1.1 The directive takes effect April 1, 2009. Departments have until March 31, 2013 to fully implement sections 6.1.1 (a) and 6.1.3 (b) (iii) of the directive.
1.2 Transitional considerations:
1.2.1 Pending the full implementation of section 6.1.3 (b) (iii), but no later than March 31, 2013, heads of evaluation will ensure that:
2.1 This directive applies to departments as defined in section 2 of the Financial Administration Act, with the exception of the Office of the Governor-General's Secretary, and the staffs of the Senate, House of Commons, Library of Parliament, Office of the Senate Ethics Officer and Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.
2.2 Application of this directive to small departments and agencies as defined in Annex A of the Policy on Evaluation is deferred until otherwise directed by the President of the Treasury Board, except for section 6.3, which shall apply as of the effective date of the directive.
2.3 The provisions in paragraphs 6.1.3 b (vi) and (viii) and 6.3.1(a) that provide for the Secretary of the Treasury Board to request specific evaluation coverage, do not apply with respect to the Office of the Auditor General, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, the Office of the Information Commissioner, the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages and the Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner. Further, sections 7 and 8 of this directive, which adopt all requirements of sections 7 and 8 of the Policy on Evaluation, apply to these organizations with the exception of paragraphs 7.3 and 8.2 of the policy. The deputy heads of these organizations are solely responsible for monitoring and ensuring compliance with this directive within their organizations, as well as for responding to cases of non-compliance in accordance with any Treasury Board instruments that address the management of compliance.
This directive:
3.1 supports the objectives of the Policy on Evaluation by operationalizing requirements for departmental staff involved in evaluation. This directive establishes the specific requirements to enable the production of credible, timely, neutral, and cost-effective evaluations to support policy, program and expenditure decision-making;
3.2 promotes collaboration between the evaluation function and program managers to help improve the design, delivery, performance and performance measurement of the organization's policies and programs;
3.3 supports the principle that heads of evaluation, as primary departmental experts in evaluation, have final decision-making authority on technical issues, subject to the decision-making authority of deputy heads;
3.4 is consistent with and supports requirements outlined in the Policy on Transfer Payments and in section 42.1 of the Financial Administration Act;
3.5 outlines the roles and responsibilities of heads of evaluation and program managers, and establishes the requirements for core competencies for heads of evaluation and evaluators; and,
3.6 is to be read in conjunction with the Policy on Evaluation; and Standard on Evaluation for the Government of Canada; the Financial Administration Act and the Management, Resources and Results Structure Policy.
3.7 The Treasury Board has delegated to the President of the Treasury Board the authority to issue, amend and rescind the Directive on the Evaluation Function and to approve any exception to the directive.
Definitions used in the interpretation of this directive can be found in Annex A of the Policy on Evaluation.
The objective of this directive is to clarify the responsibilities of departmental staff involved in evaluation so that departmental evaluation functions work effectively to support the evaluation information needs of Canadians, Parliamentarians, Ministers, central agencies and deputy heads.
The expected results of this directive are that the evaluation information needs of Canadians, Parliamentarians, Ministers, central agencies and deputy heads are supported through:
5.2.1 adequate, regular and systematic evaluation coverage of direct program spending;
5.2.2 departmental evaluation functions and evaluations that are considered credible by, Canadians, Parliamentarians, Ministers, central agencies and deputy heads; and,
5.2.3 departmental evaluation functions that produce appropriate information to support decision making and public reporting, in a timely manner.
6.1.1 Competencies of heads of evaluation and evaluators
Heads of evaluation are required to:
6.1.2 Managing the evaluation function
In managing the evaluation function in departments, heads of evaluation consult appropriately with program managers, stakeholders, and peer review or advisory committees during evaluation project design and implementation. In this context, heads of evaluation are responsible for:
6.1.3 Evaluation coverage and quality
Heads of evaluation are responsible for:
6.1.4 Performance measurement
Developing, implementing and monitoring ongoing performance measurement strategies for programs is the responsibility of program managers. In that context, heads of evaluation are responsible for:
6.1.5 Dissemination of evaluation reports
Heads of evaluation are required to:
Program managers are responsible for:
6.2.1 developing and implementing ongoing performance measurement strategies for their programs, and ensuring that credible and reliable performance data are being collected to effectively support evaluation;
6.2.2 developing and implementing a management response and action plan for all evaluation reports in a timely and effective manner; and,
6.2.3 consulting with the head of evaluation on the performance measurement strategies for all new and ongoing direct program spending.
6.3.1 Heads of evaluation in small departments and agencies are required to:
7.1 The monitoring and reporting requirements outlined in section 7 of the Policy on Evaluation apply to this directive.
8.1 The consequences of non-compliance with this directive are identified in section 8 of the Policy on Evaluation.
Please direct enquiries about this directive to:
Senior DirectorEvaluations can be conducted to serve a variety of purposes and, consequently, can be designed to answer a multiplicity of questions through many different approaches. Evaluations that are intended to count toward the coverage requirements of subsections “a”, “b”, or “c” of Section 6.1.8 or subsection “a” of Section 6.2.5 of the Policy on Evaluation will address value for money by including clear and valid conclusions about the relevance and performance of programs. To address value for money, evaluations will be required to assess all core issues identified below (as appropriate, departments may choose to address additional issues in their evaluations).
Subject to the requirement to address all core issues, departments have the flexibility to determine the evaluation approach and level of evaluation effort in accordance with the program's risks and characteristics, and the quality of performance information available for each individual program.
Relevance | |
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Issue #1: Continued Need for program | Assessment of the extent to which the program continues to address a demonstrable need and is responsive to the needs of Canadians |
Issue #2: Alignment with Government Priorities | Assessment of the linkages between program objectives and (i) federal government priorities and (ii) departmental strategic outcomes |
Issue #3: Alignment with Federal Roles and Responsibilities | Assessment of the role and responsibilities for the federal government in delivering the program |
Performance (effectiveness, efficiency and economy) | |
Issue #4: Achievement of Expected Outcomes | Assessment of progress toward expected outcomes (incl. immediate, intermediate and ultimate outcomes) with reference to performance targets and program reach, program design, including the linkage and contribution of outputs to outcomes |
Issue #5: Demonstration of Efficiency and Economy | Assessment of resource utilization in relation to the production of outputs and progress toward expected outcomes |