Industry Canada

Organization

Chief Information Officer (CIO)

The Chief Information Officer is accountable to the Associate Deputy Minister and the Industry Canada Management Committee for the overall performance, effectiveness and efficiency of information management / information technology (IM/IT) services within Industry Canada. A major responsibility of the CIO is maximizing the performance of the department through modern and progressive management of IM/IT services, policies, and resources. Other responsibilities include support for Strategis, Canada's largest business Web Site through which the department delivers its online services. Specifically, the CIO manages the department's informatics resources including the high capacity national wide area network; operates Industry Canada's library and information products; manages the electronic publishing process and development of custom information products; establishes and implements marketing strategies to promote the use of strategic business information; provides client support services; and undertakes systematic client feedback assessments

Communications and Marketing Branch (CMB)

The Communications and Marketing Branch plays a pivotal role in ensuring that the Canadian public and departmental clients and employees receive information about Industry Canada's policies, programs and services.

Services provided by CMB include communications research; public opinion research and environmental analysis; communications planning and advice to the Minister and senior management on communicating ministerial and departmental priorities; policy development; program planning and implementation; media relations; and the coordination, production and distribution of speeches, news releases, publications and multimedia materials. Through the Industry Canada corporate Web Site (www.ic.gc.ca/) CMB provides current information on departmental activities, as well as links to the Industry Portfolio's various resources. CMB is also responsible for handling enquiries from the public.

Communications Research Centre Canada (CRC)

Communications Research Centre Canada has been dedicated to advanced communications research and development (RandD) for more than 30 years. Its research provides a technical basis for the development of regulations and standards in support of public policy. Key research areas include wireless systems, radio fundamentals, communications networks, interactive digital multimedia, and photonics technologies. CRC has a strong tradition of technology transfer to industry and has been responsible for the creation of more than 60 companies. It operates an Innovation Centre to provide high-technology startups with access to its technologies, research expertise and unique laboratories.

Competition Bureau (CB)

The Competition Bureau promotes competition and efficiency in the Canadian economy through the administration of the Competition Act, concentrating on a balance between enforcement activities and compliance programs, public awareness and submissions on regulatory matters. The Bureau also promotes a fair and efficient marketplace through the administration of the Textile Labelling Act, the Precious Metals Marking Act, and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, emphasizing a compliance approach by working with business to predict and prevent problems from occurring. The Commissioner of Competition, the head of the Competition Bureau, is a statutory appointment under the Competition Act with the responsibility of administering and enforcing the Competition Act and the other Acts cited above. The Competition Bureau consists of six branches, four of which are responsible for the enforcement of the Acts. A unit has also been established for the purpose of coordinating possible amendments to the Competition Act and for internal and external communications. The Competition Bureau is composed of the following branches and directorate: Civil Matters Branch; Compliance and Operations Branch, which includes the Compliance and Coordination Directorate, Management Policy and Services Directorate, and the COMPASS Information Management Centre; Competition Policy Branch; Communications Unit; Criminal Matters Branch; Fair Business Practices Branch; and Mergers Branch.

Comptrollership and Administration Sector (CAS)

The Comptrollership and Administration Sector is responsible for financial and materiel management and related policies, systems, audit and evaluation, facilities, security, program integrity, the Industry Canada loan insurance portfolio, and processes and standards that are consistent with modern comptrollership. This sector is composed of the following: Audit and Evaluation Branch; Comptrollership and Program Services Branch; Financial Systems, Facilities and Security Branch, Corporate Management Frameworks Directorate and Lobbyists Registration Branch.

Corporate and Portfolio Office (CPO)

The Corporate and Portfolio Office provides executive support to the offices of the Minister, Secretary of State, the Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Minister, as well as secretariat support to the Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Minister as it relates to their broad Industry Portfolio coordination responsibilities.

The CPO provides timely and quality services to ensure executive clients are effectively supported in all their correspondence, corporate services (i.e. administration, finance, and human resources) and parliamentary affairs requirements. The CPO supports the day-to-day operations of the executive offices. The primary CPO groups responsible for these services are the Correspondence and Records Management, Executive Services, and Parliamentary Affairs and Briefing groups.

