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Transportation Safety Board of Canada2004-2005 EstimatesA Report on Plans and Priorities
Table of Contents
Section 1: Chairperson's MessageThe Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) continues to enjoy a solid reputation, nationally and internationally, as a technically skilled and professional investigative organization. The publication of the Swissair Flight 111 accident investigation report in March 2003 has only reinforced that reputation. As one of only a few multi-modal safety investigation agencies in the world, the TSB pursues its mandate within a framework of independence which makes it a global leader in that regard. Notwithstanding its successes, the TSB is committed to continuously enhancing its value to Canadians and to the world of transportation safety. It does so in keeping with the federal government's commitment to becoming more citizen-focussed, values-driven, results-oriented and dedicated to responsible spending. In the past few years, significant effort has been made to strengthen our management practices and refocus our products and services to better respond to stakeholder needs. These efforts are now producing concrete results, including the reduction of our backlog of investigations in process. As did my predecessor, I will ensure that the TSB remains focussed on improving its services to Canadians and its communications with stakeholders. Our management team continues its commitment to a sustainable workforce and a responsive workplace. Over the coming year, priority will be given to ensuring the sustainability of our human resources. Our renewed investment in employee learning and well-being will be maintained as we implement the provisions of the new Public Service Modernization Act The TSB is a knowledge-based organization. We collect and analyze information, transform it to knowledge and communicate what we know. It is therefore imperative that the TSB maintain effective and efficient information management practices. During the past year, we launched a major project to review, update and modernize our information management practices and the enabling technology used by investigators. This project will continue as a major area of focus for the coming year. Once completed in 2006, it will enable the TSB to more effectively meet its current and future information management needs. Once again, the TSB faces an ambitious agenda. I am confident our dedicated management team and employees will be up to the challenge and the TSB will continue making a significant contribution to transportation safety in Canada and abroad.
Section 2: Raison d'êtreThe Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is an independent agency created in 1990 by an Act of Parliament (Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act). It operates at arm's length from other government departments and agencies such as Transport Canada, the Canadian Transportation Agency and the National Energy Board to ensure that there are no real or perceived conflicts of interest. Under the legislation, the TSB's only object is the advancement of transportation safety in the federally regulated elements of the marine, rail, pipeline and air transportation systems. This mandate is fulfilled by conducting independent investigations including, if necessary, public inquiries into transportation occurrences. The purpose of these investigations and inquiries is to make findings as to the causes and contributing factors of the occurrences and to identify safety deficiencies. As a result, recommendations may be made to improve safety and reduce or eliminate risks to people, to property and to the environment. The TSB has the exclusive authority to make findings as to causes and contributing factors when it investigates a transportation occurrence.
Section 3: Planning OverviewThe TSB is primarily funded by Parliament through an operating expenditures vote and, as a departmental corporation, it has authority to spend revenues received during the year. The TSB operates within the context of Canada's very large, complex, dynamic and ever-changing transportation system. For more details see Transport Canada's Annual Report and the National Energy Board site. 3.1 Key Co-Delivery PartiesMany individuals and groups cooperate with the TSB in the fulfilment of its mandate. During the course of an investigation, the TSB interacts directly with:
Their cooperation is essential to the conduct of the TSB's business, whether they contribute as providers of information or of support services. For more details on the investigation process, visit our web site. The TSB is one of many Canadian and foreign organizations involved in improving transportation safety nationally and internationally. While it operates at arm's length from other federal departments involved in the transportation field, it can only succeed in fulfilling its strategic outcome through the actions of others. The TSB presents findings and makes recommendations that compel others to act, but has no formal authority to regulate, direct or enforce specific actions. This implies ongoing dialogue, information sharing and strategic coordination with organizations such as Transport Canada, National Energy Board and the Canadian Coast Guard. Similarly, the TSB must engage in ongoing dialogue and information sharing with industry and foreign regulatory organizations. Through various means, the TSB must present compelling arguments that will convince these "agents of change" to take action in response to identified safety deficiencies. The TSB has established memoranda of understanding with a number of federal government departments for the coordination of activities and the provision of