ARCHIVED - Communications Policy of the Government of Canada: Procedures (Archived Version)

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Procedures for Accessing the Electronic Media Monitoring Service

Institutions subject to the Communications Policy of the Government of Canada have free access to a centrally appropriated electronic media monitoring service managed by PWGSC – as noted in Requirement 7 of the policy.

PWGSC’s Electronic Media Monitoring (EMM) program provides institutions with right of access to content from a number of major daily newspapers in an electronic format.

Accessing EMM

Institutions seeking access to media content through EMM must:

1. Verify that their institution is eligible to participate in the program. The list of eligible organizations is listed in the EMM on CommNET page at the following address:  http://commnet.gc.ca/emm_sem/eligible_organizations.html.
2. Fill out the registration form contained in the EMM page on the CommNET Web site at the following address: http://commnet.gc.ca/emm_sem/registration.html.
3. If you are unable to access the EMM on CommNET, a letter or e-mail requesting permission to participate in the program may also be addressed to the EMM program manager (see contact information below). The following information is required:
   • name, title and co-ordinates of the departmental contact,
   • type of feed required (full or filtered),
   • media monitoring system used.
4. Designate a departmental representative who will be the primary contact for the EMM program (for example, specialists in media relations, communications, IM/IT or records management). These representatives will be invited to participate in the EMM User Group, an interdepartmental forum on media monitoring and analysis.

Once it is confirmed that the institution is eligible and all of the necessary documentation has been received, PWGSC will alert suppliers of EMM content that the institution is authorized to access media content. Departmental representatives will then be called upon to communicate with these suppliers to determine technical procedures for accessing content. Institutions are responsible for maintaining their own systems to retrieve and distribute media content via their own intranets.

An institution must inform PWGSC of any changes in its designated departmental representatives or in its technical requirements in order to effect a change in accessing content.

Institutions that choose to participate in the EMM program must abide by the contract conditions that stipulate acceptable use of the media content. Institutions that fail to abide by the terms and conditions of the contract may lose access to the media content.

The terms and conditions that stipulate how the media content can be used can be consulted at the EMM page on CommNET. To access the media content, institution must sign agreements confirming that they will abide by these conditions.

Contact

For more information about the EMM program and its procedures, please contact at PWGSC:

Lise Boucher
Manager
Electronic Media Monitoring
Constitution Square II – 5^th Floor
350 Albert Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0S5
Phone:  613-943-2327
Fax:  613-944-6682
E-mail:  Lise.Boucher@pwgsc.gc.ca

Procedures for Planning and Contracting Public Opinion Research

The Communications Policy of the Government of Canada requires institutions to co-ordinate the planning and implementation of public opinion research with PWGSC, including the contracting of research services. For a definition of what constitutes public opinion research, see Requirement 8.

The Public Opinion Research Directorate (PORD) within PWGSC serves as the Government of Canada’s technical and co-ordinating authority for public opinion research. PORD provides institutions with mandatory services related to the co-ordination of public opinion research. It advises institutions on research plans, strategies and instruments, and assigns project registration numbers authorizing contracts to proceed. It also promotes the sharing of research findings with interested departments and the general public.

The Communications Procurement Directorate (CPD) within PWGSC provides institutions with mandatory services related to the procurement of public opinion research services. An institution must first obtain a project registration number from PORD before it may proceed to CPD for contracting.

Planning public opinion research

Institutions must advise PORD of plans to undertake public opinion research if such plans could result in the award of a contract for public opinion research services. Institutions are responsible for all matters concerning the content and overall management of the research.

An institution that is planning to contract for public opinion research services must:

• Name a public opinion research co-ordinator, with delegated authority from the head of communications, to oversee the conduct and co-ordination of the institution’s public opinion research activities.
• Provide PORD, on request, with information on planned or proposed public opinion research projects.
• Submit a description of its proposed research project to PORD, including a clear statement of the need for undertaking the project, and an indication of how the results will be used before contacting a research supplier.
• Forward to PORD, on request, draft research instruments for review no less than 24 hours prior to fieldwork being conducted, for advice where necessary on compliance with policy, legislation and generally-accepted market research and Government of Canada standards.
• Obtain a project registration number from PORD, which in turn authorizes CPD to contract for the research on the institution’s behalf.

