As many of you know, the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) is now moving to renew the Evaluation Policy of the Government of Canada. This renewal is part of a wider effort to update and rethink the entire TBS suite of policies. This renewal is also being driven by a need to bring the policy more in line with and support the new Federal Accountability Act.
I would like to start by thanking all who took part in the full day Heads of Evaluation session on March 21st that began the discussion of the evaluation policy renewal process. Topics discussed at this session ranged from roles and responsibilities for heads of evaluation to improving evaluation products and processes. A summary of this discussion
will be available on the TBS Evaluation site.
This meeting marked the beginning of the formal process for the review and renewal of the Evaluation Policy. The timeline for the development and approval for the renewed policy will be short. We are planning to have a completed policy ready for approval by late fall 2006. Following the approval of the policy by Treasury Board an implementation plan will be developed and rolled out in late 2006 and beyond.
To facilitate the work around the renewal process, we are putting in place a dedicated team within the Center of Excellence for Evaluation (CEE). This team will be lead by Blair Haddock. Blair has been working in the area of evaluation and performance measurement for a number years both at the departmental level and at TBS. During a previous assignment with TBS, he was responsible for developing the MRRS policy as well as the PAA.
As we signalled at the March 21st meeting, we are committed to consulting with the evaluation community during the renewal of the policy. As a first step, we will be establishing three working groups made of members of the community. The objective of these groups is not to write the policy but to provide advice and help validate the work of the CEE policy renewal team. The topics to be covered by these groups will include:
(1) Evaluation definitions, products and the expectations of government
- Include discussion on definitions for evaluation, operating principles
- Impact of the Federal Accountability Act
- Discussion on new tools to support possible expanded scope and expectations
(2) Governance structure for the evaluation function
- Review potential governance models for the evaluation function in departments and agencies and validate recommendations
(3) Competencies / requirements of Heads of Evaluation
- Review competencies and code of ethics for evaluators
Given the relatively short timeline for the policy renewal, it is expect that the work of the validation groups will begin in May and be wrapped up by the end of June. Over the coming weeks, we will be developing the terms of reference for the groups and establishing a process for nominating members for these groups.
To further support this work, I will also be organizing a small group made up of Heads of Evaluation to serve in an advisory role directly to me. I expect this group could begin to meet in late June as components of the renewed policy begin to come together.
Finally, to help support an ongoing, open dialogue and share information with the entire evaluation community, we have established a dedicated policy renewal webpage. The address for this dedicated site is:
www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/eval/tools_outils/renou_pol_renew/renou_pol_renew_e.asp. Over the course the renewal effort, I would encourage you to check in and provide comments or suggestions.
As we move forward, please feel free to contact Blair, Terry or myself with any questions or concerns regarding the policy. Your ideas and comments are most welcome.
Thank you,
Lee McCormack
Executive Director
Results-based Management Division
Expenditure Management Sector
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
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