Quality of Life and ADMs
Notes for an Address by
Mel Cappe
Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet
at the
ADM Forum
October 18, 2000
Ottawa, Ontario
Check Against Delivery
Introduction
- I should point out that I actually prepared two speeches for today.
- The media told me that Canada would be in an election campaign by now —
and who was I to doubt them?
- So, in this pocket is my speech on the role of a non-partisan public
service during an election.
- Unless something has changed dramatically in the past 10 minutes, I’ll
save that for another day.
- So, on to the speech that is in my other pocket — on the concept of
Quality of Life and the role of ADMs.
- Quality of life is a concept that comes right down to the heart of your
role as leaders.
- And it is an especially good day to talk about quality of life.
- Why? Two words. Economic Statement.
- And two more words. Auditor General.
- Today, you’re going to take part in a lot of discussions on quality of
life and it will be very easy to assume that everything we do helps improve
the quality of life of Canadians.
- After all, we’re a "public" service, right?
- Certainly, we can draw some ideas about our contributions to Canada and
Canadians from the economic statement.
- Canada’s economy is doing well and the government’s fiscal state is
very healthy.
- It didn’t just happen, we have helped to add to the strength of the
current economy through work across our departments in all regions.
- But we have to balance that pride in a job well done with the sharp
reminders of the Auditor General.
- The AG comes along every now and again to remind Parliament, Canadians and
us that the how matters.
- So the AG’s work should remind us that:
- Wanting to improve quality of life is not without a lot of challenges along
the way; and
- We should temper our legitimate pride in what we do with a consistent
willingness to look for ways to do better.
- But no criticism of this program or that service obscures my main message
to you today, and that is:
- As senior leaders in the Public Service, you can and do make a difference
in the quality of life for all Canadians.
- You are Assistant Deputy Ministers – and the Minister in your title means
that you have a responsibility to think more broadly, over the horizon with
your heads above the clouds, while keeping your feet on the ground delivering
results.
- Therefore, to make the most positive difference, you and the teams you lead
increasingly have to do three things and do them well:
Thinking Big
- Let me start by the value of thinking big when it comes to quality of life.
- There is no nice, neat definition of quality of life.
- The United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Index is one
approach to measuring and comparing quality of life.
- It is based on a wide variety of indicators centred around standard of
living, health and life expectancy, and literacy and learning.
- And who are we to quibble with that approach or its methodology, as the
country with the number one ranking for seven years?
- But, that is just one perspective; there are others.
- You heard Michael Adams talk last night about social values in Canada and
what Canadians expect.
- You will hear a lot of other perspectives on quality of life from the
panellists this morning and at the working lunch with DMs.
- So, clearly, quality of life involves different things for different people
and it is a comprehensive mix.
- And why we can all take pride in the fact that Canadians have achieved one
of the best levels of quality of life in the world.
- It happened, in part, because our people are taking action on social and
economic issues, because our people are addressing environmental challenges
and international links, because our people are making sure that the necessary
supports are in place for our policy and program operations to function well.
- It happened, because you and the people you lead, helped to make it happen
– over the years, leaders in the Public Service of Canada have shown the
benefits of thinking big.
- The challenge now, is for you to show even more leadership as our frame of
reference expands and becomes more complex so that Canada can continue to
build quality of life through the 21st century.
- Thinking big means seeing the big picture. It means being able to
conceptualize broadly, seeing the linkages among and between issues, as well
our changing frame of reference.
- It means engaging your people in building a vision that inspires others to
stretch, even if it seems just beyond our grasp today.
- We see thinking big in action as public service leaders take up the
government’s commitment to find ways to ensure all Canada’s children can
live up to their full potential.
- Leaders are supporting the policy research we need.
- Leaders are helping shape the policy development of options that mean a
complete package.
- Leaders and their teams are working with colleagues from many departments,
other governments, the private and voluntary sectors to see beyond today’s
situation and today’s boundaries to where we can be.
- That is thinking big, thinking outside our traditional boundaries.
- Thinking big is about being « fonctionnaires sans frontičres » –
leaders at all levels who look outward and see issues in a broader, horizontal
context.
