The Honourable Denis Lebel
Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs;
Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec; and
President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada
Section I: Organizational Overview
Section II: Analysis of Programs by Strategic Outcome
Section III: Supplementary Information
Section IV: Other Items of Interest
The Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat (CICS) is an impartial intergovernmental organization that plays an essential and constructive role in the Canadian federation. Its mandate consists of providing the administrative support required for the planning and holding of federal–provincial–territorial and provincial–territorial conferences of first ministers, ministers and deputy ministers across Canada.
In fiscal year 2012-13, CICS provided services to 73 senior-level meetings, including 49 federal–provincial–territorial conferences and 24 provincial–territorial conferences. As a key partner in facilitating these meetings, CICS has the responsibility to respond to the evolving needs of its clients while at the same time ensuring efficiency of its services. This past year, the agency continued to invest in new technologies both for its delivery of services and for its day-to-day management. I am pleased to see the addition of videoconferencing to its repertoire of services. In addition, the organization made internal changes to its structure to allow a more flexible, efficient approach in resource usage.
CICS is committed to maintaining its leading-edge role as a service provider for conferences, and to remaining the first choice for governments in organizing senior level intergovernmental meetings. All governments benefit from significant economies of scale by using CICS services. This is all the more relevant in the current fiscal environment.
As the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada, I am pleased to table the Secretariat’s Departmental Performance Report for 2012-13, which highlights its accomplishments over the past fiscal year.
The Honourable Denis Lebel
Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs
Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada
The Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat (CICS) 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. Its one program mandate is to provide administrative services for the planning and conduct of First Ministers’, Ministers’ and Deputy Ministers’ federal-provincial-territorial and provincial-territorial conferences.
CICS is an agency of the federal and provincial governments and, as such, acts as a neutral intergovernmental body. Its budget is supported by both orders of government and its staff includes federal and provincial/territorial public servants. The Secretary reports to all governments annually. The operations are reviewed by federal and provincial senior officials designated by their respective First Ministers. CICS reports to Parliament through the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada.
The mandate of the Secretariat is to serve 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 in virtually every major sector of intergovernmental activity of the numerous technical and administrative tasks associated with the planning and conduct of multilateral conferences, thereby enabling them to concentrate on substantive policy issues. CICS provides continuous, effective, impartial administrative services to these meetings.
The planning and conduct of multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers is a critical component of the workings of the Canadian federation. By skillfully and professionally planning and delivering of services at these meetings, CICS allows governments to discuss important issues without getting distracted by process. The risk of error and omission is significantly mitigated by tapping into the Secretariat’s experience and impartiality.
The interests of all Canadians are represented by their elected governments participating in these intergovernmental conferences.
As an institution dedicated to supporting events that give rise to, and support the spirit of cooperation and negotiation among governments, CICS seeks to execute its role to maximum effect, producing an environment conducive to rational discourse and optimal decision-making, to the benefit of all Canadians.
Federal, provincial and territorial governments greatly benefit from significant cost efficiencies and economies of scale through the use of CICS. This is particularly relevant in the current fiscal environment.
CICS is a micro agency with a single program mandate. Its Program Activity Architecture is presented below.
Priority | Type | Strategic Outcome |
---|---|---|
Maintain and enhance partnerships with clients. | Ongoing | Multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers are planned and conducted flawlessly. |
Summary of Progress | ||
What progress has been made towards this priority?
|
Priority | Type | Strategic Outcome |
---|---|---|
Select and adopt new instruments in order to continue to improve CICS’ delivery model so that it remains viable and relevant to clients. | Ongoing | Multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers are planned and conducted flawlessly. |
Summary of Progress | ||
What progress has been made towards this priority?
