Mission: Possible

Renewing the Communications Function
in the Federal Government

As functional leader of the communications community in the Public Service of Canada, the Privy Council Office (Communications and Consultation Secretariat) commissioned Likely Communication Strategies to review the communications functions in 28 departments and agencies in the fall of 2001.

The purpose of the review was to provide insights and to inform strategies for achieving the following goals:

• Ensuring that communications is a valued, strategic management function, contributing to sound decision making;
  
  
• Fostering a corporate approach to communications across departments;
  
  
• Creating Communications Branches that foresee and adapt to emerging trends and changes; and
  
  
• Ensuring the organizational capacity of Communications Branches needed to respond to the needs and expectations of the Canadian public, Ministers, Deputy Ministers, and Program Managers, and to contribute to the advancement of government priorities.
  
  

The review began by creating a detailed statistical baseline inventory of the communications function in 28 departments and agencies. It then looked at pressures, changes made, and overarching trends in the management of communications, with a view to identifying best practices. Finally, it described the recent evolution of the communication functions with a view to identifying a Model Communications Function which in turn would be helpful in addressing operational challenges and responding to a growing need for integration of the communications function into the design of policies and programs.

The review provides the federal communications community with a comprehensive self-portrait—a snapshot of the community's size, scope and organization.

The review found that while 25 of 28 Heads of Communications are full members of their department's executive committee, only 18 of these same Heads reported directly to their Deputy Minister or President. The new Government of Canada Communications Policy asks for the Head of Communications in an institution to report directly to his or her Deputy Head, so this number is expected to increase.

Another important finding touched on the increasing complexity and horizontality of files, and the need for and expectation of more seasoned communications advice and support. The review found that Heads and their management team members, over and beyond their department-only initiatives, were active participants in government-wide ‘corporate' files. These were complex, horizontal files involving many departments, whether they were Communication Canada-led initiatives such as the Citizen Information Initiative, or one of the four horizontal government communication committees to improve communications on key government priorities such as Aboriginals and the environment. Another finding of the review was the increased expectations from internal clients of the Communications Branch for higher level strategic advice from more expert, ‘seasoned' strategists.

In recent years, a competitive labour market both inside and outside the public service has resulted in an upward pressure on levels. A shortage of good, ‘seasoned' communication strategists made it a ‘sellers' market'.

Benchmarking: Common Pressure,
New Trends, and Effective Practices

The benchmarking exercise sought to identify common pressures on the communications functions, as well as the common solutions that Heads of Communications are adopting in response. It highlighted trends and current management practices that are serving to build more effective communications functions. Three key challenges were identified:

This involves integrating all departmental communications so as to support one corporate approach. It also involves integrating departmental communications into the Government of Canada's corporate program of communications.

Better practices in place to address these challenges include: a senior level, department-wide communications committee chaired by the Deputy Minister; involvement of regional and satellite communication units in producing corporate communications plans; and a common training program for all communications staff members in the department.

The demand for communications services and products exceeds the available resources. While the typical Communication Branch budget has not increased in many years, the need to fund GoC corporate initiatives, departmental corporate initiatives, and other management priorities (such as internal communication and electronic communication) continues to increase.

The more successful Communications Heads have re-thought their service delivery approach to make it more cost-effective. Several have made the business case for resources to better support the corporate goals and policy objectives of the department or for pooling, prioritizing, and reallocating communications revenues from within the department. Others have succeeded in securing resources for new initiatives by including communications funding requirements in departmental program submissions to Cabinet policy committees and Treasury Board.

Across the community, there is a shortage of experienced and expert communications specialists and managers. Turnover rates are relatively high and there is a trend to use promotions to retain good talent.

But, there is a feeling that in a ‘sellers' market,' people may rise quickly and may not be as experienced as they could be to provide the strategic communications advice expected at senior levels.

Successful Heads of Communication are using superior professional development and training possibilities as a recruitment and retention tool. Better practices also include mentoring programs and an increased importance given to and investment in the Branch management team.

The third part of the review looked at the evolution of the communications function. Drawing on the unique perspective that each of the practitioners who were interviewed brought to the study, it suggested a model for the future, reflecting emerging trends and the evolution of the function in the federal government.

Following are the elements of a model communications function:

Communications is recognized as, and operates as, a unified, cross-organizational management function. The Communications Function includes the Communications Branch, and all other branch, sector, satellite, business line, regional or horizontal team communications (including all outreach communications, marketing/promotional communications and internal communications) units and activities.

