digital service experience for Canadians.

The GC’s major service‑delivery systems are easy to use and maintain, stable and reliable, secure, and adaptable.

Individuals and businesses are satisfied with and trust GC services, which are reliable, secure, timely, accessible and easy to use from any device.

GC public servants are happier and more productive; departments make better data-driven decisions; operations are more effective and efficient; costs are lower; and duplication of effort is reduced.

GC public servants are digitally enabled through cultural and operational shifts and work on modern, diverse and multidisciplinary teams to serve the public better.

This section of the 2021–2024 DOSP identifies priorities and actions for each of the 4 strategic pillars, for the next 3 years. These actions should be reflected in departmental plans so that all departments move together as one on the journey.

TBS will send annual performance management targets, expected results and measures, for each action identified in the sections below, to CIOs and senior officials responsible for service management and cybersecurity. TBS will use these targets to measure the government’s progress on this plan, year over year.

Strategic pillar 1: modernize legacy IT systems

Delivering the programs and services that Canadians rely on every day depends on fully functional, secure and reliable information technology and on accurate and authoritative data.

To deliver better digital services, we need modern IT infrastructure and systems. We have made progress in rationalizing applications, but GC departments and agencies still support more than 7,000 business applications (down from 8,900 in 2018), including some that enable the delivery of critical services. The health of GC applications varies, and they sit on aging infrastructure. A single system failure can impede our ability to deliver benefits and services in times of need, which can erode public trust.

To support enterprise operations, Shared Services Canada (SSC) is working to build and strengthen the federal government’s foundational IT infrastructure. SSC is closing legacy data centres, reducing its environmental footprint and deploying modern infrastructure. Our Cloud Adoption Strategy means that departments must use the public cloud to store, manage and process data and applications, whenever possible. The cloud‑first approach helps departments deliver high‑quality digital services using cloud services that have been approved for use in the GC. As the cloud broker, SSC liaises between qualified external cloud service providers and departments to make sure departments have access to the best possible cloud solutions for secure service delivery. Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) ensures that small and medium enterprises have a role in delivering cloud services to the GC.

Cybersecurity threats continue to increase, and so must our risk response. The integrity and security of the GC’s data and IT infrastructure is essential to the delivery of services to Canadians. With the increasing sophistication and frequency of cyberattacks, we must remain vigilant and continue to strengthen the GC’s defences. To protect GC devices, systems and information throughout their life cycle, we will use an information‑centric security model that is supported by a trusted digital identity. We will, for example, leverage cyber‑defence services, such as those offered by the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (CCCS).

A deputy minister committee has been established to advance on these modernization priorities, particularly in relation to those systems that have the highest impact on Canadians and businesses. The committee will consult internal and external technical advisors to provide guidance and recommendations to inform the committee’s work.

Our IT systems transformation goals include:

• preventing service failures from negatively impacting the lives of Canadians in the short-term by stabilizing systems most at risk of failing
• avoiding new legacy problems by designing IT systems to be adaptable, resilient, iterative and secure
• enabling consistent, timely and reliable services to Canadians by building modern IT systems and by updating them frequently 

We will use the GC Digital Standards in redesigning, funding, and implementing major legacy modernization.

Thousands of software applications are used to run the systems that deliver GC programs and services, such as Employment Insurance, passports and Old Age Security, to millions of Canadians every day. The good health of these applications is essential for reliable and secure service.

Several issues can weaken this health and lead to “technical debt.” Technical debt occurs when the vendor hasn’t upgraded and no longer supports an application, or when an application is so old that it’s hard to find people who have the skills to maintain it. In some cases, technical debt makes applications costly to maintain and at risk of performance and security failures. In other cases, it means that applications are too outdated to deliver fully digital services.

To avoid future technical debt, departments should continue to rationalize and modernize their application portfolios by:

• prioritizing cloud services or moving to SSC’s enterprise data centre when it makes sense to do so
• leveraging common enterprise solutions and cloud‑based solutions like software‑as‑a‑service (SaaS)
• monitoring and investing to keep the portfolio in good health
• using secure application development practices to help mitigate the risks of vulnerabilities in application software and to provide assurance that digital services are operating as intended
• minimizing cyber‑risks by implementing the CCCS’s top 10 security actions

In addition to taking the measures that all departments need to take, TBS, SSC and PSPC are collaborating to ensure that all parts of the GC enterprise progress together. Work includes:

• enhancing the GC Application Portfolio Management framework and tools to provide better data‑driven insights for departments to use in managing the health of their application portfolio and for senior leaders to use in making decisions for the prioritization of enterprise investments
• providing funding to departments to modernize applications and migrate to modern hosting environments
• finding more opportunities for common solutions to improve business capabilities across the GC enterprise, in areas such as human resources and pay, financial management and case management
• developing tools and guidance for a developer‑centred approach to security that makes security part of the application development process
• working together so that departments can obtain and use cloud services through a light‑touch brokering model, delivery of required network services and a review of the funding model

Actions to achieve the priority

To tackle technical debt and improve the health of its application portfolio, the GC is:

• assessing the health of departments’ application portfolios
• devising and executing a strategy to rationalize and modernize applications using cloud‑first and common solutions as much as possible
• investing to sustain the application portfolio health and manage technical debt

Secure networks and infrastructure are the foundations of digital government and of all government services.

Currently, the GC has 50 networks across the country. Many of them are old and cannot handle cloud, video and voice. They are complex, labour‑intensive, costly to maintain and lack the capacity to scale and to deliver the services Canadians need.

As the GC adopts alternative service delivery models such as public cloud and hybrid cloud, it must continue to provide a secure, reliable and interoperable service delivery environment for internal services and business applications that are hosted in cloud based environments. The GC must create a secure and resilient enterprise digital security ecosystem. We must build in privacy and security from the outset and use an information‑centric approach so that we can deliver services where only trusted and verified users can access protected assets. By applying a defence‑in‑depth, layered security approach, the GC will keep pace with evolving technology and practices and properly protect its information and assets.

SSC will replace single departmental networks with modern, consolidated, cloud‑first networks that are available anytime, anywhere and to anyone who needs them. To support continuous improvement and the move to a digital platform model that has common solutions and components, SSC will address accessibility requirements from the start.

As we work to make government networks and infrastructure more secure, we will continue to consider the particular needs of the GC’s high‑security organizations.

The GC is working to provide reliable networks and infrastructure by:

• transitioning to a single, modern, end‑to‑end enterprise class network that users can access anytime, anywhere
• increasing network security

Strategic pillar 2: improve services

Individuals and businesses have said they want faster, easier access to GC services online. Long line-ups at service centres, lengthy call wait times and confusing websites diminish Canadians’ trust in their government, at home and abroad. 

Duplication of efforts across departments results in inconsistent and inefficient services, and reliance on the most expensive channels. People expect the services they get from government to be as fast, reliable and easy-to-use as the services they get from the private sector. They also expect the government to keep their personal information safe and secure. 

To build a world‑class digital government, we must:

• strive to continuously improve service delivery based on client and user feedback
• take an enterprise view to using data and information to fuel a seamless, “tell‑us‑once” experience
• ensure privacy and protect personal information

Other governments have proven that standardized approaches to data and common solutions are the keys to building an ecosystem where clients have convenient, reliable, timely and secure access to the services they need, without having to navigate the complex government structure. We in the GC must work together to do the same.

Client‑focused organizations are committed to continuously improving service delivery. They invest in obtaining quality data, gathering client insights, understanding users’ experiences, and measuring and improving service satisfaction. By making these investments, they build client trust.

For government, client focus means developing and delivering client‑centric service by design, as required under the Policy on Service and Digital . It means making sure that services:

• are accessible, inclusive, easy to use and secure
• protect clients’ privacy
• offer clients their choice of official language

To provide easy-to-access, modern and effective service, we need to increase the availability, reliability and security of online end‑to‑end services. Doing so will increase satisfaction and build trust in government. We need to go beyond traditional service delivery and to fully digital service delivery that lets clients access easy‑to‑use online services anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and we must meet the needs of vulnerable populations that require specific forms of support.

