Opening Address - HTML Transcript

DATE: January 27, 2006

LOCATION: Congress Centre, Ottawa, Ontario

Opening Address

Jim Alexander: Merci, Hélène, and colleagues, this is really quite an event and just the brief time I've been here, you've been here already. I'm excited for you. I hope you're excited as well for the learning and the opportunity to share. This looks like just a great day. It's always great to really have the opportunity to meet with you and to interact with the IM community. When asked, I very enthusiastically accepted to join you this morning and take part in this day because I firmly believe that information that the government manages is just so foundational with, what we're entrusted with is really our most strategic and valuable asset.

Information-propelled service delivery supports analysis, consultation and collaboration, and decision making and without good information we can't serve Canadians to the best of our ability and give them the sorts of public service that they deserve, nor can we chart an effective course for the future.

Two years ago almost to the day, TIMS , the Treasury Board TB SAC ... second order acronym, the gang of deputies who sort of guided information management issues is the precursor to a group of deputies now called the Service Transformation Advisory Committee. About two years ago, they approved the MGI Policy Implementation Fund. Nineteen projects were approved under intake one of that Fund and are showcased here today, and I had a chance to walk through and see some of them before we started today, and the results of these projects are really quite impressive and really show the creativity and the talent, the energy that's there, spread throughout this federal government.

Interpreter: We have come a long way in the past two years. Today we will hear about key initiatives that are helping us to move forward.

Jim Alexander: I'd like to congratulate all the project managers and their teams for what they've accomplished and what they're here to share with you today. I know that the rest of you here will be very willing and able to borrow from them, plagiarize, borrow, it's one of the sincerest forms of flattery is to take another colleague's work and to build on it, share it with your own organization. 

Interpreter: Congratulations to all the project managers and their teams.

Jim Alexander: ...has worked together to develop these projects and you see that as you walk around. It's my hope that many more partnerships, formal or informal, will be struck today as you look at what your colleagues have created. It's critical that we continue to work collaboratively in Axis One to reuse effective IM practices and to keep IM in the limelight. It's over 200 participants that will be here today. Given our hectic and busy lives, this is a tremendous achievement and recognition of the true sense of partnership and of the value that you put into this activity and the value that Canadians will benefit from as well.

We're at a critical juncture as we look at addressing IM issues. IM is absolutely fundamental to the service transformation initiatives that we've undertaken both on external services, things like Service Canada, and the work that we're beginning on internal service transformation as well, whether you look at procurement and real property reform or you look at what we're up to in corporate admin shared services or IT shared services. Any of those things you look at, underpinning them is good IM. The work that we're doing on things like geomatics across Government of Canada as well. Foundational to that is IM and good IM practices. Climate change, the aboriginal file, water, science, public security, anti-terrorism, and interoperability. You know if you're working in those areas that good IM and good IM practices are foundational to the progress that Canadians expect in those files from their Canadian government.

Historically, when one heard very much about IM and IT, the focus was very much on IT, but no more. When you walk around outside there you don't see a lot about systems, you don't see a lot about IT. You see an awful lot about IM, whether it's IM in maintaining who we are as the Government of Canada or IM in enabling program delivery and program transformation.

There's a growing understanding that IM fuels things like accountability, transparency, and responsible management and, although we're going through a change of government, and there will be some change of focus and change of emphasis, things like accountability and an Accountability Act and strong public-sector management are going to be key things going forward, and you know more than a lot of people know around government how foundational IM is in making those things happen.

The CIO Branch of Treasury Board Secretariat together with our partners, the Library and Archives of Canada, and Public Works and Government Services, as well as all the departments represented here are working to ensure that IM services are an integral part of the Government of Canada program and service design and delivery. We're developing an IM program which will provide an infrastructure of services to allow greater transparency of decisions and processes. It will also allow responsible stewardship of government information assets. Thirdly, compliance with IM policies and legislation, and equally importantly, the availability of reliable information to achieve program and service outcomes. I spoke about that a little bit earlier.

We're also working under the policy suite renewal process to reposition IM policy in a more strategic light. The time is right for us to focus on key elements required to ensure that IM is on everybody's minds and the full scope of IM is on everybody's minds as we move forward. Our vision is to integrate information management into the very fabric of departmental operations.

