|
 |
Information Management in the Government of Canada - A Situation Analysis
Information
Management in the Government of Canada
- A Situation Analysis -
1.1 Background
During the Summer, 1999, the Treasury Board Secretariat
(TBS) recognized that
"information management" was becoming an issue across the government.
- The Government On-line initiative provides an opportunity to improve services
to Canadians. In such an emerging electronic environment, however, government
information must be current, accurate, understandable, trustworthy, and available
in a timely manner. It must also retain its integrity for as long as required to
meet service delivery and accountability requirements. In establishing the
initial IM/IT
infrastructure (i.e. the TBS-led Strategic IM/IT
Infrastructure Initiative) to support Government On-line, it was recognized that
the ongoing quality and integrity of the government's information infrastructure
would have to be addressed.
- Members of the Advisory Committee on Information Management (ACIM)
expressed concern about their capacity to address emerging IM issues within their
departments and agencies (e.g. data and information standards to enable
information access, retrieval, and sharing; preservation standards; etc.) and
about the availability of policies, systems, standards, best practices and people
to address the emerging electronic environment.
- The "Report on the Future Roles of the National Archives and the National
Library" (i.e. the Dr. John English Report) suggested that the National
Archives (NA) and the National
Library (NL) assume a more
active leadership role in developing an information management infrastructure for
the government.
- The 1999 "Annual Report of the Information Commissioner" commented on
the poor state of records management which, in the opinion of the Commissioner,
was contributing to the inability of the government to fully meet its access to
information obligations.
Based on these concerns the TBS
raised three questions:
- What is IM within the
context of the Government's responsibility to deliver its programs and services
and to meet its accountability requirements?
- Within the context of the IM
landscape, what are the issues facing government with respect to its ability to
reduce risk, pursue opportunities, and achieve cost savings and/or cost
avoidance?
- What should TBS, lead agencies, government institutions and others be doing to
address the IM issues?
From October to December, 1999 consultation sessions were held with over 15
government-wide IM groups, departments, and other groups and organizations totalling
over 600 people. Over 30 interviews were conducted with key people in the Chief
Information Officer Branch (CIOB),
other areas of the Treasury Board Secretariat, and lead agencies such as the National Archives, the
National Library, Justice Canada, and Public Works and Government Services (PWGSC).
The work was reviewed and guided by an Advisory Committee co-chaired by the Deputy
Chief Information Officer and the Assistant National Archivist. The Committee met
several times during the time of the project, to review the results of the
consultation and again to review and endorse the recommendations.
A draft of the report describing a proposed IM landscape, the IM issues, and
proposed recommendations was reviewed by the Advisory Committee in March and a final
draft of the report was presented to the Chief Information Officer and the National
Archivist in mid-April, 2000.
|