Given the new digital reality, we need to make sure public servants have the knowledge, skills and mindset needed to deliver a digital‑first experience to Canadians. We also need to make sure they can respond to emergency needs with flexible service delivery, as highlighted under strategic pillar 4: transform the institution.

The GC is working to improve the service experience for all clients by:

• using client feedback and user engagement in designing and continuously improving services
• increasing the availability and security of end‑to‑end online services
• making service dashboards public to inform clients of expected wait times and other service‑delivery metrics

The GC’s multitude of programs and services collect, generate and hold an ever‑expanding array of data and information. Data is a strategic asset and is the “currency” of digital government, but our legislation, governance and standards don’t allow for consistent and effective sharing and reuse of data. Departments don’t always know the full breadth and depth of their holdings (or those of other departments); and people who need particular data can’t always access it, even from inside the GC.

To leverage the data and information the GC holds so that it can benefit of Canadians, we need to:

• define roles and responsibilities for data stewardship
• implement standards for accessibility and interoperability while protecting privacy and personal information
• build solutions to facilitate the secure exchange of data across levels of government and with trusted external partners while upholding ethical and inclusive democratic principles

We also need to continue promoting the open government values of transparency, accountability and participation. The 2018–2020 National Action Plan on Open Government lays out 10 commitments that underpin good digital government. We have made progress on these commitments, and we will set new targets in 2021. We must, however, act immediately to improve departmental practices relating to proactive disclosure and release of datasets if we are to maintain Canada’s standing in the international open government community. To help departments identify what areas they need to address and to help them set targets, TBS will develop an open government maturity framework and assessment tool.

The Access to Information and Privacy Online Request Service portal, launched in October 2018, brings transparency and client service together to help requesters identify which institutions likely hold the information they seek and to search for summaries of previously released access to information requests. The portal processed over 8,000 requests in 2019–20. Efforts continue to bring more institutions onto the portal. We need to continue improving the service experience by adopting a standard end-to-end process that will help us better meet our legislative commitments for timely response.

The GC is working to maximize the public value of data and information by:

• developing and implementing enterprise standards for data and information accessibility, exchange and reuse, while protecting privacy and personal information
• enabling the secure, seamless and real‑time exchange of data across government departments and with external partners and trusted institutions
• increasing the maturity of open government practices
• identifying ways to improve response times for access to information and personal information requests

Over the past 50 years, most IT systems that help deliver government operations and services have been designed and built independently of each other. The lack of coordination has resulted in a complex technology landscape, which:

• makes it difficult to integrate systems to provide seamless client experience
• leads to high support and maintenance costs
• creates risks of data loss and other security failures
• lacks the flexibility and agility needed to deliver new services and benefits quickly

For clients, the lack of coordination means they have to:

• provide the same information every time they access a new service or benefit
• wait longer to confirm their identity when they sign up for a new service
• provide different information as proof for eligibility for different services

Our next step in creating a digital government is adopting a “government‑as‑a‑platform” service‑delivery model. This model relies on common components and data exchange to give clients a “tell‑us‑once” experience when they, for example, sign up for a service, complete forms or applications, communicate about that service, and pay service fees. 

We need to work together to make outward-facing digital platforms and components consistent across the GC and to design them for the person or organization served. Examples of collaboration to date include:

• Notify , the first GC platform service that lets departments update clients quickly, consistently, reliably and securely by email and by text message. The Canadian Digital Service developed the application in collaboration with the Ontario Digital Service and industry partners. Notify is being used for the exposure‑notification component of the GC’s COVID Alert app.
• Benefits Finder , a tool that provides individuals with information on federal, provincial and territorial benefits programs available to them. The Canadian Digital Service built this open-source web-based tool in collaboration with Employment and Social Development Canada, the Canada Revenue Agency and with input from Canadians. Benefits Finder will be updated continuously as new benefits programs become available.

The GC is working to build and use common solutions for digital service delivery by:

• establishing the OneGC platform, a single window on Canada.ca to access integrated GC services using any device
• implementing a common and secure approach to digital identity
• using a single trusted sign‑in to authenticate and verify the identity of individuals and businesses that access government services online
• replacing thousands of PDFs and paper processes with online forms and making sure people can get updates quickly and easily by email or text message through an opt‑in notification service
• embracing emerging and leading practices, including reusing data and using common solutions and components, where appropriate, to enable interoperability across services

Strategic pillar 3: implement enterprise

Some departments continue to work in silos, leading to duplication of effort and increasing the likelihood of costly failures.

The increasingly complex flow of data and information makes it difficult for departments to share and develop services and products that work across government, which can result in a negative user experience. Individuals and businesses need and expect modern, secure, reliable technology and data. To meet those needs and expectations, the GC needs a workforce that has the right digital skills and tools, forward-thinking leaders and forward-looking governance models.

As we transition to a more digital government, we will need to leave our silos and take an enterprise-wide approach to information management, data stewardship, and IT operations, tools and assets. By collaborating more, we will speed up the pace of improvements and innovations.

We will continue to enhance enterprise governance and integrate it into government operations to ensure that decisions are based on evidence and take into account business needs alongside technological and information considerations, from conception through to delivery and beyond.

Unlocking the potential of data will help us improve services, protect users’ privacy, support evidence‑based decisions and create internal efficiencies. We will ensure the appropriate access, use and sharing of data assets by implementing robust data and information governance and stewardship that focuses on security, integrity and protecting personal information.

To ensure that we give Canadians a digital‑first experience, we will equip our employees with modern, accessible workplace tools and devices.

The deputy minister committee will bring together internal and external experts who have experience in implementing modernization initiatives in order to enable and support the departments that are responsible for transforming core services.

In addition to maximizing the public value of data and information (strategic pillar 2, priority 2.2), we need to improve how we manage, use and protect these strategic assets.

We need to use the vast amount and variety of data and information the GC collects, creates and holds  (including personal, financial, geospatial, scientific and statistical data and information) to make better decisions, provide better advice to ministers and design better policies and programs, and in turn, fuel a better service experience. In doing so, we need to apply a balanced approach that makes protecting sensitive information a priority.

In November 2018, the Clerk of the Privy Council released the Data Strategy Roadmap for the Federal Public Service . Developed by the Privy Council Office (PCO), TBS and Statistics Canada, the strategy, made recommendations structured around 4 themes:

• stronger governance
• improved data literacy and skills
• enabling infrastructure and legislation
• more focused treatment of data as a valuable asset

Stronger governance calls for a government‑wide approach to rules, processes, roles and responsibilities that aligns with international standards and that will allow the GC to make the best use of its data and information. TBS will lead this work to strengthen governance, in collaboration with PCO, Statistics Canada and other stakeholders across government. Together, we will also build a central view of government data to enable sharing, exchange and reuse; reduce duplication; increase quality; and expose new opportunities for service improvement.

Over the next 3 years, we will better align our efforts to build a strong foundation for the strategic management of data and information across the GC. This plan identifies actions to fulfill some of the priorities set out in the Data Strategy Roadmap. These actions will help ensure that departments and agencies, regardless of their progress on implementing their own data plans, invest in projects and activities that align with or complement the GC’s overall direction.

The GC is working to better manage and use data and information as strategic assets by:

• creating effective governance structures, roles and responsibilities
• building and using a common data reference model and an inventory of government data assets
• defining a government data quality framework

We are making progress on integrating our planning and management of service, information, data, IT, and cybersecurity. Integrated planning using the right data, processes and technology, will help provide data‑driven insights across the GC portfolio of investments, assets and services.

