PWGSC > PWGSC Reports > RPP 2004-2005 > 2004-2005 Estimates Report on Plans and Priorities Section 4 - Plans and Priorities - Business Lines

Section 4 - Plans and Priorities - Business Lines

• Real Property
• Acquisitions
• Telecommunications and Informatics Common Services
• Receiver General
• Public Service Compensation
• Consulting and Audit Canada
• Translation Bureau
• Government Information Services
• Operational Support

Real Property

Objective

To provide departments and agencies with office and common use accommodation, a full range of real property services and to contribute to policy priorities that support the Government of Canada in the delivery of programs for Canadians.

Business Line Overview

Our department is one of the biggest consumers and owners of office space in the country. Real Property Services is the custodian of a large inventory of federal office space and common-use facilities, which makes up a good part of the critical infrastructure that allows the Government of Canada to effectively serve its citizens.

Real Property Services provides real property leadership and stewardship and is responsible for providing other federal departments and agencies with affordable, productive work environments. It is also the steward to various engineered public works (such as bridges and dams), and national treasures such as the Parliamentary Precinct and other heritage assets across Canada.

It also provides strategic and expert advice as well as innovative professional and technical services in the areas of architecture and engineering, real estate, and, asset and facilities management to other federal departments and agencies for the acquisition, development, construction, management, operation, maintenance, repair and disposal of real property.

On behalf of the federal government, Real Property Services administers the Payments in Lieu of Taxes and the Real Property Disposition Revolving Fund, which facilitates the disposal of properties surplus to government requirements.

Real Property Services is the leader in the federal government's role in the remediation of contaminated sites, such as the Sydney Tar Ponds, Argentia, and the Giant Mine in Yellowknife. We also maintain a leadership role in sustainable development by supporting the urban agenda and helping to lead a coordinated approach to greening government.

Plans and Challenges

Real Property Services is deeply engaged in an intensive review of how we deliver real property services. Changes resulting from this review will enable us to improve the delivery of our mandate as a provider of real property stewardship and services in an environment affected by various government reviews and the recommendations of the Auditor General (AG) and the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA), on office accommodation(1).

(1) The reviews of the AG and SCOPA identified key areas for improvement in the real property area. For further details of the resulting improvement initiatives please refer to Annex B - Horizontal and Major Initiatives.

We will be examining a wide array of possible changes to the way we do business and will maximize the contribution we can make to the Government's agenda as a common service organization. This year a major emphasis will be on planning the renewal of real property management, followed by its implementation in the next three to five years. Through the Branch's renewal efforts, we expect to create an economic, environmental and social dividend for Canadian citizens. Specifically, we expect to achieve four key objectives:

1. Reduce the costs of real property for the government;
2. Define an effective real property regime in order to offer other government departments and agencies the best advice and solutions from a government-wide perspective;
3. Improve our operational performance by doing things on time, within scope, on budget and within government policies; and
4. Engage in environmental initiatives including the development of environmental standards and energy conservation.

In addition, we will continue to support the Government's policy agenda, by leading in the federal government's role in the remediation of the Sydney Tar Ponds and by supporting the Urban Agenda.

In developing a comprehensive model for real property service delivery, we will be focusing aggressively on how best to address challenges in five key areas:

1 - Portfolio Management: Improving our abilities in long-term planning and assessing opportunities to optimize the portfolio will enable us to improve the delivery of our mandate. We will maintain our buildings at an acceptable level of repair, meeting all health and safety requirements in the face of budgetary constraints. We will also look to optimize the portfolio of assets by using space more efficiently and consolidating needs of federal departments where beneficial.

2 - Service Delivery: RPS developed, in previous years, a client-focused culture that built successful relationships with customers. We must now ensure that we balance customer demands for customized accommodation solutions and quick turn-around times with government affordability and cost-efficiency. The other challenge will be to continue to deliver high quality services and maintain effective customer relations while implementing a major change agenda.

3 - Demand Management: Forecasting demand for accommodation is key to effective long-term strategic planning and optimizing the cost effectiveness of accommodation. It is inherently difficult at the micro level, as departments are constantly changing and cannot always define their future program requirements. At the macro level, we are taking steps to stabilize our understanding of the aggregate demand for space at a community level. For example, we are participating in studies on the consolidation of support activities (i.e., "back office") in common locations. We are also introducing generic space and fit-up standards across government, which will ensure a consistent and efficient approach to space.

4 - Management Practices: We will be clarifying our accountability structure, improving our reporting tools and processes, and introducing a robust risk management process for projects. Improvement in these areas is critical in ensuring public confidence in our management of real property investments and services on behalf of Canadians.

5 - Workforce Capacity: Sound and innovative Human Resources (HR) and knowledge management strategies and plans must be in place to ensure that competencies and capacities are maintained into the future. The branch's aging demographic profile, the growing competition for knowledge workers, and the financial and operational limitations resulting from the current government-wide expenditure reviews all pose serious human resource challenges in the coming years. An HR strategy will be developed as a component of the real property renewal initiative.

Strategic Outcomes

Performance measures are a key tool in evaluating the success of a program. PWGSC is focusing on developing consistent performance indicators, linked to strategic outcomes and using them to demonstrate, through comparisons with external sources and trends over time, the results achieved from the use of public funds (see page 4 for definitions).

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Provide departments and agencies with productive and affordable work environments that enable them to deliver programs and services to Canadians along with responsible stewardship of assets and maintaining their value.		Maintain and improve real property portfolio management performance indicators: Return on investment within defined targets (5-8%). Operating costs comparable to industry norms e.g. (BOMA). Actual re-capitalization rate is near or equal to funded re-capitalization rate. Maintain national vacancy rates at or below 4% and compare favourably to industry. Accommodation usage to ensure favourable comparisons or trends with external benchmarks. Base building and fit-up standards developed and applied by March 31, 2005.		1,747,858		1,722,736		1,697,162
	Re-procurement of Alternative Form of Delivery contracts for property management and project delivery services.		New Contracts start 1st April-2005.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Implement the Long Term Vision and Plan (LTVP) for Parliamentary Precinct.		Revised Plan approved by March 2005. Memorandum of Understanding with stakeholders. mplement revised LTVP.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Manage the government's investment and divestment of a diverse portfolio of federal facilities including housing and special properties; marine facilities, land transportation and surplus properties.		Seek direction on Divestiture Initiatives by 2005.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Provide leadership role within the federal government in greening our internal operations and in assisting colleague departments in this area.		Meet commitments as set out in PWGSC's most recent Sustainable Development Strategy.		23,100		23,100		23,100
	Real Property Services Revolving Fund - Provide timely and cost effective real property services.		Revenues meet expenses.		156		156		156
	Improve our oversight expertise role in cost planning and management practices.		Improve the number of projects delivered on time, budget and scope by 10% over the three-year planning period.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Facilitate the disposal of properties surplus to the needs of government through the Real Property Disposition Revolving Fund.		Professional and timely surplus property disposal services to government custodians. Maintain a sufficient level of credit to facilitate custodial disposals.		(11,888)		(11,888)		(11,888)
	TOTAL				1,759,226		1,734,104		1,708,530

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Propose a comprehensive alternative approach to real property service delivery.		New Service Delivery Model proposed by Dec 2004.		2,700		2,700		2,700
	Modernize the investment framework emphasizing portfolio-based management.		Approved Accommodation Strategies and related own to lease ratios.		1,200		1,200		1,200
	Improve the forecasting of demand for office accommodation.		Increase % of office inventory under Memorandum of Agreement by 5% each year over the planning period.		850		850		850
	Improved management practices.		RPS risk profile developed, integrated risk management framework revised and a revised governance model for construction projects implemented 2005.		884		884		884
			Completed cost models for real property products and services by April 2005.		500		500		500
	Produce high-quality performance reports.		Departmental Performance Reports and Report on Plans and Priorities meet expectations of audiences.		400		400		400
	TOTAL				6,534		6,534		6,534

FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Acquisitions

Objective

To provide Canadians and the federal government with value-added service that is relevant and timely in the management of acquisitions and related common services.

