With so much changing for the Public Service, there is a tendency to lose sight of what is not changing and a lot is not changing.
| The Public Service is central to the functioning of our democratic society |
The Public Service is a national institution central to the functioning of Canada's democratic society and parliamentary traditions. It makes an ongoing positive contribution to the prosperity, well- being and high quality of life of Canadians; it serves as the guardian of the framework of laws and regulations through which the democratic principles Canadians value are secured.
The very functions and responsibilities of the Public Service are founded on the values and ideals that citizens, political leaders and legislatures define as the most important in Canadian society.
| The Public Service is non- partisan, providing government with frank, honest policy advice |
The Public Service is a non-partisan, professional institution, providing the government of the day with frank and honest policy advice not for ideological reasons but because history has taught us that is the best way to serve Canadians and their elected representatives. Highly trained experts and professionals are responsible for delivering specialized programs and services to citizens. Policy advice to ministers and Cabinet is based on objective and well- researched analysis.
In the future as in the past, federal public servants will continue to be governed by their traditional values:
These values will help ensure that the core public service of the future is a cohesive, integrated institution. Values speak to the collective ideals and shared commitments of all public servants; they help unite and set a standard framework for behaviour and performance.
Over the coming years, the Public Service faces three key tasks:
The Public Service has made solid progress in recent years in improving the quality of service provided to Canadians. Efficiency, effectiveness and economy are central principles of the way the federal government's operations are managed. Federal public servants are working closely with their clients to get program and service delivery right. Important advances have been made, but more needs to be done to ensure that program delivery and design more clearly reflect client needs. Doing so will be a major challenge for the Public Service.
Efforts to improve program delivery will be shaped by the operational environment faced by all public servants:
Front-line public servants face the realities and complexities of this operational environment on a daily basis. They play a vital role in interpreting and understanding what their clients require. But knowledge is of limited value unless there is discretion to act. Using the principles of modern public sector management, the following measures need to be considered.
| The Public Service must be organized to deliver programs and services from the client perspective |
The Public Service must become better organized to deliver programs and services from the client perspective. Building on models such as the Canada Business Service Centres, more attention needs to be given to the use of "service clusters" where a group of departments and agencies share the responsibility and cost of providing a range of services. "Service clusters" do not have to be restricted to federal departments. Partnerships whether with the non-profit or business sectors or with other levels of government can allow for innovation and specialization to a degree that is often not possible with a single organization.
| The way financial and administrative authority is devolved must be reexamined |
Designing and implementing new ways of delivering services requires a reexamination of how financial and administrative authority is devolved between central agencies and line departments, and also between national, regional and local offices. While reforms in the federal government's administrative, budgetary and personnel systems over the last 15 years have given departments greater control over program spending and operating budgets, further devolution of authority and responsibility down and across departments has not always followed.
| Traditional accountability regimes need rethinking |
As well, new ways of organizing service delivery may require departments with front-line responsibilities to delegate authority and responsibility to one another or to groups of managers working together to collectively provide a range of services. This will require rethinking traditional accountability regimes for people from different organizations.
| New organizational models for service delivery need to be explored |
New organizational models for service delivery need to be explored. There is a need to consider making greater use of alternative institutional arrangements, such as agencies, tribunals, Crown corporations and special operating agencies, to deliver services. Although the Public Service of Canada has made some progress in this area, the results are modest relative to other western nations, which have witnessed an explosion of alternative institutional arrangements. Comparative experience has shown that program delivery can be improved using specialized organizations governed by rigorous accountability frameworks.
The expanded use of new institutional models will require careful consideration of how best to manage portfolios and a redefinition of the roles and responsibilities of departments, agencies, boards and other entities within the portfolio responsibility of a single minister. This raises important issues regarding what functions and structures will constitute the core public service and how such issues as recruitment, compensation and interdepartmental mobility will be managed.
| Efforts must be made to define the federal government's optimal service delivery network |
Efforts must be made to rethink the federal government's optimal service delivery network. New information technologies will be invaluable tools in so doing. Efficiencies can be achieved through the sharing of data among departments, providing "single- window" service delivery, and even delivering services right into the home. With the use of networks and information sharing, organizational boundaries should not serve as impediments to better service. New information technologies allow for integrated databases and common program delivery. Clients should be able to face a "seamless" federal government in their daily interactions for programs and services.
Among other benefits, technology will also help the federal government to retain close contact with Canadians. Through the use of electronic networks and interactive technologies, the Public Service will remain close to the citizens it serves. Individual public servants can continue to be aware of and responsive to the needs of their clients without necessarily having a physical presence in their vicinity.
Federal departments and agencies are exploring many of the initiatives discussed above, and this should be applauded. The Treasury Board Secretariat will provide leadership and strategic direction as needed.
