Directive on Results

Improving the achievement of results across government and enhancing understanding of the results government seeks to achieve, does achieve, and the resources used to do so are fundamental elements of good corporate practices and central to democracy. This policy seeks to advance these objectives by setting out the governance associated with performance measurement and evaluation to ensure that these two functions are robust and effective.

It is important to note that this policy represents a shift from existing reporting structures. At the higher level, the focus has shifted to emphasize results. Previously, departments were required to report against a small number of Strategic Outcomes. Departments will now report against Departmental Results Frameworks comprised of Core Responsibilities with a more informative set of results embedded in each.

At the lower level, departments will continue to have and report on programs. In the past, departments reported against their Program Alignment Architectures which had two and sometimes three layers of programs (i.e. programs, sub-programs, and sub-sub programs)—some of which were artificial constructions for policy compliance purposes. Now, departments will report on a clearer set of programs—without the artificial hierarchies—each linked to a Core Responsibility.

At both levels, the granularity of reporting will remain consistent with current practices. Under the new policy, departments will develop Program Inventories that maintain or enhance the granularity of financial and human resource information to that provided previously under the Program Alignment Architecture. That is to say, programs under the new policy are to be roughly equivalent, in the level of granularity, to the department’s previous sub-programs or, where they have them, sub-sub programs.

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