support services. These agreements provide the TSB with access to a range of support services which can rapidly supplement internal resources (e.g. assistance for the recovery of wreckage, the documentation of evidence, and the examination or testing of components). The agreements also define operating practices to ensure good coordination of activities and to avoid potential conflicts that could arise from the simultaneous implementation of various organizational mandates. Such agreements are currently in place with National Defence, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Coast Guard, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and the National Research Council. Similarly, the TSB has established strategic cooperation alliances with provincial and territorial coroners. Further alliances have been established with the TSB's counterpart agencies in other countries, such as the United States, Australia, the Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom. The TSB cooperates on a reciprocal basis with foreign safety investigation agencies through the ad-hoc exchange of specialized services or the provision of assistance as a means of coping with capacity gaps. As one of the world leaders in its field, the TSB regularly shares its investigation techniques, methodologies and tools. For example, the Recorder Analysis and Playback System (RAPS), developed by the TSB for decoding and analysis of flight data recorders and cockpit voice recorders, is now being used in more than 10 countries to aid in safety investigations. Similarly, the TSB has contributed to the training of safety investigators from numerous countries either by integrating foreign investigators into its in-house training programs or by sending senior staff to teach abroad. The TSB also shares data and reports with sister organizations and participates in international work groups and studies to advance transportation safety.
3.2 Major Initiatives3.2.1 Reviewing Products and Services The Stakeholder Needs Analysis conducted in fiscal year 2002-2003 provided important insights into how TSB products and services are perceived. The TSB has been reviewing this information, with a view to better responding to the needs of its stakeholders. Particular focus is placed on improving the TSB's products/services mix, examining the contribution of safety issues investigations, and ensuring that our corporate communications plans focus on improving stakeholder awareness of the TSB's role, practices, products and services. In the coming year, the TSB will implement many of the changes required. 3.2.2 Catching Up Short-term supplementary funding was received from Parliament to address the following three resource pressure areas. Capital Asset Replacement The TSB was facing a significant capital asset "rust-out" as investments in this area were significantly reduced over the past 10 years to cope with budget cuts and other resource pressures. The TSB has developed and is now implementing a multi-year asset replacement plan that is in line with normal asset life cycles. Keeping up to date with rapid technological changes and having access to current equipment will improve our capacity to meet our mandate, while maintaining our credibility and independence. Reducing Investigation Backlog Short-term funding has been provided to help the TSB reduce its backlog of investigations in progress, without further reducing the intake of new investigations. These funds will allow the TSB to reduce investigations in process to a more manageable number and invest in various initiatives to cut the average time to complete investigations. Due to high costs, most reports have not been translated or widely distributed - therefore limiting the potential for safety awareness and action by change agents. The funds will also be used to translate and publish these reports on our web site. Modernizing Information Management The TSB has a well-documented need for an integrated information management solution that supports business requirements and provides for electronic records management. A plan is being created for the development of the next generation of business applications. By redesigning these applications to make better use of new technologies and improve management of electronic information in all forms (e.g. images, sound recordings and documents), the TSB can provide more effective and integrated tools for investigators, become more efficient in producing investigation reports and create long-term sustainability of its information systems. 3.3 Risks and ChallengesThe TSB faces many risks and challenges which could have a potentially significant impact on the organization's ability to fulfil its mandate. Recent announcements regarding Government expenditure controls and the new expenditure review process will require flexibility among TSB managers who must adapt to evolving accountability and management demands. Managers at all levels within the organization will be expected to manage risks by applying established management principles. The most important challenges are described in the following paragraphs. 3.3.1 Providing Information in a Timely Manner The TSB has a variety of stakeholders and clients with diverse information needs. The Stakeholder Needs Analysis conducted in 2002-2003 provided important insights. Initial feedback indicated a preference for shorter more timely reports and a belief that safety information could be made available to stakeholders earlier and more effectively. The .challenge is to respond to these needs within available resources. The ability to provide the information required by stakeholders, the industry and the public, when they need it, is key to successfully achieving the TSB's mandate.