Business Line Overview

PWGSC delivers government-wide supply operations services and solutions to government departments and agencies in an efficient and effective manner, ensuring best value for Canadians.

In delivering supply operations services, the Acquisitions Branch (formerly called Supply Operations Services) is the primary service provider offering its customers a broad base of procurement solutions such as standing offers, supply arrangements and electronic marketplaces, the expanded use of which is being pursued under the umbrella of one of its special initiatives. It also plays an important role in greening government operations by assisting other colleague departments to identify and adopt green alternatives, encouraging them to buy green products and providing them with tools designed to help them meet their green procurement commitments.

In delivering these services, as a strategic partner with our customers, we:

• Help customers define their requirements;
• Find the best possible solution for sourcing customer needs; and
• Support customers by closely overseeing customer/supplier relationships after contract award to ensure strong accountability throughout the procurement process.

We also manage all procurement related aspects of Major Crown Projects, and offer specialized services such as: marine inspection and technical services; management of seized property; travel management; standards for and certification of goods and services; registration of quality (ISO 9000) and environmental (ISO 14001) management services; and surplus asset disposal services.

Plans and Challenges

We are repositioning the Acquisitions Branch, through an aggressive business transformation agenda, to provide increased value-added services to the Government and people of Canada. Our business transformation plan is expected to result in government savings at the end of three years and to further mature beyond the three-year planning horizon. We will put a renewed emphasis on results rather than process, and shift our focus from transactional management to a more strategic and holistic management approach. Our goal is to be widely recognized as an organization that upholds high ethical standards, manages the provision to government of top-quality and efficient procurement services, and exercises sound stewardship of taxpayers' dollars.

Quality Services

The Acquisitions Branch is focused on delivering Quality Services by providing better procurement solutions at lower costs. At the heart of our plan are several co-dependent initiatives and key priorities, targeted at saving hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars over the next several years. These initiatives and priorities are best described along three major streams.

Acquisition Renewal - During 2004-2007, we are committed to implementing a multi-initiative program that will:

• cut the cost of goods and services by 10%;
• cut the time to process procurements by 50%; and
• reduce the cost of purchasing by 10%.

To improve procurement management, we will: reinforce contract management practices to strengthen accountability and control after contract award; undertake commodity reviews and a review of the commodity management framework to improve efficiencies; develop standardized service menus as well as a comprehensive costing/charging framework for services to our customers, especially the Department of National Defence, our largest customer, which will result in simple and unambiguous charging regimes; and adopt standard contract templates and simplified processes for high volume/low dollar purchases.

E-Procurement - We will continue to leverage information technology and promote electronic procurement as a convenient and economical way of doing business. The Electronic Supply Chain (ESC) provides an effective and efficient framework for the electronic procurement and purchasing of goods and services. A major ESC initiative is the Government of Canada Marketplace (GoCM) project designed to provide an on-line marketplace to facilitate and simplify government purchasing of goods and services while maintaining high levels of transparency and accountability. Key to our development strategy is the launch of the GoCM service with four lead departments during 2004-2005, beyond which the service will be made available to all departments and agencies. More details on the GoCM project can be found in Annex B.

In conjunction with the GoCM development, we are reviewing our methods of supply for certain commodity groups. In this fiscal year, we expect to complete a review of the method of supply of ten commodity groups, the results of which will be integrated into the online marketplace to facilitate the purchase of these goods and services and maintain transparency and accountability. The GoCM, combined with the methods of supply reviews, will also be instrumental in achieving our 10%, 50%, 10% reduction targets associated with procurement costs and time.

Government-Wide Review of Procurement - Acquisition Renewal and E-Procurement are moving forward aggressively within the current legal, policy and management framework for federal procurement. At the same time, we are making a major contribution to a comprehensive review and modernization of that framework. In December 2003, the Government announced the launch of a Procurement Review under the direction of PWGSC. A multi-disciplinary Review Task Force has been established, largely including employees from the Acquisitions Branch but also members from National Defence, the Treasury Board Secretariat and Justice.

The Task Force is examining the government-wide process of acquisition, including goods, services and construction projects. Based on that review and analysis, recommendations will be made on how best to carry out federal procurement. The recommendations are expected to be made to the Government by December 2004, after which Acquisitions Branch will assist in implementing approved recommendations. This initiative is described in more detail in Annex B.

Sound Stewardship

We recognize the importance of sound stewardship and to this end, we are playing an important role in achieving the government's sustainable development goals. We have also initiated several human resources renewal initiatives to preserve our existing talent base and grow our knowledge and skills to meet future challenges.

Greening Federal Procurement - Our strategy will enable the government to become a leader in environmentally responsible procurement, to reduce the environmental footprint related to its purchasing, and to use its considerable buying power to advance the market for green goods and services. We continue to pursue our Greening Federal Procurement initiatives through green procurement officer training programs, outreach sessions to all government departments, and the expansion of product profiles offered on the Green Procurement Network.

Human Resources Capacity and Renewal - Our human resources capacity is showing strain with, among other challenges, high staff turnover, an aging population, shortage of key skill sets, and the need to acquire skills to meet the business line's transformation from managing transactions to providing procurement project management services. We will address these challenges by providing professional development opportunities and strategic recruitment to meet specific organizational needs, reviewing classification levels in order to create generic job descriptions common to various positions, and by re-introducing the officer development program.

To ensure success for the benefit of our customers, Canadians and parliamentarians, we assess and mitigate risk as part of our ongoing management practices. Due to the scope of our business transformation and the nature of our various initiatives, we have determined the major risks to the best of our ability to deliver as planned.

In mitigating risks, some of our activities include: continuous communication of corporate objectives through the executive community to all staff; focusing our limited resources on reform initiatives with the greatest positive impact on all stakeholders; reviewing current information technology and information management systems to develop a long term strategy to ensure future systems adaptability; promoting the ethics program, and developing checks and balances processes for vendor performance; re-examining staffing resources to plan for evolving priorities; increasing training and development as needed; instilling a continuous learning environment; and utilizing on the job training practices.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Contract management practices reviewed and changes implemented to strengthen accountability		Work plan developed. Target: March 2005. Performance measurement metrics established Target: March 2005.		780		780		780
	Three in-depth Commodity Reviews to develop more efficient procurement methods.		Reviews completed Target: March 2005.		430		30		TBD
					* Note: The associated resources for 2 of the 3 reviews are included in the GoCM estimates.
	Development of Commodity Management Framework to help deliver lower cost and best value services to customers.		Framework completed Target: October 2004.		*Note: Included in the Government-Wide Review of Procurement Planned Resources.
	Performance measurement metrics are being established to address Key Performance Indicators (includes 10-50-10 targets).		Critical Success Factors established Target: September 2004. Data sources developed Target: November 2004. Proposed Performance Measures developed Target: December 2004. On-line implementation Target: March 2005.		TBD		TBD		TBD
	Development of standardized service menus, fee schedules and charging framework developed.		DND menus and schedules completed Target: End of 2004/2005. Rate structures approved by TBS Target: September 2004.		610		TBD		TBD
	Improved service delivery with the adoption of standard contract templates.Processes for high volume / low dollar value purchases simplified.		Templates drafted and reviewed Target: Second quarter of 2004/2005. Comments from industry associations Target: Fourth quarter of 2004/2005.		150		TBD		TBD
	Government of Canada Marketplace (GoCM) developed to supply an E-Procurement supply environment.		Effective Project Approval Target: Fall 2004. Operational in four lead departments Target: March 2005. Ten methods of supply reviews completed Target: November 2004. Integration of reviews' results Target: March 2005.		6,805
					* Note: Planned spending for 05-06 and 06-07 is not yet known; it will depend on GoCM Economic Model and Business Cases, which are currently being developed. This info will be included in the EPA Submission in Fall 2004.
	Parliamentary Secretary's Task Force, Government-Wide Review of Procurement, supported and government decisions implemented.		Interim Report Target: July 2004. Stakeholder consultations Target: Fall 2004. Final Report Target: December 2004. Implementation by Acquisitions Branch Target: TBD.		1,800		TBD		TBD
	TOTAL				10,575		810		780

