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Section IV: Other Items of Interest

Internal Services

Internal Services do not constitute a defined program activity within the Program Activity Architecture (PAA) construct but provide a place to list the organizational entities, such as finance and information management that support and provide coherence to the three program activities in the PAA structure. The costs of Internal Services activities are distributed across the three program activities according to a pro-rated formula.

Modern Management

Management Accountability Framework (MAF)

Defence has adopted the Management Accountability Framework (MAF) as a means of enhancing modern management. Notwithstanding its primary purpose as a Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) evaluation tool for assessing the effectiveness of Defence management practices, the MAF is gaining prominence within Defence as an instrument of continuous improvement. The benchmarks and best practices that the MAF has established for all 21 Areas of Management provide a roadmap for Defence leadership in the pursuit of improved management.

Management, Resources and Results Structure (MRRS)

During 2007-2008, Defence engaged in a consultative exercise with TBS to address issues cited in TBS's 2006 MAF Assessment regarding our PAA structure. With senior management engagement, Defence and TBS collaborated to find the best means of reporting on activities and outcomes in a relevant and accessible manner. A mutually acceptable solution to both Defence and TBS continues to be pursued at this time to ensure that Defence is compliant with MRRS requirements while having a PAA structure that is both representative and useful to the management of the organization and its resources.

Strategic Governance

In 2007, Defence implemented changes to its strategic governance structure to better support the implementation of the Canada First Defence Strategy. Fine-tuning of the structure and the processes is ongoing. Adjustments have been made to strengthen accountability, by moving to a system of individual rather than shared accountability. Committee chairs now make decisions informed by consultation and advice received, whereas previously, committee decision-making was consensus-based. Additional adjustments facilitate the adoption of Capability Based Planning (CBP) as the centralized approach to long-term requirements definition.

This past year the Joint Capability Requirements Board (JCRB) was re-introduced. The JCRB provides the VCDS, as decision maker, situational awareness and decision support to develop the Defence strategic intent and future capabilities outlook. This approach provides decision makers the comprehensive understanding of the future needed to develop a strategic capabilities roadmap, a critical first step in developing an affordable and achievable Investment Plan.

Strategic governance in Defence will continue to evolve, based on the results of governance monitoring and feedback received on the effectiveness of the strategic governance structure. Fine-tuning will continue as an iterative process over time.

Portfolio Coordination

Through the Management Accountability Framework, TBS is placing increased emphasis on portfolio governance and coordination. The Privy Council Office is also directing government-wide adherence to portfolio coordination in accordance with the Federal Accountability Act. To address these requirements, Defence developed a Portfolio Governance and Coordination Strategy paper in 2007. It outlines how the Department is moving forward to revitalize and strengthen its existing portfolio coordination function using a more proactive approach. Major initiatives include:

• Proactively strengthening partnerships between Defence and its portfolio organizations through individual meetings between ADM(Fin CS) and portfolio heads, and Deputy Minister and Minister of National Defence offices;
• Developing a draft Code of Practice for DND Governor-in-Council appointments to provide a description of the appointment process and ensure greater transparency, diversity and consistency in the management of appointments;
• Developing a draft departmental portfolio handbook that has been circulated to portfolio partners for comments to raise awareness of Defence portfolio governance and coordination;
• Representing Defence as a member of the Interdepartmental Portfolio Coordination Committee that meets regularly to discuss evolving horizontal issues in the federal Government; 
• Sharing best practices with Defence and portfolio organizations in order to work towards common goals; and
• Developing a draft administrative and financial framework for portfolios.

Risk Management

Corporate Risk Profile

The MAF 2006 Assessment stated that Defence’s progress in implementing effective corporate risk management had been slower than expected. Treasury Board recommended that Defence update its corporate risk profile (CRP) and assign accountability for major risks, including tracking progress on risk mitigation measures.

During the 2007-2008 fiscal year, the CRP was developed. The CRP provides a snapshot of strategic risk in Defence at a specific moment, and identifies the critical high-level risks and their mitigation strategies that will be managed at the corporate level.