Significant initiatives were successfully undertaken including:
Delegate surveys indicated a 90% satisfaction rate with technology provided to them on-site. |
Priority | Type | Strategic Outcome |
---|---|---|
Strengthen internal management practices by means of modernizing activities, enhancing stewardship and pursuing shared services opportunities. | Ongoing | Multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers are planned and conducted flawlessly. |
Summary of Progress | ||
What progress has been made towards this priority?
|
The Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat (CICS) is an organization whose sole program is to serve senior level intergovernmental conference activities undertaken by 14 governments and their respective departments. The Secretariat reports to all governments annually, and thus, must ensure that its services not only remain pertinent, impartial, confidential and equitable to all clients but, more importantly, that they are perceived as such in an environment that can be highly political. In the last few years, all orders of government have been faced with budget reductions and more recently they have been encouraged to modernize and transform intergovernmental business. Although these factors have led to a decline in face-to-face meetings, they have also introduced new and efficient methods of collaboration. As a result, CICS has seized the opportunity to adapt its service delivery model to incorporate new technologies which allow all partners and clients to benefit from efficiencies and attain their objectives.
The Secretariat has identified four key risks that may impact its ability to achieve expected results: Security Risk, Financial Management Risk, Human Capital Risk; and Change Management Risk. The following table describes each risk along with the response strategies used during the last fiscal year.
Risk | Risk Response Strategy | Link to Program Alignment Architecture | Link to Organizational Priorities |
---|---|---|---|
1-Security Risk There is a risk that security measures are not fully implemented, resulting in compromised classified information. |
|
Conference Services and Internal Services. | Select and adopt new instruments.
Strengthen internal management practices. |
2-Financial Management Risk As a result of rising operational costs, fiscal restraints, increased stakeholder expectations and the complexity of restructuring the Conference Services division, there is a risk that sufficient resources may not be available to maintain appropriate service levels for client groups. |
|
Conference Services and Internal Services. | Strengthen internal management practices. |
3-Human Capital Risk Due to the retirements and turnover of key personnel, there is a risk that CICS will be unable to sustain an experienced and professional workforce which may have an impact on program delivery. |
|
Conference Services and Internal Services. | Strengthen internal management practices. |
4-Change Management Risk There is a risk that the organization’s transformation agenda and internal restructuring may not be well understood or communicated to employees, resulting in lost opportunities for staff engagement. |
|
Conference Services and Internal Services. | Strengthen internal management practices. |
Total Budgetary Expenditures (Main Estimates) 2012–13 |
Planned Spending 2012–13 |
Total Authorities (available for use) 2012–13 |
Actual Spending (authorities used) 2012–13 |
Difference (Planned vs. Actual Spending) |
---|---|---|---|---|
6.6 | 6.6 | 6.9 | 5.2 | 1.4 |
Planned 2012–13 |
Actual 2012–13 |
Difference 2012–13 |
---|---|---|
36 | 29 | 7 |
Performance Summary Table for Strategic Outcome, Program and Internal Services ($ millions)
Strategic Outcome: Multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers are planned and conducted flawlessly.
Program | Total Budgetary Expenditures(Main Estimates 2012–13) | Planned Spending | Total Authorities (available for use) 2012–13 |
Actual Spending (authorities used) | Alignment to Government of Canada Outcomes |
||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2012–13 | 2011–12 | 2010–11 | ||||
Conference Services | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.0 | Well-managed and efficient govern-ment operations |
Internal Services | 2.6 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 2.2 | N/A |
Total | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.9 | 5.2 | 5.6 | 5.2 |
The reduction in spending for 2012-13 is mainly attributed to achieving savings of $0.5 million for the first year of Budget 2012 implementation. These savings were achieved while our actual spending usually varies according to the number of events and conferences that fluctuate from one year to the next. It is important to note that the 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 annually at a level sufficient to finance a level of conference activity in the 110-120 range. Over a ten-year period, we were averaging over 100 conferences annually. This is the reason why our planned spending is higher than the actual spending. The economic environment and political situation in recent years has contributed to a decline in intergovernmental activity. In that context, CICS organized and served 73 senior-level meetings in 2012-13.
Ongoing challenges in government fiscal management have led to a lower number of senior level multilateral intergovernmental meetings serviced by the Secretariat being held over the last number of years. In addition, there have been freezes and reductions in the areas of travel, hospitality and conferences throughout government which have had an impact on the services we provide.