The success of the TSB and its credibility as an organization depends largely on the expertise, professionalism and competence of its employees. Rapid technological changes in the transportation industry, along with the development of new materials, are making the task of investigation and safety analysis increasingly more complex and specialized. The TSB must not only maintain an appropriate capital asset infrastructure, but must keep up its technical expertise and knowledge base in order to maintain credibility within the industry. In recent years, the TSB has made a concentrated effort to "catch up" on essential training for employees and managers to ensure they have the knowledge and skills to meet mandatory job requirements. However, the challenge of retaining technical currency requires ongoing attention. 3.3.3 Maintaining a Healthy, Representative and Motivated Workforce In order to be successful, the TSB must recruit, train, develop and retain highly motivated and competent people. As a federal government organization, the TSB must also strive to achieve a diverse workforce representative of the Canadian population. However, the TSB has experienced significant staff turnover and it is expected that more will leave due to retirement or other career opportunities. Heavy workload, limited career development and limited advancement opportunities are some of the reasons given for staff departures. The challenge for the organization is to make the TSB as responsive as possible to employee career needs and aspirations, thereby encouraging people to remain with the organization for longer periods. Many of these issues were reinforced in the 2002 Public Service Employee Survey. 3.3.4 Achieving Excellence in Information Management The TSB's primary products are information and knowledge. The effectiveness and value of the TSB is its ability to collect and analyze factual information and to communicate new knowledge to those who need it. It is crucial that the TSB manage information in a responsive and timely way. However, it continues to struggle with the storage, retrieval, analysis and sharing of information used to support its business processes. With special funding received for the renewal of information management systems, it is expected that the TSB will adopt better tools to control where its information is gathered, created and stored. By making better use of current applications and technologies, the TSB will be better positioned to provide more effective and integrated tools to its investigators and to implement a more efficient process for producing investigation reports. 3.3.5 Improving Communications An important preoccupation for the TSB is communications at all levels. TSB employees and stakeholders have told us that the organization needs to improve its internal and external communications capabilities. Internal communications have become increasingly important in recent years as the TSB continues to manage its change agenda. At a minimum, managers at all levels are expected to communicate with employees in an open and collaborative manner in order to implement organizational goals and objectives. Employees, in turn, are expected and encouraged to provide managers with suggestions/feedback and to share important information within the organization. With respect to external communications, the absence of a comprehensive communications strategy has presented a significant challenge for the TSB. A comprehensive, corporate communications plan will significantly increase the impact of TSB communications endeavours in terms of providing consistent messages and reaching key stakeholders. Sustained effort is required to complete and implement a strategic communications plan.
Section 4: Plans and Priorities4.1 SummaryThe TSB is committed to providing Canadians with advancements in transportation safety through independent, objective and timely investigations and resulting analysis of safety failures in the federally regulated transportation system. The TSB's success will be demonstrated by:
The following table summarizes the financial resources allocated to the four departmental priorities for 2004-2005 and to the ongoing day-to-day operations.
