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Integrated planning guide

Archived information.

Archived information is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject à to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please contact us to request a format other than those available.

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Note : The integrated planning guidebook is an evergreen document.

Table of Contents

Introduction.

• Integrated planning environment
• Integrated planning in a delegated environment chart
• Management accountability framework

People component of the management accountability framework

Integrated planning calendar.

• Line manager’s guide to integrating HR and business planning
• Integrated human resources and business planning checklist
• Supplement to the integrated HR and planning checklist
• Access to public service demographic information
• Training in integrated planning
• Links to planning-related publications and web sites of interest
• Frequently asked questions
• Succession planning and management tool for senior managers
• Succession planning and management tool for senior managers checklist
• Succession planning and management tool for managers
• Succession planning and management tool
• Annex 1-Integrated planning: working through the five-step approach

Integrated planning is the foundation for assessing and understanding the current and future needs of departments, agencies and the Public Service as a whole.

Integrated planning is central to the successful implementation of the Public Service Modernization Act and to the promotion of healthy organizations that retain competent, committed and engaged employees across the Public Service.

Integrated planning is an important building block in continuously improving and building the human capacity of the Public Service to deliver services to Canadians (Results for Canadians). Integrated, rigorous planning can mitigate risks associated with aging workforces, tight labour markets, technological change, and so on. Integrated planning can help identify optimal strategies and activities for such important HR management components as recruitment, retention, learning, development, employee engagement, promotion, succession, employment equity and official languages.

Some departments and agencies are recognized as having taken innovative approaches to planning. Overall, however, there is widespread recognition at all levels of government that over the last ten years, the HR planning capacity across the Public Service of Canada has diminished. The time is right to rigorously rebuild capacity in HR planning. The need for sound integrated planning with business planning, has never been more important.

Why integrated planning?

• It aligns an organization’s workforce with the government’s priorities, and the organization’s mission, strategic plan and budgetary resources;
• It is central to the successful implementation of modern HR management as referenced in the Public Service Employment Act;
• It supports HR strategies (e.g. training, career development, organization design and classification) that are tailored to meet the current and future needs of the organization;
• It supports the achievement of business excellence by promoting initiatives to attract and retain an engaged, sustainable, competent and diverse workforce;
• It leads to a supportive workplace and continuous learning culture through planning efforts associated with both employee and organizational learning;
• It informs the development of business cases to justify resources identified through current and future HR needs analysis;
• It assists managers in realigning their workforce (e.g. reduction, expansion, change in business lines);
• It ultimately helps managers meet their responsibilities and accountabilities;
• It helps develop and ensure sustained, strong leadership across the Public Service; and
• It facilitates performance improvement and reporting through the development of performance measures, which is an important aspect of any planning-related

Defining HR planning

HR planning is defined as follows:

Human resources planning is a process that identifies current and future human resources needs for an organization to achieve its goals. Human resources planning should serve as a link between human resources management and the overall strategic plan of an organization.

Integrated planning principles

Some key principles of integrated planning are as follows:

• Planning takes place at all levels : Reflecting business needs and strong people management practices, rigorous, integrated HR and business planning takes place in all organizations and at all levels across the Public Service.
• Planning is information driven : Planning processes and decisions are based on factual and timely information on current and future needs (demographic data, environmental scans, employee feedback, labour market information, etc.).
• Planning identifies risks and challenges : Planning processes identify challenges and key risks in delivering on priorities, and outlines options to mitigate critical issues.
• Planning is transparent, values-based and well communicated : Plans are communicated to employees and stakeholders.
• Regular reporting on integrated planning takes place : Planning efforts and results are reported on annually by all organizations.
• Planning efforts are monitored, measured and evaluated : Processes are established in all organizations to monitor performance and progress in achieving HR objectives outlined in the integrated plan.

The integrated planning environment chart has been created to illustrate the links between the drivers, processes and tools that contribute to the development and implementation of integrated planning within the Public Service.

Section 1: Legislative base and other drivers of integrated planning

Legislative base.

The coming into force of the Accountability Act established a broad legislative context for Deputy Head accountabilities with regard to the performance of any assigned duties in relation to the administration of departments/agencies. Departmental administration includes the management of the organization’s human resources and part of that function involves integrated planning.

The legislative base for HR planning is the Financial Administration Act and the Public Service Employment Act contained in the Public Service Modernization Act . Other related Acts include the Employment Equity Act and Official Languages Act .

The Public Service Modernization Act (through the Financial Administration Act and the Public Service Employment Act ), clearly establishes the Employer’s responsibility to identify the current and future needs of the Public Service; to determine the human resource requirements of the Public Service; and to provide for the allocation and effective utilization of human resources within the Public Service – all of which are key to the integrated planning process.

For additional information visit the Public Service Modernizations Act on the Agency website.

Other drivers

Guidance for Deputy Ministers , an important document issued by the Clerk of the Privy Council, is intended to clarify how Deputy Ministers fulfill their role in the Government of Canada. The document sets out the key elements of responsible government as a backdrop for understanding the individual and collective responsibility and accountability of Ministers. It further sets out the responsibilities of Deputy Ministers and their accountabilities, including the management of human and financial resources.

Guidance for Deputy Ministers signals that, “Effective departmental management requires careful integration of human resources management planning with the planning of departmental activities.”

For additional information visit this guidance for deputy ministers link.

The Clerk’s Corporate Priorities reinforced the concept of integrated human resources and business planning, with one of the priorities relating to the implementation of the Public Service Modernization Act , including the strengthening of human resources planning.

For additional information visit this clerk’s priorities link.

The Auditor General’s Findings related to Human Resources Planning (1999 to Today) are also a driver that strongly identifies planning as a central function to the healthy management of an organization. It speaks to the lack of human resources planning in the entirety of the Public Service and more specifically, of the lack of efficiencies and effectiveness incurred by the lack of integrated planning.

The Management Accountability Framework flows from Results for Canadians and the Comptrollership Modernization initiative. It establishes the framework of accountability for Deputy Heads - also establishing a close link to the responsibilities and accountabilities of Deputy Ministers as defined in Guidance for Deputy Ministers - to ensure that the conditions for good management are set in place in order to achieve Results for Canadians. It includes performance measures and indicators for ten identified outcomes. One of the outcomes is the People Component which relates to the management of people, and aims at measuring an organization’s human resources capacity including having a workforce that is renewable and affordable over time - again emphasizing the need for good integrated planning and effective management of resources.

For additional information on the Management Accountability Framework, visit the Treasury Board Secretariat Web site: http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/maf-crg/index-eng.asp

The Staffing Management Accountability Framework comprises part of this accountability suite. It establishes the Deputy Minister’s accountabilities to the Public Service Commission with regard to staffing systems and delegated staffing authorities.

For additional information on the Staffing Management Accountability Framework, visit the Public Service Commission Web site: http://www.psc-cfp.gc.ca/plcy-pltq/frame-cadre/acco-resp/smaf-crgd-eng.htm

Together, the legislation and drivers described above set the direction for Deputy Heads and senior managers to inculcate good management practices through integrated planning in order to meet their corporate objectives.

Section 2: integrated planning principles and process

Six principles of integrated planning.

At the heart of integrated planning are the six guiding principles. These principles form the basis on which planning activities and processes are to be developed and implemented.

Based on the Six Principles of Integrated Planning, the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada has developed an integrated planning calendar . The Calendar illustrates a four-phase approach to aligning human resources and business lines to achieve integrated planning. It also provides approximate timeframes for each of the four phases.

Five-step approach to determining and building for current and future needs

A five-step approach to determining and building for current and future needs was also developed to guide organizations in their efforts to implement integrated planning. The Integrated Human Resources and Business Planning Checklist is a “how to” model, and provides some important questions for managers to consider as they develop their plans. More specifically, the five steps include:

• Step 1 determining your business goals;
• Step 2 analyzing your environment to see if you have the right mix and complement to meet your current and future needs;
• Step 3 assessing the gaps in your workforce - what are you missing from a human resources perspective in order for you to achieve your goals;
• Step 4 taking action and initiating strategies to close the gap and help obtain the required resources; and
• Step 5 reviewing, monitoring and measuring whether efforts were successful.