We will make data and information more visible across the GC enterprise to:

• better align priorities
• make proactive and timely decisions
• implement effective policies

This increased visibility will help:

• unify projects, products, capabilities
• simplify activities
• make people and processes more productive
• streamline the technologies in use
• let public servants do their jobs better, faster and more easily
• better serve Canadians

We will respond to changes in business needs and better leverage new technologies by enabling agile product‑management approaches to meet peoples’ evolving expectations. We have made good progress by developing and implementing policies; we accelerated our digital transformation in response to the COVID‑19 pandemic; and we have learned from our response to the pandemic. We need to do more to address institutional barriers, including barriers to modern funding, to procurement and to governance models.

To address key challenges in the current GC enterprise ecosystem, including reducing silos, eliminating unnecessary redundancies and addressing the problems posed by legacy systems, we have defined a target‑state model for the digital enablement of GC services. The GC Service and Digital Target‑State Enterprise Architecture, will help us:

• better coordinate our transformation efforts
• focus on users and service delivery when considering new IT solutions or modernizing old ones
• make sure our IT investments align with business services

To reduce unnecessary redundancy, solutions will use reusable components for implementing business capabilities. This reuse will be enabled using published application programming interfaces (APIs) and will be shared across the GC.

When implementing the GC Service and Digital Target-State Enterprise Architecture, we will systematically consider IT investments from a whole‑of‑government perspective. We will assess new digital investments against the criteria set out in the revised GC Enterprise Architecture Framework. See Appendix C for a visual representation of the GC Service and Digital Target-State Enterprise Architecture.

To inform decision-making across the enterprise and to protect assets, we will continue to monitor the digital environment and the cyberthreat and risk landscape. We will respond to cybersecurity events quickly, consistently and in a coordinated manner by continuously improving the Government of Canada Cyber Security Event Management Plan (GC CSEMP) 2018, our operational framework for managing cybersecurity events. This will in turn ensure the sustained delivery of programs and services.

The GC is planning and governing for the sustainable and integrated management of digital services by:

• implementing a target‑state enterprise architecture GC-wide for the digital enablement of services
• providing decision‑makers with horizontal visibility for the integrated management of service, information, data, IT, and cybersecurity GC-wide

The COVID‑19 pandemic has increased the need for more modern work tools. Within days of the pandemic being declared in March 2020, most federal public servants began working from home. Within a few months, a good portion of them were using new collaboration tools that had integrated video and voice features. Departments continue to roll out new tools for employees.

Day‑to‑day operations have undergone a seismic shift. We must continue to push to get public servants the tools and devices they need to be productive and collaborate in this new reality, regardless of ability or disability. For some, this means tools and devices that let them shift permanently or partially to working from home. For others, it means better tools, devices and access so that they can work from a mobile or virtual office out in the field. And for still others, it means specialized tools, access and platforms for research and data analytics.

Our efforts will complement the Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada .

We will implement security safeguards based on the sensitivity and value of information and will make sure they have minimal impact on users.

The GC is working to deploy modern, accessible tools and devices for all employees, regardless of ability or disability. It is:

• providing a suite of accessible, modern and secure, cloud‑based tools for enhanced productivity, collaboration, video conferencing and email
• equipping the GC workforce with modern workspaces and secure workplace devices
• establishing enterprise standards for back-office tools and solutions

Strategic pillar 4: transform the institution

Outdated approaches, and complex processes and governance structures are making it difficult for departments to deliver on their mandates and serve the public, and for the GC as a whole to implement changes rapidly. As a result, performance and security risks have increased.

Digital government means modernizing and adapting the way we work so that we can compete in a fast‑changing world and ensure that government remains responsive, resilient, and most importantly, relevant. Our digital capacity underpins our ability to deliver every service and implement every policy initiative. But it’s not just about technology; it’s also about people, process and culture.

For public service culture and processes to change, public servants must be flexible, collaborative, digitally knowledgeable and supported by leaders who facilitate and enable the transformation. We are working to tackle long-standing institutional barriers to change and innovation, including cumbersome governance systems and procurement practices, and a lack of digital skills.

To strengthen the foundations needed to improve digital service delivery across government, we need to make sure employees have the right digital skills, are in the right place, and are supported by enabling leaders. And we need to build a diverse workforce made up of top‑notch talent. Our current recruitment approaches are not resulting in hires who have the skills required for digital transformation initiatives. We will promote enterprise‑wide recruitment and talent management initiatives and will increase the representation of women and diversity groups in information management, information technology and cybersecurity.

The deputy minister committee will examine and make recommendations on the institutional barriers to transformation, focusing on addressing challenges and achieving outcomes based on milestones. It will seek to make governance more flexible and responsive to the realities of transformation, explore new and iterative approaches to funding and procurement, and look for new ways to attract and retain talent.

We are also working to make project design and implementation more agile by using modern approaches, by focusing on product management and by better balancing oversight and accountability.

For example, TBS, PSPC and SSC are improving the technology‑related federal procurement regime. The Next Generation Human Resources and Pay Initiative team consulted over 3,000 public servants to find out what they’d like to see in a new human resource and pay system. The team contacted industry and other stakeholders to see what was technologically possible. The team worked in the open, sharing regular updates and key milestones. The team also used an innovative procurement process to select 3 qualified vendors. We will build on this new approach for comparable initiatives.

For GC public servants, a digital mindset requires a significant culture shift.

The GC Digital Standards , which place the client at the centre, outline how we must work differently in the digital age. These standards, which will evolve over time, form the foundation of the government’s shift to making its operations more iterative, agile, open and user-focused.

Managing and implementing a government-wide culture shift to support digital delivery requires a commitment to digital transformation. It also requires funding, change management and solid leadership to create the conditions where we can rapidly collaborate, improve and innovate in the new digital reality.

The 2021–2024 DOSP provides the strategic direction, priorities and decisive actions to accelerate our transformation efforts. It will also help us work together to use new and emerging technologies in innovative and responsible ways, while meeting user, accessibility, security, privacy, data stewardship, and information management requirements.

By collaborating, learning, innovating and working strategically across silos, CIOs and their staff will play a leadership role in making digital government a reality. They will need to work alongside operations and program‑ and service‑delivery teams to ensure an integrated approach.

Launched in 2018, the Canada School of Public Service’s (CSPS’s) Digital Academy plays a key role in providing opportunities for public servants to increase their digital literacy and skills in areas including change management.

The GC is working to manage a government-wide culture shift to support digital delivery by:

• developing guidance and tools to help departments adopt the GC digital standards
• building an agile management framework and adopting product-management approaches in order to manage funding, procurement and governance
• working with the CSPS’s Digital Academy to make sure deputy heads, executive sponsors for projects and programs, and all public servants have the change management expertise they need

To make digital government a reality, the GC needs to make sure public servants have the right knowledge, skills and mindset. It must therefore invest in training and professional development and attract and retain top‑notch talent.

This talent will need to reflect the diversity of the clients it serves to help make programs and services inclusive and accessible in principle and by design. We will make staffing more flexible to increase the representation of underrepresented groups by, for example, using employment equity groups as screening or selection criteria in recruitment and staffing. We will also make data‑driven decisions by taking into account gender and other diversity markers and by promoting anti‑bias training.

We also need to make data‑driven decisions about talent mobility and career management, and we must respond strategically to critical skills gaps.

We must also actively create a working environment that promotes psychological safety.

The Digital Academy offers digital literacy and skills development for public servants in areas such as service design, product management, change management and cloud computing. We will need to continue to build and manage these digital skills, with an emphasis on data literacy and cybersecurity.

Data fuels the scale of horizontal collaboration and interoperability across government programs and services. The quick, targeted decision‑making required for agile delivery relies on accurate and timely data. Leaders, policy-makers, program managers and front‑line delivery officers must all be able to understand, analyze, interpret and present data in their day‑to‑day realities.

