This policy provides a framework to build a learning culture
in the Public Service. It represents a broad-based consensus
across the federal government of what is currently needed to
build a learning organization and contributes to the agenda of
Skills and Learning for Canadians.
The world is in the midst of an unprecedented transformation
from an industrial-based economy and society to a knowledge-based
economy and society. Just as this transition is changing the way
we work, the way we communicate and the way we live, so too, it
is changing the way modern societies are governed and the way the
Public Service will be called upon to serve Canada and
Canadians.
The Government of Canada has recognized that in the knowledge
age, the most important investment a country can make is in its
people -- human capital (the skills and capabilities of people)
is to the knowledge age what physical capital was to the
industrial age. The industrial age learned the importance of
investing in the upkeep, improvement and modernization of
physical capital in order to maintain its productivity and avoid
rust-out and obsolescence. Similarly, the knowledge age has
discovered the importance of people and needs to learn how to
invest in people to support creativity and innovation. Living off
the existing skills and capabilities of people is no more
sustainable in the knowledge age than allowing rust-out and
obsolescence of physical assets would have been in the industrial
age.
As an organization dedicated to serving the needs of Canadians
and their government, the Public Service of Canada must remain
worthy and deserving of the trust of those it serves. It must be
at the leading edge of public sector management and
administration. As an institution, the Public Service must be
able to attract and retain its fair share of talent, in an
increasingly competitive and highly mobile labour market. To do
this, it must be recognized for its sustained commitment to
-their knowledge, know-how, creativity,
diversity and linguistic duality.
As a first step in strengthening this commitment to people,
this document sets out a learning policy for the Public Service
of Canada. It addresses the importance of training, development
and learning in ensuring that public servants of the 21st century
are knowledgeable, effective and creative in fulfilling their
mission to serve Canadians.
The objective of this learning policy is to build a learning
culture in the Public Service and stimulate, guide and promote
the development of the Public Service as a learning organization
committed to the lifelong learning of its people. The
Public Service of Canada recognizes that this is critical to
fulfill its mission as a national institution in the knowledge
age, to maintain the trust of those it serves, to support the
career goals of its employees, and to achieve results for
Canadians.
This policy applies to Departments and other portions of the
Public Service of Canada listed at Part 1, Schedule 1 of the
Public Service Staff Relations Act.
This policy is effective May 1, 2002. It replaces the
following policies:
Training and Development Policy with the companion
Training Guide (1994)
Development of Supervisors, Managers and Executives
(1994)
Due to specific deadlines of some commitments in this policy,
a review of this policy will be initiated in 2005.
To begin, a common understanding of terminology is important.
Within any learning lexicon, there are many terms that are often
used interchangeably and yet may have quite different
interpretations. The definitions that follow are provided for the
purposes of this learning policy:
Learning Definitions:
Training (formation) -- represents an organized,
disciplined way to transfer the knowledge and know-how that is
required for successful performance in a job, occupation or
profession. It is ongoing, adaptive learning, not an isolated
exercise.
Development (perfectionnement) -- refers to all
'skills and
abilities, as well as their careers, through the practical
application of knowledge and know-how. It requires an exposure to
diversity of ideas and diversity of experience, through many
means such as training, formalized activities of mentoring and
coaching, and exchanges.
Learning (apprentissage) -- at the individual
level is the acquisition and the creation of new knowledge and
ideas that changes the way an individual perceives, understands
or acts. It is enhanced by the freedom to think creatively and
leads to innovation
Organizational learning (apprentissage
organisationnel) -- occurs through a collective process of
creating and capturing new ideas, knowledge and insights. As a
product, organizational learning is the outcome of the collective
learning that takes place in finding new and better ways of
achieving the mission of the organization.
Continuous learning (apprentissage continu) --
is a lifelong process comprised of the sum of training,
development, and learning. Once individuals work in an
environment where these three activities are present, and
actively participate in each, lifelong learning becomes a
reality.
Learning organization (organisation apprenante)
-- is a collective undertaking rooted in action. It is built
around people, their knowledge, know-how and ability to innovate.