Together, the six principles, the planning calendar, and the five-step approach outlined above form the basis from which planning activities, tool and instruments should be derived.

Section 3: integrated planning tools

Having set in place the main elements of the integrated planning process, departments and agencies can then use a variety of instruments or tools to help them fulfill their operational requirements. The last section of the Integrated Planning Environment Chart outlines a number of tools that have been developed by the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada to assist departments with procedures leading to the formulation of integrated plans.

These tools are evergreen and complement the original Integrated Human Resources and Business Planning Tool Kit that was issued in November 2004. These tools are available for use by Deputy Ministers and Senior Managers, Managers and Human Resources professionals either as is, or for tailoring to specific departmental/agency needs.

Specifically, the tools include Integrated Planning – A Handbook for Deputy Ministers and Senior Managers, the Succession Planning and Management Tool, the Succession Planning and Management Tool for Senior Managers, and the Succession Planning and Management Tool for Managers. Also under development are Integrated Planning Templates ( refer to Annex 1 ), which will provide departments and agencies with easy to follow instructions in applying the five-step approach in their organizations. The tools noted above are available on the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada Web site.

Text Version

Integrated planning guidebook: integrated planning in a delegated environment chart

Overview of human resources planning process and the planning cycle.

See graphic version for the following content

Integrated Planning Calendar

• Discussing strategic direction: April - June
• Getting the priorities right: July - September
• Detailed work planning: October - December
• Reporting and readiness: January - March

Fiscal year 2 , implement steps 1 to 4 and begin new planning cycle

Fiscal year 3 , report on previous fiscal year, implement year 2 plan, and begin new planning cycle

Responsibilities of key partners in effective planning

• Align priorities
• Share information
• Proactively inform HR of risks
• Plan resource allocation ($ and people)
• Integrate HR into business planning

Human resources

• Proactively advise management on HR issues, risks, decisions and policies
• Provide HR tools to managers
• Support efforts to mitigate risks

Corporate planners

• Guide/facilitate planning process (RPP/DPR)
• Communicate approaches to planning
• Include HR requirements in relevant call letters to branches/regions

Integrated Human Resources and Business Planning Checklist

A five-step approach to determining and building for current and future needs

The following steps are widely recognized as key to integrating HR and business planning. They reflect national and international research into the practices of leading public and private sector employers.

Moreover, they have been validated in the PS by way of extensive consultation across the country with stakeholders. Line managers, HR professionals, bargaining agent representatives, as well as functional community representatives and other stakeholders all contributed to this model.

STEP ONE: Determine your business goals

A solid understanding of your business goals is critical for integrated planning. Ask the following questions:

• What are your key goals and deliverables for the next fiscal year?
• Do you foresee any changes in direction that might have an impact on your business goals or HR requirements?
• Who are the strategic partners you need to work with to achieve your goals?

For additional information on step one, have a look at the document entitled “ Supplement to the Integrated Human Resources and Business Planning Checklist ”.

STEP TWO: Scan the environment

A) workforce analysis.

A key component of HR planning is understanding your workforce and planning for projected shortages and surpluses in specific occupations and skill sets. By way of example, has the following workforce information been analyzed for various occupational categories in your team?

• Demographics and employment characteristics (eligibility for retirement, vacancy rates, turnover rates, internal staff mobility such as deployments, promotions, secondments)
• Skills/competencies (e.g. training/learning data, performance management data, language competencies?)

B) Internal Scan

It is important for line managers to identify factors internal to the organization that may affect the HR capacity of their teams with regard to meeting projected goals.

• Have you considered, for example…
• Potential changes in program and/or service delivery
• Management-union relations that might affect your team
• Anticipated changes to funding levels
• Changes in leadership & priorities
• Client satisfaction

C) External Scan

Are external environmental factors expected to affect workforce capacity, given known operational and HR priorities and emerging issues.

Have you considered, for example

• Demand and supply of employees with the skills you need
• Sources of recruitment

STEP THREE: Conduct a gap analysis

Based on an analysis of your business goals, as well as your understanding of environmental issues and your workforce, what do you see as your key current and future HR needs?

Examples of Considerations:

• Do you have any immediate hiring needs?
• Based on projections, do you foresee a skills shortage in specific occupational groups on your team?
• Will changes in program delivery require the acquisition of new skills on your team?
• Do you have enough qualified people on your team ready to fill key vacancies in the event of unexpected departures? If not, are you aware of where you can go to attract the right people?
• Have official language and employment equity obligations been met?
• Have you conducted a risk assessment on HR issues critical to your team's success?

STEP FOUR: Set HR priorities to help achieve goals

Based on the organization's goals, environmental scan and gap analysis: 1) What are the major HR priorities; and 2) What strategies will achieve the desired outcomes? Work plans may include strategies on:

Recruitment/ Staffing, Mobility/Redeployment, Employment Equity, Official Languages training, Training and Development, Corporate knowledge Retention and sharing and Workplace well-being

STEP FIVE: Measure, Monitor and Report on Progress

Measuring, monitoring and reporting is key to assessing progress.

• Does your team have clear and measurable HR-related goals?
• Are the HR performance measures aligned with indicators in the TBS Management Accountability Framework?
• Do you have a mechanism to track performance outcomes?

Determine your business goals

A solid understanding of organizational priorities and the business planning cycle is critical for effective alignment of human resources (HR) and business goals. As you begin your integrated HR and business planning, ask the following questions:

• What are the government's key priorities (e.g. Clerk's priorities, Speech from the Throne)?
• What are your organization's ongoing HR and business priorities?
• Have you reviewed the call letter on the Report on Plans and Priorities and the Departmental Performance Report?
• What emerging directions and changes will have an impact on HR issues?
• What legislative reforms relevant to your mandate need to be considered (e.g. HR modernization)?
• Have all necessary strategic partnerships been established to facilitate your integrated HR and business planning efforts (e.g. corporate or program sector)?
• Are you developing your plan in consideration of accountability requirements and HR supporting material (e.g. TBS Management Accountability Framework, People Component of the Management Accountability Framework, the Integrated HR and Business Planning Calendar)?

Scan the environment

Workforce analysis.

A key component of integrated planning is understanding your workforce and planning for projected shortages and surpluses in specific occupations and skills sets.

Has the following employment information been analyzed for various occupational categories or functional communities?

• Demographics and employment characteristics (e.g. employment equity (EE) designated groups, official languages (OL), age profile, average age of retirement, and years of service, employment type, leave usage, reasons for leaving, absenteeism, grievances, use of Employee Assistance Program)
• Skills/competencies (e.g. training/learning data, performance management data, language competencies)?
• Internal workforce trends (e.g. eligibility for retirement, vacancy rates, turnover rates, internal staff mobility such as deployments, promotions, secondments)

Internal Scan

Identify factors internal to the organization that may affect HR capacity to meet organizational goals. Have you considered…?

• Changes in legislation, policy platform, program delivery
• Labour management relations
• Changes to collective agreements
• Employee engagement
• HR Initiatives (e.g. EE)
• Organizational re-structuring
• Corporate culture change
• Capacity and quality of information systems
• Health and Safety

External Scan

Determine the most important environmental factors expected to affect workforce capacity, given known operational and HR priorities and emerging issues. Have you considered…?

• Current workforce trends (e.g. retirement patterns, growing occupations)
• Demand and supply of employees in growing occupations
• Current and projected economic conditions
• Technological advancements which may make certain occupational positions obsolete or create new employment
• International policies that may affect your workforce capacity
• Immigration and/or regional migration patterns that may affect your workforce capacity
• Federal, provincial, regional realities

Examples of Considerations

• Have you considered your contingent workforce in your workforce analysis (e.g. casuals, students)?
• Have you consulted documents such as audit reports, employee survey findings, HR annual reports (e.g. OL, EE, staffing), Departmental Performance Report, Report on Plans and Priorities, etc?
• Have you checked with functional community secretariats for information relevant to your department/agency?