Cybersecurity awareness programs and technical cybersecurity training initiatives for employees are already in place. They keep our infrastructure secure, protect the sensitive data that the GC manages, and train employees so that they design and deliver digital services to Canadians in a safe, secure and trustworthy manner.

Recognizing the rapidly changing digital landscape characterized, we will ensure that we have access to the right skills, ideas and innovative approaches when needed.  

The GC is building a workforce for digital‑first delivery by:

• developing skills for digital delivery, data literacy and cybersecurity
• attracting and retaining talent for a digital‑first workforce

Related policy instruments

• Policy on Access to Information
• Policy on Communications and Federal Identity
• Policy on Green Procurement
• Policy on Government Security
• Policy on Management of Materiel
• Policy on Official Languages
• Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments
• Policy on Privacy Protection (interim policy)
• Policy on Results
• Policy on Service and Digital
• Directive on Automated Decision‑Making
• Directive on Identity Management
• Directive on the Management of Projects and Programmes
• Directive on Open Government
• Directive on Security Management
• Directive on Service and Digital

Related guidance

• Canada.ca design system
• Cloud services
• Responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI)
• Security of online services
• Top 10 IT Security Actions to Protect Government of Canada Internet‑Connected Networks and Information

Related plans and strategies

• Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada
• Canada’s 2018–2020 National Action Plan for Open Government
• Report to the Clerk of the Privy Council: A Data Strategy Roadmap for the Federal Public Service
• SSC 3.0: An Enterprise Approach
• Minister of Digital Government Mandate Letter
• Minister of Digital Government Supplementary Mandate Letter

The Service and Digital Target‑State Enterprise Architecture depicts the Government of Canada’s future state. The diagram is divided into several parts, based on industry best practices, including business architecture, information and data architecture, application architecture, technology architecture and security. The adoption and execution of this model are addressed in this DOSP under strategic pillar 3 (3.2. Plan and govern for the sustainable and integrated management of service, information, data, IT and cybersecurity).

The top row of the diagram shows examples of business programs and services, divided into two categories: front-office and back-office.

Examples of front-office business programs and services:

• Employment Insurance
• Grants and contributions

Examples of back-office programs and services:

• Core finance (FMT)
• Security screening
• NextGen HR and Pay
• Enterprise procurement
• Cloud-brokering service

The second row of the architecture shows the top‑level business capabilities:

• Legislation, regulation and policy management
• Enterprise planning
• Outcomes management
• Relationship management
• Compliance management
• Program and service delivery
• Information management
• Government resources management
• Corporate management

The third row lists the DevSecOps principles: Continuous integration and continuous deployments, automation of testing for security and functionality, inclusion of stakeholders

The fourth row identifies the various stakeholders: 

Externally, examples include:

• International
• Partnerships

Internally, examples include:

• Employees, delegates, elected officials

Two examples of user authentication are presented under the external stakeholder:

• Identity management
• Sign-in Canada

A third example related to the internal stakeholders is GCPass.

The fifth row identifies channels and interfaces.

Externally accessible solution examples are:

• OneGC platform: providing a tell-us-once experience
• Omni-channel

The third example is related to internal users:

• Digital workspace: GCexchange, GCTools

The next part of the graphic show the elements of the information architecture, application architecture and technology architecture.

Information architecture

• For example, master data management, privacy (protection of personal data)  

Canada’s Digital Exchange Platform offers the following capabilities:

• Event broker

Application architecture is divided into two categories based on security requirements:

• SaaS subscription feature
• PaaS serverless hosted feature
• Feature: IaaS
• Runtime: IaaS
• Data store: IaaS
• artificial intelligence
• workflow engines
• machine learning
• low‐code platforms
• Open source: solutions listed on open resource exchange

The information from these application architecture options is shared back to the Canada’s Digital Exchange Platform via APIs (application programming interfaces).

Secret and above Secret systems, features, data, and storage exposed and consumed via API plus exceptions to cloud-first policy.

Technology architecture

Public cloud is the recommended architecture for solutions that are considered Protected B or below from an identified security level.

Solutions above Protected B must use Enterprise Data Centres.

All the layers of the Service and Digital Target Enterprise Architecture rely on enterprise network connectivity .

Examples of enterprise network connectivity include:

• Cloud-to-ground connectivity
• secure cloud enablement and defence
• cloud guardrails
• network and cybermonitoring
• Related business continuity infrastructure

Along the right side of the graphic are two overarching principles:

• Security by design: zero-trust authentication, authorization, encryption, tokenization and accreditation
• Privacy: collection, use, accuracy, retention, and disposition

The table below highlights strategic action items that were part of the 2018–2022 DOSP and provides a progress update.

“Closed” means that the item was completed or that the action identified in 2018 has been incorporated as an ongoing activity for TBS/OCIO and that engagement with departments can be expected through regular channels.

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Corporate Planning and Reporting

From: Transport Canada

Corporate Planning and Reporting Menu

• Corporate Services
• Archived Departmental Plans (DP)
• Archived Departmental Results Reports (DRR)
• Management Accountability Framework (MAF)

The Corporate Planning and Reporting Directorate is the lead within Transport Canada to integrate the departmental planning and reporting functions. We provide leadership, advice, analysis, frameworks and tools to support integrated planning and reporting, including risk management and management initiatives in the department. We also prepare several key departmental reports including the:

• Departmental Plan (formerly known as the Report on Plans and Priorities);
• Departmental Results Report (formerly known as the Departmental Performance Report); and
• Management Accountability Framework .

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• COR121 - Introduction to Integrated Business and Human Resources Planning

Description

Effective staffing requires a plan that involves all of the stakeholders who work to respond to the human resources needs of an organization. This online self-paced course explores integrated business and human resources planning (IBHRP) and introduces a five-step human resources planning model designed to support it. Participants will review the roles of the various stakeholders involved in resource utilization and examine the relationship between planning and the different human resource disciplines.

Topics include:

• identifying the inputs and outputs of IBHRP
• defining the roles of different stakeholders in the planning processes
• outlining the steps in the IBHRP process

This course is intended for human resources advisors; however, registration remains open to all learners.

Legacy course code: H301

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FAQ: Integrated Planning

Integrated planning is central to a healthy organization that attracts and retains competent, committed and engaged employees. A sound integrated plan aligned to the organization’s business lines and direction can help organizations secure the right people, build a supportive work environment and develop the capacity to ensure its success.

The following document was prepared to support and guide senior management in their integrated planning so that their organizations have the skills to meet future needs.

• What is integrated planning?
• How does an organization prepare an integrated plan?
• Who prepares the integrated plan?
• What are the benefits of integrated planning?
• What are the benefits to managers for having an integrated plan?
• What are the benefits to employees when their organization has an integrated plan?
• What kind of information should I consider to help me start my planning process?
• How can my organization’s demographic information be used to maximize decision making?
• How can I prepare an integrated plan in instances where it is unclear what my annual budget will be?
• How can my organization build on the momentum achieved through a good planning exercise?
• How can integrated planning ensure that my organization has the skills of the future?

Sources of Information

1. What is integrated planning?

Integrated planning ensures that deputy heads have the ability to maintain capacity to achieve organizational goals while having the flexibility to adapt to changing government priorities.

An effective planning exercise goes beyond planning for staffing needs. It should allow an organization to ensure that it has the right skills for current and future needs:

• Forecast the skills and competencies that it will need to develop within its workforce to meet its future demands;
• Identify the organizational and classification requirements needed to ensure that the organizational structure corresponds to current and future priorities;
• Ensure that the workforce is representative and that linguistic duality is respected; and
• Develop a better understanding of employees’ career interests and plans, including retirement.

