From the President

Having completed my first year as President of the Institute for Citizen-Centred Service (ICCS), I am pleased to share my thoughts on the success and resiliency of the organization in 2022-23. I am grateful to have the opportunity and the pleasure of leading this exceptional institute, and especially the incredible team that works tirelessly to serve our members and clients.

From the President

This past year, the ICCS continued to champion, enable, and support citizen-centric services across all levels of government. Despite the ongoing challenges facing most non-profit organizations from the lingering impact of the pandemic, the Institute has persevered and consistently found ways to innovate and enhance the value of its products and services; this reflects the incredible work and efforts of the ICCS team, whose passion, commitment, and professionalism underpins the success of this organization.

It has been over 20 years since the ICCS was established. While years have gone by, election cycles continue, and governments come and go, the original mission of providing a neutral platform, outside of any jurisdiction, to facilitate enduring pan-Canadian collaboration, has not changed. The ICCS has always ensured continuity in the pursuit of public service excellence across Canada.

While confederation has bestowed many benefits on Canadians, it is not without its challenges. One of those challenges is collaborating across jurisdictions on difficult and complex problems. Coordinating schedules, communication, and the contributions of many stakeholders can be a difficult and time-consuming undertaking. Different time zones, governance models, political priorities and legal frameworks make moving ahead, together as a nation, very challenging.

The world is more complex now than ever. The team at the ICCS recognizes that we must continue to pivot the organization to meet the evolving needs of its members. The Institute is a place for sharing diverse perspectives, pooling resources, and developing shared buy-in, to ensure, that as a nation, we deliver truly pan-Canadian service solutions that are not only implemented, but also sustained over time.

Through the leadership and work of Canada’s Joint Councils, which comprise the Public Sector Service Delivery Council (PSSDC) and the Public Sector Chief Information Officer Council (PSCIOC), which are fully supported and managed by the ICCS, the Institute has enabled and mobilized the necessary information, expertise, and resources to help solve and deliver working solutions to complex pan-Canadian public sector service challenges.

The pandemic accelerated the adoption of digital technologies, and as a result, citizens and businesses now expect more accessible digital services from their governments. Underpinning the ability to offer seamless digital services, is the requirement to have a pan-Canadian digital trust and credentials initiative. In response, members have tasked the ICCS with the responsibly of establishing a program office that will have the mandate and resources to boost our collective efforts toward delivering a pan-Canadian Digital Trust and Credentials program which will provide shared solutions in service delivery.

Understanding that stakeholder engagement is critical to progress on national issues, the ICCS is increasingly active in working with other national groups such as the Ministers’ and Deputies’ tables on Digital Trust and Cyber-Security. By aligning our agendas, we intend to create better synergies and efficiencies at the political, strategic, tactical, and working levels.

In an increasingly complicated and nuanced world, making good executive decisions requires solid insights. Recognizing this fact, the ICCS has made changes this year in how it carries out its flagship citizen satisfaction research. Striving to ensure the relevancy of our research has led to innovative enhancements to our Citizens First and Business First research products. These include enhancements to survey methodologies, and the use of emerging analytics technologies and practices. In addition, our research sharpened its focus on key topics and is giving Canadians additional opportunities to express in their own words, what they expect from governments and what their actual service experiences are through more personalized response means.

We continued to see an increase in our online self-study programs, with over 300 new learners from all three levels of government, representing various jurisdictions. ICCS continuously refreshes its learning content to ensure that the latest research findings and best practices are made available to all our clients. This will also help us in the future development of new learning modules; we will continue to monitor evolving needs of clients and ensure that our training services and products provide the value-add sought by members and clients alike. The Joint Council members of the PSSDC and PSCIOC bring an incredible amount of experience, knowledge, and energy to the ICCS. Ultimately, it is the members driving innovation at the Institute. We are also fortunate to have a dynamic and committed team at the ICCS dedicated to delivering on the mandate. I am proud to be part of such a creative organization and look forward to the coming year and the many opportunities we will have to work together and deliver results on a pan-Canadian basis.