- We are thinking big by finding new and better ways to deliver services and
information, including achieving Government On-line.
- We are seeing a fundamental shift from thinking "little", with
people as clients of this one program or seekers of bits of information.
- To thinking "big" by asking citizens what they want and then
using that to define clear goals for improved service delivery.
- To get there, leaders, at all levels, are looking beyond what their
department or their branch or their region can do – to think big for
citizen-centred service delivery, whether through Service Canada or getting
behind our service quality commitments.
- And we are thinking even bigger as we begin to work more closely with other
governments and other service providers.
- These are only some examples of how we are supporting the government in its
commitment to improve Canadian quality of life by thinking big.
Thinking Ahead
- Thinking big is matched by "thinking ahead".
- When I say "thinking ahead" I mean seeing beyond our short-term
policy, program and service delivery agenda and looking over the horizon.
- As difficult as it can be amidst the daily demands on an ADMs time, it is
important to look ahead to the emerging environment.
- Through the Policy Research Initiative, we are identifying and assessing
long-term social, economic and international trends that will impact on the
quality of life of individual Canadians.
- After a series of consultations with Deputy Ministers, the Policy Research
Initiative has identified three overarching issues as the centre of their
research efforts over the next three years:
- North American Integration, Social Cohesion and Sustainable Development.
- And many of you may have been involved in looking ahead through your input
this Spring in the medium-term policy planning process identifying forces,
tensions and opportunities facing Canada over the next 5 to 10 years.
- Those are major guideposts to keep in mind as you think ahead.
- However, I want to focus on two other factors for you to keep in mind as
you think ahead:
- First, the move to comprehensive national performance measurement and
reporting on quality of life – which is a lot of the future of what
Canadians and the Government will expect us to do.
- Second, the world of E-Government – or the future of how Canadians and
the Government will expect us to do it – and I talked about this at the last
ADM Forum.
- So, first, let me "think ahead" by talking about measuring and
reporting on Quality of Life government-wide.
- When I challenge you to think ahead, I’m not talking pie in the sky
dreams, I’m talking about a definable difference between where your
policies, programs or functions are today and where they can be soon.
- Last year, as part of the medium-term policy planning process, a team of
Deputy Ministers focussed on how to define, measure and report on Quality of
Life.
- They recognized that Parliamentarians, Canadians and our social union
partners want to see a better definition of expected policy and program
results – in the broadest but still realistic sense.
- They want a clear sense of the outcomes and impacts that we are aiming for
in our activities, matched with transparent measures and the feedback loops so
we can use actual results to improve our policies and programs.
- We’re now moving toward a comprehensive national performance measurement
and reporting process to integrate three streams of reporting:
- reporting on societal trends, for example quality of life;
- reporting on the program results and service delivery performance of
federal programs; and
- reporting on the outcomes achieved on shared societal goals, such as those
encompassed by the Social Union Framework Agreement.
- The leaders who can deliver on all that are leaders who are able to do more
than just sketch out a hazy vision of a better future.
- They are people who can show what that future would be like in clear ways.
- So, that is where our thinking ahead challenge lies, it is a commitment to
measurement and reporting that is already in action.
- The First Ministers agreed to measurement and reporting when they signed
the Accords on Health and Early Childhood Development last month.
- They know Canadians are unconvinced about big, general claims.
- They know it now comes down to accountability to Canadians for how all
governments are improving quality of life in these two key areas.
- The same is true for our own operations.
- Every one of you should be familiar with the commitments set out in Results
for Canadians, which outlines a modern management framework for the
Government of Canada for improving service delivery and management practices.
- All of this will take place in the context of an E-Government revolution,
which brings me to the "how" of thinking ahead.
- To say technology is changing how Canadians live and work is too obvious to
mention anymore.
- Because what is perhaps less obvious is how new technologies are likely to
challenge our traditional models and ways of thinking about public policy and
program options.
- I talked about this at the last ADM Forum, and now I want to build on some
of my points.