Integrated Risk Management Plan

The Defence Integrated Risk Management (IRM) Implementation Plan was developed and distributed. This document details how IRM will be integrated into the Performance Management Framework including strategic and business planning, decision-making processes and reporting. This plan was punctuated by the explicit direction provided by senior Departmental leadership to incorporate IRM into strategic-level governance bodies and the overall Defence Planning and Management (DP&M) process. Specifically, the outputs from the IRM process will form the foundation for the establishment of Defence priorities and strategic objectives, which will in turn influence the prioritization of initiatives for the Investment Plan and annual business plans.

Follow-up action by the Treasury Board during the MAF 2007 Assessment noted that:

“DND has made strong progress in the implementation of integrated risk management. The department has identified its major risks to the successful delivery of the Defence programme and intends to integrate risk in the upcoming planning cycle. TBS is encouraged by the Department’s efforts to date and believes it could be an exemplary federal organization in this area of management once its risk management system is complete and fully functioning.” 

Investment Plan

The MAF 2006 Assessment emphasized the requirement for Defence to submit an Investment Plan to Treasury Board.

The MAF 2007 Assessment stated that:

“DND has made significant progress towards the completion of an Investment Plan for consideration of Treasury Board. In November 2007, DND submitted the Investment Plan Framework to the Secretariat, which provided a starting point for Ministers and central agencies to assess the long term affordability and sustainability of the Defence programme. The preparation of this framework was a major accomplishment in support of DND’s participation in the pilot implementation of new Treasury Board policies on Investment Planning and the Management of Projects. The Framework has laid the foundation for a fully developed Investment Plan, scheduled for submission to Treasury Board in November 2008.”

Comptrollership

DND progressed from the 2006 MAF from Opportunities for Improvement to an Acceptable rating regarding the Financial Compliance Control Framework. DND maintained its strong financial compliance control framework with fine-tuning of specific contract or program control frameworks or responsibility centre manager processes and procedures where the need was identified as a result of compliance and audit observations. Work progressed on the Department Audited Financial Statements Project and work-plans were approved for all activities including the three key areas of inventories, assets and general IT controls.

Results and Performance

Significant effort was expended in early 2007-2008 to evolve and mature the Defence Performance Management Framework (PMF) to ensure the right set of performance indicators, measures and targets were in place to accurately feed the Defence Strategy Map and Balanced Scorecard. However, it was subsequently determined the current Strategy Map was not sufficiently forward-looking and did not adequately address the longer-term needs of Defence. Consequently, the Strategy Map is presently undergoing an update that will result in more relevant strategic objectives to guide future corporate decision-making.

In parallel, there is an initiative underway to develop a unified set of performance measures based on the PAA indicators that will also meet the reporting requirements for the Defence Strategy Map, the MAF, the Investment Plan and the annual business plans. This goal will further facilitate the alignment of the various elements of the PMF and contribute to the improved communication of strategic issues to the DMC.

Labour Relations

In the Treasury Board Secretariat's (TBS) MAF Assessment V for 2007-2008, DND was recognized for strong management of labour relations.  The department has well-established policies and guidelines, and is a leader in terms of training and the use of its informal conflict management system.

Essential Services Agreement (ESA) submissions, required for employees who belong to the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), were developed by local DND managers and discussed with the local union officials. These proposals were submitted for further negotiation at the national level between the union and the Department.  Negotiations will conclude in the next fiscal year between PSAC and the TBS.

DND has been working with the TBS and other government departments and agencies to ensure that civilian DND employees receive benefits in recognition for the level of risk associated with working in certain locations in support of the Canadian Forces. As a result, the TBS introduced in February 2008 a Special Risk Premium for public servants working in Afghanistan.

Information Management 

As the functional authority for information management at Defence, the Assistant Deputy Minister (Information Management) is responsible to ensure that the IM services meet the needs of the CF and the Department. Over the reporting period significant results have been achieved in the stewardship of resources and the aligning of IM service delivery.

Two significant areas that demonstrated progress as well as potential are those of IM service transformation and IM/IT rationalization.