Conduct a gap analysis

Based on an analysis of the environmental scan and business goals, what are the organization's current and future HR needs?

• Based on projections, do you foresee a skills shortage in specific occupational groups?
• Will changes in program delivery require the acquisition of new skills?
• Do you have enough qualified middle managers to feed into the EX group?
• Have OL and EE obligations been met?
• Have you conducted a risk assessment on elements of the scan critical to your organization's success (i.e. probability of occurrence and their projected impact)?

Set HR priorities to help achieve business goals

• Recruitment/Staffing
• Mobility/Redeployment
• Classification/Organizational Design
• Change Management
• Systems Capacity
• Leadership Development
• Learning, Training and Development
• Performance Management
• Competency/Skills Development
• Succession Planning and Management and Contingency Plans
• Corporate Knowledge Retention
• HR Planning
• Employee Engagement
• Reward and Recognition
• Workplace Well-being
• Workplace Accommodation
• Labour Management Relations
• Values and Ethics
• Organizational Development
• Disability Management
• Are the HR priorities and key planning issues included as part of the Report on Plans & Priorities?
• Are budgetary considerations factored into the work plan/strategy?
• Is it possible to leverage expertise through partnerships with other organizations (e.g. Federal Regional Councils, Functional Community Secretariats)?
• Are you incorporating the research from “promising practices” into your work plan/strategy?
• Are you taking advantage of your departmental/agency staffing program and tools?
• Is the work plan/strategy being cascaded to organizational units?
• Are strategies effective and efficient in achieving objectives?

Measure, monitor and report on progress

Measuring, monitoring and reporting HR performance outcomes is key to assessing progress in target areas, organizational learning and improvement and determining future priorities.

• Does the organization have clear and measurable HR-related goals?
• Are the HR performance measures aligned with indicators in the TBS Management Accountability Framework and the People Component of the Management Accountability Framework?
• Are systems in place to track performance indicators and analyze cost benefit?
• Do results from your performance indicators inform your priority setting for the next fiscal year?
• Does your Departmental Performance Report include a section on the degree of success of your integrated planning and management-related efforts?
• Have you analyzed data elements that are included under formal reporting requirements (e.g. EE, OL)?

STEP 1 - determine your business goals

A solid understanding of organizational priorities and the business planning cycle is critical for effective alignment of human resources and business goals. As you begin your integrated HR and business planning, ask the following questions:

• What are the government’s key priorities (e.g. Clerk’s priorities, Speech from the Throne)?
• What are your organization’s ongoing HR and business priorities?
• Are you developing your plan taking into consideration the accountability requirements and HR supporting material (e.g. Treasury Board Secretariat Management Accountability Framework, People Component of the Management Accountability Framework, the Integrated HR and Business Planning Calendar)?

In this step, managers review business objectives in light of any issues likely to impact the business (e.g. government priorities, legislative reform, etc). As key input to the process, HR provides information regarding legislative and/or labour market data affecting the workforce.

In order to assess whether there is sufficient capacity (including skills, competencies and resources) to deliver on the business, it is first necessary to have a clear understanding of where the organization/region/branch is headed. In addition to knowing the strategic priorities at both the organization and branch/regional level, it is important to take into consideration government-wide priorities (e.g. Speech from the Throne, Clerk’s priorities) since they may well have an influence on the business priorities.

Supporting points to consider in determining your business goals

• What are your vision and goals for your branch/region/directorate/unit?
• Clerk’s priorities;
• Speech from the Throne;
• Department/Agency’s priorities;
• Your mandate;
• The performance agreement of your manager?
• What emerging directions and/or changes to your business will have an impact on HR issues?
• What impact will your vision and goals have on your finance, HR and information technology needs?

Additional information:

• The organization’s strategic direction, mission and objectives are typically found on the organization’s intranet site.
• The Clerk’s priorities
• The Speech from the Throne
• The Treasury Board Secretariat Management Accountability Framework

STEP 2 - scan the environment

Workforce analysis.

A key component of planning is understanding your workforce and planning for projected shortages and surpluses in specific occupations and skill sets. Workforce analysis is an important element in the planning process. This section of the kit discusses nine areas that managers may consider in an effort to better understand their workforce.

• Skills and competencies
• Learning, training and development
• Employment type and resourcing
• Organization structure
• Employment equity
• Official languages
• Workplace well-being
• Values and ethics

Analysis in these areas can include both quantitative and qualitative data.

A discussion of each of these areas follows.

A) Skills and competencies

The skills and competencies of the workforce (or team) are important contributing factors to organizational capacity. Key terms used to define an organization's capability are “competencies” and “skills”.

Competence is a combination of knowledge, skill, understanding, ability, application, behaviour, aptitude, attitude and performance. Skill is the practised application of a topic, technique or concept.

Information on skills and competencies could include the education profile of employees (e.g. major field of study, degree attained) and the skills, competency levels and learning/development required.

Questions to consider:

• Have you developed a profile of the knowledge, skills and competencies that you will need to achieve your business objectives, now and in the future?
• Based on the skill requirements of your key positions, do you have/foresee any gaps and if so, is there an appropriate course of action from a readiness perspective?
• Do you know what the skills and competencies are of key feeder groups?
• Do the employees have the tools to self-assess against the competencies of their positions?
• Do the members of your team meet the language requirements? Are the results accurate and are any changes foreseen?
• Am I using performance management and employee learning plans to the greatest extent possible in support of skills and competencies development?

Additional sources of information:

To obtain additional sources of information for the following documents, visit the Canada Public Service Agency Web site:

• Training, Learning and Development
• Key Leadership Competencies

The Public Service Commission Web site has several articles and publications on skills and competencies. Use the search engine and type in competencies for a full listing: http://www.psc-cfp.gc.ca .

Your departmental/agency staffing program and supporting tools.

B) Training, learning and development

Training, learning and development can be important tools in ensuring effective integration of HR and business planning.

The Government established a Policy on Learning, Training and Development (which, on January 1, 2006, replaced the Policy for Continuous Learning in the Public Service). The objective of the policy is stated as follows: “…to help build a skilled, well-trained and professional workforce; to strengthen organizational leadership; and to adopt leading-edge management practices to encourage innovation and continuous improvements in performance.”

The Public Service Learning Policy Centre has identified core learning needs and requirements through the establishment of a Library of Common Knowledge for managers of the Public Service. It covers the ten key elements of the Management Accountability Framework and supports the objectives of ensuring a highly competent, bilingual, and representative Public Service. The Library has served as a solid foundation for the curriculum review undertaken by the Canada School of Public Service.

• As part of the integrated planning process, and based on the priorities/business objectives, what are the training, learning and development requirements of your team?
• Are employees’ training, learning and development requirements taken into account in light of anticipated changes to programs and/or services?
• Do members of your team have up-to-date learning plans that identify current and future training, learning and development needs and are they reviewed regularly?
• Are employees’ training, learning and development requirements discussed during employee performance reviews?
• What are the planned efforts towards fostering a continuous learning culture?
• How are you supporting the career goals of your team members?
• Have you made budget provisions to meet the training, learning and development needs of employees as well as their career goals?
• What are the completion rates of the team learning plans?
• What is the impact of the training, development and learning on performance and results?

Consult your internal learning specialist for information on training, learning and development options (e.g. employee orientation, courses).

• Policy on learning, training, and development
• Campus direct

C) Employment type and resourcing

Employment type distribution (e.g. term, indeterminate, casual, etc.) gives you important information on the stability and sustainability of your workforce and can help inform short and long-term staffing decisions and actions that may be required.

