Publication

Spending and human resources

This section provides an overview of the department’s planned spending and human resources for the next three consecutive fiscal years, and compares planned spending for the upcoming year with the current and previous years’ actual spending.

Planned spending

Departmental spending 2017–18 to 2022–23

The following graph presents planned (voted and statutory) spending over time.

Budgetary planning summary for core responsibilities and Internal Services (dollars)

The following table shows actual, forecast and planned spending for each of Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s core responsibilities and to Internal Services for the years relevant to the current planning year.

It is important to note that CICS does not convene intergovernmental meetings. It is called upon to respond to decisions taken by governments to meet on key national or specific issues. Decisions concerning the location of such meetings, their number in a given fiscal year, their timing and duration, are all factors beyond the control of the Secretariat. The level of CICS expenditures for each fiscal year is, however, directly affected by these factors. The Secretariat is funded at a level sufficient to finance 100 in-person conferences annually. An event can consist of one or more conferences and it is used to plan the budget for each of the conferences in terms of transportation and communication, rentals, translation and interpretation services.

The lower spending in 2018-19, compared to 2017-18 was mainly due to a decrease in salary charges due to vacancies and unplanned departures.

The expenditures for 2019-20 are anticipated to be some $374 thousand higher than in 2018-19 due to the staffing of positions that were vacant in 2018-19 as well as investment in innovations and new technologies in order to expand continuous improvement approach and offer tailored and high quality services to its clients.

As of December 31, 2019, CICS provided its services to 89 conferences. The forecast from January 01 to March 31, 2020 shows 27 additional conferences which includes 8 teleconferences.

With the present government’s commitment to a renewed sense of collaboration and improved partnerships with provincial and territorial governments, the Secretariat anticipates maintaining the same level of intergovernmental meetings in 2020-21.

Planned human resources

The following table shows actual, forecast and planned full-time equivalents (FTEs) for each core responsibility in Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s departmental results framework and to Internal Services for the years relevant to the current planning year.

Human resources planning summary for Core Responsibilities and Internal Services

CICS human resources have decreased over the last two years due to retirement and unplanned departures. As a proactive measure, the Secretariat has put in place a succession plan to address potential departures, such as retirement. CICS has also developed a career plan to retain current employees and implemented innovative recruitment strategies. Due to this proactive approach, CICS is now forecasting an FTE increase for 2019-20 and will staff other vacancies by the end of the first quarter of 2020-21.

Estimates by vote

Information on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s organizational appropriations is available in the 2020–21 Main Estimates. ^iv

Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations

The condensed future-oriented statement of operations provides an overview of the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s operations for 2019–20 to 2020–21

The amounts for forecast and planned results in this statement of operations were prepared on an accrual basis. The amounts for forecast and planned spending presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan were prepared on an expenditure basis. Amounts may therefore differ.

A more detailed future-oriented statement of operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations to the requested authorities, are available on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s website.

Condensed future-oriented statement of operations for the year ending March 31, 2021 (dollars)

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister(s): Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland
Institutional head: André M. McArdle
Ministerial portfolio: Intergovernmental Affairs
Enabling instrument: The Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat was established pursuant to an agreement reached at the May 1973 First Ministers’ Conference and was designated a department of the federal government by an Order-in-Council dated November 29, 1973.
Year of incorporation / commencement: 1973

Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do

Raison d’être

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs is responsible for this organization. The Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat (CICS), established pursuant to an agreement reached at the May 1973 First Ministers’ Conference, is an Agency of the federal, provincial and territorial governments. Its mandate is to provide administrative support and planning services for intergovernmental conferences of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers.

These intergovernmental conferences are a key instrument for consultation and negotiation among the different orders of government and assist in the development of national and/or provincial/territorial policies. They are a critical component of the workings of the Canadian federation and represent a core principle of our democratic society.

By skillfully executing the logistical planning and delivery of these meetings, CICS not only relieves governments of the administrative process burden but also allows them to greatly benefit from significant cost efficiencies and economies of scale.

Mandate and role

The mandate of the Secretariat is to support federal, provincial and territorial governments in the planning and conduct of senior-level intergovernmental conferences held across Canada. The primary objective of CICS is to relieve client departments of the numerous technical and administrative tasks associated with the planning and conduct of multilateral conferences, thereby enabling participants to concentrate on substantive intergovernmental policy issues. CICS provides continuous, effective, impartial administrative services to these meetings.

“Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do” is available on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s website.

For more information on the department’s organizational mandate letter commitments, see the “Minister’s mandate letter”.

Operating context

After experiencing several years of increasing conference activity, these meetings have started to level off since a peak in 2016-17, but at a higher annual number than during the previous decade at least. We have seen an increase in first ministers meetings along with meetings that utilize more virtual technologies, such as teleconferencing.

As governments and senior officials change across Canada, it is important for CICS to maintain and renew its relationships with client governments to actively promote the organization and its services as well as its neutrality. Communication efforts are ongoing in order to sustain the number of intergovernmental conferences we serve.