The TSB has developed a Business Plan which describes the 2004-2005 priorities in greater detail. Resources are allocated to specific initiatives, responsibilities are clearly defined and timelines are established. Progress against the Business Plan will be continuously monitored and reported to the TSB Senior Management Committee on a regular basis. Senior managers also provide regular updates on the projects for which they are responsible. Progress will be measured in a comprehensive manner at year-end and results will be reported in the Departmental Performance Report. The TSB is also implementing a balanced scorecard performance management framework to track performance from four perspectives: financial; client/stakeholder; internal business process; and learning and growth. This new tool will assist TSB management in measuring results and progress towards the achievement of its strategic outcome. It will also be used to measure organizational performance in next year's Departmental Performance Report. 4.2 Detailed Priorities for 2004-2005Based on the risks identified and on input received from managers and staff, the TSB has identified four priorities. All are strategic investments aimed at finding ways to enhance the TSB's relevance, its contribution to advancing transportation safety in Canada and internationally, and its strength from within. The first two priorities - Improving Service Delivery and Improving Communications - are directly linked to our external products, while Sustainable Human Resources and Information and Technology Management will advance our internal performance. The four priorities are described briefly in the following paragraphs. 4.2.1 Improving Service Delivery Improving service delivery has once again been identified as a priority for 2004-2005. Occurrence reports continue to require extensive time to complete, and as a result do not always meet stakeholder needs. Stakeholders believe that safety information could be made available to them earlier and more effectively. Through better definition or redesign of our products and services, a reduction of backlogs and the development of better information management practices and systems (see Sub-section 4.2.4), it is expected that the TSB will provide better service to the public and to its stakeholders. The TSB's relevancy and effectiveness is often measured by the quality and timeliness of its investigations, reports and safety products. Through special short-term funding from Parliament, the TSB is implementing a plan to reduce the backlog of investigations in progress, without further reducing the intake of new investigations. This investment will enable the TSB to reduce the backlog from 160 investigations in process (on January 1, 2003) to about 100 and improve the average time in process by 10% (approximately 60 days) by the end of fiscal year 2004-2005. A plan will also be developed to ensure the sustainability of our program within its approved resource base after the temporary funds run out. Given that there is a high level of public interest in and demand for investigations, the TSB must strive to balance the workload it undertakes with the capacity it has to deliver on its commitments. In 2004-2005, additional investigator workshop activities will be instituted to further develop the core competencies of our investigators and focus on the consistent application of investigative methodologies, guidelines, policies and practices. It is expected that these activities will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of TSB products in terms of timeliness and quality by ensuring better relations with stakeholders, promoting the efficient utilization of resources and reducing unnecessary workload for employees. It will also contribute to the improvement of internal communications. Other activities planned for the coming year include the review and update of Manuals of Investigation to reflect current business practices and an internal audit of the application of the TSB's Integrated Safety Investigation Methodology. 4.2.2 Improving Communications Improving communications with employees, stakeholders and the public is another priority for 2004-2005. The Stakeholder Needs Analysis done in 2002-2003 confirmed a limited awareness of the TSB's role, practices, products and services among stakeholders. As a result, the full potential of the TSB's work was not realized. The TSB will seek to improve its external communications and increase public awareness of its mission and mandate by implementing redesigned communications products distributed through a proactive outreach program. As well, a corporate communications plan was developed during the 2003-2004 fiscal year outlining the various roles and responsibilities in this area. The plan established a framework from which communications activities can be undertaken. The implementation of this plan will ensure that the TSB communicates in a focussed and proactive manner. Further, the TSB is contributing to a local initiative in British Columbia aimed at promoting safety awareness and fostering safe operating practices in the marine community. In the short term, such programs will increase the public's awareness of the role, mission and mandate of the TSB. The longer term impact will be enhanced understanding of, and support for, actions to address safety deficiencies identified through the TSB's program. The TSB must also improve its internal communications by ensuring that communications efforts with employees are meaningful. Both managers and staff share responsibility when it comes to internal communications. Employees must have the means to voice their ideas, concerns and suggestions. Just as importantly, managers must keep employees informed about goals, priorities, developments, changes or other initiatives affecting their work. As the TSB moves forward with its change agenda and the renewal of its management practices, it will be important that messages from the management table reach employees to keep them informed on issues relating to the TSB's agenda and direction. An audit of internal communications activities will be completed this year, and will provide management valuable insight to guide future plans and activities in this area. 4.2.3 Sustainable Human Resources The TSB must be able to recruit on a timely basis and retain competent and dedicated