2. How does an organization prepare an integrated plan?

Integration means human resources management is aligned with the overall strategic plan of an organization. It is a five-step process:

• Review business goals: Have a clear understanding of where your organization is heading.
• Scan the environment: Identify the external and internal factors that could affect your organization’s capacity to meet its objectives.
• Identify the gaps: Assess any shortages in your workforce, both currently and for future needs.
• Develop an integrated plan: Set priorities and develop strategies to close the gaps and align the required resources.
• Measure progress: Review your organization’s efforts and make adjustments where necessary.

Please see the Five-Steps of Integrated Planning fact sheet for more information. (insert hyperlink)

3. Who prepares the integrated plan?

Although every manager is responsible for planning within his or her own area, integrated plans are often prepared at the branch level and then rolled up into a bigger departmental plan that the deputy head approves.

Managers should work with their human resources planners and advisors in the preparation of their organization’s integrated plan.

4. What are the benefits of integrated planning?

In the long term, integrated planning ensures that deputy heads have the ability to maintain capacity while having the flexibility to adapt to changing government priorities in real time. Integrated planning ensures that key information required for sound decision making with regard to an organization’s workforce is kept up-to-date and relevant.

5. What are the benefits to managers for having an integrated plan?

Being able to respond quickly to changing priorities is critical to achieving business objectives. An integrated plan equips managers with knowledge and a good understanding of their workforce— from demographics to skills and competencies. Being able to link their business needs and objectives with their workforce complement will adequately position them to assess potential impacts on their work and ensure business continuity even through times of change.

For example, if retirements are impacting a specific area for which it is difficult to recruit new employees with the required skill sets, succession planning and learning strategies may be needed for the next two to three years to ensure that the business objectives are met.

6. What are the benefits to employees when their organization has an integrated plan?

If the organization has developed a long-range vision of where it is going and the human resources it will need to get there, it allows employees to have a better idea of the type of skills and experience needed now and in the future. It also provides a better understanding of the reasons behind the staffing decisions that managers make.

By knowing this information, employees have the ability to create a career plan that is based on something tangible and that better positions them to be successful within the future context of the organization.

7. What kind of key information should I consider to help me start my planning process?

The key information that organizations should consider includes:

• departmental and government business priorities, e.g. Report on Plans and Priorities, Departmental Performance Report, Clerk’s Report;
• workforce composition, including the demographic profile and assessment of skills, competencies,  knowledge and education;
• corporate risk profile;
• people management issues affecting the workforce (sources include Public Service Employee Survey and People Management Dashboard);
• estimation of short- and long-term human resources needs, including numbers of employees and their required skills, competencies, knowledge and education; and
• labour market data to better understand where departments will be recruiting future employees.

8. How can my organization’s demographic information be used to maximize decision making?

Knowing the demographic information of an organization is critical to making informed, strategic decisions quickly. Understanding the composition of your workforce allows you to identify gaps in your organization and be better positioned to identify and prioritize your human resources challenges. Key information includes:

• total population
• age distribution
• linguistic composition and abilities
• retirement eligibility and patterns
• attrition rate
• employment equity and official languages gaps
• occupational groups
• information broken down by region and organizational units

The demographic analysis must link to business objectives, and the information needs to be analyzed in the bigger context. For example:

• Break down the information by group and level or function when looking at retirement eligibility to better understand how the impacts of retirement will affect specific areas of your organization.
• Encourage managers to have meaningful discussions with employees about their future career plans, including retirement plans, and direct them to useful resources, such as the Public Service Pension and Benefits Web Portal.
• Identify the skills, including official languages requirements that will be needed to meet your future business needs—considering the links between tasks and functions—which will also assist you in identifying the qualifications to consider should you need to undertake a selection for retention and layoff process in a workforce adjustment situation.

9. How can I prepare an integrated plan in instances where it is unclear what my annual budget will be?

An integrated plan has to be based on an organization’s priorities, and provide the ability to adjust based on future needs.

10. How can my organization build on the momentum achieved through a good planning exercise?

Revisit the integrated plan on a regular basis and make adjustments as circumstances change.

Keep the plan realistic and communicate updates of the plan to employees. Ensure that priorities and objectives identified in the plan are manageable.

By continuing to update the demographic information of your organization, monitoring the progress of identified strategies and providing timely information on performance measures, you will be able to continue the momentum of a good planning exercise.

11. How can integrated planning ensure that my organization has the skills of the future?

The Government is always attracting, recruiting, training and retaining talents in a highly competitive national and international context.

There is a risk when managers only consider current needs when hiring. This means that every manager in the Public Service must plan for his or her business and for the associated people requirements; know existing and forecasted talent strengths and gaps; effectively align resources (including people) to deliver results; and use planning to engage employees and achieve traction.

Information Sources

Integrated planning.

• Report of the Expert Panel on Integrated Business and Human Resources Planning in the Federal Public Service:

Canadian Labour Market information

• Population estimates and projections
• Provincial and local labour market information
• 2006 Census data products

Aging Population

• Canadians in Context
• Employment Equity Data Report

Official Languages

• Statistics on Official Languages in Canada (2001)

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Chapter 2.2: Integrated strategic planning

A long-term strategic plan—a must-do for an organization.

• A 10-year strategic plan records the decisions the organization has made with respect to its strategy for the future.
• It sets forth the organization's mission, vision, values and objectives, and states how the organization will achieve them.
• It summarizes the environmental and resource assumptions underlying the strategic choices and identifies the risks associated with the choices.
• The strategic plan should contain the rationales, analyses and background information supporting those decisions.
• The strategic plan should help the organization to remain focused on long-term strategic priorities, in light of at times frequently changing shorter-term priorities.

Strategic planning describes how an organization intends to operate in order to fulfill its mission Endnote 1 and mandate, today, and into the future.

Planning strategically helps statistical organizations deliver on their core functions, which are to provide

• information that is relevan t to the current, highest-priority information needs
• information that is of high quality
• information that is produced at the lowest possible cost .

The economy and society that statistical organizations aim to measure are changing at an unprecedented pace. Consequently, in order to remain relevant, the strategic planning process must make provisions for the development of new statistical programs and the decommissioning of others so that they are able to respond to the highest-priority information needs.

Before determining how to organize and implement a national statistical system or create a national statistical office (NSO), it is important to have a well-established strategy. In many countries, this takes the form of a national strategy for the development of statistics. Other countries have their own versions of a strategy. In Canada, the strategy is established on the basis of annual official reports to Parliament called Report on Plans and Priorities and the agency's Corporate Business Plan. These official documents provide information about Statistics Canada's strategic orientations and directions. In order for the agency to organize its operations in an efficient and consistent way, it has developed an Integrated Strategic Planning Process (ISPP) .

The ISPP is a key mechanism used at Statistics Canada to maintain quality and relevance. In order for the agency's planning to be effective, the horizons of the planning process cover a ten-year time period and include all factors that influence success. The agency must ensure that, in a steady state, sufficient funds are available annually for the routine maintenance and periodic redesign of all corporate processes, systems, applications and infrastructure, as well as for the implementation of new classifications and standards and for survey redesigns. This ensures the continuity and quality—and, to some degree, the relevance—of the current statistical program.

The philosophy that underlies Statistics Canada's strategic planning Endnote 2 is one of fostering innovation and making sound investments. Innovation and investments lead to improved operations and systems—and, consequently, increased efficiency. Being and remaining efficient is the best way for the agency to ensure its financial viability and to proactively implement a strategic plan for maintaining the quality of existing statistical programs, improving existing programs, and creating new programs—that is, for ensuring continuity and relevance (see Chapter 3.1: Corporate Business Architecture ).

Operating at the highest level of efficiency is critical to Statistics Canada's ability to carry out its statistical program and maintain the necessary level of innovation, and should be a permanent priority. For this reason, the Corporate Business Architecture (CBA) is at the heart of the ISPP. CBA investment proposals have the highest priority because they improve the efficiency of operations. This efficiency generates the funds to maintain the quality of programs, as outlined in the long-term strategic plan. Endnote 3 Once the quality of existing programs has been assured, new initiatives for innovating and for exploring strategic opportunities can also be funded.

