Appendix C1 - Benchmark Index by Function - Audit and Evaluation

Executive Group Benchmark - Number: 7-J-1

POSITION TITLE: Director General, Audit and Evaluation

GENERAL ACCOUNTABILITY

Is accountable for the systematic appraisal of the effectiveness and efficiency of operations and the auditing of external projects funded through contribution programs; and for maintaining generally accepted audit standards; making recommendations for improving decision-making processes, planning and control techniques; following up on accepted recommendations; and directing and organizing a systematic evaluation of the effectiveness of all programs to provide objective and timely information and to recommend changes in the allocation of resources among programs, and improvements to program design, delivery and management accountability.

ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE

This position is 1 of 18 positions reporting to the Deputy Minister. The other 17 positions are Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM), Business Law; ADM, Policy; ADM, Industry; ADM, Spectrum Information, Technology and Telecommunications; ADM, Operations; Commissioner of Competition; Executive Director, Departmental Information Products / Chief Information Officer; Executive Director, Technology Partnerships Canada; Executive Director, Investment Partnerships Canada; Executive Director, Industry Portfolio Office; President, Communications Research Centre; Director General (DG), Office of Consumer Affairs; DG, Human Resources; Corporate Comptroller; DG, Communications and Marketing; Corporate Secretary; and Ethics Counsellor.

Senior positions reporting to the DG, Audit and Evaluation, are as follows:

Director, Policy, Planning and Operations Coordination, (staff of 10) is responsible for the development and maintenance of a comprehensive policy framework for audit and evaluation in the Department, in keeping with the government's Modern Comptrollership Initiative; planning and coordinating the conduct of the Department's audit and evaluation activities; and managing the Branch administrative functions.

Two (2) Audit Managers and one (1) Senior Operations Auditor are responsible for the performance of internal audits of departmental operations and systems, including pre-implementation audits of new systems.

Three (3) Evaluation Managers are responsible for conducting evaluation studies of the Department's major functions, including their efficiency and effectiveness, and for the development of evaluation frameworks for new or renewed major functions of the Department.

Audit and evaluation projects are resourced on a matrix basis from Branch staff.

NATURE AND SCOPE

The Department is mandated to make Canada more competitive by fostering the development of Canadian business, promoting a fair and efficient Canadian marketplace and protecting, assisting and supporting consumer interests. The major sectors of the Department each provide distinct and specialized services, including legislative and micro-economic policy development, regulatory control, applied scientific research, and industrial development programs and services, which are related only by common objectives.

The major functions of the Department are carried out in support of a number of acts of Parliament that are complex in themselves and further complicated by sets of regulations. Some major functions relate to legislation administered by other Departments.

In this context, the DG, Audit and Evaluation, is responsible for providing recommendations and advice to the Deputy Minister on independent and objective internal audits. The incumbent maintains a direct and close working relationship with the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) on the coordination of audits pertaining to the Department, and has a direct interface with the Treasury Board Secretariat / Comptroller General Office (TBS/CGO) on new policies, standards and related matters pertaining to internal audit. The incumbent determines and makes recommendations to the Deputy Minister on the priority of evaluations. The incumbent develops a comprehensive evaluation strategy and schedule and must understand the impact of changing government priorities on programs and the importance of having information, analyses and recommendations available at critical periods of time so as to address both current and potential critical issues. The incumbent must respond to the evaluation requirements of the Minister, the Department and the TBS/CGO and ensure that the Department fulfills the requirements set by the OAG with respect to the appropriateness of evaluative mechanisms.

The DG provides ongoing assurance services to attest to the adequacy of management practices and controls through a risk-based internal audit approach; communicates unacceptable risks, vulnerabilities and control deficiencies or failures; provides timely recommendations to remedy weaknesses in the Department's risk management and control frameworks; provides early notice of significant management concerns to the TBS; and establishes follow-up systems to ensure that actions are taken to respond to observations, recommendations and reports. The DG advises managers of departmental policies, programs and initiatives to actively monitor their operations through the development of performance indicators and related information-gathering techniques.

Factors impacting on the managerial objectives of the Branch are the size, dispersion and complexity of the Department's major functions and their operations. Many are based on high technology, which requires the use of contract resources to ensure competence in the review of those technologies. In reviewing major functions and their operations, there is often no base of information upon which to assess their performance; this situation requires that new databases be created by review teams.

The DG consults with the Deputy Minister, ADMs and Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) officials to develop priorities and the resources required for audit and evaluation, and directs the preparation of related long-term and annual plans for recommendation to the Departmental Audit and Evaluation Committee (DAEC), chaired by the Deputy Minister. The incumbent recommends to the Deputy Minister specific evaluation and audit studies, and special reviews; and attests to the quality of the studies, reports and recommendations. All recommendations with respect to the disclosure of information are reviewed prior to their submission to the Deputy Minister to ensure compliance with relevant legislation.