The CPO also provides secretariat support to the Industry Portfolio (IP) departments, agencies, quasi-judicial bodies and Crown corporations. The 15 organizational members of the IP are Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA); Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC); Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED-Q); Canadian Space Agency (CSA); Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC); Competition Tribunal (CT); Copyright Board (CB) Canada; Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation (ECBC); Industry Canada (IC); National Research Council (NRC) Canada; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC); Standards Council of Canada (SCC); Statistics Canada (SC); and Western Economic Diversification (WD) Canada. It should be noted that both ACOA and ECBC are the responsibility of the ACOA Minister, and both CED-Q and WD have their own respective ministers.

Human Resources Branch (HRB)

The Human Resources Branch provides strategic information, advice and operational services to the department on corporate management and succession planning strategies, relationships with unions, demographic profiling, research and analysis, indicators of the health of the organization, strategic infrastructure for training, rejuvenation and revitalization program strategies. Operationally, it provides decentralized, comprehensive and timely advice, guidance and assistance to departmental management and employees on classification, staffing and researching, official languages, employment adjustment, labour management, employee equity, training and development, awards and recognition, career planning, compensation and benefits.

Industry Sector (IS)

Industry Sector's mission is to maximize the contribution of Canadian manufacturing and service industries to Canada's future economic growth. The sector has a highly diversified industry client base and many varied issues and challenges. Sectorally, IS deals with supporting the adoption of new practices and processes in some industries while encouraging others to take giant leaps into future technologies. IS works closely with key stakeholders including industry associations, academic institutions, representatives of the scientific and economic communities, other levels of government, and departments within the federal government. The Industry Sector's branches covering most of Canada's industrial groups, and the staff branches supporting them and the broader corporate agenda are Industrial Analysis Branch, Aerospace and Automotive Branch, Energy and Marine Branch, Manufacturing Industries Branch, Sustainable Technologies and Service Industries Branch, Life Sciences Branch, Corporate Services Branch and the Canadian Biotechnology Secretariat.

The Canadian Biotechnology Secretariat (CBSec) coordinates federal policy and programs under the Canadian Biotechnology Strategy. The two core roles of the Secretariat are to provide strategic advice and staff support to the Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee (CBAC), and to provide policy, communications and coordination services for federal departments and agencies contributing to the Strategy. CBAC is an external, expert panel that advises Ministers on the ethical, social, economic, scientific, regulatory, environmental and health aspects of biotechnology. The Executive Director of the Secretariat reports to the Assistant Deputy Minister, Industry Sector, Industry Canada.

Information and Privacy Rights Administration (IPRA)

Oversees the administration and policy development of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act on behalf of the department. It processes formal requests, advises senior management on the administration and interpretation of the legislation and the disposition of cases, and promotes awareness of the legislation within the department.

Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA)

The Office of Consumer Affairs works to promote a fair and efficient marketplace for Canadian consumers, and to protect consumer interests. The Office helps consumers obtain credible marketplace information; provides analysis of key policy issues from the consumer perspective; and works with governments, business and consumer groups to improve Canada's system of consumer protection.

Operations Sector (OPS)

The Operations Sector is Industry Canada's service delivery arm with 2700 employees providing services in more than 60 Canadian communities. It serves the business community with a full range of information and intelligence in delivering Industry Canada's three primary objectives: a fair, efficient, and competitive marketplace; an innovative economy; and competitive industry and sustainable communities. Through its marketplace organizations, it contributes to the regulation of the marketplace and promotes an environment to improve the competitiveness of Canadian industry and ensure fair market practices.

The Sector is composed of 16 business units organized in three clusters. The Business and Marketplace Services cluster consists of the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO), Corporations Canada, Measurement Canada (MC) and the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (OSB); the Business and Community Economic Development cluster consists of Aboriginal Business Canada (ABC), Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC), Service to Business Unit (SBU), Federal Economic Development for Northern Ontario Region (FedNor), delivering the Northern Ontario Development Fund, Community Futures Program, the Eastern Ontario Development Fund and the Social Economy Initiative for rural Ontario, the Operations and Small Business Financing Branch, which includes the Canada Small Business Administration, Financing Program and support for Official Language Minority Communities (Section 41, OLA) and the Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Program (COIP); and, the Regional cluster consists of five regional offices and the Policy and Regional Cohesion Branch. The Sectorial Strategies and Services Branch service the entire Sector.