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Government-wide leadership provided in greening Federal procurement. Federal Government move towards more sustainable procurement.		Acquisitions Branch supply officers receiving green procurement training Target: 100% by March 31, 2006. Customer departments offered outreach sessions annually. Target: At least 30 outreach sessions provided by March 31, 2007. Profiles of green goods and services available on the Green Procurement Network Target: Increase from 90 to 150 by March 31, 2007. Departments offered green procurement course Target: 100% by March 31, 2007.		215		TBD		TBD
	Human Resources Renewal		Personal learning plans completed Target: 90% complete by August 2004. Classification reviews completed Target: PG01 to PG04 levels by March 2005. Target: PG05 and PG06 by March 2007. Re-introduction of the officer development program Target: by December 2004. Development and implementation of a strategic HR recruitment activities, in cooperation with the Sectors and CSHRBCB Target: March 2005.		430		TBD		TBD
	TOTAL				645		-		-

TBD: To Be Determined.

Telecommunications and Informatics Common Services

Objective

To provide electronic infrastructure and professional services, upon request, to all departments and agencies in the areas of network and computer services, telecommunications, and application development. To provide leadership in supporting government-wide initiatives such as the Secure Channel, IM/IT community renewal and Government On-Line.

Business Line Overview

The Telecommunications and Informatics Common Services (TICS) business line responds to the increasing demands of government and Canadians for reliable, fast, secure and convenient information technology services. We provide a wide range of optional services to departments and agencies in the areas of informatics and telecommunications services; professional training and development services in information and communications technologies; and electronic access to government information and services for Canadians 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We provide, broker, develop and/or manage voice and data networks, computers, servers, communications services, applications, project management, and e-government Knowledge Centre services to federal departments, agencies and crown corporations.

We are responsible for the overall management of the Government On-Line (GOL) initiative. We oversee and provide strategic leadership to departments and agencies in implementing the GOL initiative and we support the design and service delivery of electronic government (e-government) programs and infrastructure. We develop strategies and innovative solutions for the cost-effective management of the government's telecommunications and informatics requirements. We also conduct research and technology evaluation to assess opportunities for the introduction of new and innovative products and services, the application of new technologies and the use of alternative forms of delivery and partnering.

Plans and Challenges

Change management resulting from the implementation of recommendations from external and internal reviews and restructuring will be a major management focus for the planning period.

One of the main strategic outcomes will be to launch a business initiative to evolve into an excellent provider of shared IT services in response to the decision of the government to transform and modernize itself by moving to a common service delivery approach, fully enabled by a common and shared information technology (IT) services environment. To this end, this business line is considering a number of business models to effectively and efficiently deliver its services to the Government of Canada. This will help integrate and standardize services across government and encourage the development of initiatives aimed at providing value-added and cost-effective whole-of-government management opportunities. In implementing the shared services concept, departments will focus on their core business activities and Canadians will benefit from efficiencies gained due to reduced costs and improved functionality.

Another important outcome of these reviews is the overall management of the GOL initiative transferred from Treasury Board Secretariat/Chief Information Officer Branch (TBS/CIOB). TICS will now be setting overall targets for the GOL agenda, while delivering specific initiatives such as Secure Channel, Gateways and Clusters, and providing strategic leadership and guidance to departments and agencies to shape their plans to meet the 2005 government-wide objectives aimed at providing more effective, efficient and accessible government programs and services to Canadians.

The sustainability and further development of long-term strategic solutions for GOL initiatives are, however, contingent on additional government funding. Some funding for GOL has been reserved for developing applications to run on the infrastructure. No funding source has been identified for 2005-2006. For more details on Government-on-Line and Secure Channel, see Annex B.

Major risks in the management of information technology resources include limitations in our financial capacity to meet rapidly increasing customer expectations and needs, quickly evolving information technology requirements, especially for greater connectivity, and rapidly growing security challenges. There is also a growing need to replace aging departmental infrastructure to avoid facing systems breakdown, non-delivery, loss of trust and client dissatisfaction in the next few years. As part of its transformation agenda, this business line will establish a long-term IT investment strategy for the Government of Canada aimed at managing these challenges.

With increasing customer demands, demographic shifts, new and complex technologies and a revised mandate targeting shared services, it will be an increasing challenge to attract, develop and retain employees with appropriate technical and professional skills. Many management and senior professionals are eligible for retirement during the next five years and we will face the challenge of establishing succession-planning initiatives.

At the same time, PWGSC must support the government's commitment to create a fair, inclusive, bilingual, representative and supportive work environment that focusses on leadership, learning, change management, employment equity and improved union relations. We must also help to build a more cohesive community of information-management and technology professionals across the public service.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Trusted partner of departments and agencies. Strong understanding of clients' needs and effective and timely business solutions.		Develop account plans for major departments and agencies. Target: 4th quarter 2004-05.		1,900		1,900		1,900
	Value-added and cost effective products and services with service strategies in place to meet GoC strategic directions.		Value priced optimal business solutions, moving towards standardized service level agreements in place. Target: 4th quarter 2004-05. Needs of government departments in IT infrastructure and services. Target: Levels negotiated with government departments met. Break-even financial position for Telecommunications and Informatics Common Services Revolving Fund. New brokered services initiatives secured and strategic plan in place Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05.		87,500		86,300		86,300
	Achievement of Government on-Line Services including electronic government infrastructure services that enable access to government programs, services, information, and secure transactions.		2005 GOL service delivery goals met within Government of Canada (GoC) Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05. GOL Outreach Strategy developed Target: 3rd quarter - 2004-05. Project plan to build an electronic integrated service delivery network. Report on results of pilot project. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05. Sustainable business models for Secure Channel, Gateways and Clusters, Common Tools and Solutions. Measure progress against approved electronic infrastructure strategic project plans (For more details see Annex B) Target: 3rd quarter - 2004-05.		19,300		1,700		TBD
	Development of a Shared Services Strategy, establish an Enterprise to deliver common and shared IT services to the GoC and identify and pursue consolidated IT acquisition opportunities.		Develop a government-wide IT shared services strategy in partnership with Treasury Board Secretariat Target: 3rd quarter 2004-05. IT planning framework strategies and processes to migrate to a shared services organization. Target: 4th quarter 2004-05. Establish tangible initiatives for consolidating IT purchasing and outsourcing. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05.		2,500		2,500		2,500
	TOTAL				111,200		92,400		90,700

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Promote and expand E-Government Knowledge Centre's mandate.		Enrolment in IM/IT courses, seminars and E-learning. Target: 1,500 seats filled across 30 departments. Learning and development strategic plan. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05.		19,400		18,200		18,200
	Resourcing strategy critical to the success of the new enterprise.		Workforce development plans. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05.
	TOTAL				19,400		18,200		18,200

TBD: To Be Determined.
FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Receiver General

Objective

To manage the operations of the federal treasury, including issuing payments and managing revenue collection for major government programs, to prepare the Public Accounts, and to produce the government's Monthly Statements of Financial Operations.