As my second year as President begins, I want to clearly state that I have the utmost confidence in the ICCS team, and my Board colleagues. Together, we will ensure that the future of the organization remains strong and viable. It is also my belief that the ICCS is well positioned to continue being the beacon for citizen-centric public sector services for years to come.

—Mark Burns, President, ICCS Board of Directors

From the Executive Director

It is my pleasure to present the 2022-23 Institute for Citizen-Centred Service (ICCS) Annual Report. Our accomplishments reflect the magnificent work of our incredible team, to whom I would like to express my sincere gratitude for their continued commitment to our organization, members, and clients. They have demonstrated once again how passionate and dedicated they are to ensuring the success of the ICCS. The team has worked tirelessly throughout uncertain and challenging times, and continually found new ways to innovate, and help our members and clients, across Canada and overseas, succeed in putting citizens first and at the centre of what governments do!

From the Executive Director

As a non-profit organization, the sustainability of the ICCS relies on governments across Canada and around the globe to use our enabling services, research, insights, and training – but the ICCS’ most impactful contribution to the betterment of citizen service is its ability to help governments achieve tangible success in implementing shared solutions consistently. Simply stated, we bring Canada’s public sector leaders together and help them find ways to deliver better services for all citizens. Our role is key in ensuring that governments remain committed to continual service improvement.

The Institute has endured a period of transition and restraint during and post pandemic; we continue to reflect on the impact of governmental changes currently underway, and their eventual impact on our organization. In this newly emerging environment, we will continue to chart the direction for the ICCS for years to come. Our future success depends on ensuring our relevancy and offering members and clients alike more value-added services and support to enable governments to achieve shared citizen improvement priorities.

In 2022-23, the ICCS achieved a new milestone in its evolution of enabling services; tasked by the Joint Councils (Public Sector Service Delivery Council - PSSDC and the Public Sector Chief Information Office Council - PSCIOC), the ICCS established a new program office dedicated to accelerating the development and implementation of a common approach across all jurisdictions for digital trust and credentials. This new Digital Trust and Credentials Program Office will see the ICCS provide dedicated support to the newly established Federal/Provincial and Territorial Ministers’ and Deputy Ministers’ tables tasked with providing Canadians seamless, integrated, and secure services that will allow Canadians to manage their own personal data and determine when and how they share it for service interactions with governments. The Program Office will continue to evolve and play a vital role in the coming years as governments move towards seamless service experiences for all citizens.

During this past year, the Institute forged ahead and worked on digitizing its offerings. Notably, the ICCS refreshed the Citizen First Analytics service, including the much-anticipated digitization of the CMT (Common Measurements Tool) question bank, which allows our clients to easily and efficiently create and upload citizen satisfaction survey questions into their own survey tools.

We continued to see the use of our online self-study programs expand, with over 300 new learners from all three levels of government, representing various jurisdictions. Our instructor-led workshops were also updated with latest research findings and the virtual-delivery experience was also improved for an overall better learning experience. Leveraging new tools and resources has allowed us to create engaging, interactive sessions that replicate an in-person learning experience but allow for greater flexibility with delivery options.

As service delivery and technology leaders, ICCS members require clear, unbiased, and actionable insights. This means delivering timely, relevant, and valuable intelligence to improve service delivery outcomes. The past year saw completion of Business First 2022, the latest study in the research series dedicated to examining how businesses across Canada view the quality of government services. This study, in which five jurisdictions took part, replicated many of the approaches from the previous iterations but also included a series of questions related to governments’ management of the COVID-19 situation and its impact on businesses.