Examples of employment type:

Term employment (less than and greater than three months); indeterminate employment (full time and part time); sunset; casual; seasonal; assignment; interchange; secondment; development programs (e.g. Career Assignment Program, Management Trainee Program); other (students, co-ops, Financial Officer Recruitment Development Program, etc.)

• How stable and sustainable is your workforce? What is the split between term and indeterminate employees?
• How many acting assignments do you have in place and what are the lengths of those assignments?
• How many term employees will soon be eligible for conversion to indeterminate status?
• Are the term employees clustered in a particular occupational group?
• What are the staffing practices with respect to term employment?
• What impact do the staffing practices have on organizational health and employee morale?
• Is there an equal dispersion of ages at the various employment levels?
• What are your current and projected (mid- and long-term) vacancies (e.g. retirements, maternity/parental leave, disability leave, language training)?
• What recruitment sources and staffing processes are you using to hire new employees (e.g. pre-qualified pools, apprenticeship programs)? Are there other avenues for you to explore?
• Is there/will there be a sufficient pool of candidates, including bilingual candidates, from within to fill these vacancies? If not, how do you anticipate filling the vacancies? Is there a sufficient pool of potential candidates external to your organization? Do you need a succession plan?
• What resourcing strategies will best meet your current and future needs?

D) Separation

The literature suggests some organizations have used an annual attrition assumption of 4.5% as normal. Of course, this varies depending on the size and nature of your organization, hiring freezes, downsizing, restructuring and economic and political changes.

Attrition that exceeds normal patterns can result in unnecessary costs to the employer from lost productivity, workload related to staffing positions, training for new employees, etc. Answering some of the questions outlined below should help you develop plans for stabilizing and sustaining staffing levels, inform succession plans, and focus your training, learning and development.

• Are there certain occupational groups with increasing employee attrition?
• Which occupational groups have high levels of attrition?
• Do you know why employees are leaving (e.g. results from exit interviews)?
• Can the factors influencing attrition be identified? Alternatively, is there anything you can do to influence the attrition rate?
• Has attrition reduced capacity in a certain occupational group?
• Will your organizational structure require changes to recruit qualified replacements?

Federal Public Service Employment Statistics

E) organizational structure.

The Deputy Head or Chief Executive Officer is responsible for ensuring that the organizational structure in their department or agency is appropriate for the delivery of the departmental or agency program. The structure is formed by organizing work into functionally related units, such as branches, sectors, and divisions.

Within these branches, sectors, divisions and so on, managers design their own organizational structures, and organize and assign the work to the positions in the structure. The manager describes the work of each position in a work description, which is allocated to an occupational group and evaluated, using the appropriate classification standard, to determine its classification level.

Appropriate decisions on organization design and the assignment of work are all part of sound HR management. These decisions affect the long-term ability of departments and agencies to deliver programs and services, and to compete for resources and retain competent staff.

Managers are accountable for assigning or reassigning work in a timely and systematic manner and for analyzing the short- and long-term consequences of their decisions, within the context of effective integrated planning; otherwise, these decisions could inadvertently change the level of positions, impact on career mobility and employee productivity and/or increase the cost of the Public Service. In addition, being unaware of the impacts or waiting too long to take action could result in considerable salary liability for the department, and in some cases, the entire Public Service.

• Does the organizational structure meet your operational needs now and in the foreseeable future? Is there a need for a change?
• Can your current organizational structure support anticipated changes in program delivery?
• Is all the work performed in your unit clearly and explicitly identified?
• Does all the work performed in your unit facilitate the achievement of your business objectives?
• Are the functions of each unit within the organizational structure clearly established? Are they evenly distributed?
• Are the lines of authority and accountabilities clearly indicated so that overlap and duplication of effort are avoided?
• Is each manager’s span of control reasonable?
• Does your resource allocation and your organizational design mesh effectively and efficiently? Is a more efficient and effective organizational design possible?
• Does the number of levels in your unit permit you to manage effectively?
• Is the allocation of work effective and balanced? Is the workload evenly distributed?
• Are services provided to your unit at the appropriate level in your organizational structure (e.g. administrative services)?
• Are existing work descriptions and organizational charts accurate, up-to-date?
• Are work descriptions free of gender bias?
• Do all titles designate the work performed by that job clearly, and explicitly?
• Does your organization allow you to recruit and train new employees as needed (levels, work descriptions, institutional linguistic capacity)?
• Does your organizational structure allow for career progression?
• Organizational Authority and Classification of Executive Group Positions
• Management Category – Position Description Writing Manual
• Executive Group Position Evaluation Plan
• Classification System and Delegation of Authority Policy
• Classification System and Delegation of Authority Policy Guidelines

During your re-organization efforts, involve classification advisors at the front end so they can highlight organizational impacts.

F) Employment equity

The purpose of the Employment Equity Act is to correct conditions of disadvantage in employment faced by Aboriginal persons, members of visible minorities, persons with disabilities and women by removing barriers to employment and using positive measures. Departments and agencies are required by the Employment Equity Act to conduct a workforce analysis and develop an Employment Equity plan to address under-representation of designated group members. It is recommended that you review the departmental Employment Equity plan. Your own plan should in turn reflect the department’s or agency’s Employment Equity goals as highlighted in the departmental Employment Equity plan.

The data you receive on Aboriginal persons, visible minorities and persons with disabilities are based on those employees who have self-identified. Information on women is retrieved from the pay system. Employment Equity data covers all indeterminate employees, employees with terms of three months or more and seasonal employees.

As a manager, you will want to use this information to assess designated group representation in different employment categories and levels, set goals and monitor progress in reaching those goals.

• Are designated group members well represented at senior levels and at all levels in all employment categories? (Note: Representation should be measured against workforce availability and should be compared to the department’s national targets.)
• How stable is the representation? For example, what percentage of designated group members are term employees?
• What percentage of designated group members are eligible to retire over the next five years?
• What are the separation rates of designated group members versus the recruitment rate?
• Does your plan address corporate priorities for building a representative and inclusive institution, such as implementation of the Embracing Change Action Plan?
• Does your plan address the results of the departmental Employment Equity audit conducted by the Canadian Human Rights Commission?
• The workforce analysis under the Employment Equity Act is designed to identify areas of under-representation of designated group members in the department’s or agency’s workforce (gaps). Does your plan incorporate Employment Equity considerations/requirements and identify ways to address gaps in participation?
• Is Employment Equity a factor in any proposed recruitment or development programs? For example, what selection/advertising/recruitment and development processes (e.g. pre-qualified pools) will be used to increase representation of designated group members?
• Are there plans for outreach activities to reach designated groups and achieve Employment Equity goals?
• Does your plan include measures and costs to accommodate employees in accordance with the Canadian Human Rights Act and the policy on the Duty to Accommodate?

Check your departmental/agency Employment Equity plan for additional information, your branch Employment Equity workforce analysis as well as the Canada Public Service Agency Web site:

• Canada Public Service Agency Employment Equity site
• Public Service Commission Statistical Information site
• Canadian Human Rights Act
• Duty to accommodate
• Frequently asked questions and answers - Duty to accomodate

If there is an under-representation, you may want to include in the plan the measures you will take to close the representation gap.

G) Official languages

Equal opportunities: Members of both official language groups have equal opportunities to obtain employment and advancement in federal institutions.

Workforce composition: The composition of the workforce of federal institutions tends to reflect the presence of both the official language communities of Canada.

Language skills: English and French are the official languages of federal institutions. Members of the public have the right to communicate with federal institutions and receive services from them in their preferred official language at designated offices. In regions designated as bilingual for language-of-work purposes, both official languages are the languages of work. In other regions, the language of work is generally the one that predominates in the province or territory.

As a manager in a designated bilingual office for service to the public, it is important that you identify and maintain the necessary language capacity to provide quality services in both official languages.