Interpreter: ...information management should influence how we plan our activities to consult with our stakeholders and deliver our programs.

Jim Alexander: ...IM Fund Day and I really hope it is fun for you today on this Friday in January. It's an opportunity to hear from you on how we make information management a reality in our work, in our environment, in our business and our thought processes. There's an impressive agenda for the day and I'm pleased that there will be time for you to reflect this afternoon on moving forward in a pragmatic way. I expect to hear back from Chris Molinski on some of the innovative ideas about how we can strengthen IM in the months to come. 

We had a session earlier this week with the IM Committee looking at what we are as a committee, where we need to go and the role of that leadership group in defining our direction forward. That along with the input that you'll provide today and the discussions you'll have today will be extremely valuable as we chart our course forward.

You all know that high-performance organizations in this information age fully understand how information is key. It allows them to reach their essential capabilities and competitive edge. By practising common IM approaches and practices, we too can position our energy in the same direction. Absolutely critical that we act as one as we go forward on this. We've got unique perspectives, but we've got a lot that we can do in common and that theme of acting as one is foundational. 

In conclusion, I'd like to again commend the efforts and dedication of the teams from the departments and agencies that are represented here today, as well as from Treasury Board Secretariat, Library and Archives Canada, and Public Works and Government Services Canada, which brought us here today to share our collective expertise.

Interpreter: I wish you the best of travel and discovery during the course of today's event.

Jim Alexander: ...unfortunately, leave shortly for another and a whole bunch of other less fun events than I think what you're going to have here today. I understand that today's proceedings are going to be recorded for the webcasting, not just for Alexa but for some of the others who can't be here today. Look forward to that, and I also look forward to hosting a luncheon for the winner of treasure event. I don't think it's... and I think it may be the third prize is the luncheon... is it the first prize, luncheon with me? I think second prize may be two luncheons with me or whatever. But that's your choice and I look forward to discussions with one of you after this. So thank you so much for the opportunity and bon voyage on your day today. Thank you so much.

APPLAUSE

Hélène Valin: Merci beaucoup, Jim. Thank you. It's one thing to work as we do in the IM arena every day, but it's certainly nice to be able to see our leadership and for Jim to have come this morning to share his thoughts. We're sure that IM will be and is well positioned now to becoming central to the government's agenda. Thank you once again.

I would now like to take the time to go over the program with you that you've received today. You will see that we have two panels, one this morning and one this afternoon. I'd invite now the members of the first panel to join me up on the stage.

Interpreter: First we'll hear about the first panel, which forms our first priority.

Hélène Valin: ...on IM learning and awareness and I would... we will join the panel in a short while. After this panel, you will have a break at which time you will have the opportunity to visit the kiosk next to us. Lunch will be a buffet, will be served at about a quarter to twelve. So from a quarter to twelve to 1:30 we will be taking a break, but at 12:30 we have Nick Florakas who's the Executive Director of the Organizational Readiness Office join us and share his perspective on IM in government. The afternoon will start with our second panel, the best practices and lessons learned. Please note there's a change, a last-minute change on the agenda. Carol Wright from the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages at the last minute could not attend, so we are pleased that Cathy Lalonde from the Transportation Safety Board will be joining us this afternoon on that panel.

This will be followed by an audience participation, which will be led by Chris Molinski, Director General of Technology and Information Management Services over at Transport Canada. There will be an opportunity to reflect and comment on what we've seen, where we need to be going. Anyone who knows Chris will not be surprised as he will be leading us in a very pragmatic and effective discussion on IM.

Interpreter: Then we'll have an opportunity to visit the kiosks and we'll meet again one last time at 3:15 for the draw and for the audience feedback. 

Hélène Valin: Francine Frappier, Project Officer from the Organizational Readiness Office, Dena Speevak, Acting Assistant Director, IM Services, Agriculture and Agri-Food, Linda Mayne, Senior Project Officer, IM Services Division at Veterans Affairs Canada. I'd also like to introduce our moderator for the day, for the session, Jane Lindsey . Jane has years of experience in working IM and also in working with groups in bringing about change. I've had the pleasure of working with Jane in the past and I'm pleased that she had an opportunity to come with us today. So without further delay, I'll pass it over to you, Jane.