Toward the end of 2022, the ICCS began to seek sponsor recruitment for Citizens First 2023, the tenth study in the Citizens First research series, due to be completed in the summer of 2023. The upcoming iteration will also mark a quarter of a century since the first study in the series was launched back in 1998. Eight jurisdictions, representing all levels of government, will take part in the survey. We are honoured to achieve this important milestone in our research history – twenty-five years of continuous research specific to measuring the level of citizen satisfaction with government services across Canada. No other organization offers such longevity and insight when it comes to understanding the service experiences of Canadians with their governments. I look forward to celebrating this wonderful milestone with members, clients, and stakeholders throughout 2023-24.

Our Citizen First brand, powered by the Institute for Citizen-Centred Service, continued its presence through social media. We built on the previous year’s work and further enhanced the public facing website for an improved user experience – we will continually improve our digital presence and ensure that we always remain ‘outside-in’ when designing and delivering our services to members and clients.

I want to congratulate Mary Ann Triggs as the 2022 Heintzman Leadership Award winner in recognition of her substantial contribution to the promotion of, and commitment to citizen-centred service delivery in Canada. Congratulations Mary Ann!

Finally, as my tenure as Executive Director comes to an end and this is my last opportunity to publicly express my heartfelt gratitude to the exceptional Board members and staff of the ICCS, both past and present, I simply want to say, thank you for all your support, guidance, wisdom and insight that you have provided me with over the past eight years. As your servant leader, I have had the immense fortune of serving and working for such dedicated, and professional individuals, whose commitment to the ICCS and its values are essential to its continued success. I am truly comforted in knowing that both the Board of Directors and ICCS team will continue to safeguard the relevancy and effectiveness of the Institute for years to come in championing the never-ending pursuit of being citizen-centred.

—Dan Batista, Executive Director

Published 2022 Business First study

Enhanced Citizens First Analytics online service

online self-study programs expansion

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Line of Business Updates

Learning

Research

Business First 2022

The past year saw completion of Business First 2022, the latest study in the research series dedicated to examining how businesses across Canada view the quality of government services. This study, in which five jurisdictions took part, replicated many of the approaches from the previous iterations but also included a series of questions related to governments’ management of the COVID-19 situation and its impact on businesses. The findings revealed that, overall, the management was viewed in less than favourable light by most businesses, but COVID-19 support programs received positive ratings from those businesses that had used them.

While the overall service reputation and service experience scores have stayed in the same range as in previous iterations, Business First 2022 has identified several areas where governments should examine their performance more closely when it comes to government-to-business service delivery. The ratings have dropped with respect to several metrics and, while some of it could be blamed on the disruption caused by the ongoing pandemic, the results seem to suggest that public sector service providers do need to make improvements in several areas, with a particular focus on online services.

This was the sixth consecutive major ICCS study completed in partnership with Ipsos.

Citizens First 2023

Toward the end of 2022, the ICCS began sponsor recruitment for Citizens First 2023, the tenth study in the Citizens First research series, due to be completed in the summer of 2023. The upcoming iteration will also mark a quarter of a century since the first study in the series was launched back in 1998. Eight jurisdictions, representing all levels of government, will take part in the survey.

For this study, the ICCS has partnered with Angus Reid and, while it will employ core methodological approaches that were also seen in previous iterations, the study will also see several changes relating to design and reporting. Its results are scheduled to become available in the second half of 2023.

Other projects

The ICCS has also continued its efforts to expand the scope of analysis and enable its clients to get new, fresh insights that would help them to improve the quality of their services. One such initiative is the ongoing collaboration with PathosAI which centres on using AI-based methodology to analyze open-ended responses and use emotional engagement as a proxy for overall satisfaction.

In 2022, this collaboration has resulted in the development of a dashboard based on the national results from Business First 2022, which has served to demonstrate the potential for this kind of approach. A similar analysis is planned for the Citizens First 2023 study, with each participating jurisdiction also having an opportunity to obtain access to their own jurisdictional dashboards enabling an expanded range of analysis in addition to the more traditional reporting.

Councils

In 2022-2023, the ICCS Secretariat continued to provide support services to the Public Sector Service Delivery Council (PSSDC) and the Public Sector Chief Information Officer Council (PSCIOC). The Secretariat organized monthly virtual meetings of the Joint Councils, PSSDC, PSCIOC, and learning event sessions on topics of pan-Canadian interest and sharing of best practices from across the country.