CICS has remained at the forefront of providing conference support services through the modernization of our delivery model and the deployment of innovations, such as our new in-house virtual conferencing studio. This has led to an ever-increasing number of virtual conferences, particularly teleconferences, with simultaneous interpretation in both official languages. The utilization of these virtual conferencing methods allows all Federal-Provincial-Territorial governments to reduce both travel time and costs that are associated with participation. Through the use of new technologies, CICS is proud to continue offering a wide array of conference solutions that respond to these needs.

In the next few years, a significant number of the Secretariat’s federal public servants will be eligible to retire. These retirements along with the usual provincial-territorial employee rotations will challenge CICS’ ability to sustain a knowledgeable workforce with the appropriate competencies. Having succession and transition plans in place for key positions, as well as developmental opportunities for those employees with the desire and ability to be promoted within the organization will continue to be a critical strategic priority.

The attraction and retention of young, ambitious and motivated staff creates a unique challenge for a micro-agency such as CICS due to employees’ limited upward mobility within a small organization. The Agency now makes use of the Federal Student Work Exchange Program and CO-OP Programs on a regular basis to encourage interest in a public service career. Sustained efforts will be exerted to maintain and improve employee retention by creating an environment conducive to career development and job satisfaction.

Information on the operating context is available on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s website.

Reporting framework

The Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s Departmental Results Framework and Program Inventory of record for 2020–21 are shown below:

Supporting information on the Program Inventory

Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s Program Inventory is available in the GC InfoBase. ^v

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s website:

• Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy
• Gender-based analysis plus

Federal tax expenditures

Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s Departmental Plan does not include information on tax expenditures that relate to its planned results for 2020–21.

Tax expenditures are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance, and the Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for government¬ wide tax expenditures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures^iv. This report provides detailed information on tax expenditures, including objectives, historical background and references to related federal spending programs, as well as evaluations, research papers and gender-based analysis. The tax measures presented in this report are solely the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.

Organizational contact information

Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat

Mailing Address
P.O. Box 488, Station ‘A’
Ottawa, Ontario
K1N 8V5

Location
222 Queen St., 12th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5V9

General Inquiries: 613-995-2341
Fax: 613-996-6091
E-mail: Info@scics.ca
Website: www.scics.ca

Appendix: Definitions

appropriation (crédit)
Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)
Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

Core Responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)
An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a Core Responsibility are reflected in one or more related Departmental Results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (plan ministériel)
A report on the plans and expected performance of an appropriated department over a three‑year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

Departmental Result (résultat ministériel)
Any change that the department seeks to influence. A Departmental Result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by Program-level outcomes.

Departmental Result Indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)
A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a Departmental Result.

Departmental Results Framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)
The department’s Core Responsibilities, Departmental Results and Departmental Result Indicators.

Departmental Results Report (rapport sur les résultats ministériels)
A report on the actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

evaluation (évaluation)
In the Government of Canada, the systematic and neutral collection and analysis of evidence to judge merit, worth or value. Evaluation informs decision making, improvements, innovation and accountability. Evaluations typically focus on programs, policies and priorities and examine questions related to relevance, effectiveness and efficiency. Depending on user needs, however, evaluations can also examine other units, themes and issues, including alternatives to existing interventions. Evaluations generally employ social science research methods.

experimentation (expérimentation)
Activities that seek to explore, test and compare the effects and impacts of policies, interventions and approaches, to inform evidence-based decision-making, by learning what works and what does not.

full‑time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)
A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person‑year charge against a departmental budget. Full‑time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS+])
An analytical process used to help identify the potential impacts of policies, Programs and services on diverse groups of women, men and gender-diverse people. The “plus” acknowledges that GBA goes beyond sex and gender differences. We all have multiple identity factors that intersect to make us who we are; GBA+ considers many other identity factors, such as race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability.

government-wide Priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)
For the purpose of the 2019–20 Departmental Plan, Government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2015 Speech from the Throne, namely: Growth for the Middle Class; Open and Transparent Government;  A Clean Environment and a Strong Economy; Diversity is Canada’s Strength; and Security and Opportunity.

horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale)
An initiative where two or more departments are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.

non‑budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)
Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement)
What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)
A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, Program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

Performance Information Profile (profil de l’information sur le rendement)
The document that identifies the performance information for each Program from the Program Inventory.

performance peporting (production de rapports sur le rendement)
The process of communicating evidence‑based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision making, accountability and transparency.

plan (plan)
The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.

planned spending (dépenses prévues)
For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in the Main Estimates.
A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

priority (priorité)
A plan or project that an organization has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired Departmental Results.

Program (programme)
Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within the department and focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.

Program Inventory (répertoire des programmes)
Identifies all of the department’s programs and describes how resources are organized to contribute to the department’s Core Responsibilities and Results.

result (résultat)
An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, Program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, Program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization’s influence.
statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)
Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

sunset program (programme temporisé)
A time‑limited program that does not have an ongoing funding and policy authority. When the program is set to expire, a decision must be made whether to continue the program. In the case of a renewal, the decision specifies the scope, funding level and duration.

target (cible)
A measurable performance or success level that an organization, Program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées)
Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The Vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.