Consultation Guidelines for Managers in the Federal Public Service
December 21, 1992
Canadians desire and demand more direct involvement in
government decisionmaking.
Parliamentary institutions provide for the democratic
representation of
all Canadians. Canada's democratic political traditions provide
for the
establishment of broad public policy directions and priorities. Accordingly,
it is
the policy of the Government of Canada to pursue and to promote
consultation with Canadians in the development of public policy
and in the
design of programs and services.
Ministers propose legislation. Parliament enacts legislation.
Departments and
public servants support government priorities and legislation
through the effective
provision of service to the public, which includes an ongoing
and open
consultative culture.
Consultation with Canadians supports and strengthens the
individual roles of
ministers and the collective responsibilities of Cabinet in the
decision-making
process. In recognizing the rights of Canadians to have their
voices heard and
their views carefully considered, consultation also provides
ministers and their
officials with the ideas, input, opinions and options put
forward by the public for
responsive and responsible policy and program decisions, and for
the
establishment of government priorities.
Consultation enhances service to Canada and to Canadians by
involving members
of the public in program and policy matters that affect them
directly or indirectly.
Public consultation benefits both those in government and those
served by
government by:
- creating a climate in
which the government and the public can exchange
views, ideas, and information that result in policies and
programs responsive to
public priorities, needs, and concerns;
- broadening the
decision-making sphere by engaging all interested members of
the public in seeking consensus on policy and program
objectives;
- providing the public with
a better understanding of policy and program
options, and government responsibilities and constraints; and,
- promoting a more
favourable environment for decisions, thus maximizing the
potential for concurrence and minimizing the potential for
conflict.
Consultation takes many forms, both formal
and informal.
Informal consultation
occurs regularly and routinely, involving public servants in a
variety of settings
and circumstances. Whether the activity is a telephone call, a
"coffee shop"
encounter, an over-the-counter discussion, or a personal letter,
public servants
should take advantage of all situations to assure clients and
stakeholders that their
ideas are important and their views are valued. Informal
consultation should be a
regular part of any organization's consultation activities. It
is an important and
personal means of relating to and serving members of the public.
There are many more formal and structured means of public
consultation. These
include departmental advisory bodies, public discussion papers,
open houses,
focus group meetings, multi-stakeholder negotiations,
"armchair" discussions,
targeted briefings, workshops, questionnaires, toll-free
telephone lines, and town
hall meetings. Organizations themselves are best positioned to
identify who their
consultation partners are and how they can be consulted.
While the types of formal and informal consultation activities
are various, there
are attributes that apply to all. Appendix
A lists a set of principles that should
be
considered in the context of an organization's consultation
activities. The
important thing is for each department and agency to know its
stakeholders and to
have a consultation strategy established that appropriately
encourages and
provides for input from the public.
Consultation is not synonymous with consensus. It is, however, a
process that
permits and promotes the two-way flow of ideas and information
among all
sectors of society and between them and the government. The
process ensures
that Canadians are aware of and consulted about options that
ultimately will
become decisions affecting their lives. Effective consultation
is based on
principles of openness, transparency, integrity, and mutual
respect. As with the
communications function, consultation is a shared management
responsibility, that
is, one that is the responsibility of every manager in the
public service. As with all
management responsibilities, satisfactory consultation requires
good planning,
research, analysis, advice and feed-back.
The Government of Canada's commitment to meaningful, open, and
ongoing
public consultation requires the commitment of ministers, senior
managers, line
departments, and central agencies. Each must demonstrate
leadership in building
a client-centred and consultative culture.
MINISTERS determine
government priorities in consultation and provide
leadership in consultation through their respective departments
and agencies.
Ministers ensure that their clear responsibilities in
determining public policy are
not compromised and that public servants are not drawn into
partisan political
controversy. Ministers define the consultation responsibilities
and authority of
ministerial staff and establish procedures for liaison with
ministerial staff and
deputy ministers.