The Joint Councils, PSSDC and PSCIOC oversee many inter-jurisdictional working groups and communities of practice that focus on the Councils’ identified priority areas: Digital Identity, Client Centric Services, Research and Strategic Intelligence, Privacy, Cybersecurity, IT Procurement, Cloud Services, Service to Business, Open Source, Open Government, among others. A key mandate of the Councils is inter-jurisdictional collaboration to enhance the efficacy of public sector service delivery.

Digital trust in a key priority of the Joint Councils. In 2022, the Joint Councils formally established the Digital Trust and Credentials Program. The ICCS DTC Program office will provide the leadership, direction and secretariat function to the newly formed FPT (Federal Provincial Territorial) Ministers and Deputy Ministers’ Tables on Digital Trust and Cybersecurity. The Councils remain committed to accelerating the work to deliver digital trust and credentials for Canadians. Citizens want quick, convenient access to online programs and services from both public and private sectors. Digital trust is crucial to transforming government services. Digital government requires more than incremental changes to address current and forthcoming challenges, implies reconfiguring the responsibilities of various levels of government and how they intersect and coordinate - rethinking the architecture of government, especially governance and leadership. The Joint Councils remain conscious of the fluid external environment in which it operates and that it needs to be attentive and responsive to change. They frequently re-visit priorities whilst consulting with members to ensure that its best positioned for collective impact.

Notable research by the Joint Councils this year:

The Joint Councils’ Analytics Playbook Working Group, under the leadership of the Joint Councils’ Data Driven Intelligence Working Group, delivered a 2022 digital version of the Analytics Playbook to support and advance the use of analytics across public sector organizations. It is both educational and instructive, articulating the value of analytics, identifying success factors that policy makers and leadership teams need to be thinking about advancing, and defining how organizations can get started on their analytics journey. The Analytics Playbook details notable achievements of Federal, Provincial/Territorial, and Municipal organizations with respect to the partnerships and projects that have used analytics to improve service delivery.

The Joint Councils’ Open-Source Working Group developed learning material on the use of Open-Source Software in Government – A Course for Public Sector Executives. The objective of the course is to equip public sector executives and with the ideas, tools, and resources they need to overcome the challenges that are often associated with using open-source software – and to take full advantage of its benefits. The course has been designed primarily from the perspective of non-technical executives, directors, and departmental leaders, but provides important insights for technical staff as well. The insights will inform decisions about integrating and aligning the use of open-source software with organization-wide priorities and commitments.

The Joint Councils’ Research Committee delivers monthly executive research reports to highlight key priority areas of the Councils. It delivers a daily newsletter based on media monitoring on key Council service delivery and IT/IM priorities and continues to update and monitor the on-line research repository to collect and enable open access to innovative research. Subscribe to get monthly reports.

CMT

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Financial Summary

At a Glance

In 2022-23, we saw a slight incline in the revenue trend compared to previous years.

Year to date shortfall of revenues over expenses of $130,150 …. $36,726 better than what we had budgeted.

Revenues totaled - $892,747. This is greater than budget by $101,191.

Expenditures totaled - $1,022,897. This is more than budget by $64,465.

Support to Councils revenues and expenditures were on budget.

Research revenues were $65,068 more than budget and expenditures were $29,552 more than budget.

CMT revenues were $2,851 more than budget and expenditures were $2,205 more than budget.

Certification revenues were $29,989 more than budget and expenditures were $113,543 more than budget.

General and Administration costs were $15,823 more than budget.

Revenues by Lines of Business

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Winner of the Heintzman Leadership Award - 2022

Mary Ann Triggs

The ICCS is proud to announce Mary Ann Triggs as the 2022 Heintzman Leadership Award winner in recognition of her substantial contribution to the promotion of, and commitment to citizen-centred service delivery in Canada.