Aboriginal Business Canada (ABC)

Aboriginal Business Canada promotes the growth of Aboriginal businesses in Canada and helps integrate them into the national and international economies. The program provides a range of services, support, and information to Canadian Indian, Métis, and Inuit entrepreneurs and business organizations.

Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO)

The Canadian Intellectual Property Office, a Special Operating Agency associated with Industry Canada, is responsible for the administration and processing of the greater part of intellectual property in Canada and for ensuring that the information acquired, in exchange for such rights, is made available to the public. CIPO's areas of activity include patents, trade-marks, copyrights, industrial designs and integrated circuit topographies.

Corporations Canada

Corporations Canada administers the Canada Business Corporations Act (CBCA), the Canada Cooperatives Act, the Canada Corporations Act, and several other statutes, through the examination of applications for federal incorporation, continuance, amalgamation and dissolution of corporations; the management of a database on federal corporations and the collection, assessment and verification of information made available to the public. It also issues exemptions from certain requirements of the CBCA and monitors and enforces compliance with various statutory requirements.

Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario (FedNor)

FedNor's mission is to promote community economic development, diversification and job creation in Northern and rural Ontario in an effort to build sustainable communities and improve access to capital, information and markets by working with business and other community partners. FedNor delivers four key programs in rural Ontario-the Northern Ontario Development Fund, the Community Futures Program, the Eastern Ontario Development Fund, and the Social Economy Initiative.

Measurement Canada

Measurement Canada, a special operating agency of Industry Canada, ensures equity and accuracy where goods and services are bought and sold on the basis of measurement, in order to contribute to a fair and competitive marketplace for Canadians.

Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy

The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy supervises the administration of the Canadian bankruptcy and insolvency process. It maintains a public record of bankruptcies and receiverships, as well as consumer and commercial proposals, which enable individual debtors and viable businesses to reorganize their financial affairs and possibly avoid bankruptcy. It is responsible for the licensing, monitoring and disciplining of private sector trustees.

Policy and Regional Cohesion Branch

The mandate of the Policy and Regional Cohesion Branch is twofold: (1) to provide strategic advice and support to the ADM and AADM as well as provide a constructive challenge function related to policy, regional cohesion and trade; (2) to provide support and strategic advice to the Regional Executive Directors.

Regional Offices

Industry Canada has regional and district offices across Canada. They deliver a wide range of Industry Canada programs and services to foster a fair and competitive marketplace. The regional offices also bring a national perspective to the development of micro-economic policy and the enhancement of national objectives by reflecting regional realities.

Sectorial Strategies and Services Branch / Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Programs

The Sectorial Strategies and Services Branch provides services in two main streams. First, in support of the ADM and the Associate ADM, the Branch provides analysis and advice on significant management and operational issues facing the Sector. This includes providing guidance and support to all of the Sector's Business Units. Secondly, it comprises the Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Programs Directorate (COIP). The Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Programs Group is responsible for the delivery of the Canada-Ontario Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund (COMRIF) through a federal–provincial joint secretariat, the delivery of the Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Program (COIP), as well as the operational delivery of certain projects under the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund (CSIF) in Ontario.

The Service to Business Unit

The Service to Business Unit (SBU), part of the Operations Sector within Industry Canada, was established in January 2005 to help deliver Industry Canada's Services to the business community. This is in support of Industry Canada's commitment to improving government service delivery to citizens, businesses and international clients.

The Unit amalgamates four components of Industry Canada's service to business: Canada Business Service Centres (CBSC) and the Business Gateway (now formally Canada Business), Student Connections, BizPal / Government On-Line Branch (now formally Service Strategy and Innovation Branch).

