ARCHIVED - Performance Reporting: Good Practices Handbook 2011

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Link to the whole-of-government framework

As a complement to departmental performance measurement and reporting, the Government of Canada has developed a whole-of-government framework for reporting to Parliament. This framework maps the financial and non-financial contributions of organizations receiving appropriations to a set of 16 Government of Canada outcome areas. These outcome areas are high-level results that the Government of Canada is aiming to achieve. The outcome areas are grouped according to the four Government of Canada spending areas: Economic, Social, International, and Government Affairs.

Because the alignment of program activities to the whole-of-government framework makes it possible to calculate spending by Government of Canada outcome area and also accurately calculate overall expenditures, a program activity should be aligned to only one Government of Canada outcome area. A grid is an effective visual means of showing how the department’s program activities are aligned with Government of Canada outcome areas.

The whole-of-government framework is the reporting structure used in Canada’s Performance, an annual report to Parliament on the federal government’s contribution to Canada’s growth and performance as a nation. This report aims to give parliamentarians and Canadians an understanding of how departments together contribute to the broader, government-wide outcomes that comprise the framework.

Good practice: Link to the whole-of-government framework.

Why is the following a good practice? The DPR discusses the contribution of program activities to the whole-of-government framework and broader Government of Canada outcome areas.

Good practice example: Parks Canada DPR 2009–10

Demonstrate links to broader government priorities

In addition to the whole-of-government framework, another context in which to situate departmental outcomes is current government policy. The broader priorities and plans of the government are established at the beginning of a session of Parliament in the Speech from the Throne and annually in the federal budget. While Government of Canada outcome areas are meant to endure beyond the mandate of a particular government, the Speech from the Throne and the budget provide a picture specific to the current government.

Therefore, there should be an indication of how the department’s outcomes relate or contribute to the broader government priorities established in the Speech from the Throne or the budget. Other government-wide initiatives could also be referenced and discussed in terms of their impact on the plans and performance of the department.

It is recognized that the Speech from the Throne and the budget are overarching documents and that it may be difficult for some organizations (particularly smaller ones) to link their mandates to these documents.

Good practice: Demonstrate links to broader government priorities.

Why is the following a good practice? Throughout the DPR there are references to the government’s broader priorities, including discussions of key activities at the sub-program activity level (pages 50 and 51) that received the direct attention of budget announcements.

Good practice example: Health Canada DPR 2009-10

Good practice (example 2): Demonstrate links to broader government priorities (Economic Action Plan reporting).

Why is the following a good practice? Given the high-priority status of the Economic Action Plan (EAP), reporting focused on making clear links between program activities and departmental contributions to outcomes related to the EAP. A summary is provided on page 11 in Section I, and program activity links are consistently made throughout Section II.

Good practice example: Infrastructure Canada DPR 2009–10

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