The Communications Function is not simply an all-encompassing version of the Branch. The Function is organized as a matrix, with dual or multi reporting arrangements. Employees with communications responsibilities report to the Functional Head and equally to a second head (of a policy, program, operations, region or another shared service function like Human Resources unit or sub-unit). Each head is a partner rather than a client of the other. This is a mechanism for true ‘shared responsibility'.

The CCO (Chief Communications Officer) plays an active and visible role in steering and maintaining an effective communications function for the organization. He or she establishes a planning system (vision, mission, objectives, strategy formulation, policy development, and performance measurement and evaluation mechanism) and an organizational system.

The communications system is the third pillar—the organizational and planning systems are the other two—supporting the strategic management of the department or agency. Not only does the communications system enable the other two systems, but it also acts as a ‘check and balance' to the effectiveness and efficiency of their operation.

Supported by the Head of Communications, the CCO models proper internal communication principles and behaviours, integrates the communications system into the organization's other strategic management pillars, and ensures that the communications function is treated as a separate and equal management function.

The Communications Head leads, not just manages, the Communication function. The Communications Head supports the CCO in driving the common vision, mission, and direction as defined by the CCO, throughout the organization.

The role of the Communications Head includes: initiating and mobilizing change; attracting and developing talent; capturing and transferring knowledge and learning; attracting resources; and motivating and inspiring employees with communications responsibilities.

The Communications Head builds teams, creates networks, develops relationships, and constructs coalitions. He or she gathers and contextualizes intelligence by collecting information from stakeholders and interlocutors and by responding to the changing needs and priorities of the Canadian public.

Finally, the Communications Head carries out the challenge role at the highest levels, and positions and repositions the function to align it with the strategic management of the organization and the government. The Head's challenge role is a unique one. Before the Head is comfortable formulating plans for public information, he or she must advocate internally for those potentially affected by the position, policy or program. That is, the Head must challenge his or her colleagues by bringing to the table the views of Canadians or the marketplace, as well as applying sensitivity filters such as ethics, moral values, social responsibility, and common sense. The Head must develop future-oriented action-reaction type scenarios, and assess whether the internally constructed sense of reality matches the public mood or understanding of reality.

In a strategic management approach, the function objectives are tied directly to government/departmental objectives, resources are in line with government/departmental objectives, and performance planning and measurement are focused on results rather than activities.

The Communications function's intellectual capital includes a full understanding of the direction and business of government, and of the department or agency and its business lines. The function's team understands the history and evolution of the department and its policy and program units, the contextual environment in which it operates, the life cycle of issues, and the issue management process.

Finally, the team knows the history, mandate and modus operandi of all stakeholder and interest groups.

The department's Communications Function is made up of a number of multi-skilled teams. Account Executive (AE) Teams partner with the departmental or agency business line, sector/branch, shared service function, and/or regional heads to use communications to help achieve governmental, departmental, business line, and shared services function goals.

The Account Executive teams are ‘owned' by both the function head and the business line, sector/branch, shared service function, and/or regional head. The AE teams are supported by a small group of communications support specialists in media monitoring, e-communication, publishing, exhibits, advertising, research, and evaluation.

The department or agency has one, all-encompassing communications budget line. Human and financial resources to support the communications objectives of the Minister's Office, the Deputy Head, the Communications Head, and the sector, business line, shared service or regional heads come from a single source.

The DM's Communications Committee prioritizes funding for government corporate communications initiatives, departmental corporate initiatives, and sector, business line, shared service or regional initiatives.

The Communications Function is valued for its competencies and expertise. It invests heavily in professional development and continuous learning. It applies a variety of tools and techniques including mentoring, coaching, and assignments, as well as organizing work and assignments to best promote innovation, teamwork, and knowledge transfer.

Like most functional communities, the communications community has embarked on a process to identify, monitor, and address its own challenges to improve the quality of its services. Benchmarking and modelling exercises which draw upon the views and experiences of leaders in the community should prove useful to those engaged in the renewal of the communications function within their organization.

In April 2002, the Communications Community Office was officially established to recommend and implement projects to support the professional development, learning and training needs of departments and agencies. In a rapidly changing environment fuelled by technology and by quicker and higher service expectations, the relationship between citizens and government is evolving. Communications expertise is gaining value in the workplace and across the public service as a vital contributor to the government's ability to build a strong and inclusive society for Canadians.

Fraser Likely, the communication management consultant who undertook the review, is President and Managing Partner, Likely Communication Strategies Ltd. 613-727-8555 / likely@intranet.ca

Jodi Redmond is Director, Strategic Communications Planning, Privy Council Office, Communications and Consultation Secretariat. 613-957-5173 jredmond@pco-bcp.gc.ca