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Staffing Management Accountability Framework (SMAF)

Introduction

The Public Service Employment Act (PSEA) provides an opportunity for the federal public service appointment system to become more flexible and efficient while respecting legislated values. The system is to be based on values, be less rules-driven and provide greater scope for delegated organizations to customize their appointment processes to meet their respective current and future human resources (HR) requirements.

While providing more flexibility, the legislation also requires that those delegated to make appointment decisions use their authority within a framework that ensures that they are accountable to the Public Service Commission (PSC) for its proper use. The PSC, in turn, is accountable to Parliament.

Purpose

The Staffing Management Accountability Framework (SMAF) sets out key areas for a well-managed appointment system that achieves progress in making the staffing process more flexible and efficient, and strengthening respect for the appointment values involved.

The SMAF and the Departmental Staffing Accountability Reports (DSARs) used to report against it, along with other mechanisms, enable the PSC to review and evaluate staffing performance and to provide feedback to delegated public service organizations. The SMAF and these oversight mechanisms also enable the PSC to report to Parliament on the areas of the appointment system that are more at risk, while providing an overview of the health of the appointment system.

The SMAF should also be used by deputy heads to review how they manage their staffing systems and to make adjustments, as required.

Context

The PSEA provides the PSC with the authority to establish policy on the manner of making and revoking appointments and taking corrective action. The PSC has developed a broad appointment policy that is binding for deputy heads in exercising their authorities under the PSEA. The SMAF and DSARs, together with other PSC oversight mechanisms such as monitoring and audit, are used to determine whether deputy heads are exercising their authorities in conformity with legislative requirements, the PSC's appointment policies and the appointment values of the PSEA.

The PSC provides guidance to delegated public service organizations that are required to implement and report on the SMAF. The PSC also provides feedback to organizations so they can take action to improve their staffing systems and, ultimately, protect the integrity of the appointment system.

Deputy heads are expected to put in place their own management frameworks, including elements of the SMAF, and to monitor and adjust their organizational staffing performance to meet their staffing objectives. They are to manage risk factors to ensure good management and compliance with the PSC's policy and delegation requirements, the appointment values and other statutes.

By accepting the delegated authorities, deputy heads commit to contributing to the achievement of an inclusive public service that is based on merit and non-partisanship; that reflects the diversity and the linguistic duality of the Canadian population; and that is representative of the people it serves and whose members are drawn from across the country.

Approach: elements of the Staffing Management Accountability Framework

The SMAF provides expectations for deputy heads related to the 11 ‘elements,’ also called ‘key change areas,’ outlined below.

These elements cover both the intended results and the infrastructure and practices to be put in place to support staffing in conformity with requirements based on the PSC's policy and delegation instrument, with the appointment values and with other statutes. Further detail on expectations is provided by means of indicators under each element. Taken together, these elements and indicators represent a series of "key success factors" and expected “improved outcomes” where performance and progress are monitored, and for which areas for improvement will be identified, where applicable.

Among the main expectations regarding the PSEA's intended effects is that, as a result of progress on key success factors outlined in Part I which follows, improvements should occur in the results elements detailed in Part II, dealing with short-term staffing outcomes.

Specifically, it is reasonable to expect improvements in the flexibility and efficiency of the staffing processes among organizations, resulting from the delegation arrangements set in place.

Similarly, it is expected that improvements in effectiveness will occur in terms of adherence to appointment values; the core values are merit and non-partisanship and the guiding values are representativeness, access, fairness and transparency. These improvements are expected as a result of the change-management initiatives that accompany delegation, and from responding to areas identified for improvement by organizations or the PSC. In this context, the progress identified as part of short-term annual improvements in staffing outcomes is a sound predictor of longer-term impacts accompanying PSEA implementation. To a considerable extent, the longer-term impact of the PSEA is essentially the cumulative result of net short-term improvements in performance and outcomes.

In the following sections, descriptions, expectations and indicators are provided for the SMAF elements. Deputy heads are required to report on the indicators in the manner prescribed by the PSC. The PSC may make modifications to the SMAF indicators; these would be based on a risk analysis and reflect either a systemic issue or a particular organizational challenge. The SMAF Elements and Indicators lists (outlined below) provide a summary of the elements and their indicators.

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PART I: PROGRESS WITH KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

Element 1 – Delegation of staffing to deputy heads

In the spirit of the preamble to the Public Service Employment Act, the PSC has maximized the delegation of appointment and appointment-related authorities to deputy heads of federal government organizations. Deputy heads are encouraged to sub-delegate these authorities within their organization.

The PSC has developed an appointment framework with three components:

This framework will guide deputy heads in building their own staffing systems adapted to their needs and in ensuring that they respect legislative requirements and core values.