CICS’s actual spending has remained constant is the last few years since the number of conferences averaged to 70 conferences a year. We do not expect significant variances in the next few years.
For information on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s organizational Votes and/or statutory expenditures, please see the Public Accounts of Canada 2013 (Volume II). An electronic version of the Public Accounts 2013 is available on the Public Works and Government Services Canada website.
During 2012-13, CICS acknowledged and fulfilled their responsibility with regards to the Cabinet Directive on the Environmental Assessment of Policy, Plan and Program Proposals.
Multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers are planned and conducted flawlessly.
Performance Indicators | Targets | Actual Results |
---|---|---|
Extent to which senior government officials are satisfied with various CICS services in the planning and conduct of multilateral meetings of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers. | 90% satisfaction- High degree of stakeholder trust and confidence in CICS’ independence and high degree of satisfaction with CICS services. | Survey results of both conference planners and conference delegates confirmed a high level of satisfaction with the quality of services provided by CICS. The overall target of 90% satisfaction was met. The number of government sectors served remained stable while the actual number of conferences increased to 73 from 60 in the previous year. |
Provision of expert, impartial support services for the planning and conduct of First Ministers, Ministers and Deputy Ministers level federal-provincial-territorial and provincial-territorial conferences.
The CICS does not convene intergovernmental meetings. It is called upon to respond to decisions taken by governments to meet on key 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.
Total Budgetary Expenditures (Main Estimates) 2012–13 |
Planned Spending 2012–13 |
Total Authorities (available for use) 2012–13 |
Actual Spending (authorities used) 2012–13 |
Difference 2012–13 |
---|---|---|---|---|
4.0 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 1.1 |
Planned 2012–13 |
Actual 2012–13 |
Difference 2012–13 |
---|---|---|
24 | 19 | 5 |
Expected Results | Performance Indicators | Targets | Actual Results |
---|---|---|---|
Flawlessly planned and conducted events. | Survey results, client satisfaction letters, number of client departments utilizing CICS services. | To maintain the highest degree of customer satisfaction. | 90% of planners surveyed indicated that they were satisfied or very satisfied with CICS services overall. Similarly, 97% of conference delegates were satisfied or very satisfied with CICS services overall. |
In 2012-13, CICS provided its services to 73 senior-level intergovernmental conferences.
Performance is assessed using internal data and documents as well as two surveys of clients; one an annual sampling of conference planners and the second of conference delegates who attend the events.
Overall satisfaction survey results remain positive and reached the target of 90% or above while some individual features of our service, specifically related to conference planning, scored below target, slightly lower than in previous years. When asked for words to describe the quality of services offered by CICS, planners and delegates alike most often answered with the following words: professional; efficient; excellent; and cooperative.
Many additional positive comments were also offered such as:
2012-13 marked a year of change at CICS as major initiatives were undertaken to modernize our services alongside the evolving needs of our clients while at the same time adapting our processes and procedures to find cost efficiencies in service delivery. The fact that satisfaction ratings from our conference delegates remained at a very high level (97%) is encouraging and is indicative that management decisions made to deliver cost efficiencies in no way negatively impacted the level of service provided to delegates on conference site. In addition, the integration of new technologies with our service offerings have been very well received and appreciated by our clients. In the planning process, however, a satisfaction rating of 70 % on “flexibility” and 75% on “client understanding of what services CICS can and cannot provide” may be attributable to the necessary move away from status quo offerings to a more in-depth questioning and analysis of client requests.
As we strive to ensure efficient and effective use of resources and also contribute to the transformation of intergovernmental business by making changes to our service delivery model, clear on-going communication and retroaction with our clients becomes even more essential to ensure the Secretariat’s services are fully understood and delivered successfully in the current context.
Internal Services are activities and resources that support the needs of programs and other corporate obligations of an organization. These groups are: Management and Oversight Services; Communications Services; Legal Services; Human Resources Management Services; Financial Management Services; Information Management Services; Information Technology Services; Real Property Services; Materiel Services; Acquisition Services; and Travel and Other Administrative Services. Internal Services include only those activities and resources that apply across an organization and not to those provided specifically to a program.