It is characterized by continual improvement through new ideas,
knowledge and insights which it uses to constantly anticipate,
innovate and find new and better ways to fulfill its mission. A
learning organization cannot exist without a commitment to
lifelong learning for its people, so that the linkages between
training and development and learning are sustained.
Personal learning plan (plan d'apprentissage
personnel) -- is a method of focusing future learning efforts
'learning needs,
interests, and style.
Other Definitions:
Employer (employeur) -- is the Treasury Board
and its Secretariat.
Corporate (collectif) -- is public-service
wide.
Individual (individu) -- is an employee, a
manager, or a person occupying a confidential position in an
organization to which this policy applies.
Organization (organisation) -- is a department
or other portion of the public service as listed at Part 1,
Schedule 1 of the Public Service Staff Relations Act for
which a deputy head is responsible.
Learning is a shared responsibility between the individual and
-an
obligation on the part of employees to take charge of their own
professional development and an obligation on the part of the
organization to offer an environment that is conducive to
learning. This includes providing access to training, learning
and development opportunities in the official language of choice,
where applicable, and respecting the diversity needs of
employees. In the Public Service of Canada, the following
responsibilities form the basis of a learning policy:
- Individuals must commit to lifelong learning by
being:
- willing to learn, to continually upgrade and improve
their capabilities;
- willing to invest time and energy in learning and in
integrating learning into their everyday approach to work;
and
- committed to applying their learning and sharing it
with others.
- Organizations (Deputy Heads) must ensure
that:
- employees are provided with the training, development
and learning opportunities to fulfil the organization's
mission and job requirements, within the wider context of
Public Service values while ensuring responsible spending;
and
- managers have access to the training, development and
learning needed to fulfil their responsibility to manage
in accordance with Public Service-wide values, principles and
best practices.
- The Employer (Treasury Board Secretariat)
must:
- identify fundamental corporate requirements and common
knowledge needs for managers and employees irrespective of
department or job and to make available training, development and
learning opportunities through which they can achieve the
necessary proficiency.
- identify the common knowledge needs of Public Service
managers where there is a corporate duty of care by the employer
to ensure a common knowledge among all managers or a common need
of managers to act in a similar or concerted way and to make
available necessary training, development and learning
opportunities.
- establish learning goals, monitor and report findings.
- Collectively, all parties are responsible:
- to develop and nurture a Public Service-wide learning
culture that promotes and encourages investments in learning.
A coordinated, employer-led approach is needed to ensure that
training, development, learning, and career development efforts
of individuals and organizations add up to a significant,
cohesive result that serves the interest of the Public Service of
Canada and, therefore, Canadians.
The Commitments in this policy represents a broad consensus
within the federal government of the principles and the actions
required to build the foundation of a learning culture.
Organizations may undertake initiatives that go beyond these
specific commitments.
Commitment 1
The Public Service of Canada is committed to fostering a
learning culture in the Public Service that is essential to
fulfilling its mission as a national institution in the
knowledge age.
Building a Public Service-wide learning culture requires a
broad-level commitment. It is a shared responsibility that
requires commitment on the part of employees, managers and
organizations, as a whole. The commitment by all to building a
learning culture will be essential for the Public Service to
fulfill its mission as a national institution in the knowledge
age, to remain worthy and deserving of the trust of those it
serves, and to achieve results for Canadians.
Commitment 2
The Public Service of Canada is committed to becoming a
learning organization that invests in the lifelong learning of
its employees.
To help foster a learning culture, the Public Service of
Canada is committed to becoming a learning organization,
committed to lifelong learning. It recognizes that learning
occurs all the time, everywhere. It supports both individual and
organizational learning and encourages all types of learning.
Building a learning organization, committed to lifelong learning
will ensure that the Public Service: is able to attract and
retain its fair share of talent in an increasingly competitive
and mobile labour market; enables its employees to meet the
challenges they face in serving Canada and Canadians in the
knowledge age; and, provides employees with the environment to
achieve their personal career goals.