PORD will:

• Assist institutions by reviewing their research objectives, methodologies and instruments; advising on the preparation of statements of work; advising on project costs; and helping to develop evaluation criteria and other materials used in tendering services and selecting a supplier.
• Advise institutions on legislative and policy requirements, as well as generally accepted standards of the market research industry.
• Review proposed research projects and advise CPD of the project’s procurement requirements, assigning a registration number to the project that authorizes CPD to procure research services on behalf of the institution.
• Assist institutions in evaluating supplier responses to requests for proposals, requests for standing offers and requests for supply arrangements.
• Maintain, in co-operation with CPD, standing offers and other tools to facilitate the purchase of research services by Government of Canada institutions, and provide easily accessible information on how to use these tools.
• Prepare and broadly disseminate an annual report on Government of Canada public opinion research, presenting an overview of the wide variety of projects undertaken each year.
• Promote information and best practices related to the conduct of Government of Canada public opinion research with all institutions.

PORD maintains a Web-based database that is used to co-ordinate public opinion research activities throughout the Government of Canada. This information system assists institutions with their public opinion research activities and contributes to the government’s overall objective of ensuring coherent, co-ordinated and transparent management of such activities.

Contracting public opinion research services

To initiate the procurement process for an institution, PORD relays to CPD, on the institution’s behalf, a Requisition for Goods and Services and Construction form (PWGSC-TPSGC 9200) to contract for public opinion research services, along with any relevant information pertaining to the research requirements. PORD alerts CPD to potential contracting issues and provides a concise statement of work to ensure client expectations are clearly communicated and to protect the interests of the Crown in the event of a contract dispute.

For detailed information on contracting limits and requirements for soliciting proposals and awarding contracts, please refer to the Treasury Board Contracting Policy. All contracts for public opinion research services are issued in accordance with the requirements of that policy. CPD monitors institutional expenditures on public opinion research and reports its findings to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat on request.

Evaluating contract proposals

CPD is responsible for chairing and conducting the evaluation process to select a supplier and to award a contract. The evaluation team is normally composed of at least three people: a representative of CPD as chair, a representative of PORD and a representative of the institution on whose behalf CPD is soliciting bids. Depending on the project’s size and complexity, additional evaluators may be required.

The evaluation team evaluates proposals based on pre-established evaluation criteria. All bidders are subject to the same conditions and considerations.

CPD will formulate an evaluation plan in consultation with PORD and the institution on whose behalf it is soliciting proposals. The contract will be awarded to the proposal that offers the best value to the Crown.

Best value is determined by various selection methods that may include:

• lowest responsive cost-per-point proposal;
• highest rated responsive proposal within a stipulated budget;
• highest responsive combined rating of technical merit and price; or
• variations on the selection methods noted above.

A combination of different bid evaluation and contractor selection techniques may be used, depending on the project. However, the selection of a contractor and the award of a contract must be made in accordance with contractor selection methods outlined in the bid solicitation document.

Bid evaluation criteria must measure both the competence of the bidder and the worth of the bidder’s particular technical approach. Evaluation criteria for public opinion research services can include mandatory and point-rated items that are assigned various weights, depending on the research requirements.

Mandatory evaluation criteria identify the minimum requirements that are essential to the successful completion of work. Mandatory requirements must be clearly specified in the bid solicitation document. These requirements are assessed on a simple pass/fail basis. Bids that fail to meet the requirements are given no further consideration.

Mandatory requirements may include:

• compliance with certifications;
• essential minimum qualifications of proposed personnel; and
• bilingual capabilities of proposed personnel.

Point-rated evaluation criteria are used to measure the relative technical merits of each proposal. Point-rated criteria identify value-added factors and provide a means to assess and distinguish one proposal from another.

Examples of point-rated criteria include:

• Design and Methodology:  Factors rated in this category include research design, analysis, sampling, questionnaire construction and validation, data collection and fieldwork procedures, recruitment procedures, and issues identification.
• Knowledge:  Understanding the policy framework, identification of research issues, recognition of research limitations and sensitivity to affected publics are among the factors to be rated in this category.
• Experience of Proposed Personnel:  Factors here can include qualifications and experience, assignment of responsibilities, personnel allocations, project management, track records, related experience.

Evaluation criteria are normally based on a combination of technical merit and cost. Mandatory and point-rated criteria are used to assess qualifications and expertise. The next stage in the evaluation process involves the consideration of cost.

Based on the evaluation criteria and their respective weights, and in consultation with the institution and PORD, CPD will establish a minimum pass mark that a proposal will be required to meet in order to qualify for further consideration.

If all proposals fail to qualify, CPD will repeat the solicitation procedure. When the evaluation procedure results in two or more proposals being assessed as providing the best value (i.e., in a tie), CPD may consult with other officials before recommending one of the proposals to the institution on whose behalf it solicited bids.