Deputy heads are expected to implement the necessary infrastructure and practices that are conducive to the effective management of delegated authorities in accordance with the PSC appointment framework, including continuous learning and change.

Deputy heads have the flexibility to establish appointment processes and programs tailored to their own organizational needs. When establishing these processes and programs, they are expected to establish policies and procedures that respect the values of fairness, access, transparency and representativeness, and ensure that statutory and central agency requirements are respected, even when service providers are used.

Deputy heads are expected to establish communication practices that ensure transparency, clarity and ready access to staffing information in their own organizations.

Element 2 - Planning for staffing and monitoring of results

The PSEA establishes a framework in which appointment decisions allow for consideration of both the qualifications of individuals and the current and future needs of the organization. Planning for staffing is a process that establishes the basis for the qualifications and current and future needs.

Planning for staffing also identifies staffing performance expectations, as approved by senior management, from an organization-wide perspective. This is achieved through the development of organizational staffing strategies that cover and support staffing priorities. Each organizational staffing strategy needs to set out measurable expected results and performance indicators so that the organization is able to determine whether the strategy has been achieved.

Staffing strategies need to pertain to the appointments or staffing processes, and must set out the staffing actions that the organization intends to take to implement the staffing priorities of senior management. Strategies are based on workforce analysis and may also be based on an analysis of staffing trends and patterns.

Deputy heads are also expected to assess the variance between planned staffing results and actual results achieved, and to correct staffing-related deficiencies identified from this assessment.

Element 3 - Organizational human resources support

With further staffing authorities delegated to deputy heads of organizations, there is now more flexibility to develop the types of processes that allow organizations to better meet their strategic objectives and carry out their staffing plans. Sufficient and appropriate resources are required to support efficient and effective staffing results.

Deputy heads must ensure that their organizations have access to a reasonable number of HR advisors with appropriate staffing expertise to support sub-delegated managers and have effective information and supporting systems.

Element 4 - Organizational accountability for results

The SMAF is one of a number of mechanisms, including audits, supporting the Accountability Policy developed by the PSC to hold deputy heads accountable for the exercise of their delegated authorities. In accordance with PSC policy and the SMAF, deputy heads must report on their performance in exercising their delegated authority through the DSAR.

Deputy heads are expected to comply with the PSC's reporting requirements, to collaborate with other PSC oversight requirements, including but not limited to audits, and to make improvements where deficiencies are identified in the DSAR feedback.

PART II: IMPROVED OUTCOMES

Part II includes two sections. Section (a) concerns the elements that deal with staffing results in terms of flexibility and efficiency. Section (b) includes those elements related to effectiveness and values.

(a) Intended results: Flexibility and efficiency

Element 5 - Flexibility and efficiency

The preamble to the PSEA recommends that delegation of staffing authority be "to as low a level as possible within the public service" so that public service managers have the flexibility "to staff, manage and lead their personnel to achieve results for Canadians." In contrast to the old rules-based staffing system — that tended to emphasize process — the PSEA calls for an approach that relies more on values and results. For example, the preamble to the PSEA emphasizes the importance of ensuring excellence, integrity and fair and transparent employment practices in federal government staffing. This means that delegated managers must exercise their staffing authority in a way that ensures the integrity of the staffing system and respects the values and principles contained in the Act.

As part of their decision-making, managers should take into account the need for:

  • Flexibility – to ensure that resourcing approaches are adapted to the needs of the organization; and
  • Affordability and efficiency – to ensure that staffing approaches provide good value for money and are delivered in a manner that is simple, timely and effective.

(b) Intended results – Effectiveness and adherence to staffing values

Element 6 – Merit

  • Every person appointed meets the essential qualifications, including official language proficiency, established by the deputy head for the work to be done.
  • The manager may take into consideration any current or future asset qualifications, operational requirements and organizational needs also identified by the deputy head.

Element 7 – Non-partisanship

  • Appointments and promotions to and within the public service are done objectively and are free from political influence.

Element 8 – Representativeness

  • Appointment processes are conducted without bias and do not create systemic barriers, to help achieve a public service that reflects the Canadian population it serves.

Element 9 – Access

  • Persons from across the country have a reasonable opportunity to apply, and to do so in the official language(s) of their choice, and be considered for public service employment.

Element 10 – Fairness

  • Decisions are made objectively and are free from political influence or personal favouritism; policies and practices reflect the just treatment of persons.
  • Persons have the right to be assessed in the official language(s) of their choice in an appointment process.

Element 11 – Transparency

  • Information about staffing strategies, decisions, policies and practices is communicated in an open and timely manner.

Indicators of progress for all above elements for:

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Date Modified:
2011-06-27