IM Service Transformation

Through a discovery and alignment strategy, the IM Services Transformation (IMST) Project is examining the infrastructure, applications and process layers of the Information Technology (IT) services within the department. This process, which is in line with the Treasury Board framework, includes reviewing the IM/IT processes and addressing the IM Group’s ability to sustain and support current service delivery while evolving to be positioned to scale and accommodate changes required in support of transformation. In so doing, IMST provided several key directives including a new service delivery model that is better designed to address the complex nature and high tempo environment within which Defence operate. This model addresses the main concerns of managing the client priorities and the respective service oriented alignment within the service delivery functions. The IMST Project is supporting the IM Transformation agenda by providing visibility and ongoing change management. The IMST project reached a major milestone in the Québec Pilot by completing the discovery phase in October 2007. The information garnered and lessons learned positioned the IMST project to finalize the approach for the other regions and advance Québec towards a converged service delivery model. There was a strategic review and pause to collect lessons learned and implement these into the strategic plan that will be the focus going forward.

IM/IT Rationalization

Rationalization of the Defence IM Program is key to providing better access to information and knowledge management for the leadership across the Department and the CF. Progress was made within this reporting period and the initiative was presented at the senior decision making boards. This initiative is about better enabling the technology to assist in the organizational understanding of the efficiencies and effectiveness that can be derived from a better model of service delivery. Since IM/IT is by its very nature ubiquitous and is an enabler to almost every facet of daily activities, it is important that Defence make the best use of the technology already in use and harness the inherent usability to the maximum degree possible.

One of the most anticipated enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions in recent years was successfully launched October 31, 2007, when the Defence Integrated Human Resources System (DIHRS) Project turned on a new human resources management system for civilian employees of DND. Eighteen months of development and testing culminated in delivering a state of the art system for the Department’s civilian employees. Moving to this system dove-tailed perfectly with the IM Group’s strategic goal of providing commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) IM/IT solutions that required little or no customizations and could transition easily to additional functionality and future upgrades. The implementation of this system is a watershed in the transition of the IM Group. It marked the first time a project was stopped half way through development and redirected to provide a Commercial Off-the-Shelf solution. It validated the ADM(IM)’s approach to transforming the IM/IT service delivery within Defence to one of value for money, and it served notice that future IM/IT solutions must not only provide new functionally but drive business transformation.

Additionally, results were achieved with the introduction of the Global Defence Network Services (GDNS) project, which built upon the lessons learned from DND's first major telecommunications outsourcing endeavour, the Telecommunications Services Renewal Project (TSRP). This project completely, and successfully, re-engineered the way in which telecommunications and network services were procured, operated, managed and maintained within DND. The scope of the GDNS contract is similar to the scope of the TSRP contract. The main difference is the inclusion of some international services whereas the TSRP contract is limited to domestic services. The GDNS contract will take into account the lessons learned during the TSRP contract, and the changes in DND requirements and the telecommunication industry since the TSRP contract was issued in 2000.

Stewardship was also clearly supported through another milestone reached on June 13, 2007 when the Materiel Acquisition and Support Information System (MASIS) Project received Departmental and Treasury Board approval to proceed with the next phase of its implementation in DND. During previous phases, MASIS has been successfully rolled out to the Navy Engineering and Maintenance communities on the East and West coasts; to 202 Workshop Depot in Montreal for workshop management; and to NDHQ personnel for asset accounting, procurement, and Life Cycle Engineering within the Navy. Building upon this baseline solution, MASIS Phase 5 will see rollouts across the Army, Air Force, and Information Management Group and will provide increased functionality as well as the ability to make MASIS fully deployable with units involved in operations around the world.

Public Affairs 

In fiscal year 2007-2008, Public Affairs provided communications services to support departmental activities and CF operations, including contributing to the work of the Government of Canada’s Afghanistan Task Force. Public Affairs worked closely with partner departments such as DFAIT and CIDA to help develop a comprehensive communications strategy to promote understanding of Canada’s multi-faceted role in Afghanistan.

For full information, see Appendix J.

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