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Section II – Analysis of Program Activities by Strategic Outcome

Analysis by Program Activity

This section highlights CSPS’ priorities for the planning period - 2008-09 to 2010-11 - and its contributions to the achievement of its Strategic Outcome.


Strategic Outcome: Public servants have the common knowledge and the leadership and management competencies they require to fulfill their responsibilities in serving Canadians

The following three program areas, supported by corporate services, contribute to achieving the School’s Strategic Outcome:

  1. Foundational Learning: Public Servants are able to perform in their current job, take on the challenges of the next job in a dynamic, bilingual environment.
  2. Organizational Leadership Development: Public Service has strong leaders delivering results for Canadians.
  3. Public Sector Management Innovation: Public Service organizations innovate to achieve excellence in delivering results for Canadians.

Program Activity 1: Foundational Learning: Public Servants are able to perform in their current job, take on the challenges of the next job in a dynamic, bilingual environment

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

68,828

66,040

66,040


Human Resources (FTEs):


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

687

687

687


CSPS provides public servants at all levels with foundational learning activities that are aligned with Government of Canada and Public Service management priorities. The objective is to contribute to a professional and effective Public Service. Four key sub-activities contribute to this activity: Required Training, Professional Development Training, Official Languages Learning and Online Learning. 

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Required Training – Employer’s Knowledge Standards are Met by Strengthening the Capacity of Public Servants

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

16,780

13,992

13,992


Orientation to the Public Service (Priority Area 1)

CSPS offers the Orientation to the Public Service program across Canada to new public servants (appointed for six months or more). The goal of Orientation is to foster a sense of Public Service identity by introducing new employees to a common culture based on a core set of values and ethics, an inclusive workplace and an organizational structure. In addition, it is a forum for knowledge transfer and exchange on the workings of government and the Public Service. 

In 2008-09, CSPS plans to deliver approximately 68 orientation sessions to 8000 new employees across the country. It is expected that public servants who attend the Orientation program will have increased knowledge about the Public Service. To further support departmental-specific needs, and to ensure the continuous relevance of the program, the School will move towards including blended learning solutions in its delivery of the program. This will allow for both flexibility and efficiency. In addition, the School will develop a plan to address the needs and concerns of Public Safety Portfolio agencies, and will continue to align the program content with Treasury Board of Canada’s Standards on Knowledge for Required Training.

Authority Delegation Training (ADT) (Priority Area 1)

CSPS is committed to delivering the Authority Delegation Training (ADT) to five groups of employees - supervisors, managers, executives, senior executives and senior leaders - as required by the Policy on Learning, Training and Development and its associated directive. ADT provides managers with the information they need to meet the legal requirements of their delegated authorities in the areas of finance, human resources, information management, contracting and values and ethics, and to understand corporate policies and priorities. ADT gives managers at all levels a clear understanding of the role and responsibilities associated with their management level.

For 2008-09, CSPS will deliver approximately 200 sessions of the 5 ADT courses. All employees will undergo an assessment of their knowledge to ensure they understand their roles and responsibilities relating to their delegated authorities. Blended learning design options will be explored in order to determine the most effective and efficient delivery options for ADT, such as the increased use of online learning. 

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Professional Development Training: Targeted Learning Builds and Sustains Public Sector Management and Professional Foundations

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

16,653

16,653

166,653


Professional development training is composed of two distinct sets of programming: Functional Communities, and Professional Development. A description of and expected results for each are provided below.

Functional Communities Programming (Priority Area 1)
Professional training in this area aims to ensure that public servants in specialized functional communities acquire the fundamental knowledge and skills they require to perform in their job. CSPS will intensify the implementation of a systematic approach for working with functional communities that ensures strategic issues and key priority functional communities are identified, and that a plan is established to address their needs including priorities identified through Public Service renewal.

Specifically, the CSPS will continue the development of curricula for priority areas identified to date, such as Information Management, Internal Audit, Human Resources and Finance, and focus further on functional communities identified by the Canada Public Service Agency.   In 2008-09, CSPS will finalize some of the curricula currently under development and initiate curriculum design for the remaining functional communities. 

Professional Development Programming (Priority Areas 1 and 2)

Through Professional Development Programming, CSPS aims to ensure that common management and professional learning needs are identified and met. This includes the delivery of management development courses to supervisors, managers and executives, as well as professional development training courses to all public servants, including courses on specific techniques and practices and general public administration skills and competencies.  Programs delivery will be assisted through the development of Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with government departments and agencies.  As well, to strengthen capacity, CSPS will create a community of practice for internal and external instructors delivering the management development program.