employees. This increasingly requires a work environment conducive to learning and development for all staff and managers. A renewed focus will be placed on more strategic management of human resources through the development of human resources plans and a revised performance management and evaluation system, and the implementation of a succession planning process. In 2004-2005, every manager and employee will be given the opportunity to develop a learning plan and to have their performance assessed annually, providing valuable information for training and/or personal development. Managers will also be provided with the knowledge and skills required to enable them to effectively assume their delegated responsibilities for human, financial and materiel resources management. In the coming fiscal year, the organization will also implement the staffing, labour relations and learning provisions of the Public Service Modernization Act. In cooperation with central agencies and with the involvement of the management team, the TSB will develop an implementation/transition plan that includes the change management processes required to efficiently implement the various components of the human resources management modernization. 4.2.4 Information and Technology Management Initiated in April 2003, the Transportation Investigation Information Management System (TIIMS) project will continue over the next two fiscal years to further define the architecture and design of the system prototype. TIIMS aims at building stronger information management practices that support investigations and the communication of safety deficiencies in all the modes. Further, it will:
In the 2004-2005 fiscal year, TIIMS will set the framework and foundation for consistent information management practices throughout the TSB. More specifically, the project will focus on the development of an electronic documents management system that will allow geographically dispersed teams to view all electronic material related to an occurrence. The system will also aid in the development of a content management and publishing solution that will allow investigators to concentrate on content and not formatting. Further, it will provide a redesign of tools to support the Integrated Safety .Investigation Methodology thereby reducing the need for duplicate data entry. It is estimated that TIIMS will free-up 20 to 30% of investigator time leading to better productivity. Full implementation of TIIMS is scheduled for 2006-2007. 4.3 Government Initiatives and PrioritiesThe February 2004 Speech from the Throne outlined the three broad elements of the government's agenda: bolstering Canada's social foundation; building a 21st century economy; and ensuring Canada's role in the world as one of influence and pride. The TSB will contribute to the achievement of the government's agenda by the efficient conduct of its activities and the provision of timely safety information to industry and to the Canadian public. This will ensure a continued high level of public confidence in the safety of the transportation industry, which constitutes a vital element of Canada's economic activities. Furthermore, the TSB will contribute to Canada's global presence through its activities by sharing safety information broadly, providing specialized assistance, and sharing tools and techniques with other countries. The Prime Minister and the President of the Treasury Board have recently announced a series of measures focussed on improving ethics, responsibility and accountability within government and the public service. The TSB is actively engaged in the implementation of these improvement initiatives and will continue to implement changes in a proactive manner. Modern comptrollership and the implementation of the Treasury Board Secretariat's Management Accountability Framework form an integral part of the TSB's efforts to improve organizational effectiveness. The 2001 Comptrollership Capacity Assessment indicated a number of issues to be addressed in order to achieve a state of modern management. Consult the 2002 assessment report on our Web site. Since then, the TSB has made significant progress towards becoming a better managed organization by integrating modern management projects and activities in its annual Business Plan and in the day-to-day management activities. The TSB undertook an important management culture change and is committed to further develop and refine its management practices and controls. The Management Accountability Framework is the primary tool used to provide assurance to the TSB management team that the organization is on the right course. As a first step, the TSB has mapped its Business Plan activities against the Management Accountability Framework and ensured the existence of a good correlation between these activities and the areas identified by management as needing particular attention. Secondly, TSB senior management has recently decided to create a permanent corporate planning and reporting position. Once done, this new position will act as the focal point for ongoing performance planning, reporting and management activities. TSB management has initiated an ongoing internal dialogue with staff on values and ethics. Senior management is reviewing internal governance and addressing specific issues identified during the past year. The TSB is also currently working on the implementation of proactive disclosure of information on its departmental web site. Over the coming year, the TSB will continue its active participation and leadership in various small agency networks. This participation permits collaboration with other small federal organizations to share best practices, find common solutions to management issues, and partner with others on specific initiatives to reduce costs and duplication of efforts. For example, in 2004-2005 the TSB will continue to lead the small agency initiative on the improvement of reporting to Parliament and central agencies while minimizing the burden on the reporting organizations. Another government priority is the implementation of the Public Service Modernization Act. The TSB recognizes this important government initiative and has fully integrated it with its own priority on Sustainable Human Resources. Sub-section 4.2.3 describes the TSB activities related to this initiative. Although the TSB no longer has a distinct Government On-Line initiative, a project was undertaken last year in partnership with Transport Canada to improve the mechanism by which transportation safety data is shared. The objective of this project was to facilitate public access to this data. There are now plans to implement a service for on-line queries of TSB occurrence information databases during 2004-2005. In 2003-2004, an assessment of our newly redesigned web site was done to evaluate its compliance with standards of accessibility for government web sites. Identified areas of non-compliance will be corrected during the coming year, as part of our ongoing web site maintenance. 