Total Budgetary Expenditures (Main Estimates) 2012–13 |
Planned Spending 2012–13 |
Total Authorities (available for use) 2012–13 |
Actual Spending (authorities used) 2012–13 |
Difference 2012–13 |
---|---|---|---|---|
2.6 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 1.8 | 0.3 |
Planned 2012–13 |
Actual 2012–13 |
Difference 2012–13 |
---|---|---|
12 | 10 | 2 |
Internal Services were reviewed to find new efficiencies: Three positions were eliminated; telecommunications costs were reduced by elimination of hand-set phones; reduction of printers; and a number of other small reductions. Work continues on implementing new policies, directives and procedures to strengthen management practices.
The Secretariat has integrated new technologies successfully throughout the agency in order to enhance communication, develop a more modern array of services and improve management practices.
Most reports to central agencies were compliant with requirements and submitted on time. The Departmental Staffing Accountability Report (DSAR) indicated acceptable performance in all areas, and no key sector required increased attention.
Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat Condensed Statement of Operations and Departmental Net Financial Position (Unaudited) For the Year Ended March 31, 2013 ($ millions) |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2012–13 Planned Results |
2012–13 Actual |
2011–12 Actual |
$ Change (2012–13 Planned vs. Actual) |
$ Change (2012–13 Actual vs. 2011-12 Actual) |
|
Total expenses | 5.8 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 0 | 0.2 |
Total revenues | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Net cost of operations before government funding and transfers | 5.8 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 0 | 0.2 |
Departmental net financial position | (0.1) | 0 | 0 | (0.1) | 0 |
Total expenses were approximately $5.8 million in 2012-13, a decrease of $0.2 million (0.03%) from the previous year’s total expenses of $6.0 million. Figure 1 below provides an overview of CICS budgetary expenses. Half of the expenses are for salaries. The expenses for professional and special services are mainly for the following: interpretation, translation services and security personnel. Transportation and communication includes travel costs for the employees who provide the services as well as the transportation of the equipment to conference sites. Rentals are for the audio-visual equipment.
Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat Condensed Statement of Financial Position (Unaudited) As at March 31, 2013 ($ millions) |
|||
---|---|---|---|
2012–13 | 2011–12 | $ Change | |
Total net liabilities | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.3 |
Total net financial assets | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.3 |
Departmental net debt | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0 |
Total non-financial assets | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.1 |
Departmental net financial position | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total liabilities were approximately $0.7 million as at March 31, 2013, a decrease of $0.3 million (30%) over the previous year’s total liabilities of $1.0 million. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities are the largest component, representing 64% of total liabilities. The decrease in total net liabilities is mainly due to a decrease accounts payable. The liabilities consists of accounts payable to external parties ($440,848) that form part of the normal operations, vacation pay and compensatory leave ($103,159) as well as employee future benefits ($143,544).
Total financial assets were approximately $0.4 million as at March 31, 2013, a decrease of $0.3 million (43%) over the previous year’s total net financial assets of $0.7 million. The decrease in financial assets is mainly due to a decrease of $0.3 million in the amount due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund. Amounts due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund represent a charge against departmental authorities and are available for use to the organization in future periods without further authorities.
Total non-financial assets were approximately $0.2 million at the end of 2012-13. Non-financial assets are comprised entirely of tangible capital assets.
http://www.scics.gc.ca/english/view.asp?ccid=169
All electronic supplementary information tables listed in the 2012–13 Departmental Performance Report can be found on the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat’s website.
The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures annually in the Tax Expenditures and Evaluations publication. The tax measures presented in the Tax Expenditures and Evaluations publication are the sole responsibility of the Minister of Finance.
CICS is an agency of the federal and provincial governments and, as such, acts as a neutral intergovernmental body. The Secretariat produces an annual report to Governments detailing the activities of the agency. It can be found on CICS’ website at www.scics.gc.ca.
Anik Lapointe
Director, Corporate Services
Telephone: (613) 955-9943
E-mail: anik.lapointe@scics.gc.ca