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Official Languages Learning:  Facilitate Official Languages Capacity in Support of a Culture of Bilingualism (Priority Areas 1 and 3)

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

28,752

28,752

28,752


In April 2007, the School launched a new model for language training that focused on the development of new learning tools and methods to support the maintenance of language skills and to promote an active culture of bilingualism in the workplace. Through the new model, the School also provides learning advice to departments, ensures the quality of private sector learning service providers, and offers placement of teachers on-site with departments to support employees’ language learning in their work environment. With the extensive development of e-learning tools, Public servants now have access to leading-edge on-line language training tools any time of the day through Campusdirect the on-line campus of the School.

In order to maintain the momentum of the new language training model, Official Languages Learning will address two elements: access to language training services and language acquisition and retention. Over the planning period, CSPS will continue to offer timely and accurate learning plans and facilitate timely access to quality-assured and cost-effective language training for public servants. It will also continue to assist departments by: 

  • Providing and promoting access to a variety of learning services.
  • Innovating, designing, adapting and promoting pertinent learning products to sustain a bilingual workplace culture.

CSPS will continue to work with key stakeholders to find new and innovative ways to move the language learning agenda to a new level. As part of this, there will be continued efforts to attract, train and retain a talented, representative and bilingual workforce.

More specifically, in 2008-09, CSPS will:

  • develop, update and provide accurate second language learning plans to up to 1500 public servants in the National Capital Region (NCR);
  • ensure that quality language training continues to be dispensed by qualified providers in the NCR and that a national framework is implemented to ensure standardized quality assurance across the country;
  • offer language training services to up to 30 students with learning disabilities;
  • supply qualified on-site teachers in the NCR and external service providers across the country; and
  • develop, update and improve products and approaches for second language maintenance and acquisition, including ensuring product accessibility and national leadership for special projects.

Over the longer term, the emphasis will be on:

  • continuing to find innovative and cost-effective ways of acquiring and maintaining second official language capacity;
  • capitalizing on new technologies to facilitate acquisition and maintenance of second official language capacity; and
  • expanding the use of self-service tools and products (e.g.: self assessment, self-learn and self-tests).

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Online Learning: Public Servants have Efficient Access to Online Learning Tools (Priority Areas 1 and 3)

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

6,643

6,643

6,643


This Program Sub-Activity is a new component of the Foundational Learning Program Activity.  While on-line learning has been a part of CSPS operations in the past, this is the first time it has been explicitly delineated as a program sub-activity for reporting purposes.

For 2008-09, CSPS will:

  • support e-learning and blended learning products as well as implement and deliver new products in these formats;
  • provide integrated learning solutions by implementing and maintaining departmental learning portals;
  • undertake capacity planning and upgrades to the Campusdirect infrastructure; and
  • increase the capacity and functionality of the Campusdirect environment in order to support School operations.

Over the planning period, CSPS plans to:

  • research, test and adopt new technologies in learning and research programs to promote greater access to and reach of School programs, and to enable greater interaction among participants;
  • support the migration of existing classroom courses to blended learning solutions; and
  • replace the Campusdirect platform with the incoming Integrated Learner Management System (ILMS) platform.

Program Activity 2: Organizational Leadership Development: Public Service has strong leaders delivering results for Canadians

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

13,133

13,133

13,133


Human Resources (FTEs):


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

106

106

106


Under Public Service Renewal, continuous learning is identified as central to ensuring organizational effectiveness and building individual capacity. Likewise, emphasis is placed on “ensuring sound people management capacity for all managers.”1 CSPS supports Public Service Renewal by building strong leadership competencies for existing and emerging managers. There are three distinct components to this activity:

  1. Leadership Foundations.
  2. Leadership Development Programs.
  3. Leadership Community Building.

CPSA, 2007-08 Public Service Renewal Action Plan.  p. 2.

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Leadership Foundations: Learning Opportunities are Accessible to Enable Public Servants to Become Better Leaders (Priority Areas 1 and 2)

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

5,484

5,484

5,484


Leadership Foundations aims to ensure that supervisors, managers, executives and senior leaders have enhanced leadership competencies to coach, lead change and meet corporate goals. These leadership competencies include the four key Public Service competencies: values and ethics, strategic thinking, engagement and management excellence. CSPS will provide Public Service leaders with tools and opportunities designed to develop and strengthen ares identified in the Leadership Framework: empowered individuals, developed organizations, strong networks, and connected and aligned organizations.