The DG provides advice to managers on operational efficiency and effectiveness and addresses areas of interest to outside parties, such as the TBS. The productivity of the audit and evaluation functions depends on developing reliable information on the effectiveness of major functions and their operations and persuading departmental managers to collect such information.

Where some of the major functions are evaluated for the first time, there is often an absence of effectiveness information, which requires the development of information-collection specifications for subsequent reviews. Some major functions are interdepartmental (e.g. environmental hazards), others have significant political dimensions (e.g. Aboriginal business), and others are delivered in partnership with third parties. This introduces complexity into the planning and timing of audits and evaluations.

The major managerial challenge facing the DG is to foster and promote a holistic approach to assessing and improving the Department's management practices in order to meet internal and external reporting requirements and undergo periodic reviews by the OAG. The Branch conducts reviews of major functions and services, their operations, and alternative forms of delivery with respect to economy, efficiency and effectiveness. The DG is free, within the parameters of professional standards and ethics, and the policies of central agencies, to determine the best approaches, methodologies and techniques for reviewing the Branch's main functions, after receiving the Deputy Minister's approval of annual and long-term plans.

The challenge for the DG is to identify cost-effective, alternative ways of designing and improving policies, programs and initiatives. The incumbent develops and promotes a life-cycle management approach to policy and program management and decision making. The incumbent directs the analysis and assessment that lead to recommendations made in reports tabled with the DAEC. All study findings and recommendations are discussed with management before reports are issued. The incumbent is free, however, to pursue with the Deputy Minister any matter arising from a study.

The DG sits on senior departmental committees and senior central agency committees (e.g. TBS / Comptroller General Review Committees) and participates in their decision-making processes on policies, practices and procedures. The incumbent acts as the secretary of the DAEC.

The DG negotiates the planning and timing of OAG audits and resolves differences of opinion concerning the OAG's quarterly reports to the House of Commons. The incumbent leads the preparation of ministerial briefing material and public responses to reports tabled with the Public Accounts Committee.

DIMENSIONS (Constant Dollars)

	Department	Directorate
FTEs:	5,300	19
Operating Budget:	$220 million	$350,000

SPECIFIC ACCOUNTABILITIES

1. Directs the development of departmental internal audit and evaluation policies and practices that are consistent with the directions and objectives for the efficient, effective and economic management of the Public Service and attest to the efficiency, effectiveness and economy of the Department's systems and operations.
2. Oversees the development of approaches and methodologies to ensure and promote the integrity of the stewardship of the Department's resources.
3. Directs the provision of ongoing internal audit and assurance services to attest to the adequacy of risk management, controls and accountability reporting across the Department, ensuring that they are in accordance with the Treasury Board Policy on Active Monitoring.
4. Provides professional advice on and the review of performance indicators and measures that are specific to departmental major functions and their operations in order to provide a basis for reports on departmental results in the Expenditure Management System and for the Treasury Board's accountability reviews of the Department.
5. Represents the interests and concerns of the Department and negotiates the final wording of reports of the Auditor General and the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development.
6. Sits on various departmental and central agency senior management committees and acts as the secretary of the DAEC.

EVALUATION RATIONALE

Director General, Audit and Evaluation

KNOW-HOW

G	Extensive professional knowledge of the Department's mandate and operations, and comprehensive knowledge of all departmental programs, their objectives and management framework. Mastery of audit and program evaluation techniques and the principles and initiatives of modern comptrollership and the related central agency policies.
III	Conceptual management of the two major functions of audit and program evaluation for external projects through the development of a comprehensive evaluation strategy and schedule modelled on the principles of modern comptrollership.
3	Human relations skills are critical in negotiating results with managers, senior departmental committees and central agency committees. Human relations skills are also critical in liaising with the Auditor General and motivating and coordinating professional staff.
700	Mid-range number reflects the expertise required to manage both audit and program evaluation in a complex department with a diverse program structure.

PROBLEM SOLVING / THINKING

F	Functions are conducted under the broad OAG and CGO policies of audit and evaluation and the even broader directives governing the Modern Comptrollership Initiative.
4	Analytical and evaluative thinking is required in the development of a comprehensive evaluation strategy and schedule that must conform to the requirements of modern comptrollership so as to address both current and potential critical issues, and must be adapted to a diverse range of programs in the Department.
(57) 400	High percentage recognizes the complexity of managing and developing audit and evaluation activities within the ambiguities of modern comptrollership and within a broad, complex and multi-faceted portfolio.

ACCOUNTABILITY / DECISION MAKING

F	Reporting to the Minister, the incumbent receives general direction and conducts audit and evaluation functions, in accordance with central agency policies and objectives.
5C	The position assesses practices and controls, identifies risks and makes recommendations for change. The proxy selected to represent these activities is the departmental budget of $220 million (constant).
400	Mid-range number reflects the latitude of the position to make recommendations on program value, efficiency and effectiveness and its significant impact on the Department's operations.

SUMMARY

GIII3

700

F4(57)

400

F5C

400

=

1500

0

DIRECTOR GENERAL
AUDIT AND EVALUATION
NUMBER: 7 - J - 1