- As we enter the realm of E-Government we have to do a whole lot more than
digitize services, or put forms, tools, databases and even transactions
on-line.
- We have do more than run programs to get Canadians and communities on-line
or link all Canadians to a high-tech economy and society.
- E-Government means rethinking how we work and interact with citizens –
and each other – based on the new world of technology.
- E-Government could, should and almost certainly will trigger a major
transformation in what we do for citizens, how we work with citizens, how we
support Parliament, how we are organized and how our people do their jobs.
- Just picture the organizations that are already using technology to make
corporate information and knowledge more accessible to their people.
- And then ask how you can do the same – managing multi-disciplinary teams
– working in real time, not committee time – to define and get results.
- Just picture the organizations that are already using technology to
eliminate roadblocks to improved service or to accelerate the process of
making decisions.
- And, once again, ask what will happen when Parliamentarians and citizens
expect you to do the same, while still protecting the public interest.
- To be thinking ahead is to be thinking about where we can take the
E-Government idea to ensure a high quality of life for all Canadians.
- It means as leaders, each of you will have to be more than comfortable with
using new technologies.
- You will have to be open to creative thinking on how your operations can
draw on the new tools to remake what you do. This does not mean that you
should be driven by technology, but that you should use your role and capacity
to help identify places where technology would help you achieve your goals.
- It also means understanding that the "E" in E-Government is not
simply "electronic", but that the "E" stands for
"enabled" government
- A truly modern institution that is fully capable of meeting 21st
century challenges.
Thinking People
- The impact that deserves the most attention as we look ahead to an
E-Government world is its implications for the people of the Public Service.
- Which brings me to the "thinking people" portion of my remarks
this morning.
- Why is it last on the list, after thinking big and thinking ahead?
- Because thinking people is most important in the long run.
- It is where you need to encourage everyone to get their head above the
clouds and encourage everyone to keep their feet on the ground.
- One of the first lessons we learn as leaders is that we can’t do much by
ourselves.
- It’s especially true for ADMs, and even more so for Deputy Ministers.
- Your ability to get results is going to be largely influenced by your
capacity to engage your people in thinking big and thinking ahead.
- Your leadership will be demonstrated by your success in encouraging your
employees to be "fonctionnaires sans frontičres".
- Your leadership will also be demonstrated by your success in enabling
people to build workplaces that operate in more innovative ways to get more
results.
- And make no mistake, I’m not the one who is expecting this half as much
as your people are.
- The Public Service survey said objectively what many of us knew in our gut.
- People are looking to ADMs as key members of their management team for
leadership on the issues that matter to them.
- They want to be engaged, they want to be part of something that produces
benefits for Canada and Canadians, and they want you to help them get there.
- They listen to leaders who take people issues very seriously and whose
agenda clearly involves taking action on those issues.
- They are a lot more likely to show the kind of creativity and leadership
that we know we want and we know we need, if their ADMs are men and women who
model creativity and who model innovative leadership.
- The first step is close attention to our people and workplace issues.
- Your management style must reflect a Public Service that is more diverse
and more fully representative of the Canadians it serves.
- You can act on recruitment, retention and learning so our workforce can
keep up with a world where knowledge and ideas increase faster than ever.
- As you know, I have made people issues central to my management agenda as
Head of the Public Service.
- We face an unprecedented workforce renewal challenge at a time when there
is growing competition.
- We need to keep the skilled people who are already in the Public Service
but who are actively being recruited by other employers who value their
expertise.
- We need to develop the skilled people who are going to replace each and
every one of us sooner or later.
- Why? To ensure that the Public Service of Canada continues to have the
capacity to serve Canadians now and in the future.
- We need to do a better job of making sure our workplaces support the
diversity and well-being of our people.
- The DMs of tomorrow will include those ADMs of today who lead the way on
workplace issues because you can’t think big or think ahead, if you don’t
liberate the potential of the people around you.
- So, look after your people and they will look after you.
- That group drew on the results of last year’s Public Service Employee
Survey and its own consultations and discussions to find ways we can all
revitalize our workplaces.
- It recognized that despite the difficulties of the past few years, many
departments, branches, regions and teams are taking action to improve their
workplaces.