Strategies and tools

This section provides an overview of the governance structure at Statistics Canada and of the agency's ISPP. It describes the key elements of the six-step process and the key success factors associated with each step, and illustrates how these are supported by the governance structure.

Strategic planning is integral to Statistics Canada's Corporate Management Framework (shown in Figure 2.2.1.). To produce relevant, high-quality and timely information, sound planning and priority-setting are essential. Integrated strategic planning allows the organization to achieve maximum efficiency, manage operational risks, and align programs with the evolving data needs of the country.

Figure 2.2.1: Statistics Canada's Corporate Management Framework

This figure is a pyramid of the Corporate Management Framework.

At the top of the pyramid, there is the Outcome (Canadians have access to timely, relevant and quality statistical information on Canada's changing economy and society).

The three sides of the pyramid represent the human resources, the risk management and the governance. 

Inside the pyramid, there are four layers (from top to bottom): relevance; then trust, splitting into quality, objectivity and confidentiality; then access and finally stewardship.

1. Governance

The leadership of Statistics Canada's overall governance and management system is provided by the Executive Management Board (EMB). The EMB is comprised of the Chief Statistician, who chairs the committee, as well as the Assistant Chief Statisticians (ACSs), who head the various functional areas of the agency. The EMB provides strategic direction for the organization and acts as the corporate decision-making body. Centralized decision making ensures that strategic planning investments are optimal for the corporation. This governance model is based on the objective that significant corporate issues be reviewed at the highest appropriate level; final decisions are rendered by the Chief Statistician, on the advice of the EMB.

The annual ISPP is governed by the Senior Management Review Board, composed of the EMB, the Chief Audit Executive, and all Directors General. Including all senior managers in strategic planning ensures that cross-cutting issues are considered when senior management makes final decisions about resource allocations.

As shown in Figure 2.2.2, a bottom-up process that follows the strategic direction allows investment proposals developed by divisional program managers to be reviewed for possible consideration by the Field Planning Board (FPB)—a senior management committee chaired by the ACS for each field or functional area of the organization.

Figure 2.2.2: Governance of the Integrated Strategic Planning Process at Statistics Canada

This figure represents the Governance of the Integrated Strategic Planning Process at Statistics Canada.

At the top, there is the Executive Management Board and the Corporate Planning Committee that is within it.

Under, you have the Senior Management Review Board.

In third, you have the Field Planning Boards.

In fourth, you have the Branch Management Teams.

Leading them, you have the Divisional Program Managers.

On the right of the figure, you have the Corporate Management Committees and the Corporate Business Architecture Management Committee that receives from the Field Planning Boards and report to the Senior Management Review Board, the Executive Management Board and the Corporate Planning Committee.

Where significant interdependencies exist, FPBs work together to ensure all key decision factors have been taken into consideration. Each FPB is also responsible for ensuring that business proposals are realistic in terms of deliverables, timelines and costs, and that service areas have reviewed costs for their services. Each FPB ensures that business proposals for its field are integrated and aligned with the corporate strategic priorities, and recommends proposals to the Senior Management Review Board.

Business proposals to improve the efficiency, robustness or responsiveness of the agency's business architecture are also vetted by the Corporate Business Architecture Management Committee. The proposals pertain to aspects of the business architecture, which includes the following:

• business processes
• enabling computer systems and hardware
• business rules
• organizational structure

The CBA places the emphasis on solutions that maximize the use of corporate tools and systems—an approach whose aim is to make the most of investments, reduce risks, and enable the agency to generate sufficient efficiencies to fund the punctual investments necessary for maintaining the quality of programs.

2. The six-step ISPP process

At Statistics Canada, the ISPP has been defined as an annual six-step process beginning with a review of the agency's strategic planning priorities and culminating with resource allocation for approved projects to begin in the new fiscal year. This is followed by regular monitoring and reporting of progress against plans.

Three key decision-making points in this process are identified with an asterisk (*) below: deciding which areas require strategic investment; deciding which specific investment ideas warrant a formal business case; and deciding which business cases will receive investment funding.

• Set the strategic planning direction.*
• Update the 10-year Continuity and Quality Maintenance Investment Plan (CQMIP), and prepare business proposals for the next fiscal year.*
• Develop business cases.
• Decide which business cases will receive investment funding.*
• Communicate plans and priorities.
• Monitor performance.

Through the ISPP, the agency integrates sound management practices, such as risk management, investment planning and project management, into the planning process. The ISPP includes an environmental scan, financial, human, and information technology resource management, as well as tools for project management and performance monitoring. The integration of financial, human resources (HR) and information technology  (IT) planning into a unified process helps ensure that investment decisions are realistic and are able to support ongoing statistical program needs, the punctual investments required for continuity and quality maintenance, and the development of new programs and initiatives. As well, under the ISPP, managers are equipped with a standard set of tools for project planning, implementation and reporting Endnote 4 (see Chapter 2.4: Project Management Framework ). This process establishes a heightened level of accountability both within Statistics Canada and in response to requirements from central government agencies. It includes feeding results into the official annual planning and reporting documents: Reports on Plans and Priorities and Departmental Performance Reports.

2.1 Step 1: Set the strategic planning direction

One year before the beginning of the fiscal year, Endnote 5 the EMB sets the strategic planning direction for the upcoming ISPP cycle. The EMB determines which areas require new initiatives, and requests proposals. This is the first key decision-making point.

Box 2.2.1: Step 1

Key Elements

• Review of corporate priorities with discussion organized around relevance, trust, access and stewardship
• Environmental scan— government, stakeholders
• Review of Corporate Risk Profile

Strategic planning direction for the upcoming ISPP cycle, and strategic direction and priorities for the coming year as set by the Corporate Planning Committee.

The agency's strategic planning direction is informed by an environmental scan—including a review of external and internal drivers, and an integrated risk management exercise. The external environmental analysis involves conducting political, economic, technological, and social demographics analysis and documenting the needs of stakeholders. See details in Box 2.2.1.

The agency's corporate priorities are relatively stable over time. As the NSO for Canada, Statistics Canada is legislated by the Statistics Act to produce statistics that help Canadians better understand their country—its population, resources, economy, society and culture, and to serve this function for the whole of Canada.

Some corporate priorities (such as conducting the Census and the Labour Force Survey) are legislative obligations in Canada. Other priorities evolve over time to meet current information needs. At the annual Strategic Planning Direction Setting Session in April, corporate priorities are revisited on the basis of an environmental scan and an analysis of the Corporate Risk Profile, for the purpose of ensuring relevance to public policy development and maintaining the agency's ability to meet the highest information needs of Canadians and Canadian institutions.

Although risk is actively managed throughout the year via the priorities being addressed by managers and corporate management committees, a coordinated effort to update the Risk Register is completed annually. This allows the organization to identify where strategic investment is required in order to mitigate risks to an acceptable level. Risks are categorized according to the four elements at the heart of the Corporate Management Framework: relevance, trust, access and stewardship. The result is an updated Corporate Risk Profile that focuses the ISPP discussions around mitigating important corporate risks.

In its capacity as an agency of the federal government, Statistics Canada regularly monitors the information needs and the priorities of federal departments. An extensive stakeholder network and participation in various national and international organizations help the agency keep informed of emerging issues and remain at the forefront of innovation in statistical measurement (see Chapter 1.4: Understanding User's Needs and Maintaining Relationships ).Engagement with stakeholders involves managers at all levels and provides information on evolving user needs, program weaknesses and information gaps. Combined with the results of client feedback surveys, internal program evaluations, and ad hoc external program reviews and audits, this input reflects the priority needs of Canadians and of their governing institutions, as well as those of businesses and other groups.