Commitment 3
Building upon this public service-wide policy, all organizations will have
their own training, development and learning policies and action plans as soon
as possible - and no later than March 31, 2004 - with a clear commitment of time
and resources.
Organizations supporting individuals in their learning plans
will also need to establish commitments of their undertakings and
expectations, which recognize the unique aspects of their
operations, and these may well go beyond the basic commitments
set out in this Public Service-wide policy.
Commitment 4
The Public Service of Canada is committed to ensuring that,
as a minimum, all permanent employees who wish to have a personal
learning plan will have an opportunity to have one by
March 31, 2004.
Personal learning plans for employees will serve to make the
commitment to increased training and development in the
Public Service of Canada more explicit and to enhance
accountability for that commitment. While this is an ambitious
goal, it is achievable.
Commitment 5
The Public Service of Canada is committed to identifying
the fundamental corporate requirements and common knowledge needs
of public service managers, to making available training,
learning and development opportunities to address those needs and
to fulfilling its obligations as employer with respect to
training and development.
The employer has the responsibility to establish the framework
to promote the desired cultural change and ensure that individual
and organizational efforts results in a cohesive and effective
Public Service that provides quality service to Canadians. To
'role is to identify the common
knowledge needs and to ensure that those needs are addressed
through a coordinated approach.
Commitment 6
The Public Service of Canada is committed to encouraging
and supporting the efforts of employees to improve and enhance
their professional qualifications and accreditation through
formal education, subject to the mission and operational
requirements of their organization.
In keeping with the need to nurture a learning culture,
employees should be supported in their efforts to enhance their
academic or professional qualifications or credentials.
Encouraging employees to develop and enhance their professional
qualifications and abilities, or pursue further accreditation in
their field, will require a practical approach. It may involve
partnering with recognized universities or colleges in
specialized areas of study, or an expansion of the types of
accreditation that are recognized as professional qualifications.
However this commitment is approached, it must be supportive of
training, development and learning in individual areas of
specialization, while also respecting the requirements of the
organization in fulfilling its mission.
Commitment 7
The Public Service of Canada is committed to measurable
targets against which to mark progress toward becoming a learning
organization, committed to lifelong learning. As an initial step
in this direction, it is committed to year-over-year increases in
training and development expenditures as measured in time and
money over the three years after the coming into force of this
policy, not including expenditures required for statutory
official language training.
Systems to capture learning activities and expenditures and
methods of evaluating outcomes are not well developed. However,
one measure of whether an organization is making progress is its
investments in training and development. Achieving improved
levels of training and development over the next three years
would establish one of the essential building blocks toward
becoming a learning organization. With training and development
firmly established in the work environment of individuals, other
learning activities will be more easily pursued.
Commitment 8
The Public Service of Canada is committed to annual, public
reporting by organizations on their training, development and
learning activities as a means to measure and
recognize progress.
To make the implementation of this policy successful, it must
be possible to measure and mark progress. While organizations
will use their own reporting vehicles, it is recognized that,
initially, measuring and reporting on training, development and
learning will require extra effort in some departments and
agencies in gathering information. However, in the knowledge age,
where investments in people are critical to an
'success, this information will be needed for
organizational business planning and priority-setting, in any
case. It will also be important to link the measurement of
progress with performance reporting, to ensure accountability of
managers and management teams in implementing policies and
practices conducive to building a learning organization.
A key step in the evolution of effective measurement of
training, development and learning will be the creation of a
common methodology. Consistent data is necessary for the
year-over-year comparisons needed to measure progress at the
organizational and corporate levels.
Evaluating the impact of investments in training, development
and learning will be a process that develops over time. This
policy will be evaluated after three years of implementation. As
this policy is intended to stimulate the development of a
learning organization, updates may be required as the
Public Service of Canada moves closer to this goal.
Authority:
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Financial Administration Act, Section 11(2)(b)
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Legislation:
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Public Service Staff Relations Act
Official Languages Act
Employment Equity Act
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Clarification and assistance may be obtained from your
departmental human resources people or from:
Human Resources Strategies
Strategic Planning and Analysis Division
Human Resources Branch
Treasury Board Secretariat
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