Business Line Overview

The Receiver General (RG) Business Line plays a vital operational role in ensuring the government's financial stability and public confidence through accurate and timely reporting of the government's financial activities and the issuance of payments to the majority of adult Canadians. We are responsible for maintaining the integrity of the Consolidated Revenue Fund and the financial information presented to Parliament and the public through the Public Accounts and the Monthly Statement of Financial Operations. We add value by delivering central government-wide services that eliminate duplication of effort and infrastructure, and by consolidating the management of the government's payments and revenue collection to achieve the most competitive rates for services available from Canada's financial industry.

Through our own initiatives and in partnership with other government departments and agencies, we contribute significantly to achieving government objectives in terms of client focus, responsible spending, and reporting results to Canadians. All federal departments and agencies require access to Receiver General services to complete their obligations to the public and Parliament, whether through payment issue, revenue collection or financial reporting. We are also a key operational arm of the Department of Finance and the Treasury Board Secretariat in the context of debt management and financial policy and controls.

Plans and Challenges

The Receiver General's operational focus is on maintaining the integrity of the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) and the Accounts of Canada (revenue collection, cash management operations, payment services, Public Accounts, Monthly Statement of Financial Operations, Central Accounts).

A Disaster Recovery Site is planned which will result in the ability to resume operations within 24 hours with minimal impact on the Canadian public, the government and departments and agencies in the event of a disaster. This site would allow for the continued processing of government payments and receipts as well as the production of the financial statements of the Government of Canada, in the event of a natural or man-made disaster that destroyed or seriously damaged the technical infrastructure supporting these essential functions. Without a disaster recovery site, the consequences of a disaster could include financial and emotional hardship for the public, loss of confidence in the government, and international concerns about Canada's liquidity and credit ratings. Following a Treasury Board submission for funding, it is expected that the site will be operational and funded by the end of fiscal year 2004-2005.

In addition, the Receiver General has initiatives planned to respond to, influence and leverage required changes in the Canadian payments system, such as implementation of cheque imaging systems, online payments by consumers and companies, and electronic remittance processing. Included in these initiatives is a complete review and re-assessment of the security required to protect Receiver General cheques against attempted fraud.

We will also pursue opportunities for government-wide efficiencies such as methods to increase the use of electronic payments.

We will continue to maintain operations for the Common Departmental Financial System (CDFS), document imaging services and optional payment-related printing such as tax information statements and pay statements.

We will also support the Treasury Board Secretariat with respect to the implementation of the Expenditure Management Information System (EMIS), a core system used to support analysis and informed decision-making across government regarding expenditure management.

Making the most use of the information technology available to us, we will explore methods to modernize and improve reporting to the Public Accounts. Our goal is to improve the quality and availability of the Expenditure Management documents and to produce and distribute departmental and government-wide planning and performance information to Parliament and the Canadian public more efficiently and economically, which will serve to increase transparency and accountability.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Timely and accurate:Common Departmental Financial System processing.		To meet or exceed levels of service and system performance objectives established in MOUs with clients: Response times; Access; Systems availability.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Payment related printing.		% of items released according to schedule Target: 95% of the time.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Document imaging services.		Timely and accurate imaging and archiving of documents. Target: in accordance with Service Level Agreements with departments.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Response to decision from TBS in support of changes arising from Common Administrative Services (CAS) recommendations.		Commence development of plan to implement changes.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				780		780		780

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Preservation of the integrity of the Consolidated Revenue Fund and the accounts of Canada.		Payments issued according to standard. Target: 99.9 %.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Effective execution of functions essential to the financial safety and security of the Canadian public.		Daily authorization to the Bank of Canada for all outflows from the Consolidated Revenue Fund according to schedule. Target: 95% of the time. Timely production of monthly statements. Target: within an annual average of 25 working days of month end. Timely production of public accounts. Target: as per defined schedule. Payment reconciliation-within 24 hours of receipt. Target: 95 % of the time. Reconciliation of deposits to the credit of the Receiver General. Target: within two business days 95% of the time.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Establishment of a Disaster Recovery Site with the ability to resume operations with minimal impact on the financial safety and security of the public.		2004-2005 - Disaster Recovery Site operational. Target: 2004-2005.		1,872.2		2,029.2		2,002.8
	Implementation of cheque imaging to enhance the ability to reconcile cheques and provide more online payment options for Canadian public and government departments.		By 2006-2007, achieve the following results: increased efficiency of payment reconciliation. public access to commercially available online payment mechanisms for consumer and larger-value payments to government.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Reduced cost of payment issue through government-wide efficiencies (more uses of electronic payments, EI warrant printing).		Increase in electronic payments t and yearly thereafter. Target: 2004-2005. Decision on most cost-effective method for issuing EI warrants. Target: 2004-2005. Implementation of any required changes. Target: 2006-2007.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Enhanced monthly reporting to TBS for EMIS subsequent to funding approval from TBS in 2004-2005.		Commencement of Central Financial Management Reporting System (CFMRS) development. Target: 2004-2005. Continue development of CFMRS production. Target: 2005-2006. Timely database extract for TBS to meet increased information demands. Target: 2006-2007.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				1,872.2		2,029.2		2,002.8

FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Public Service Compensation

Objective

To provide payroll, benefits and pension plan administration services for the public service of Canada.

Business Line Overview

The Public Service Compensation Business Line delivers efficient pay and benefits services to public service employees and members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; pension services to retired public servants, retired members of the Canadian Forces, the federal judiciary and Members of Parliament. We assist colleague departments and agencies to achieve their objectives through better and automated compensation services and stronger integration of our central pay system with their human resources systems.

Plans and Challenges

Our long history in making payments accurately and on time, and in implementing important initiatives, policies, and collective agreements on time and within budget contributes to our reputation as a strong steward of public resources. However, the context in which we have had to operate is challenging. Growth in the public service since 1997-1998 has resulted in a 21% increase in pay accounts without a concurrent increase in the resource base for managing those accounts. The increasing cost of technology is also impacting on the cost of compensation operations. While we are able to provide legislative and collective agreement changes, we are unable to make the investments needed to meet the increasing requirements of departments and agencies.

Public service growth and Government On-Line initiatives have produced increased customer expectations, especially for access to a wider range of services through technology and modern business processes. Significant progress has been made in the development of Web self service to employees. Pension benefit Web applications have been successfully implemented as evidenced by the over 90,000 hits per month these sites are receiving from employees. The Superannuation, Pension Transition and Client Services Web site receives over 100,000 hits per month from pensioners. As reported in PWGSC's 2002-2003 Departmental Performance Report, results of two recent surveys indicate a strong degree of satisfaction, both among employees with the pension Web initiatives and among colleague departments and agencies with our service performance, although the latter indicated that there is room for improvement in providing advice to their pay and benefits personnel.

Challenges facing Public Service Compensation include:

Dated systems and aging technology - Renewal of the compensation systems and business processes is required to maintain PWGSC's ability to deliver quality compensation administration and to enable greater flexibility and functionality in service delivery. Stability of the 30-year-old Regional Pay System has been weakened because of aging technology and years of changes and patches to reflect the numerous legislative and collective agreement requirements. Similar issues and limitations apply to the pension systems.

Two initiatives will serve to address these challenges:

• The Government of Canada Pension Modernization Project (refer to Annex B), will provide a modern pension administration infrastructure by replacing current systems with a commercial off-the-shelf system solution, and transforming business processes.
• The Pay Modernization Project, to be submitted for approval to Treasury Board, will replace aging technology and implement best practices with respect to service delivery and business processes to meet increasingly complex needs.

In the meantime, we will ensure accurate and timely processing of compensation benefits and payments by making improvements that will extend the life span of the Regional Pay System.