Groups of officials representing headquarters and the regions have volunteered to deal with these issues. Their input and suggestions will guide the actions of departments and agencies. These working groups will:
The Public Service will be invited to debate these issues and develop ways of addressing them.
| The Public Service's policy capacity must be strengthened |
In the last few years, while there has been significant reform in the Public Service, its core role of policy development has received less attention. A group of officials has recently undertaken a review of the federal government's policy capacity. The review concluded that the policy development function is strong and there are excellent people and practices in many parts of the federal policy community, but there is a need to pay greater attention to longer-term and strategic policy development, including horizontal and cross- cutting issues.
The challenge is to replenish the policy thinking in every department so that all departments are in a position to provide the government with broad policy options in every field.
| There is a restored demand for high-quality policy advice |
The Public Service must better equip itself to address long-term policy issues. Policy development needs to map out, in both the medium and long term, how the broad determinants of change will affect Canada's future. Although these points may seem self-evident to many public servants, they speak to the need to make policy advice expansive and reflective rather than reactive and expedient. The changing policy environment has created a restored demand for high-quality policy advice from the Public Service; this has been amply demonstrated by the events of 1994-95.
Senior public servants must ensure their organizations are not fully absorbed in the "crisis of the day" at the cost of long-term policy development. This will be an ongoing challenge and responsibility. The best policy analysts must not be so busy working on transactional issues that there is no time or energy to devote to the long-term policy development and research that are needed to guide and advise government. Deputy ministers are especially responsible for ensuring that the appropriate balance is struck.
The Public Service must develop ways to better address horizontal, cross-cutting issues, including implementing the right system of incentives and accountability, which is one of the major challenges. Finding ways to effectively address horizontal issues is a difficult task, and all western nations are trying to do a better job of it. To date, public service practice in this area has not lived up to the concepts of interdepartmental collaboration that are professed, and a better job must be done.
| Increased collaboration is needed to address cross-cutting issues |
The dominance of horizontal and cross-sectoral issues where no single department has the exclusive expertise and resources required to address contemporary policy issues and many departments must be involved in developing the best policy advice demands that public servants co-operate on policy development to a greater degree than in the past. Departmental boundaries and vertical accountability must not impede effective policy development in the Public Service. In the future, departments need to work in a different manner, such that collaboration, partnerships and consultation to build consensus are paramount.
Working collectively will mean finding a system of accountability which ensures that responsibilities and roles are clearly defined and that collaboration is rewarded. The end result must be a strengthened policy capacity within the Public Service, to provide ministers with the best possible advice and options for meeting tomorrow's challenges and opportunities.
New approaches need to be explored to address horizontal policy issues. In order to develop collaborative policy recommendations across departments, greater use of specialized and temporary task forces may be required, whereby groups of officials are brought together to work on a specific policy area.
Working groups have been created to examine these issues and will report to the deputy minister community in 1995-96. The working groups will examine options for improving medium and long-term planning in the Public Service and for managing horizontal issues, including new accountability regimes.
Of the challenges facing the Public Service, perhaps the most important will be to ensure that it remains a modern and vibrant national institution. This is a challenge for all public servants. For the Public Service of Canada to retain its reputation as one of the country's most important assets, it must be able to attract and retain high-calibre people. This will require renewal through recruitment and ongoing investment in training and development.
As noted earlier, the salary freeze that the Public Service has faced over the past several years will seriously impact the ability to attract and retain good people in the long term. At the same time, the Public Service faces a major problem in terms of succession planning:
| New recruits will be crucial to rejuvenating the Public Service |
In a very short time, the senior ranks of the Public Service will need to be replenished. Although the Public Service is going through major downsizing, careful attention will need to be paid to attracting and developing the leaders of tomorrow. New recruits will be crucial to rejuvenating the Public Service with innovative ideas on how to serve Canadians better.
But entry level recruitment is not the only facet of renewal. Measures will be required to fill the senior ranks of the Public Service and to ensure a smooth succession. Renewing the senior ranks will provide an opportunity to reassess what leadership and management skills are required to best serve the Public Service of the future.
When organizations experience great stress and change, there are often calls for a renewed vision to bind and inspire. Questions then arise about whether existing values are in conflict with new ways of doing things.
| The core values of public servants remain as relevant and important as ever |
The Public Service of Canada has a clear vision and mandate. No matter what the job, the task, the program or the location, all federal public servants are governed by a core philosophy: to serve Canadians and their government. Public attitudes and political institutions evolve, but our tradition of a professional, non- partisan public service transcends any specific reform or restructuring. The Public Service will continue to play an important role in the lives of Canadians. The core values which govern the work of all federal public servants remain as relevant and important as ever.
It is important that we recognize the value of the contribution we all make as public servants to the quality of life of Canadians. We should be proud of the profession and career that we have chosen and the work we do. It should be evident in the way we serve Canadians and their government.