As a manager in bilingual regions for language-of-work purposes, it is important that you create and maintain a work environment conducive to the use of both official languages, and ensure that employees can exercise their right to choose either language as it pertains to supervision, training, tools, meetings, documents, or personal and central services.

• Do English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians have equal opportunities to obtain employment and promotion within the institution?
• Are English- and French-speaking Canadians well represented at senior levels and at all levels in all employment categories? How stable is the representation?
• What percentage of members of each official language group are eligible to retire over the next five years?
• Are there enough bilingual positions with the right language requirements to provide good service to the public in both official languages, and to respect language-of-work rights?
• Do the employees meet the language requirements of their positions?
• Have you made budget provisions to meet the language training needs of employees?
• Do the personal language training plans of employees address current and future language skill requirements and career aspirations?
• What is the impact on organizational performance?

Canada Public Service Agency's Official Languages site

H) Workplace well-being

Organizations that create an “HR dashboard” to monitor key indicators of workplace well-being and employee engagement are better equipped to develop integrated HR and business plans that contain meaningful actions aimed at specific areas of improvement. Employee engagement lies at the heart of both performance and retention; it is based on job satisfaction and rational and emotional commitment to the workplace. It is therefore important to develop both objective (quantitative) and subjective (qualitative) indicators to allow organizations to have a full picture of how “well” they are doing.

Workplace well-being is a holistic approach to creating high performance organizations through establishing the right workplace conditions to generate high levels of employee engagement. It assumes that achieving high levels of organizational performance depends on employees who are strongly committed to achieving the goals of the organization and who show this through their actions. This behavioural objective is influenced in turn by levels of employee satisfaction and by supportive, respectful and healthy work environments. Workplace Well-Being is connected to physical health and wellness but primarily emphasizes the social and psychological dimensions of three inter-related elements: the workplace, the workforce, and the work people do.

• What is the state of employee engagement and how willing are employees to strive to achieve the results at which the organization aims?
• What drives employees' decisions to volunteer extra effort on the job?
• How committed are employees to their job, team, manager and organization?
• What is the level of job satisfaction and how does it influence employee commitment?
• Are managers evaluated for how well they lead their team?
• Does your organization have a way to set targets for employee engagement and workplace well-being, track improvements and hold managers accountable?
• What is done to facilitate employee career development and a meaningful work/job fit?
• How well is workload managed?
• Number and nature of conflicts, time resolved and trends?
• What are the unscheduled absenteeism and long-term disability rates and trends?
• What are the leave and Employee Assistance Program utilization rates and trends?
• What are the number of Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) claims filed and WSIB premiums paid/trends?
• What is the return to work success rate/trend?
• What workplace arrangements are in place (e.g. part time, compressed, telework, accommodation of Employment Equity designated group members) and how successful are they?
• Is the workplace (in bilingual regions) conducive to the use of both official languages?
• Is there sufficient infrastructure in place (e.g. equipment, office space, technical aids, employees returning from long-term disability leave) to accommodate all employees in your unit?
• Departmental public service employee survey results (1999, 2002 and 2005)
• Leave - policies and publications
• Report of the survey follow-up action advisory committee: maintaining momentum
• A managers guide to workplace well-being
• Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat workplace well-being policies and publications

I) Values and Ethics

Enhancing and maintaining public trust in the institutions of government is a fundamental element of the work of the Public Service of Canada. Managers have a key role in ensuring that all their responsibilities – whether for people, money or programs – are carried out in such a way that the values of the Public Service are upheld, and that all employees maintain high ethical standards in their actions and decisions.

To guide public servants in upholding the organization’s values and to foster public confidence, the Treasury Board adopted the Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service (the Code) in September 2003. It is a condition of employment in the Public Service. It contains a statement of Public Service values and ethics, developed following extensive consultation with public servants, which highlights four fundamental families of values: democratic, professional, ethical and people values. The Code also contains conflict of interest and post-employment measures, and provides avenues of resolution if there are perceived breaches to the Code or in cases of disagreement about its interpretation. Deputy heads are accountable for ensuring the Code is implemented in their organizations, and for decisions made under the Code. Managers will need to familiarize themselves with this and other related, important policies such as the Policy on the Internal Disclosure of Information Concerning Wrongdoing in the Workplace (IDP) and the Policy on the Prevention and Resolution of Harassment in the Workplace, as part of their own responsibilities to provide sound ethical advice and guidance to employees.

Managers, whose responsibility it is to exemplify Public Service values, must strive to create and maintain a work environment that encourages dialogue on organizational values and on the ethical dilemmas unique to their operations. As part of their planning, managers are encouraged to assess employees’ level of awareness and understanding of the Code and related policies, as well as the extent to which staff feel the Code is upheld and their degree of comfort in raising concerns or ethical dilemmas within the organization. Managers should also contact the senior official responsible for the Code within their department or agency to familiarize themselves with the organizational plan of action on values and ethics or for help determining appropriate initiatives for their own work units.

• Are all employees aware of the existence of the Code and other related policies? Do they know that the Code is a condition of employment? How do you know whether they know? What assessment instruments or procedures are in place?
• What do you or your organization have in place to ensure new employees are aware of the Code and its significance to them as public servants? Is the Code integrated into all orientation materials, procedures and events for new employees?
• Do employees perceive that the organization’s values are practiced and standards are applied fairly to everyone? How do you know? Do you have mechanisms or procedures to obtain staff feedback on organizational performance against Public Service values and ethics?
• Do you have sound advisory and recourse mechanisms in place, where employees can receive advice on ethical dilemmas or where they can make disclosures about such things as wrongdoing or harassment in the workplace?
• Are employees comfortable raising ethical dilemmas or making disclosures within your organization? Do they know what mechanisms exist and whom to approach within the organization when they are faced with an ethical dilemma? Are they comfortable coming to you? How do you know? What measures are in place to assess staff awareness and comfort?
• What initiatives could be undertaken within your branch and/or the organization to assess awareness of Public Service values and ethics and perceptions of values and ethics in the workplace?
• Does your organization supplement the Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service with its own customized code or guidelines, reflecting the specific challenges and dilemmas of your workplace? If not, why not?
• What measures could be taken to increase familiarity and understanding of the Code and related policies among employees? What orientation, learning and other tools are in place?
• What do you personally do as a manager to strengthen Public Service values and ethics as a reality of practice and behaviour in your organization? How do you measure progress?
• Does your organization set targets and measure progress for workplace well-being, including such things as employee satisfaction and commitment?
• As a manager, are you familiar with the Code, including its objectives, and are you ready to help others better understand and apply its principles in their daily work? Are you confident that your behaviour and conduct would be seen by your colleagues and employees as embodying Public Service values and ethics? How do you know? What assessment procedures or techniques do you use?
• Are you aware of the information sources and tools that exist to help you in these responsibilities?
• Do you have a branch action plan that fits in with the organizational plan? Does your plan include a series of goal levels, planned follow-up and mechanisms to measure actual results in values and ethics, including from the point of view of stakeholders and employees?
• Office of Public Service Values and Ethics
• Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service
• Interpretation Guide to the Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service
• Senior officials for public service values and ethics
• Policy on the Internal Disclosure of information concerning wrongdoing in the workplace
• Departmental / agency senior officer for internal disclosure
• Public Sector Integrity Canada
• Policy on the prevention and resolution of harassment in the workplace
• Harassment prevention tool: people to people communication
• Departmental / agency anti-harassment policy coordinator
• Integrated Risk Management Framework

Work with the senior official for the Code in your department or agency to further integration initiatives, including employee surveys, branch meetings, retreats, etc.

Undertake dialogue with management and other colleagues to compare experiences and brainstorm ideas for initiatives with potential long-term positive effects.

Review and become familiar with the departmental/agency values and ethics integration plan

STEP 3 – conduct a gap analysis

Based on an analysis of the environmental scan and business goals, what are the organization’s current and future HR needs?

Examples of considerations:

• Have Official Languages and Employment Equity obligations been met?
• Have you conducted a risk assessment on elements of the scan critical to your organization’s success (i.e. probability of occurrence and their projected impact)?