- Many of you are adding to the best practices from which we can all learn.
- The Sub-Committee identified four priorities for immediate and long term
action:
- Workload – the key issue;
- Fairness in the selection process;
- Career development and learning; and
- Harassment and discrimination.
- The goal is far more than making people feel better about their work and
workplaces.
- It is about providing the tools, the means and the right environment for
public servants to be successful.
- We want to create a climate that helps to foster excellence in service
delivery and policy development.
- We want to ensure that we have the quality of life in our workplaces that
makes it easier for us to help improve the quality of life in our communities.
- So what do we need to do?
- And more specifically as senior leaders, what do you need to do?
- To begin with, as I pointed out in my covering letter for the Report on
Workplace Well-being, no one can sit back and wait for central agencies.
- Certainly the centre is part of the solution.
- But there’s a lot that can be done right now, and many of you are taking
action.
- How can you streamline the work processes in your organization and cut out
self-imposed red tape – while respecting the rule of law and our public
sector values?
- How can you show leadership on the issues that your people believe are
important to getting their jobs done well?
- You can do things as simple as taking workplace safety, healthy working
environments and clean air seriously.
- You can encourage a social environment of respect, teamwork and support
that helps to address and minimize the natural stress of any job.
- You have the power to make sure your people are part of the E-Government
world.
- After all, if we are going to meet our Government On-line goals, it makes
sense for our people to be as connected to the Web as people in remote
communities such as Nunavut are already.
- That includes giving our staff the basic technological infrastructure,
tools, training and developmental opportunities they need for a knowledge
economy.
- It means making sure that all our people have access to the Internet and to
tools to get the most out of it on the job, not just the 50% who do today.
- Of course, we also need to address the fundamental issue of workload.
- We need to promote a more reasonable balance between the demands of our
workplaces and the needs of our families.
- Something all of you understand, no doubt because the stresses of balance
on ADMs are among our highest.
- There is no magic solution.
- But DMs and ADMs can do more to decide what they and their people cannot
and will not do.
- By deciding where to draw the line when setting priorities and being clear
on what the limits are.
- That is the kind of leadership – and yes risk-taking – that really
starts the ball rolling.
- Workload is the kind of issue that will call on the same kind of innovation
that we expect in our policy, program or operational work.
- And it is about reshaping our workplaces, where the results will be obvious
and where everyone is encouraged to think big, think ahead and think people.
Conclusion
- The fact is, if we want to contribute to an improved quality of life for
Canada and Canadians, you must continue to provide strong leadership.
- As I said at the start, it doesn’t just happen.
- A few weeks ago, during the reviews of the Trudeau years, it was suggested
that those days were much more exciting for public servants, especially at the
senior levels.
- It was, we were told, a time of endless possibilities and often the money
to pay for them.
- Today, is certainly different – but not in the way that a lot of
commentators claimed.
- Today, as leaders we face a more demanding job and justifiably so.
- The expectations are higher because the issues and environment are more
complex and the pace has changed.
- It’s a world that calls for sophisticated, thoughtful and
results-oriented leaders.
- Frankly, the kind of leaders that we have here today.
- Leaders who know that the route to the future is through employees who
understand where we want to go and who see how they can contribute to reaching
those goals.
- It is a world that calls for leaders who can show tangible progress toward
improving the quality of life of Canadians.
- And for leaders who can keep their heads above the clouds by thinking big,
thinking ahead and thinking people, while keeping their feet on the ground by
taking concrete and real action.
- If doing that was simple anyone could be an ADM – but just anyone can’t.
- As ADMs, you are the people who have proven your capacity to think
strategically, to lead and to get the job done.
- This forum is an excellent opportunity to learn and exchange ideas on how
to achieve our objectives.
- It is an opportunity to challenge each other in positive ways and towards
even more positive goals.
- So think big, think ahead and think people.
- Keep your head above the clouds and your feet on the ground – this is a
tall order.
- And remember, that you are the leaders in the Public Service who will truly
"make a difference" for the quality of lives of all Canadians.
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