Changing environment - To ensure our direction is consistent with the government's shared systems and services agenda, we are actively participating in the Expenditure Management Review of Corporate Administrative Shared Services.

Retention and renewal of competent staff - To run our business, we rely on staff with in-depth knowledge and experience, many of whom are due to retire in the next three to five years. To address this challenge, we have implemented an apprenticeship program to recruit, train and mentor new and existing employees through a progressive career path. External recruitment will focus on visible minority candidates. The success of this renewal program is critical to ensure that competent compensation experts are available now and in the future.

Increased customer expectations - Our response to increased customer expectations is to work together to improve service delivery within collaborative relationships with colleague departments. For example, we are supporting a project with departments and agencies in the National Capital Area to offer reduced-rate transit passes to employees via payroll deduction as part of a green initiative to encourage the use of public transportation. We are also working with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to construct a new pay system on their Finance/Human Resource infrastructure that will serve their unique requirements.

Legal/Compliance Risk - To maintain integrity in our day-to-day activities, we will regularly review our employees' compliance with the Financial Administration Act. We will promulgate the Public Service Values and Ethics Code by encouraging dialogue between managers and employees. We will ensure that all employees complete ethics awareness training sessions and make it mandatory for new staff to attend ethics training. In each case, the department's Integrity Action Plan will guide our approach.

Managing risk - To support the departmental direction in managing risk, we are developing an integrated risk management framework (Fall 2004). This will aid us in identifying and mitigating specific risk factors, linking them to our business and strategic planning and decision-making processes.

Service Standards - Maintaining service standards is key to ensuring our customers are satisfied with the service we provide. Our commitment to pensioners is to issue an initial pension payment within 45 days of receiving their retirement documentation. Furthermore, we will strive to maintain a service level standard of 95% for processing pay and pension interventions in accordance with published timeframes for various types of transactions. To provide enhanced value to our customers, stakeholders, employees and pensioners, we are developing services on the Web with 24/7 access to information. Most of these Web applications are ready for operation and waiting for government-wide secure infrastructure, expected to be available to colleague departments and agencies by the fall of 2004.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Pay Services Timely distribution of pay stub and cheque inserts to targeted audience.		Communications distributed in accordance with sponsor's requirements.		102.1		TBD		TBD
	Pension Services Timely and accurate pension services to the Canadian Forces.		% of published service standards met. Target: 96% of initial payments in 30 days or less. Assessments of levels and importance of complaints.		2,369		TBD		TBD
	TOTAL				2,471.1		TBD		TBD

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Pay Services Timely and accurate payroll and insurance services for public service employees. Process pay and pension interventions. Implement collective agreement provisions and other policy changes.		Number of operational incidents. System response time of 0.5 seconds or less. Maintain the published service level standard 95% of the time. 100% of collective agreement provisions and other policy changes implemented within timeframe established - usually 90 days.		20,340		TBD		TBD
	Employee self-service on the Web.		Implement in Q4 - electronic pay stubs, voluntary deductions and pay calculations (dependent on PKI availability).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	New pay delivery model to CRA.		Approval of the Accountability Framework. Target: Q2 - 2004/05. System changes. Target: Q4 - 2005/06.		Costs recovered from CRA.		Costs recovered from CRA.
	Modernize pay systems and business processes.		Completion of studies on additional options. Target: Q1 - 2005/06. Approval from TB. Target: Q3 - 2005/06.		TBD		TBD		TBD
	Pension Services Effective management of client accounts for annuitants and contributors.		Meet service standards within established timeframes.		24,639		25,206		24,941
	Provision of policy and technical direction and support, including: Policy interpretation. Advice and training to departmental compensation advisors. Development and maintenance of computer systems. Secure and efficient systems processing.		Meet service standards within established timeframes. Processing without operational incidents.		8,425.6		TBD		TBD
	Ensure integrity of the process of accounting for and transferring pension contributions to the Pension Investment Board, and accounting for PWGSC administrative charges to the pension funds.		Positive report from the Office of the Auditor General.		400		400		400
	Centralize contributor pension administration in Shediac, New Brunswick, currently provided by colleague departments.		Implement the administration of the Pension Benefits Division Act, the Pension Transfer Agreement and expand pre-retirement seminars. Target: 2004/05. Complete Strategic Implementation Plan, Business Case and TB Submission. Target: 2005/06.		2,177.9		828		-
	Correction of pension service, salary and contributions data to enable more effective use of automated tool (pension systems and Web self-service).		Completion of Phase 1 of Data Integrity Project. Target: 2006-07.		3,141		3,988		4,153
	Implement Web self-service for contributors and pensioners.		Access through Web to employee benefits statements and enhanced pension calculator. Capacity for pensioners to exchange personal information on the Web Target: 2004-05.		2,756.3		-		-
	TOTAL				61,879.8		30,422		29,494

TBD: To Be Determined.
FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Consulting and Audit Canada

Objective

To make a leading contribution, through staff and services provided, to the improvement of public sector management and operations in Canada and abroad while balancing operating costs with the revenues received from charging customers for services. This is in direct support of the Quality Services departmental strategic outcome.

Business Line Overview

Consulting and Audit Canada (CAC) provides, on an optional and fee-for-services basis, consulting and audit services to federal government departments and agencies across Canada and upon request, to foreign governments and international organizations.

These services help customers provide better service to the public by improving public sector management, operations and administration while meeting the priorities and needs of government.

CAC services focus on excellence in client service, sharing of public sector expertise, and areas of particular relevance to the federal government.

CAC adapts services to meet the needs of public service managers and the priorities of government and, provides services in collaboration with the private sector via subcontracting.

Plans and Challenges

CAC has established the following strategic objectives:

• Contribute to the improvement of public sector management and operations;
• Work with central agencies and other government organizations to support government priorities and needs;
• Facilitate public sector access, with an emphasis on small and medium sized enterprises, to consulting and audit business opportunities;
• Ensure the long-term sustainability of the Agency by being financially self-sufficient and maintaining a knowledgeable work force.

These strategic objectives will be achieved through the pursuit of the following strategies:

Provide the highest quality of professional services to our clients - CAC prides itself on the quality of its work. It is only through the provision of the highest quality of professional services that we can achieve our ultimate goal of improving public sector management and operations and ultimately ensure our long-term financial sustainability. To achieve this, CAC will over the course of 2004-2005 focus on:

• Updating external knowledge sharing strategy;
• Building an organization that is recognized for its strong ethical foundation and standards of professional conduct;
• Ensuring awareness of new emerging issues of Public Services agenda and continued relevance of services & products;
• Ensuring client satisfaction;
• Maintaining a critical mass of skilled resources in areas relevant to the PS agenda; and
• Levering in-house consultants and auditors.

Develop new business opportunities and relationships - CAC must monitor the evolution of its clients' needs and must adapt to these changes. By developing new business opportunities, CAC can better position itself to respond to these needs. To achieve this over the fiscal year, CAC will focus on:

• Targeting its marketing efforts at organizations that will contribute the most to CAC's mission;
• Initiating a new product or service development approach to address government objectives;
• Ensuring active engagement with SMEs and Public Services community;
• Developing a greater awareness of CAC capabilities and ease of access, across the Public Service; and,
• Ensuring close collaboration with PWGSC.

Modernize the professional environment by making better use of technologies and promoting knowledge sharing between professionals - Professional environment modernization can improve the organization's effectiveness. By fostering a climate that facilitates the exchange of information and knowledge sharing and that provides adequate technologies to all CAC employees, CAC can enhance its expected results. To achieve this, CAC will over the course of 2004-2005 focus on:

• Strengthening CAC's approach to Information Management;
• Ensuring security and reliability of systems;
• Creating an environment that promotes and encourages CAC employees to adhere to high standards of ethics and professional conduct; and,
• Promoting a workplace culture in which employees can effectively use both official languages.