Supporting points to consider in the gap analysis

• At this point, you will have completed Step 2 and have an analysis of those areas that are having an impact on the HR capacity to deliver on your business objectives. This may include how your branch/region/directorate/unit is designed, the people you have to do the work, the necessary skills and competencies, the workplace (equipment, tools, etc.) to get the job done and the cost implications.
• At this stage in the planning process, you will want to conduct a gap analysis of the shortages and surpluses, identify the gap(s) and determine the extent of the impact/risk. You may want to review your department’s or agency’s corporate risk profile for additional information on key risk areas, risk tolerance of stakeholders, etc.
• You can use the worksheet below to assist in this exercise or use any other process to support you.

STEP 4 – set HR priorities to help achieve business goals

Based on the organization’s goals, environmental scan and gap analysis:

• What are the major HR priorities?
• What strategies will achieve the desired outcomes?

Work plans may include strategies on:

Recruitment/Staffing, Retention, Mobility/Redeployment, Employment Equity, Official Languages, Classification/Organizational Design, Change Management, Systems Capacity, Leadership Development, Learning, Training and Development, Performance Management, Competency/Skills Development, Succession and Contingency Planning, Corporate Knowledge Retention, Health and Safety, HR Planning, Employee Engagement, Reward and Recognition, Workplace Well-being, Workplace Accommodation, Labour Management Relations, Values and Ethics, Organizational Development, Disability Management

• Are you incorporating the research from “promising practices” into your work plan/strategy?

Supporting points to consider in priority setting and strategy development

It is now time to prioritize the gaps based on the relative importance of carrying out your programs/activities and/or business objectives.

• As part of integrating human resources with business planning, when describing the business objectives, you may want to include the HR strategies and explain how their implementation will be funded and how they will achieve the results.
• consulting with HR, business planners, unions, clients, and employees;
• capitalizing on knowledge gained in “best practice” research, as well as exemplary practices used in other departments and agencies. You can find out what other departments and agencies are doing to improve HR management by reviewing the most recent publication of Promising Human Resources Practices in Times of Change – 5th edition . There may be strategies that can be easily adapted to meet your needs;
• working horizontally and developing partnerships with other branches/regions, councils, networks;
• “right sizing” the plan and covering only those areas where it can have a significant impact (Keep it Simple!); and
• consulting your department’s or agency’s staffing program and supporting tools.

N.B. When setting HR priorities and strategies, it is important to introduce an integrated risk management approach to the process. For more information, please visit the Treasury Board Secretariat Web site:

Federal Regional Councils have good examples of carrying out horizontal initiatives. For example, under the mandate of the Quebec Regional Council, the Quebec Region Interdepartmental Committee of HR Directors has developed a horizontal approach to developing HR initiatives. For additional information, please visit the Federal Regional Council site at http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/fcer-cfre/index-eng.asp

STEP 5 – measure, monitor and report on progress

• Are the HR performance measures aligned with indicators in the Treasury Board Secretariat Management Accountability Framework and the People Component of the Management Accountability Framework?
• Have you analyzed data elements that are included under formal reporting requirements (e.g. Employment Equity, Official Languages)?

Supporting points to consider for measuring, monitoring and reporting

• The ability to measure progress on priority areas is critical to continuous organizational improvement.
• Results from program performance-related data can assist in the determination of future priorities and inform decisions on the allocation of resources, as well as decisions regarding the continuation of programs and activities. Performance-related data can be at the Public Service-wide, departmental and/or local level.
• The plan should be considered a "living document" and be subject to review. If an organization/region/branch/unit does not regularly review its planning efforts, it runs the risk of failing to respond to unanticipated changes or changing circumstances.

Consequently, you may wish to establish a process that allows for a regular review of planning efforts in order to:

• review performance measurement information;
• assess what is working and what is not working;
• adjust the plan as necessary and advise your senior managers accordingly; and
• address new HR issues that occur.

The following considerations support the questions outlined above in the Checklist and may help determine whether or not your plan needs revisions (Note: Most of these questions will become relevant after you are fairly far along in implementing your strategies.)

• Is the plan accomplishing what is needed? For example, are the people, skills and jobs appropriate to ensure that your objectives can be achieved in the short-term, medium-term and long-term?
• How are you evaluating your progress against your timelines and milestones?
• Have conditions changed such that strategies need to be revisited?
• Are the assumptions used in both the current and future needs analysis still valid?
• What is working well? What is not?
• What adjustments to the plan will be made, and how will you communicate any changes to your stakeholders (where required), or alternatively, how will you involve them in the process?
• Are you gathering the information you need to determine priorities and meet formal reporting requirements?

In deciding on what to measure, it is important to consider:

• the effectiveness of HR activities in supporting the achievement of key business objectives;
• indicators in the Management Accountability Framework and the People Component of the Management Accountability Framework;
• formal reporting requirements (Employment Equity, Official Languages);
• published research on HR metrics.

Demographic information is a key component in the integrated planning process. The links provided below on demographics are intended to serve as a support to your department’s or agency’s planning efforts. It is recognized that many organizations already have procedures in place to capture demographic information.

The following information can be found on-line on the Canada Public Service Agency website

The Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada provides on-line access to a range of information on employment in the Public Service. The site contains aggregate, statistical data relating to departments and agencies.

• This Canada Public Service Agency site provides a repository of information devoted to demographic analysis.
• The Public Service Commission annual reports provide information on the health of the PS staffing system and provide assessments of the staffing performance of departments and agencies that are governed by the current Public Service Employment Act.
• The Employment Equity annual reports provide statistical highlights on Employment Equity designated group members across the Public Service.
• The Census of Population provides information on population and dwelling counts not only for Canada, as a whole, but also for each province and territory, and for smaller geographic units such as cities or districts within cities. The census also provides information about Canada’s demographic, social and economic characteristics.
• This site provides facts and figures about the labour market.
• The PSC Statistical Information Site is called the statistical “Cube” because of its ability to drill down and sideways simultaneously, allowing for more precise data analysis. The “Cube” will help departments and agencies in preparing various types of reports, such as departmental trends in hiring and staffing activities and in making comparisons between HR activities in departments and agencies.

Public Service Commission role:

• Official reporter of hiring and staffing activities data and Employment Equity data related to staffing activities (recruitment, promotions, lateral and downward movements, etc.).

Target audience:

• Departments and agencies that staff under the Public Service Employment Act.

Contents of the statistical tool:

• Data : Hiring and staffing activities - Hiring of casuals - Hiring of students
• Definition and notes : Glossary – Department and agency acronyms and description - Occupational groups and description
• Variable list : List of variables available in the tools.
• Related links
• Tutorial : The “Tutorial” located on the side bar, will provide you with sufficient information to use this tool with ease and to start creating your own reports.

The Canada School of the Public Service offers key courses to departments, agencies and central agencies on integrated planning.

P100 Integrated Planning and HR Management is currently being revised. This course takes the “essentials” of PSMA one step further by helping managers and HR professionals learn how to integrate HR and business planning, the Management Accountability Framework and Modern Comptrollership.

The CSPS also offers a dedicated four-day course: P702 Human Resources Planning . The course provides participants with the fundamentals of this important discipline within the federal Public Service context. Participants have the opportunity to learn and practice using the basic tools needed to provide advice and service in this field.

Content : Human Resources Planning (P702)

• vision of HR management in the federal Public Service
• the Management Accountability Framework and planning cycle of the Treasury Board Secretariat
• analysis of the environment, the organization and the workforce
• techniques for data collection and analysis
• gap analysis
• development of HR planning proposals and recommendations

Location : HR planning courses are offered in regions and in the National Capital Region.

Typical participants : HR professionals new to HR planning and those who may be asked to provide advice and guidance to managers on this topic.

Access the course description and register for the HR planning course via the Canada School of the Public Service Web site.