Awarding contracts

After proposals have been evaluated, CPD will:

• take the lead in debriefing bidders;
• award a contract to the bidder that offers the best value, if the value of the contract lies within the institution's contracting limit, as determined by the Treasury Board Contracting Policy; or
• recommend that the Treasury Board approve the award of the contract to the proposal offering the best value if the value of the contract is above the institution’s contracting limit.

Implementation, follow up and final reports

Institutions must ensure that their public opinion research is conducted in a non-partisan manner and that it complies with all applicable legislation, including the Privacy Act, the Access to Information Act and the Official Languages Act.

Within six months following the completion of public opinion research fieldwork (i.e., data collection), institutions must provide their final written research reports (in both electronic and paper format) to the Library of Parliament and to Library and Archives Canada(LAC).LAC will promptly make them available to the public.

LAC will post on its Web site a listing of public opinion research reports, with executive summaries in both official languages and links to related contract information.

Institutions will also forward copies in both electronic and paper formats of the final reports to PWGSC’s PORD.

Final reports must include the following, at minimum:

• a mention on the report’s cover page, in the other official language, that the report is available on request in that official language;
• executive summaries in both official languages, including the name of the suppliers, a contract number and the award date;
• all research instruments and any materials that were tested through the project; and
• any other elements included in the suppliers’ proposal.

Note: Institutions are responsible for providing translations and multiple formats of final reports on request.

Contact

For more information about planning or contracting public opinion research, and related procedures, please contact:

Hélène Bleau A/Director Public Opinion Research Directorate Public Works and Government Services Canada 155 Queen Street, 5th Floor Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0S5 Phone:  613-995-2216 Fax:  613-947-6696 E-mail: Helene.Bleau@pwgsc.gc.ca	Richard Robesco Director Communications Procurement Directorate Public Works and Government Services Phone:  613-998-7619 Fax:  613-991-5870 E-mail: Richard.Robesco@pwgsc.gc.ca
Charles Osborne Supervisor Legal Deposit - Government Documents Library and Archives Canada 550 de la Cité Blvd. Gatineau, Québec K1A 0N4 Phone:  819-994-6874 Fax:  819-953-8508 E-mail:  Charles.Osborne@lac-bac.gc.ca	Government Polls Collection Development Library of Parliament Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A9 E-mail: lopelec@parl.gc.ca

Procedures for Participating in Fairs and Exhibitions

The Communications Policy of the Government of Canada requires institutions to co-ordinate their participation in fairs and exhibitions, especially where the Canada Pavilion is present (see Requirement 22).

PWGSC co-ordinates such participation through the Government of Canada Exhibitions Program. PWGSC develops, manages and adjusts the program in consultation with institutions and various stakeholders. It oversees the program's planning, logistics, media and public relations, database management, and evaluation activities.

Event co-ordination

PWGSC maintains an up-to-date listing of the fairs and exhibitions for which it has a co-ordinating role as host of the Canada Pavilion.

At the end of each fiscal year (March), PWGSC provides institutions subject to the CommunicationsPolicy with a listing of events that will involve the Canada Pavilion during the coming fiscal year.

By the end of April, institutions must provide PWGSC with an indication of which events they intend to participate in during the year ahead.

An institution must advise PWGSC at least eight weeks prior to an event of exceptional circumstances that make it impossible for the institution’s exhibit to be incorporated within the Canada Pavilion.

On a quarterly basis, PWGSC sends to all institutions new requests to submit their most current exhibit plans for inclusion in the Government of Canada Exhibit Plans Database. Institutions provide their current plans as requested. PWGSC updates its database and institutions are able to view the information collected to ensure they co-locate with other Government of Canada organizations attending the same event.

PWGSC reviews all exhibition plans in the database to encourage departmental co-location. In some cases, PWGSC selects events where an enhanced government presence may be organized.

Institutions participating in the Exhibitions Program are responsible for ensuring the quality of their contribution and for adopting creative approaches to their individual presentation by using up-to-date methods of exhibition with a strong emphasis on interactivity. This may include product demonstrations, interactive video games, development of promotional items, provision of display items, and so forth.

Contact

For more information about participating in fairs and exhibitions visited by the Canada Pavilion, the collection of departmental exhibit plans or the Government of Canada Exhibitions Program, please contact at PWGSC:

Manon Dagenais
Director
Government of Canada Exhibitions Program
Phone:  613-992-0045
Fax:  613-992-0839
E-mail:  Manon.Dagenais@pwgsc.gc.ca 

 

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