Canada Business

Canada Business is a collaborative arrangement among 43 Government of Canada departments, provincial, territorial governments and, in some cases, not-for-profit organizations, that helps Canadian entrepreneurs get the correct and region- appropriate information, advice and support they need to build their businesses. The service allows entrepreneurs to do research on the web, by telephone, or in-person, on government agencies and services, and/or request assistance with their business needs.

Currently, there are 13 Canada Business contact centre locations-one in every province and territory. See also the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions, and Western Economic Diversification Canada for listings on Canada Business.

Student Connections

Student Connections is an Industry Canada Initiative funded through the Youth Employment Strategy. Student Connections provides practical, cost-effective e-commerce and Internet training to small and medium-sized business as well as Internet training to seniors. Student Connections services are delivered by college and university students who gain valuable on-the-job technology and business experience.

Service Strategy and Innovation Branch

The Service Strategy and Innovation Branch, part of the Service to Business Unit, plays an important role in the government-wide commitment to modernizing government services to business as part of the Government of Canada's Service Vision. Guided by client needs and expectations, the Branch will work with associations, stakeholders within the department and across government to develop and implement strategies for improved service offerings and service delivery while employing a coherent "enterprise approach".

Technology Partnerships Canada

Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC) is a technology investment fund established to increase economic growth, create jobs and wealth, and support sustainable development. TPC makes strategic investments in research, development and innovation in order to encourage private sector investments, and to maintain and grow the technology base and technological capabilities of Canadian industry.

Operations and Small Business Financing Branch

The Branch manages the Canada Small Business Financing Program, which facilitates access to capital for small- and medium-size enterprises by sharing losses on loans with financial institutions (lenders). The Branch also coordinates the department's activities in support of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act and manages the implementation of the Industry Canada component of the Government Action Plan for Official Languages. Finally, the Branch provides Ministerial support services and briefings for regional visits by the Minister, Minister of State (FedNor) and departmental senior officials.

Policy Sector

The Policy Sector provides underlying analysis and strategic micro-economic policy advice pertaining to innovation, science, industry, international business, small and medium-sized enterprise, and economic framework policies, including legislation and regulation. The sector manages the departmental policy process, coordinates briefings for Cabinet, CCDM-Policy, and Deputy/Ministerial retreats. This sector is composed of the following branches: Marketplace Framework Policy Branch; Innovation Policy Branch; International and Intergovernmental Affairs Branch; Management and Administrative Services; Micro-Economic Policy Analysis Branch; Small Business Policy Branch; Strategic Policy Branch; and Management and Administrative Services.

The Advisory Council on Science and Technology Secretariat

The Secretariat provides policy advice, coordination and administrative services to the Prime Minister's Advisory Council on Science and Technology (ACST). It is responsible for planning and coordinating meetings and activities; providing policy analysis and research assistance; facilitating communications and linkages between advisory bodies, various levels of government and the science and technology community.

Spectrum, Information Technologies and Telecommunications Sector (SITT)

The objective of this sector is to facilitate the development and use of information and communications technologies, systems and services that serve the economic and social needs of all Canadians. This responsibility includes formulating telecommunications and information policies, which provide an encouraging and predictable environment for investment and innovation; providing a competent base of expertise in technical and strategic issues in the area of systems interconnection materials and related telecommunications and information technology standards; ensuring the availability and use of communications and information goods and services to all Canadians; improving the international competitiveness of Canada's information and communication technologies industry; promoting the growth and diffusion of electronic commerce in Canada and internationally; utilizing the Information Highway to strengthen Canada's social economy and build capacity at the community level through electronic learning, access and broadband initiatives, as well as various Youth Employment Strategy programs; enhancing the competitiveness of the information and communications industries through the delivery of innovation, trade support, investment promotion and policy advocacy programs; developing policies aimed at achieving Canadian interests in multilateral communications organizations such as the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); managing the department's bilateral telecommunications relationships; and achieving international research and development cooperation and technical marketing. The Sector also strives to ensure the accommodation of as many users of the radio frequency spectrum as possible with a minimum of interference; promotes the development and growth of radiocommunications; manages spectrum use by Canadian broadcasters, operators and radio licence holders; and, protects Canada's rights and interests regarding spectrum use through international agreements and regulations.