Canada School of Public Service : www.myschool- monecole .gc.ca

These publications can be found on-line on the Government of Canada Web site: http://canada.gc.ca/home.html

Government of Canada:

• Treasury Board Secretariat Management Accountability Framework
• Guidance for deputy ministers
• Annual reports of the Auditor General of Canada
• Public Service Commission 2006-2007 annual report
• Human Resources Management: overview of HR planning – all employers
• General information about the Public Service Commission Statistical Information site
• HR observatoire
• Functional Communities of the Government of Canada
• Public Service Employee survey results
• Communities of small organizations
• Towards an exemplary workplace - our obligation to promote and ensure work  /  life balance in the Federal Public Service - May 2001
• Human Resource practices in times of change - an inventory of initiatives, 5th Edition (PDF Version 720 kb)
• Annotated bibliography on workplace well-being - May 2002
• Employment Statistics for the Federal Public Service

Other sites of interest:

• The Institute of Public Administration of Canada: www.ipac.ca
• Office of Personnel Management – The United States Government’s Human Resources Agency (available in English only): www.opm.gov

1) What is integrated HR and business planning?

Integrated HR and business planning is the process of:

• determining your business goals;
• analyzing your environment to see if you have the appropriate complement to meet your current and future needs;
• assessing the gaps in your workforce-what are you missing from an HR perspective in order for you to achieve your goals;
• setting priorities, taking action, and initiating strategies to close the gap and help get the HR you need (your HR advisors can help you here); and
• reviewing your efforts and assessing if you were successful in integrating HR and business planning.

2) We already do some HR planning. Is it mandatory for us to use the tools in this kit?

Departments and agencies are free to adopt the processes in this kit, or to use them as a complement to existing planning practices should they wish to do so.

Even if departments and agencies are well along the road in integrating HR and business planning, the information in this kit can provide useful benchmarks and checklists that can augment existing practices across departments and agencies.

3) I'm a line manager and I am very busy. I already know my team well. Will this work really help me?

Most good managers address HR planning intuitively, and we know that some organizations are already quite advanced in this area. However, we also know that improvement is needed, Public Service-wide, and it is considered a priority among senior decision makers across government.

The tools in the Integrated Planning Guidebook are generic enough that managers in any organization can use them to help them think through how they can best integrate HR and business planning.

4) From a line manager's perspective, what is the most important document in the Integrated Planning Guidebook for me to work with?

The document entitled Integrated HR and Business Planning Checklist outlines for you the steps that are commonly accepted as central to integrating HR and business planning. Organizations noted for good HR planning typically follow these steps or a slight variation thereof.

If you work through these steps and ask yourself the questions that fall under each heading you may well get some ideas on how you can better integrate HR and business planning and improve your team's capacity to deliver.

It is possible that after you work through this methodology you may only focus on two or three HR strategies. That is fine.

5) What do I need to know before I start the integrated planning process?

Understanding your business goals and deliverables is central to integrating HR and business planning. Although it is recognized that in government, as elsewhere, priorities change, most line managers, after receiving strategic direction, can determine with some accuracy a reasonable course of action for consideration and approval by more senior levels.

6) How can I do an integrated plan in instances where it is unclear what my final budget will be?

It is recognized that sometimes managers do not have all the details at their fingertips that they would like as they work through the planning process. There is always an aspect of risk and uncertainty in any environment.

However, line managers are in the position where they must:

• look at the direction they are receiving from their manager(s);
• think through where they are in terms of ongoing priorities;
• look at the budget they had the previous year, and incorporate any information they might have on the coming year's budget for their team;
• outline what they believe to be the key emerging issues; and
• come up with proposals on both ongoing work and other potential business deliverables and take into consideration their HR capacity to achieve results.

Talk to your immediate manager and get as clear an idea as possible of what the business priorities are for the coming year.

7) How do I integrate HR planning with staffing?

Integrated HR and business planning is fundamental to taking advantage of the opportunities available to you under the Public Service Employment Act. Integrated HR and business plans can provide you with the solid foundation you need in order to make staffing decisions. Here are some examples of new staffing possibilities:

• you will be able to make projections of, and base staffing decisions on, current and future needs to meet business goals;
• the definition of merit allows the flexibility to more closely align HR with business needs. For example, you are no longer required to “rank order” candidates. You will, however, need to justify your decision and demonstrate that the person you choose for a job meets all the qualifications of the job. You should base your staffing decisions on your integrated HR and business plan, thereby achieving fairness and transparency; and
• problems could be solved informally during a staffing process, avoiding the need for more formal recourse process.

8) How are the reporting requirements, such as the Report on Plans and Priorities, Departmental Performance Report and annual reports, linked to integrated HR and business planning process?

All departments and agencies are subject to traditional reporting requirements such as the Report on Plans and Priorities and the Departmental Performance Report. Line managers at various levels typically contribute to the process of preparing these documents.

Integrated HR and business planning in the context of preparing these reports is important. For example, the Report on Plans and Priorities outlines what organizations plan to do, so it is important to ensure you have the human capacity to achieve your goals.

However, integrated HR and business planning should not be considered as an exercise exclusively designed to meet reporting requirements. Integrated HR and business planning should be an ongoing process whereby managers are regularly thinking about their work in the context of the people, learning and human development needed to meet their goals.

9) What support is available to help departments, agencies and line managers integrate HR with business planning?

The information in the Integrated Planning Guidebook is designed to transcend the planning-related specifics of any particular department or manager, and provides a model and checklists that can either be adopted outright or adapted to complement existing planning practices.

The Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada also offers help and support to departments and agencies. The Planning Directorate can be contacted by calling (613) 946-9303.

HR advisors, HR planning specialists and corporate planners in departments and agencies can provide support to managers. The HR Planning Interdepartmental Network (HRPIN) meets regularly to discuss HR planning issues. This is an open forum where those interested in HR planning issues can attend and participate.

10) How is Public Service-wide Renewal linked to Integrated Planning?

One of the biggest challenges the government is currently facing deals with attracting, recruiting, training and retaining talents in a highly competitive national and international context for this vital resource. Renewal is about ensuring excellence in all that Public Service does in the future. Renewal encompasses both how business is done and the people who do it . This means that every manager in the Public Service must plan for his/her business and for the associated people requirements, know existing and forecasted talent strengths and gaps, effectively align resources (including people) to deliver results and use planning to engage employees and achieve traction.

Integrated planning Guidebook: Annex 1

Integrated planning: working through the five-step approach.

The planning templates contained in this document were developed based on numerous requests from a variety of departments and agencies in the Public Service for more information on the integrated planning process.

In a recent address to Deputy Ministers, the President of CPSA stated that:

“…Planning, and more specifically Integrated Planning – that is the integration of human resources and business planning - has been identified as one of the key pillars of Public Service Renewal by both the Prime Minister’s Advisory Committee on the Public Service and the Deputy Minister’s Sub-Committee on Public Service Renewal.”

The Clerk of the Privy Council has identified planning, recruitment, development and enabling infrastructure to be the 4 pillars of Renewal, and as such, Public Service Renewal has become one of our top priorities at the Canada Public Service Agency.

• Integrated planning is the primary basis for assessing and understanding the current and future human resources needs of departments and agencies.
• Integrated planning forms the framework which enables recruitment and retention of people needed to meet business requirements and also from which employee development and succession plans are established; and
• Integrated planning is one of the key drivers of an enabling infrastructure in that we need to have processes and systems in place to support effective integrated planning.

From “Determining your Business Goals” to “Measuring, Monitoring and Reporting on your Progress”, these templates were developed to help you in your ongoing efforts to implement and improve integrated planning, and they can be used in whole or in part to supplement your organization’s existing planning processes.

We hope these tools are useful and we welcome your feedback on them.