Enhance the skills and competencies and motivate the workforce - CAC recognizes that its ability to continue to provide high-quality, relevant services in an efficient manner depends in no small measure on the vitality and well-being of its workforce. Therefore, over the course of 2004-2005, CAC will aim to maintain a skilled and motivated workforce by focusing on:

• Ensuring sound management of CAC's Human Resources; and,
• Enhancing CAC's Professional Development Program.

Promote comptrollership throughout the organization and ensure that CAC's activities are managed with due regard for economy, efficiency and the achievement of its financial objective - To achieve this over the fiscal year, CAC will focus on:

• Ensuring that procurement processes are sound;
• Implementing the Management Accountability Framework (MAF);
• Ensuring sound management practices in planning and operations;
• Ensuring a rapid, strong response to recommendations arising from external audits;
• Building a regime of strong financial management;
• Tightly monitoring financial results and taking corrective measures where appropriate; and,
• Ensuring the completion CAC's reorganization exercise.

The following are areas of significant risk for CAC. Our approach to managing the risks is also identified.

CAC must constantly manage the challenge of achieving its mission objective of contributing to the improvement of public sector management and operations and thus ensuring its long-term financial sustainability. To mitigate this risk, CAC will over the course of 2004-2005:

• Develop new business opportunities to ensure its services remain relevant to public sector managers;
• Continue to focus on providing the highest quality of services to departments, agencies and other organizations;
• Continue to enhance Client Satisfaction Survey process to better measure contribution;
• Implement the results of its Positioning and Pricing Study to better meet the evolving needs of its clients; and
• Increase its links with central agencies, namely TBS to ensure that CAC is on the leading edge of new government priorities and initiatives.

Another risk is related to the attraction and retention of highly competent professionals. The risk associated to this challenge will be mitigated over the course of 2004-2005 by:

• Recruiting based on future customer needs;
• Ensuring employee satisfaction through an environment of open communications;
• Providing vibrant support for training and professional development in the organisation;
• Making strategic investments in HR;
• Developing a CAC HR plan;
• Developing a professional development program for its auditors and continuing to promote the professional development program for its consultants;
• Ensuring succession planning; and
• Ensuring regular promotional opportunities.

The last risk is related to maintaining credibility and trust with regards to our business practices and maintenance of proper financial information. To this end the following risk mitigation strategies will continue to be used over the course of 2004-2005 by:

• Making prudent financial planning and budgeting;
• Tightly monitoring financial results and taking corrective measures where appropriate by developing a more accurate monthly forecasting process;
• Ensuring a rapid and strong response to recommendations arising from any external audits;
• Promoting modern comptrollership throughout the organization and ensuring that CAC's activities are managed with due regard for economy, efficiency and the achievement of its financial objectives; and,
• Developing a control panel in the agency's executive committee.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Improved public sector management and operations.		Client satisfaction.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	High-quality and professional services.		Business volume sub-contracted to SMEs.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Cost-effective delivery of services.		Net surplus.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Knowledgeable and sustainable workforce.		Rejuvenation of the workforce. Government priorities support.		Considering CAC fee-for-service activities, all associated resources come from it own revenue. CAC is required to cover all its operating costs (including those ones). As a result, there is no direct charge imposed to taxpayers.
	TOTAL				FWB		FWB		FWB

FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Translation Bureau

Objective

To assist the Government of Canada in providing services to, and communicating with, Canadians in the official language of their choice and in more than 100 other languages, helping to implement the government's bilingualism and multiculturalism policies and programs. Also, to help maintain and develop the supply of language services that are essential to Canada's ability to function as a bilingual country, maintain international relations and prosper in export markets.

Business Line Overview

The Translation Bureau is a key enabler in helping the government carry out its official languages commitment by providing translation, interpretation, terminology and techno-linguistic services to Parliament, the judiciary and federal departments and agencies, and by standardizing terminology within the federal government.

It adds value to the government's service delivery infrastructure by making sure that a critical mass of qualified language professionals, employees and suppliers, exists to ensure the government's smooth operation; helping it meet its official languages obligations and promoting the values of bilingualism and multiculturalism that make up the Canadian identity. The Translation Bureau also contributes to the stability and growth of the Canadian language industry by working with other federal partners and the industry to maintain Canada's status as a bilingual country and facilitate the exposure and penetration of Canadian businesses to the export market. The Translation Bureau also provides services in over 100 languages to support the government in its international relations.

The Bureau is a Special Operating Agency that manages its finances through a revolving fund. Approximately 74% of the Bureau's spending authority is derived from services rendered to other departments and agencies (i.e., respendable revenue) on a cost recovery basis. The balance of its revenues comes from parliamentary appropriation for the provision of terminology standardization and services to Parliament.

Plans and Challenges

The Translation Bureau will continue to maintain fiscal balance during the planning period, while making specific investments in its technology infrastructure, its management information system and technological tools for translators in order to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of operations.

Ensure Best-Value Service - Delivering on its legislated mandate is an ongoing priority for the Bureau. For the next three years, the Bureau will face new challenges as we expect fluctuations in demand to parallel the government's agenda and modernization initiatives, slower revenue growth and rapid diversification of client needs in a context of sustained financial pressures.

Aligning our costs with our revenue stream and achieving efficiencies while bringing more value to our clients through technology and customized solutions will be crucial. Securing our status as sole employer of translators (TR group) continues to be of the utmost importance, playing a leadership role and maintaining the critical mass of qualified professionals needed to support Parliament and government operations. Developing and managing professional and managerial capacity to meet client needs, especially in critical areas such as interpretation and services to Parliament, will be equally important.

A sound and ethical management foundation is required to enable us to fulfil our mandate and meet our key priorities and objectives. Over the next three years, the Bureau will implement integrated planning, management and reporting, strengthen its contract monitoring system, continue working with the department to implement the Ten-Point Integrity Action Plan and strengthen the culture of ethics and values through various initiatives. The Bureau will also reinforce its professional and management capacity through continuous learning and the establishment of a manager pre-qualification program.

Maintain Capacity to Effectively Deliver on the Bureau's Terminology Standardization Mandate - By standardizing terminology, the Translation Bureau contributes to consistent quality in communications within the public service and, more importantly, between the government and Canadians. To help preserve quality and effectiveness of government communications, the Bureau needs to maintain its capacity to effectively manage the terminology function within the government through tighter interdepartmental coordination of terminology activities. It also needs to innovate in order to bring more benefits to government and to Canadians.

By relying on its internal expertise, which is widely recognized among national and international language communities, and by reinforcing its partnership with other federal, provincial and territorial organizations through standardization committees, the Bureau intends to continue expanding the content of TERMIUM®, the Government of Canada's terminology databank, and to regularly update its other linguistic tools. It also intends to reinforce Canada's representation and leadership in terminology in international fora. The Bureau will innovate by launching a new version of TERMIUM® that will extend access to department-specific terminologies and further contribute to language consistency and quality in government's communications.

Leverage the Bureau's Unique Expertise - In its March 2003 Action Plan for Official Languages (http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/default.asp?Language=E&Page;=ActionPlan), the government emphasized the importance of the social and economic role played by language professionals and announced several initiatives to address the issue of the long-term viability of the Canadian translation industry. The security of supply in translation is at risk as the industry is highly fragmented and undercapitalized and as there is a serious gap between supply and demand owing to a decline in university enrolment and the aging population of language professionals.