DEPUTY HEADS identify
and implement systematic means by which effective
consultation becomes part of the department's routine practices.
In so doing,
deputies devise departmental consultation policies or other
appropriate
administrative mechanisms that reflect the government's
consultation guidelines.
Deputies are accountable for ensuring that consultation is an
integral part of
program design and delivery. Deputies are accountable for
ensuring that
consultative skills receive full consideration in staff hiring,
training, and
development decisions.
THE PRIVY COUNCIL OFFICE provides
advice and guidance on developing
and implementing consultation and support to promote effective
consultation by
and among departments through the collection and exchange of
information on
organizations' consultation policies, strategies, and
activities, on innovations, and
on exemplary consultative practices.
TREASURY BOARD SECRETARIAT supports
the creation and maintenance
of a consultative culture by developing ways of promoting easy
public access to
information about government services (thus enhancing public
awareness and
interest in government policies, programs, and services) and by
helping
organizations develop consultation policies and evaluate and
learn from their
consultation experience.
THE CANADIAN CENTRE FOR MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT and
the PUBLIC SERVICE
COMMISSION, through its Special
Operating Agency
for Training and Development, develops appropriate training
methods to ensure
that public servants both in the National Capital Region and in
the regions have
access to training and development in consultation.
Evaluation, including client validation, is essential to the
development of a
consultative culture in government.
THE COMMITTEE OF SENIOR OFFICIALS assesses
the performance and
commitment of deputy heads with respect to consultation and
improved service to
the public, both within departments and agencies and with
clients and
stakeholders.
Departments and agencies are encouraged to evaluate regularly
the quality of
internal and external consultation. Periodic surveys will be
conducted by central
agencies to assist departments and agencies in monitoring and
assessing the
development of a consultative culture within their organizations
and with clients
and stakeholders.
This and other information respecting the government's
consultations will be
included in the annual report of the Head of the Public Service
to the Prime
Minister on the state of public service renewal in Canada.
Appendix A
Principles of Consultation*
- Consultation with Canadians is intrinsic to effective public
policy
development and service to the public. It should be a first
thought, not an
after-thought.
- To be effective, consultation must be based on openness,
trust, integrity,
mutual respect for the legitimacy and point of view of all
participants, and
transparency of purpose and process.
- The outcome of consultation should not be predetermined.
Consultation
should not be used to communicate decisions already taken.
- The initiative to consult may come from inside government or
outside -
each should respond as constructively as it can.
- Whenever possible, consultation should involve all parties
who can
contribute to or are affected by the outcome of consultation.
- Participants in a consultation should have clear mandates.
Participants
should have influence over the outcome and a stake in
implementing any
action agreed upon.
- Some participants may not have the resources or expertise
required to
participate. Thus, financial assistance or other support may be
needed for
their representation to be assured.
- Effective consultation is about partnership. It implies
shared responsibility
and commitment: a clear, mutual understanding of the issues,
objectives,
purpose, and expectations of all parties is essential; the
agenda and process
should be negotiable; any constraints should be established from
the
outset.
- Participants should have a realistic idea of how much time a
consultation is
likely to take and plan for this in designing the process.
- All participants must have timely access to relevant and
easily
understandable information and commit themselves to sharing
information.
- Effective consultation will not always lead to agreement;
however, it
should lead to a better understanding of each other's positions.
- Where consultation does lead to agreement, whenever
possible,
participants should hold themselves accountable for implementing
the
resulting recommendations.
- Effective consultation requires follow-through.
Participants are entitled to
know what use is made of the views and information they provide;
they
should also be made aware of the impact their ideas and
involvement
ultimately have on government decision-making.
- The skills required for effective consultation are:
listening,
communicating, negotiating and consensus building. Participants
should
be trained in these skills.
*The Principles of
Consultation are modelled on the sixteen
principles
enunciated in the October 1990 Report of the Task Force on
Service to the
Public and reflect the comments of departmental Deputy Heads.
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