Strategic Plan

THE 2005-2006 TO 2010-2011 STRATEGIC PLAN

TSB VALUES

The Government of Canada has committed to managing its business according to the highest public service values related to respect for democracy, professionalism, ethics, and people. As public servants, we at the TSB use a particular value system in striving to achieve our Vision and Mission. Our core values are:

COMPETENCE: We will maintain a highly skilled and knowledgeable team of professionals through leadership and commitment to continuous improvement in the delivery of our service.

OPENNESS: We accept and share information freely and openly, respecting both our information providers and users to the full extent of the law.

FAIRNESS: We treat all individuals and organizations equitably.

INTEGRITY: We are guided by honesty, propriety and accountability for our actions and decisions.

RESPECT: We are committed to treating all with whom we deal with consideration and courtesy.

Why a New Strategic Plan?

In 2001-2002, the TSB produced its first strategic plan, for the period ending in fiscal year 2005-2006. In that plan, the agency clearly announced, through its statements of Mission, Values, Strategic Objectives, and Strategies, the type of organization we wanted to be. The strategic direction laid out in that plan has been the keystone to achieving the outcomes and results the agency aimed for over the subsequent five years in order to more effectively carry out its mandate. To support the plan, TSB senior management established a planning framework to focus the agency's activities and resources for those upcoming years and beyond.

Since the issuance of our first strategic plan, we have accomplished an impressive number of the initiatives we set out to achieve and are moving others toward a steady state. While the first strategic plan has proven to be an excellent road map, some elements of it require updating.

For example, in our first strategic plan, we included five strategic outcomes to demonstrate benefits to Canadians. However, as part of the Government of Canada's new "Program Activity Architecture," government departments are now required to better focus their strategies and activities. This means only one "strategic outcome" for the TSB and the development of associated performance measures or targets to indicate progress toward its achievement.

Our first strategic plan did not include a Vision Statement. As a strategic outcome stems from a department's Mandate, Vision and Mission, we needed to define our Vision so that our outcome would be truly representative of who we are and how we make a difference.

Furthermore, we needed to revisit our Mission Statement. The Mission Statement contained in the first strategic plan was a restatement of Section 7 of the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act and as such was not a concise statement that captured the essence of the work of the TSB.

In summary, the first TSB strategic plan has served its purpose very well, but it was time to review and update it. The following Strategic Plan is the product of that evaluation.

TSB STRATEGIC PLAN 2005-2006 TO 2010-2011

The Strategic Plan is how we collectively define ourselves; it describes to Canadians our uniqueness. There should be an inspirational quality to a strategic plan that allows us to think collectively about how we arrived at being the organization we are today, to take a snapshot of our current realities, and to then describe where we aim to be in the future.

The Strategic Plan is a framework for the strategic directions that underlie the outcomes and the results we wish to achieve. It allows us to focus our attentions and energies in a common direction and identifies the priorities that should be the focus of our efforts. This strategic plan is also a valuable communications tool for telling Canadians who we are, where we are going, and how that strategy will be of benefit to them.

The TSB performs a key role within the Canadian transportation system. Our mandate provides the Canadian public with an organization entrusted to carry out independent transportation occurrence investigations and associated activities with the sole purpose of advancing transportation safety. The TSB 2005-2006 to 2010-2011 Strategic Plan strives to uphold and strengthen that purpose by reaffirming our core values, by articulating our vision and our mission, and by setting down objectives and strategies to ensure that our results are achieved.

TSB VISION STATEMENT

Our Vision is a statement of what we strive to be. It defines what we believe is an achievable aspiration for the TSB over the coming years:

TSB MISSION STATEMENT

A Mission Statement is a formal, public statement of an organization's purpose. Our Mission Statement sets the TSB apart from all other organizations:

TSB STRATEGIC OUTCOME

A Strategic Outcome is a long-term and enduring benefit to Canadians that stems from an organization's mandate, vision, and mission. Our Strategic Outcome represents the difference that the TSB wants to make for Canadians, and it is the touchstone against which the TSB's performance will be assessed:

To achieve the long-term Strategic Outcome, we need to embed it in everything we do as we carry out our daily business activities and initiatives.

TSB STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES

We examined the TSB's internal and external environment - both current and anticipated future, - and identified challenges or drivers for change that must be considered in order to achieve our Strategic Outcome. Those challenges provided the basis for defining our Strategic Objectives - objectives we must pursue in all aspects of our business to achieve progress toward realizing our Vision and serving our Mission:

1. Safety Products and Services
   
   Sustain and continuously improve the TSB's operational capability to identify safety deficiencies and produce safety products and services that most effectively advance safety change.



2. Organizational Effectiveness
   
   Invest in and organize the human, financial, and physical resources required to deliver quality safety products in a timely manner.



3. Alliances and Partnerships
   
   Leverage external and internal alliances and partnerships that will enhance TSB effectiveness and productivity without risk to its independence.



4. Awareness
   
   Address risk in the transportation system through effective communication, particularly with key primary safety change agents, with an aim to enhancing their understanding of TSB findings and increasing the implementation of TSB recommendations.

TSB STRATEGIES

Strategies are clear and succinct statements of how the organization will achieve its Strategic Objectives and Outcome for the planning period. As such, the following Strategies for each of the Strategic Objectives are commitments the TSB has made to address its challenges:

1. Safety Products and Services
   
   Based on the results of the Report on Reshaping our Products and Services, develop and implement a continuous improvement process to enhance the way in which our products and services support the mandate of the TSB and meet or exceed the needs of our stakeholders.



2. Organizational Effectiveness
   
   Develop and implement a continuous improvement process for business activities that is integrated within the TSB governance structure.
   
   Retain and attract knowledgeable, skilled, and motivated staff by maintaining a positive work environment.



3. Alliances and Partnerships
   
   Develop and implement a framework and associated processes for identifying and leveraging partnership opportunities.



4. Awareness
   
   Identify opportunities to communicate key messages to stakeholders, ensure timely dissemination of safety information and maximize the impact of those communications.

THE WAY AHEAD

The Strategic Plan is a blueprint to guide the TSB as it focuses its activities and resources through the next three to five years. It provides a firm basis for business and action plans that will detail the tasks associated with each of the Strategies.

© Minister of Public Works and Government Services 2005
    Cat. No. TU4-16/2005
    ISBN 0-662-68729-9