The Translation Bureau has been the main architect of the translation industry infrastructure needed to enable the government to function in both official languages. The Canadian translation industry is a critical partner of the Bureau in serving the needs of Parliament and federal organizations. As the Government of Canada moves forward on its social and economic agenda, it is essential to rebuild the capacity of the Canadian translation industry and to ensure that it can support the government's internal needs as well as Canada's strategic priorities.

The Bureau will leverage its unique expertise to help ensure the security of translation supply, supporting the implementation of the Official Languages Action Plan and further helping the government's agenda. Partnering with the industry, the Bureau will work on three fronts: rebuilding the human resources capacity, helping restructure the industry and supporting the development of language technologies. The Bureau will initiate discussions with key industry partners to put in place a shared training infrastructure and offer professional development programs that will benefit all members of the industry. We will use our buying power to encourage the creation of larger, financially sustainable translation companies.

In addition, we will participate actively in the work of the new Language Technologies Research Centre (http://www.crtl-ltrc.ca/index_e.htm) by taking part in the development of new tools to facilitate knowledge management and information searches in both official languages on the Internet. Finally, we will continue to make a proactive contribution to formulating and implementing government policies and programs in areas where our experience and expertise will be both useful and relevant.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Best value service to Houses of Parliament, the judiciary and other government organization ensured.		% of sessions of both Houses of Parliament and their committees covered. Target: 100% (ongoing) Number of conferences, missions and delegations (ongoing).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Financial viability of the Bureau preserved.		Financial revenues and expenditures objectives met. Target: see financial table (ongoing).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Clients satisfied with services.		Satisfaction rate of clients. Target: 85% (ongoing).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				172,980		203,242		209,378

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Capacity of Parliament to function in both official languages maintained.		La Relève Plan for parliamentary services implemented. Target: 2004. Accelerated development for interpreters. Target: Double # of graduates (2005). Response rate to interpretation demands from Parliament. Target: 100%.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Capacity maintained to effectively manage the translation function.		Sole employer status approved by Treasury Board. Target: 2004. New integrated planning, management and reporting framework established. Target: 2005. Translation management advisory services in place. Target: 2005. Manager pre-qualification program in place. Target: 2006.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Contributed to consistent quality in communications within the public service and in communications issuing from government.		Regular update of linguistic tools (ongoing). Number of hits on Translation Bureau's terminology sites (ongoing).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Reinforced Canada's representation and leadership in terminology in the international arena.		Participation at national and federal terminology standardization committees and international fora (ongoing).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Sound and ethical management foundation maintained.		Strengthened contract monitoring program Target: 100% contracts monitored (2004). Implement ethics program Target: 2005		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Strengthened Canada's translation industry.		Volume of contracts worth $200,000 or more. Target: 20% of the total value of contracts by March 2005; 35% by March 2006; and 50% by March 2007. Shared training and development programs in partnership with universities, the industry and professional associations. Target: partnerships negotiated with main universities and associations (2007).		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				32,350		33,159		33,988

FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Government Information Services

Objective

To provide Canadians with multichannel access to information on Government of Canada (GOC) programs and services and coordinating the Government of Canada's communications.

Business Line Overview

Established on April 1, 2004, as a result of changes announced by the Prime Minister on December 13, 2003, the Government Information Services Branch (GISB) is comprised of the programs and services transferred to Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) from the former Communication Canada. As part of the disbanding of Communication Canada, the programs listed below are being integrated with those of PWGSC. Long term funding plans and strategies are still being developed.

GISB is committed to enhancing core government communications activities and ensuring the delivery of high quality common services.

It offers Canadians, a world-class citizen-centred single-window access to the Government of Canada with communications services such as:

• The 1 800 O-Canada toll-free line; the Canada.gc.ca Web site; the Canada Gazette; the Exhibition Program; the Canadian Government Publishing and Depository Services and E-Bookstore; the Crown copyright, Government Services Marketing and Advertising and the Canada Gazette.

It offers federal colleague departments and agencies communications advice and coordination of support services with a view towards enhancing stewardship, such as:

• the coordination of advertising and public opinion research; electronic media monitoring licences; communications projects management;
• access to government information at Publiservice.gc.ca an intranet network to assist public servants to better serve the Government of Canada and citizens; and to Commnet, an intranet network devoted to the information, the training needs and professional interests of Government of Canada communicators.

Plans and Challenges

GISB is committed to establishing a well-integrated organization within PWGSC.

GISB will ensure that it's programs continue to increase dividends to Canadians by promoting the sound management of public funds; by upholding integrity and promoting industry and government standards; by minimising risk through the coherent management of its functions across the Government of Canada; by demonstrating sound stewardship and by offering value for money to Canadians.

Review and Integration of GISB Activities Within PWGSC - GISB's first short term priority is to successfully complete its program review and achieve integration within PWGSC.

Building Capacity and Sharing Expertise - As a mid and long term strategy, GISB intends to create government-wide communications efficiencies by building capacity, demonstrating sound stewardship and sharing expertise and best practices in numerous business areas such as marketing, advertising, public opinion research and exhibitions. To achieve these goals, GISB needs to:

• Determine client priorities for GISB expert advice and guidance on government communications and on information access and sharing;
• Implement an external communications plan that includes a consultative component for clients; and
• Develop an HR Strategy to recruit/retain qualified employees.

Delivering Quality Services to Canadians and to the Government of Canada - GISB will review its programs and services with a view of increasing its efficiencies and identifying savings that can be reallocated to GISB priorities. However, acknowledging the funding required to meet present needs and estimated growth, GISB will find innovative ways to continue delivering services to Canadians such as access channels/E-services, the Canada Gazette and the Exhibition Program.

It is GISB's intention to link program delivery to Canadians' demand for information and ensure SFT (Speech from the Throne) direction and results of program evaluations. GISB will conduct a review to determine a division of responsibilities and work with other PWGSC's branches, federal departments and central agencies to ensure that funding is appropriate to meet service standards and monitor performance as planned.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome #1 Quality Services

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Maintain/increase core government quality communication activities.		Performance measures and targets developed for all programs and services. Target: April 2006.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Increased and more efficient utilization of access channels/E-services.		Canada site annual client-satisfaction survey level.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Canadians satisfied with access channels and the information they receive from the Government of Canada.		1 800 O-Canada and Canada website annual client-satisfaction survey and ongoing evaluations.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Review Communication programs and integration within PWGSC.		Review of programs in consultation with clients and stakeholders. Develop an integration strategy for all areas of communication activities. Develop HR strategy.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Institutions of the Government of Canada to be more visible, accessible and accountable to the public by increased visibility.		Focus testing and focus group results. Baseline measures for awareness, comprehension and compliance by departments and agencies of policies and directives about marketing, advertising, public opinion research and exhibitions established.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Enhanced perception by Canadians about GOC coherence and value for money at exhibitions and during advertising campaigns.		Establish and develop performance targets in accordance with the AG's recommendations and implementation action plan. Target: April 2005. Conduct an internal gap analysis to assess knowledge and awareness of program policies, directives and procedures by other government departments.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	Increased coordination of government-wide communications		In accordance with new advertising management framework, Government of Canada Communications Policy and Procedures and Auditor General report recommendations		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				FWB		FWB		FWB

Strategic Outcome #2 Sound Stewardship

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Sound stewardship and increased transparency and accountability in advertising and public opinion research related matters and all other programs		Develop Results-based Management and Accountability Framework, knowledge platforms and performance targets for all programs by April 2005.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				FWB		FWB		FWB

FWB: Funded Within Budget.

Operational Support

Objective

To promote efficient and cost-effective program delivery through the provision of support services that include audit and ethics, information technology, policy and planning, communications, security, financial, administration, human resources, as well as other related services.

Business Line Overview

The Operational Support business line provides support services to the department's other business lines. These support services shape the environment and provide many of the tools that enable the department to respond to the evolving needs and expectations of Canadians.