Tools and opportunities include the design, development and delivery of leadership development programs and courses for supervisors, managers, executives and senior leaders, including the ongoing Aboriginal program leadership development courses,

Priorities for 2008-09 in the area of leadership foundations include:

  • Delivery of leadership development courses and Action Learning Groups for managers, supervisors, executives and senior leaders in the NCR and the regions.
  • Complete the roll-out of new leadership programming to address key gaps in the leadership development continuum.
  • Develop and implement a Coaching Strategy, including designing and delivering courses, workshops and other learning approaches for executives and managers.
  • Develop and pilot a learning strategy to build capacity on key corporate priorities: performance management and integrated planning.
  • Develop and pilot a learning strategy to help executives target development of specific management and professional skills.

In 2009-10 and 2010-11, CSPS priorities will include:

  • implementing a learning strategy on performance measurement; and
  • consolidating course offerings to align to development needs as identified through the leadership frame and incorporate new technologies to support greater interaction at reduced costs.

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Leadership Development Programs: Learning Opportunities are Targeted to a Cadre Ready to Assume Leadership Responsibilities (Priority Areas 1 and 2)

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

5,268

5,268

5,268


Leadership development programs are designed to provide structured and comprehensive career development to high potential public servants in support of succession planning at both the corporate and government-wide level. These programs include:

  • The Advanced Leadership Program, aimed at building a cadre of effective, high potential senior executives and a stronger community of senior leaders.
  • The Accelerated Executive Development Program, the Career Assignment Program and the Management Trainee Program.
  • Living Leadership: The Executive Excellence Program, targeted at executives aiming to assume more senior leadership responsibilities.
  • The Direxion Program targeted at managers that aspire to become executives.
  • A new leadership program targeted to high performing individuals with strong leadership potential to move into entry-level management roles. This new Program will help deliver on Public Service renewal initiatives focused on learning for managers.

CSPS will consolidate its course offerings under these leadership development programs to ensure alignment with government priorities and department needs.

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Leadership Community Building: Learning Opportunities Enhance Leaders’ Contextual Knowledge (Priority Areas 1 and 3)

Financial Resources ($ thousands):


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

2,381

2,381

2,381


Leadership community building aims to provide departments and their leaders with leading-edge knowledge on trends and issues of strategic importance to the Public Service, including effective practices in public management and to ensure knowledge transfer and uptake.

It is under leadership community building that senior leaders are provided with opportunities to develop enhanced understanding of Public Service priorities and culture through programs such as seminars and learning events targeted to their needs. CSPS uses international partnerships to enable Canadian executives to compare management approaches with leading-edge practices elsewhere. These events also provide leaders with opportunity to discuss issues and priorities of common interest.

The key areas of focus in leadership community building are:

  • Completing the start-up of the Leadership Across Borders Program, a four-country joint venture designed to build enhanced leadership skills in dealing with complex issues by comparing best practices across jurisdictions.
  • Consolidating existing products including seminar series for leaders and senior leaders to improve understanding of key public service issues.
  • Using technology to build and sustain community of practices and networks for information sharing and the dissemination of best practices.

Program Activity 3: Public Sector Management Innovation: Public Service organizations innovate to achieve excellence in delivering results for Canadians

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

14,640

14,539

14,539


Human Resources (FTEs):


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

147

147

147


This program activity aims to maximize the performance and effectiveness of the Public Service by integrating individual development of public servants with organization-focussed solutions for learning, change management and management innovation. It has two main components:

  1. Organizational Learning Services.
  2. Innovative Management Knowledge Services.

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Organizational Learning Services: Learning Strategies are Integrated with Organizational Performance (Priority Area 1)

Financial Resources ($ thousands)


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

6,315

6,214

6,214


Organizational learning services provide a focal point for engaging organizations to:

  • align their learning agenda with their priorities and ensure their individual learning needs of their employees are optimally addressed;
  • help them achieve renewal objectives through tailored team-based solutions that integrate research on management innovations, individual development, and organizational change management.

This is accomplished through two main types of activities

Departmental Client Relations
The goals of Departmental Client Relations are twofold:  to facilitate information flow with organizations so that they can engage in effective learning, and to provide integrated learning solutions to these organizations. The outcome is that organizations and partners align their learning needs to government priorities. CSPS helps organizations to both identify their learning needs and to access the full range of CSPS expertise and programming.

The Departmental Client Relations function requires the School’s regional directors and account executives to work collaboratively to:

  • Understand and report on the learning needs of clients;
  • Promote CSPS learning opportunities, services and programs;
  • Support departments and agencies with integrated learning solutions; and
  • Support departments and agencies in meeting the requirements of the Policy on Learning, Training and Development.