4.4 Performance IndicatorsAs noted previously, the TSB has developed a balanced scorecard that will be used to measure organizational performance. This scorecard will provide performance information from four different perspectives: financial; client/stakeholder; internal business processes; and learning and growth. The financial perspective will make linkages between operational and financial results. Financial ratio analysis will be used to evaluate the return on investments in investigations and in major projects. Financial results will also be benchmarked between modes and with other safety investigation organizations. The client/stakeholder perspective will measure TSB performance through stakeholder feedback and stakeholder action. First, stakeholder awareness and satisfaction will be measured through formal and informal processes. Then, stakeholder action based on the .TSB's work will be measured by tracking responses to TSB recommendations and safety actions taken. Finally, the TSB will continue to measure transportation occurrence rates as an ultimate measure of achievement of its strategic outcome. Through the internal business processes perspective, the TSB will measure its results against the specific backlog reduction commitments made to Parliament when additional resources were requested. The TSB will also introduce the use of productivity ratio analysis and benchmark results between modes, as well as with other safety investigation organizations. Under the learning and growth perspective, the TSB will measure employee satisfaction, investments in employee training and employee attrition rates. The TSB will also assess its progress on the implementation of the Human Resources Modernization Agenda. Finally, the TSB will assess its management capacity against the Treasury Board's Management Accountability Framework (MAF). The following table summarizes the key performance indicators included in the scorecard with appropriate links to the current year priorities.
Section 5: OrganizationThe TSB's Planning, Reporting and Accountability Structure identifies a single business line: the advancement of transportation safety. The TSB reports annually to Parliament on its activities, findings and recommendations through the President of the Queen's Privy Council. The Chairperson, assisted by the Executive Director and three senior managers, is responsible for all activities associated with this business line.
The Chairperson and Executive Director contribute to the advancement of transportation safety through the provision of leadership and vision, as well as the strategic management of all activities of the TSB. They also contribute by establishing strategic alliances with key stakeholders, client groups and change agents, and the communication of key safety messages through stakeholder outreach activities. The Board contributes to the advancement of transportation safety through the review, approval and public communication of occurrence reports and safety recommendations. The Board also contributes to the communication of key safety messages through stakeholder outreach activities. The Investigation Operations Directorate contributes to the advancement of transportation safety through the investigation of occurrences. It does so by assessing all occurrences and investigating those with the greatest potential for reduction of risks. The directorate's work is focussed on the collection and analysis of information, the drafting of reports and recommendations, the tracking and assessment of safety actions taken, as well as ongoing communication with the transportation safety community. The directorate maintains a highly qualified staff of investigators who are experts in aviation, marine, rail or pipeline operations, engineering and other specialists, and investigation support staff. The Information Strategies and Analysis Directorate contributes to the advancement of transportation safety through information. It does so by developing, managing and providing data, information, analysis and technology products and services. The directorate contributes to investigations by providing human performance and statistical analysis, and by making available reliable and accessible information. The directorate also contributes through the coordination of report production and communication activities. The Corporate Services Branch contributes to the advancement of transportation safety through the provision of sound corporate planning, financial, human resources, administrative and materiel management services. The branch also contributes by promoting modern management practices and ensuring that the TSB complies with all government policies and directives. Section 6: Additional InformationAdditional information about the Transportation Safety Board of Canada and its activities is available on the TSB's Internet site at www.tsb.gc.ca or by contacting us at: Transportation Safety Board of Canada telephone: (819) 994-3741 facsimile: (819) 997-2239
Section 7: AnnexesDepartmental Planned Spending
The current TSB reference levels, as stated in the Main Estimates, are approximately $30.4 million. In the following year, these reference levels will decrease to approximately $27.9 million and remain at that level on a permanent basis thereafter. This decrease relates to the sun-setting of incremental funding approved to deal with specific program integrity issues. In 2002-2003, 2003-2004 and 2004-2005 short-term funding/staff was approved to reduce the backlog of investigations in process, catch up on information management issues and address capital asset rust-out problems.
Net Cost of Program for the Estimates Year
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