We provide support to the Minister, Deputy Minister, Associate Deputy Minister, Assistant Deputy Ministers and Chief Executive Officers in their dealings with Cabinet, Parliament, central agencies, other levels of government and other organizations.

We manage PWGSC's Audit and Ethics functions to provide management information and independent advice on business performance and management control systems, and also provide a means of investigating and reporting allegations of wrongdoings as well as being the lead for the development of the departmental Ethics Program.

We set strategic priorities and develop tools for sound, integrated management practices to reinforce a culture shift toward a stronger corporate approach to strategic planning and management modernization.

We are committed to making a significant contribution toward ensuring that current and future generations of Canadians have the opportunity to live and thrive in healthy natural and built environments, a vibrant and just society, and a prosperous economy. We contribute to this vision by ensuring that the principles of sustainable development are reflected in all aspects of our internal operations.

We are the department's communicators. We inform Canadians about Government of Canada services and the role of PWGSC. We also have ongoing communication with Parliamentarians and the media so that the information needs of Canadians are met.

We ensure that we hire the right people when and where they are needed, provide learning and development opportunities for all employees and are committed to a work place where employees are valued and respected. We promote best practices in workforce recruitment, development and retention, and by delivering strategies and resources to support renewal and change.

We ensure that the workplace is safe and secure and that we are prepared to respond quickly to any emergency. Our commitment to the health and safety of our employees is unquestionable. We take care of our employees accommodation needs and provide many of the tools they need to do their jobs.

We are responsible for PWGSC's office automation infrastructure. We manage and are custodians of corporate information and provide telecommunication and information technology services to PWGSC employees.

We are the department's financial managers. We provide a range of financial services to branches and special operating agencies across the Department to enhance departmental decision-making and to improve organizational performance and accountability through consistent and strategic use of financial and non-financial information.

Through these services, the Operational Support business line contributes to PWGSC's commitment to good governance, program integrity, effective management control and accountability to ensure the highest standards of accountability, transparency, prudence and integrity.

Plans and Challenges

PWGSC needs corporate services that add value and keeps costs to a minimum. To achieve these goals, we will provide leadership and develop the right tools to enhance our management capacity across the department. Our focus will be to: clarify accountabilities; integrate strategic planning, priority setting and financial management; foster a results-based orientation for management; replace critical skills that are being lost; and, move towards more pro-active internal and external communications. The department is currently under intense pressure to demonstrate results. Operational Support has a major role to help PWGSC meet its change agenda and its broader business objectives.

We are committed to:

• Support the transformation of PWGSC to deliver the government's agenda;
• Set strategic priorities and develop tools for sound, integrated management practices;
• Enhance human resources management and maintain strong labour relations;
• Build our department's credibility through enhanced communications with Canadians, central agencies and Parliamentarians; and
• Set service standards and report on service levels for Corporate Services.

Focusing on our objectives while sustaining momentum, overcoming the natural resistance to change and remaining attentive to the priorities and needs of PWGSC branches will be a challenge to the Business Line.

We will continue to provide and enhance cost-effective, reliable and secure telecommunications and computing services to support the evolving technological requirements of PWGSC's business lines. We will face growing demands for IM/IT services to support e-government initiatives and we will continue to serve Canadians directly through the expansion of our GOL services. We will develop an IM/IT strategy to better align our IM/IT services with PWGSC's business requirements and set out priorities for IM/IT investment. PWGSC will undertake measures to upgrade its aging technology infrastructure in face of increasing demand and changing technology.

Strategic Outcomes

Strategic Outcome # 3: Sound Management:

	Priorities / Results		Indicators / Targets		Associated Resources ($000)
					2004/05		2005/06		2006/07
	Support for the transformation of PWGSC.		Develop a Business Transformation Strategy including a Change Management Strategy and a Human Resource Plan. Target: Fall 2004. Produce Sustainable Development Strategy for PWGSC. Target: 2005-2006. Develop a Intergovernmental Cooperation Strategy to work with the provinces, territories, municipalities and other countries. Target: October 2004.		2,100		-		-
	Strategic priorities set and tools developed for integrated management practices.		Implement the Integrated Management Framework including: the Risk Management Strategy and Framework. Target: Fall 2004. executive dashboard. Target: March 2005. Introduce Program Activity Architecture (PAA), and Business Management Model. Target: March 2005.		2,600		-		-
	Enhanced Human Resources management / strong labour relations maintained		Develop strategy for HR Modernization (Staffing, Learning, Labour Relations). Target: March 2005.		3,300		-		-
	Credibility built through enhanced communication with Canadians, central agencies and Parliamentarians.		Develop strategy to improve relations with Parliamentarians through the annual plans and priorities and performance reports. Target: Fall 2004. Implement strengthened Corporate Marketing and Outreach Programs. Target: Fall 2004. Reconstruct Internet and Intranet Sites. Target: Fall 2005		1,800		-		-
	Service standards set and reported on for Corporate Services.		Increase Access to Information Compliance to 90%. Target: Spring 2005. Develop service standards for accommodations, material management and records management. Target: Fall 2004 Same for classification and compensation. Target: Spring 2005.		3,400		-		-
	TOTAL				13,200		-		-
	Audit and Ethics Leadership for strengthening the ethical underpinning of the department through the implementation of the Ten Point Integrity Action Plan.		Initiate implementation of the 10 Point Integrity Plan, including: Action plan with detailed milestones in place. Target: June 2004. Robust ethics infrastructure in place with Ethics Officers available to Regions and Branches. Target: March 2005		1,992		1,967		1,967
	Develop and execute a comprehensive risk based Internal Audit Plan.		Internal Audit Plan is risk based and completed audits will be tracked to ensure that our commitments are met. Developing a strategy for incorporating formal follow up audits of high risk areas. Target: June 2004.		2,237		2,240		2,240
	TOTAL				4,229		4,207		4,207
	Information Technology Establish PWGSC's Chief Information Officer (CIO) agenda and develop PWGSC's IM/IT Strategy.		Develop PWGSC IM/IT Strategies and implementation plans for PWGSC IM/IT investment. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05. Initiate activities to establish an IT communications and governance framework for all IM/IT investments with business requirements, establish standards and set priorities. Target: 2nd quarter - 2004-05. Proceed with initial steps to establish a PWGSC asset ownership and accountability framework. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05. Undertake initial steps to develop a sustainable funding model for IT services. Target: 4th quarter - 2004-05.		2,400		2,400		2,400
	Cost-effective information management and technology services to optimize performance and operational excellence for business lines.		Provide mainframe services to PWGSC. Target: Maintain 99.7% of availability, excluding software-testing activities. Manage major software applications supporting government-wide, mission-critical and business line priority systems. Target: Fulfill service agreements negotiated with PWGSC business line clients. Provide IT architecture and information technology security services to PWGSC operations. Target: IT ArchitectureDevelop ICT architecture and standards framework - 4th quarter 2004-05. Target: IT Security Services - Avert all major systems intrusions Manage the GOL Office for PWGSC. Target: Report on progress against GOL plan, risk management of key projects, Treasury Board-funded initiatives.		FWB		FWB		FWB
	TOTAL				2,400		2,400		2,400
	Corporate FinanceBetter information for reviews and decision making.		Complete A-base review. Target: March 2005.		1,000		-		-
	Enhanced financial management framework (inproved financial policies and systems including increased clarity of financial roles and accountabilities, and better availability and use of financial information).		Complete development of framework. Target: March 2005. Increase financial management capacity of department through hiring training and realignment of staff (ongoing).		1,400		-		-
	TOTAL				2,500		-		-

TBD: To Be Determined.
FWB: Funded Within Budget.