2.2 Step 2: Update the 10-year Continuity and Quality Maintenance Investment Plan, and prepare business proposals for the next fiscal year

From May to June, managers update their ten-year CQMIP and develop high-level investment business proposals, paying particular attention to proposals that would begin in the next fiscal year. Those proposals are reviewed and recommended by FPBs. See details in Box 2.2.2.

In June, the third month of the fiscal year, at the Strategic Planning Conference, the Senior Management Review Board decides which business proposals are supported for further consideration. This is the second key decision-making point.

Box 2.2.2: Step 2

A key element in the ISPP process is having a reasonable forecast of all investments required to preserve the quality of information programs and ensure the continuity of operations over time. To this end, the CQMIP is an essential tool. This step includes projects that require punctual investment to produce and maintain quality and, to some degree, relevance.

Much of the agency's work is cyclical in nature. Many of the investments necessary to ensure continuity and quality of programs are known in advance over a long planning horizon. For example, the Labour Force Survey redesign occurs approximately every ten years. Such instances of known investments constitute the CQMIP.

The ISPP is the mechanism by which program areas request additional funding from the agency to carry out new or cyclical projects that could not be covered by their regular base funding. Specifically, the CQMIP covers a ten-year planning horizon and identifies to the agency what draws will be made on the corporate financial availabilities.

The CQMIP is an effective tool to manage the timing of all strategic investments so that significant expenditures are planned well in advance, while total investment is relatively stable from year to year. This allows the agency to project long-term financial, IT and HR needs against planned financial availabilities. The ever greening of the CQMIP also represents a streamlining of the planning process. The strategic investments of the organization are understood long in advance and require only annual adjustments at the margin for new or emerging needs.

Ongoing program funding is treated separately from the punctual investment "project" funding required to maintain quality, ensure relevance, or generate efficiencies. However, both are integrated into a single ten-year view of the organization's overall financial picture.

At this step in the planning process, all projects included in the CQMIP are at Stage 1 of the Departmental Project Management Framework (DPMF): idea generation. The idea or proposed initiative that addresses a business problem or opportunity is identified at this stage. This first attempt at describing the problem, need or opportunity, and at roughly estimating the project's scope, duration and cost, is carried out at the highest appropriate level. This step provides the necessary information to determine the priority of the project in the context of the agency's strategic direction.

2.3 Step 3: Develop business cases

From July to October, business cases and detailed cost estimates are developed for the investment proposals for the next fiscal year that were supported for further consideration at the Strategic Planning Conference. See details in Box 2.2.3.

Box 2.2.3: Step 3

The development of business cases that integrate all the necessary information for planning decisions is essential to the success of this stage of the ISPP. At this step in the planning process, all projects that will start in the next fiscal year must produce a business case. This consists of a description of the project, the project's contribution to corporate objectives, an options analysis, cost estimates and resource requirements, a risk assessment including mitigation strategies, clearly documented planning assumptions, and business benefits / outcomes. The business case includes all information necessary to describe the rationale for undertaking the project.

The FPB performs a challenge function to ensure that the costs and benefits of projects and the relationship of business cases to corporate and program priorities are fully examined. This also includes an assessment of interdependencies between projects and across fields with respect to project deliverables and human and IT resource allocation. It is essential that all service areas be consulted at this stage of the process and that required approvals be obtained for planned activities.

First priority is given to the CBA projects. These investment proposals have the highest priority because they improve the efficiency of operations. This generates the corporate financial availabilities to maintain programs, as outlined in the CQMIP. Once the quality of existing programs has been assured, new initiatives to innovate and to explore strategic opportunities can also be funded. Thus, investment proposals are grouped into three broad categories to reflect different aspects of strategic planning: finding new and better ways to do business, maintaining the quality of existing programs, and enhancing and developing new programs.

The key tool used to ensure rigour of project assessments is the Departmental Project Management Framework (DPMF) (see Chapter 2.4: Project Management Framework ). The process for developing new programs and for conducting substantial redesigns of existing programs must ensure that the project management of these initiatives is separated from responsibility for ongoing programs, that projects are properly resourced and funded, and that program design conforms to the approved business and systems architecture.

The goal is to collect information once at the beginning of the planning process and re-use it for many purposes. The DPMF templates gather information about funding sources, HR and IT needs, risks, etc., in a standardized manner. Information reported at the beginning of the planning cycle is used to manage projects and monitor performance.

2.4 Step 4: Decide which business cases will receive investment funding

In November, the Senior Management Review Board determines which investments will be funded, as well as how the human resource and IT strategy will be implemented to ensure that necessary resources are available for delivery of the investment projects. This is the third key decision-making point.

This step begins with a high-level update on the strategic planning direction, including a final integrated analysis of financial, HR and IT availabilities. This incorporates all investment business cases and the impact if all investments were approved, as well as an analysis of options and recommendations. See details in Box 2.2.4.

Box 2.2.4: Step 4

• Final integrated analysis of financial, HR and IT availabilities
• Presentations of business cases
• Peer review and challenge function
• Prioritization versus available resources

Final integrated strategic planning decisions.

The detailed analysis of HR and IT availabilities is only as robust as the underlying business cases (created during the previous step of the ISPP). These must be completed prior the Senior Management Review Conference and must consider the overall resource demand relative to supply at the agency level. This explicitly takes into account ongoing program requirements as well as new investment proposals.

Business cases are presented to the Senior Management Review Committee, chaired by the Chief Statistician, for peer review and challenge. This ensures that the overall context and the impacts on the agency are taken into consideration. It also includes an examination of the relative contribution to strategic objectives and the prioritization of investments in light of available resources.

The Senior Management Review Committee then makes decisions about the approval or rejection of all business cases, including investments included in the CQMIP. The integrated analysis of financial, HR and IT availabilities over a ten-year horizon ensures that the approval of projects, many of which constitute multi-year investments, are made in context of future operational requirements.

2.5 Step 5: Communicate plans and priorities

In the three months before the beginning of the new fiscal year (December to March), managers finalize and initiate project plans, while budgets are allocated by the beginning of the upcoming fiscal year. Plans and priorities are communicated both externally, in annual reports required by Parliament, and internally, to the agency's employees and managers. See details in Box 2.2.5.

Box 2.2.5: Step 5

• Project charter and high-level business requirements
• Report on Plans and Priorities
• Corporate Business Plan
• Chief Statistician's Annual Address
• Budget allocations

Plans and resource allocation for upcoming year finalized.

Record keeping and strong information management practices related to ownership, version control and transmission are an important part of the ISPP with respect to ensuring sound data stewardship, data integrity, and clear communication of the strategic plan. An ISPP Record of Decision records the approved / refused status of investments, along with the funding strategy for each. Taken together with the ongoing base-funded program of activities, this provides the basis for the development of the Report on Plans and Priorities and the Corporate Business Plan, including an official HR strategy and an official IT resource allocation plan to ensure the capacity to deliver on the agency's operations. As well, divisional and program budgets are adjusted to reflect investment decisions.

In January of each year, the budgeting exercise for the upcoming fiscal year begins. Approved investment budgets are allocated to the responsible financial responsibility centres and the appropriate program elements to reflect the agency's matrix management structure (see Chapter 2.1: Organizational Structure and Matrix Management ). Full budgets are allocated by April 1 of each year. At this step in the planning process, new investment projects are initiated in Stage 3 of the DPMF. This includes the identification of high-level business requirements and the creation of the project charter to ensure that all stakeholders are ready to commit to implementing the project as outlined.

The Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP), which provides information on the agency's plans and expected performance, is the official external planning report. It is tabled in the Parliament of Canada along with the Main Estimates (see Chapter 2.3: Financial Management ) in March each year. The RPP is a compilation and explanation of the annual business plan; it incorporates lessons learned from the previous years' experience. Important elements from the ISPP are reported in the RPP.