Key priorities for the planning period include:

  • Provide leadership in the interdepartmental learning community through engagement in key interdepartmental networks, establishments of learning communities of practice and facilitation of best practices sharing.
  • Report on client intelligence, including learning needs and client feedback, to inform decision-making on course and curriculum review and investments in new offerings.
  • Promote of CSPS and its offerings through ongoing outreach and targeted promotion activities.

Change Management
The outcome of Change Management Services is to help federal organizations achieve their renewal goals through  organizational learning interventions that develop  organizational leadership and management capacity.  The individual learning activities of CSPS help empower leaders at all levels though knowledge and skills.  The change management activities help ensure these empowered leaders can maximize their collective performance within strong organizations.

Change management activities focus on integration of learning support that client organizations need to achieve their renewal goals:

  • advising and supporting intact management teams on change management strategies;
  • tailoring individual learning solutions to meet team-wide needs in an organization and support their change management strategies;
  • developing team-based learning strategies to accelerate adoption of new management approaches across an organization.

For 2008-09, the priorities for these activities are to continue to deliver organizational change services to departments while improving its offerings in two ways:

  • define standardized best practices and tools for organizational change management, and make them more accessible to organizations;
  • develop standardized organizational learning solutions on key management priorities to accelerate adoption of new management practices across a whole team.

CSPS uses its expertise to provide organizational development solutions for other governments on a cost-recovered basis.  It delivers projects with the Canadian International Development Agency in areas involving the transfer of Canadian experience and values, the development of capacity to deliver innovative management development programs and training and development for decision-makers.  It is also active in  selected communities of practice to facilitate knowledge transfer and exchange amongst public servants internationally.

These international organizational development activities with CIDA enables CSPS to deepen its expertise in organizational learning techniques, and its knowledge of leading practices in public management. This, in turn, enables CSPS to improve development programs for Canadian public servants. 

Key Program Sub-Activity:
Innovative Management Knowledge Services: Knowledge on Innovative Management Practices and Emerging Issues is Transferred (Priority Areas 1, 2 and 3)

Financial Resources ($ thousands):


2008-09

2009-10

2010-11

$8,325

$8,325

$8,325


Innovative Management Knowledge Services contribute to the improvement of the School’s offering through research, broad-based dialogues and development of stronger partnerships with the academic sector on issues related to public management.  The over-riding goal is to accelerate the adoption of leading practices in public management across the public service to build stronger organizations and thereby support public serviced renewal.

Research on Innovative Management Practices
CSPS has a long tradition of research on public management issues. Its research program is aligned with government management priorities, and focuses on the “how to” of innovative management practices.    

A key priority for 2008-09 is to move towards an integrated research and learning strategies on key management issues such as integrated planning and talent management, to maximize the actual changes to management practices in the public service.  

  • First key management challenges are defined through research, through scanning outside the public service, and through collaboration with leading practitioners.
  • Second, leading practices are researched and defined in partnership with practitioners, with a focus on developing a community of practice which itself sustains innovation and disseminates leading practice on this issue.
  • Third, results would be disseminated through reports, on-line tools, and conferences, and integrated into individual learning programs across the CSPS. 

Partnership with Academic Institutions
CSPS is developing stronger partnerships with universities across Canada to support research in public management innovations and professional development of public servants.   Key activities include:

  • Conferences and seminars where public management specialists debate public management issues with leading practitioners
  • Interchanges where mid-career public servants teach, study or research on campus to build capacity in high-priority areas of public management.
  • Deputy Minister University Champions Program, which strengthens linkages between the Government of Canada and Canadian universities on issues ranging from recruitment of graduates to research on public management challenges. 

A key priority for 2008-09 is to better support the expanded Deputy Minister Champions program as they build a stronger relationship between the public service and universities on issues of common concern.

Conferences and Special Events
The outcome of Conferences and Special Events component of Innovative Management Knowledge Services focuses on knowledge transfer of innovative management practices. To this end CSPS organizes large-scale knowledge transfer activities that support and facilitate the adoption of these innovative practices.

For the planning period, the key priority is supporting the strategic priorities of CSPS by providing the design and delivery of large-scale, just-in-time learning events. These events include conferences, armchair discussions  and re-design of the Orientation Program for large-scale delivery.

The focus for 2008-09 will be to expand the reach of these events, by providing more of them in regions, and making greater use of technology to such as web-casting and blogs to enable dialogues across regions and over time.