The key internal communication mechanisms are the Corporate Business Plan and the Chief Statistician's Annual Address. The Corporate Business Plan outlines how the organization conducts its business, the challenges it faces, and the approaches it has adopted to manage these challenges over the next three years. It is updated annually, and includes the HR and IT strategic plans, thereby ensuring coherence. It links the mandate and mission with program priorities and key strategic investments. This document ensures that all stakeholders and participants involved in the delivery of the agency's priorities are knowledgeable about the agency's priorities for the upcoming fiscal year and have all the necessary resources to deliver on these. It is also critical that all program funding and changes approved as part of the ISPP be known and understood by all concerned staff to promote buy-in and commitment.

In March of each year, the Chief Statistician presents the agency's Annual Address in a live webcast accessible to all Statistics Canada employees. The Annual Address communicates the priorities and challenges that will be the agency's focus in the coming year. To ensure that employees unable to attend or to view the simulcast presentation have access to this information, a special issue of the agency's internal newsletter, @StatCan , is published and made available electronically on the Internal Communications Network. The @StatCan Special Issue provides a unique magazine-style presentation of the information contained in the Chief Statistician's annual address to all employees.

2.6 Step 6: Ongoing: Monitor Performance

The final step in the ISPP, monitoring performance, is an ongoing activity; it includes both corporate reporting requirements and performance monitoring. Projects are also audited selectively for performance against deliverables and compliance with corporate policies, standards and procedures (see Chapter 2.8: Program Evaluation and Chapter 2.9: Internal Audit) .

Many of the reports described below become inputs to the next year's planning cycle. This step in the process coincides with stages 4, 5 and 6 of the Departmental Project Management Framework—Project Planning, Execution and Close-Out. At this step, one must decide how the project will be structured and executed. This includes establishing the baselines of scope, schedule and cost; and, subsequently, executing, completing, tracking and measuring the project activities over the life of the project as defined at the planning stage. The project's final close-out report summarizes accomplishments, and measures the project against criteria set out in the charter to determine its success. See details in Box 2.2.6.

Internal reporting

Monthly financial reports are prepared and presented to managers, who use them to forecast the year-end position of their divisions, to assess the financial risks to their programs, and to review changes in operations and personnel. They are signed as an attestation of completeness and accuracy. Monthly financial reports also provide timely information to the Chief Statistician in his role as Accounting Officer. This information is aggregated at the field level and supports the production of a monthly report reviewed by the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Corporate Finance consolidates the financial information, and highlights any changes from the previous month. All changes to the financial profile of programs and projects must be approved by the EMB.

Box 2.2.6: Step 6

• Executive dashboards
• Performance management agreements
• Corporate management committees
• Financial reporting
• Departmental Performance Report
• Departmental Staffing Accountability Report
• Performance measurement strategies and evaluation reports

Completed planning cycle

Financial reporting is also a key element of the Executive Project Dashboard, which is the mandatory format for project status reporting as per the DPMF. Through its use, governance committees will be kept informed on the triple constraints of scope, schedule and cost, as well as provided with the status of changes, issues and risks related to strategic investment projects on a monthly basis. Selected larger projects are subject to Internal Audit and Evaluation upon completion to determine whether the planned outcomes were fully delivered and to assess compliance with corporate policies, directives, procedures and standards. All programs are also subject to formal evaluations on a cyclical basis.

Strategic priorities are also reflected in the performance agreements of executives and employees. Senior executives ensure that strategic priorities are reflected in their commitments and performance measures. These commitments are then cascaded down into the objectives of managers and employees. They form the basis for measuring the results achieved ((see Chapter 2.5: Planning and Management of Human Resources ).

Strategic priorities also drive the work of Corporate Management Committees. These committees are responsible for managing risks related to one of the four corporate priorities (i.e., relevance, trust, access and stewardship). Each committee meets at least monthly to discusses the corporate strategic priorities and sets out plans that will address the corporate risks. Committee work plans are approved and monitored by the EMB.

External reporting

The Departmental Performance Report (DPR) is the official external performance report to the Parliament of Canada. The DPR provides an account of results achieved against planned performance expectations set out in the RPP and is submitted to the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada, generally in September. Statistics Canada's DPR, along with those of other federal departments, is tabled in Parliament in the fall by the President of the Treasury Board Endnote 6 , on behalf of the ministers who preside over agencies and departments.

As well, a rigorous external financial forecasting and reporting process is in place. It provides for monthly updates to the CFO and the EMB on the agency's financial situation, including quarterly progress reports on significant projects and ISPP-approved investments. Quarterly Financial Reports are published externally on Statistics Canada's website in accordance with Treasury Board policy.

At the end of each fiscal year, the organization prepares the Public Accounts Plates, which present the financial operations of the organization and its use of the Main Estimates provided to the organization. The Public Accounts Plates are used for consolidation into government-wide financial statements, which are audited by the Auditor General of Canada and tabled annually in the Parliament of Canada.

Other external performance reporting mechanisms include the Departmental Staffing Accountability Report, required under the Public Service Employment Act to ensure that the public service organizations meet accountability requirements and expectations with respect to hiring and is tabled with the Public Service Commission in February.

Integrated strategic planning is a key mechanism used to maintain quality and relevance in a statistical organization. Both relevance and quality tend to deteriorate over time in the absence of proactive intervention. The 10-year strategic plan records the decisions about how the organization will fulfill its mission and mandate into the future. The 10-year strategic plan should help the organization to remain focused on long-term strategic priorities, in light of at times frequently changing shorter-term priorities.

The key success factor is a corporate culture that fosters innovation and reinforces awareness of emerging issues and buy-in among managers and staff. Specific elements of this type of corporate culture include the following:

• Appropriate infrastructure and governance mechanisms are in place for effective planning
• Direction-setting by senior management based on an environmental scan of priorities and emerging issues
• An up-to-date long-term plan for continuity and quality maintenance
• Comprehensive business-case assessments
• Integrated analysis of financial, human-resource and IT availabilities over at least a three-year horizon
• Coherence of communications
• Measurement of performance against plans.

The agency must ensure that, in a steady state, sufficient funds are available annually for routine maintenance and periodic redesign of all corporate processes, systems, applications and infrastructure, as well as for implementation of new classifications and standards and survey redesigns. Through the ISPP, the agency integrates sound management practices, such as risk management, investment planning, project management, and evaluation into the planning process. Integrated strategic planning allows Statistics Canada to achieve maximum efficiency, manage operational risks, and align programs with the evolving data needs of Canadians.

Statistics Canada's mission is "Serving Canada with high-quality statistical information that matters." Under the Statistics Act , Statistics Canada's mandate is to collect, compile, analyze, abstract and publish statistical information relating to the commercial, industrial, financial, social, economic and general activities and condition of the people of Canada.

Return to endnote 1 referrer

The base budget of Statistics Canada is fixed; it is allocated on an annual basis by Parliament. See the chapter on financial management.

Return to endnote 2 referrer

At Statistics Canada, the long-term strategic plan is called the Continuity and Quality Maintenance Investment Plan (CQMIP).

Return to endnote 3 referrer

At Statistics Canada, this is called the Departmental Project Management Framework (DPMF).

Return to endnote 4 referrer

Each fiscal year begins on April 1 and ends on March 31. Therefore, Step 1 begins one year before the beginning of the next fiscal year.

Return to endnote 5 referrer

The Treasury Board is responsible for accountability and ethics, financial, personnel and administrative management, comptrollership, approving regulations and most Orders-in-Council.

Return to endnote 6 referrer

Bibliography

Government of Canada (2005). Statistics Act . L.R.C 1985, c. S-19. Amended by 1988, c. 65, s. 146; 1990, c. 45, s. 54; 1992, c. 1, ss. 130, 131; 2005, c. 31; 2005, c. 38. Consulted on 11th of March 2016 and retrieved from http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/S-19/FullText.html

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