We would like to thank the organizations below who contributed to the development of these templates: Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, Citizenship and Immigration, Industry Canada, Public Works and Government Services Canada, Transport Canada, Service Canada, The Small Agency Transition Support Team (CPSA), Natural Resources Canada

How to use this tool

Templates and/or worksheets have been created to follow the Five-Step Approach of the integrated human resources and business planning checklist . The Five-Step Approach is a guide to integrating human resources and business planning. As you proceed through the process you may find that some steps can be worked concurrently or in a different order than what is indicated. All templates and worksheets are supported by a list of suggested Considerations, Documents to Consult and Roles and Responsibilities. Templates and worksheets were developed in Excel 9.0.

Step 1: Determine your business goals

Two spreadsheets have been provided for your use.

The Worksheet may be used for regional-, sector-, or branch-level organizations. In keeping with the Program Activity Architecture policy, we have allowed space to include sub-activities and activities.

The Template may be used at the higher Branch or Department/Agency level to allow for roll-up of the regional worksheets. Space is also provided at this level to include Branch activities.

Step 2: scan the environment

Three worksheets; one for Key Positions, one for determining Employment Equity and one for Training and Development supports the Current Workforce Analysis template.

As well, templates are available for Internal and External Analysis and provide space for Risk Analysis, Mitigation Strategies and could assist you in the beginning of a human resources plan.

Two additional, separate templates are available for forecasting Future Workforce Needs (short term and long term), which summarizes the current Workforce Analysis, and Internal and External Analysis templates.

Step 3: conduct a gap analysis

One template is provided to help summarize the gap analysis between your current workforce, future workforce and your business goals. This template provides space to indicate some strategies to meet the gap and gives you an opportunity to conduct a risk assessment.

Step 4: set HR priorities to help achieve business goals

Taking into consideration the gap analysis of Step 3, Step 4 provides a template to summarize your strategies linked to the gap analysis and business goals. This template could be considered as an action plan as you move forward to developing the Staffing Plan. An additional template is provided to help draft the Staffing Plan.

Step 5: measure, monitor and report on progress

Step 5 provides both a worksheet for Regional, Sector or Branch level organizations and a template for roll-up to a higher level to assist in measuring the progress against your priorities. The worksheet provides for an at-a-glance view of the status of activities in the organization.

Please note that these templates and worksheets may contain sensitive information once completed, and should therefore be marked PROTECTED

STEP 1: DETERMINE BUSINESS GOALS

• Template - Step 1: Determine your business goals
• Worksheet of branch  /  region  /  sector business goals

STEP 2: SCAN THE ENVIRONMENT

• Worksheet of key positions analysis
• Worksheet on long-term training
• Worksheet of employment equity
• Template – Step 2B: internal analysis
• Template – Step 2C: external analysis
• Template – Step 2D-1: future workforce analysis: short term (1 year)
• Template – Step 2D-2: future workforce analysis: long term (2 to 5 years)

STEP 3: CONDUCT GAP ANALYSIS

• Template - Summary of gap analysis

STEP 4: SET HR PRIORITIES TO HELP ACHIEVE BUSINESS GOALS

• Template - Integrated strategic HR plan
• Template - Staffing plan

STEP 5: MEASURE, MONITOR AND REPORT ON PROGRESS

• Template - Step 5: measure, monitor and report on progress
• Worksheet for performance report and performance management agreement

ANNEX: TIPS FOR SUCCESSFUL INTEGRATED PLANNING

A better way to drive your business

Managing the availability of supply to meet volatile demand has never been easy. Even before the unprecedented challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, synchronizing supply and demand was a perennial struggle for most businesses. In a survey of 54 senior executives, only about one in four believed that the processes of their companies balanced cross-functional trade-offs effectively or facilitated decision making to help the P&L of the full business.

That’s not because of a lack of effort. Most companies have made strides to strengthen their planning capabilities in recent years. Many have replaced their processes for sales and operations planning (S&OP) with the more sophisticated approach of integrated business planning (IBP), which shows great promise, a conclusion based on an in-depth view of the processes used by many leading companies around the world (see sidebar “Understanding IBP”). Assessments of more than 170 companies, collected over five years, provide insights into the value created by IBP implementations that work well—and the reasons many IBP implementations don’t.

Understanding IBP

Integrated business planning is a powerful process that could become central to how a company runs its business. It is one generation beyond sales and operations planning. Three essential differentiators add up to a unique business-steering capability:

• Full business scope. Beyond balancing sales and operations planning, integrated business planning (IBP) synchronizes all of a company’s mid- and long-term plans, including the management of revenues, product pipelines and portfolios, strategic projects and capital investments, inventory policies and deployment, procurement strategies, and joint capacity plans with external partners. It does this in all relevant parts of the organization, from the site level through regions and business units and often up to a corporate-level plan for the full business.
• Risk management, alongside strategy and performance reviews. Best-practice IBP uses scenario planning to drive decisions. In every stage of the process, there are varying degrees of confidence about how the future will play out—how much revenue is reasonably certain as a result of consistent consumption patterns, how much additional demand might emerge if certain events happen, and how much unusual or extreme occurrences might affect that additional demand. These layers are assessed against business targets, and options for mitigating actions and potential gap closures are evaluated and chosen.
• Real-time financials. To ensure consistency between volume-based planning and financial projections (that is, value-based planning), IBP promotes strong links between operational and financial planning. This helps to eliminate surprises that may otherwise become apparent only in quarterly or year-end reviews.

An effective IBP process consists of five essential building blocks: a business-backed design; high-quality process management, including inputs and outputs; accountability and performance management; the effective use of data, analytics, and technology; and specialized organizational roles and capabilities (Exhibit 1). Our research finds that mature IBP processes can significantly improve coordination and reduce the number of surprises. Compared with companies that lack a well-functioning IBP process, the average mature IBP practitioner realizes one or two additional percentage points in EBIT. Service levels are five to 20 percentage points higher. Freight costs and capital intensity are 10 to 15 percent lower—and customer delivery penalties and missed sales are 40 to 50 percent lower. IBP technology and process discipline can also make planners 10 to 20 percent more productive.

When IBP processes are set up correctly, they help companies to make and execute plans and to monitor, simulate, and adapt their strategic assumptions and choices to succeed in their markets. However, leaders must treat IBP not just as a planning-process upgrade but also as a company-wide business initiative (see sidebar “IBP in action” for a best-in-class example).

IBP in action

One global manufacturer set up its integrated business planning (IBP) system as the sole way it ran its entire business, creating a standardized, integrated process for strategic, tactical, and operational planning. Although the company had previously had a sales and operations planning (S&OP) process, it had been owned and led solely by the supply chain function. Beyond S&OP, the sales function forecast demand in aggregate dollar value at the category level and over short time horizons. Finance did its own projections of the quarterly P&L, and data from day-by-day execution fed back into S&OP only at the start of a new monthly cycle.

The CEO endorsed a new way of running regional P&Ls and rolling up plans to the global level. The company designed its IBP process so that all regional general managers owned the regional IBP by sponsoring the integrated decision cycles (following a global design) and by ensuring functional ownership of the decision meetings. At the global level, the COO served as tiebreaker whenever decisions—such as procurement strategies for global commodities, investments in new facilities for global product launches, or the reconfiguration of a product’s supply chain—cut across regional interests.

To enable IBP to deliver its impact, the company conducted a structured process assessment to evaluate the maturity of all inputs into IBP. It then set out to redesign, in detail, its processes for planning demand and supply, inventory strategies, parametrization, and target setting, so that IBP would work with best-practice inputs. To encourage collaboration, leaders also started to redefine the performance management system so that it included clear accountability for not only the metrics that each function controlled but also shared metrics. Finally, digital dashboards were developed to track and monitor the realization of benefits for individual functions, regional leaders, and the global IBP team.

A critical component of the IBP rollout was creating a company-wide awareness of its benefits and the leaders’ expectations for the quality of managers’ contributions and decision-making discipline. To educate and show commitment from the CEO down, this information was rolled out in a campaign of town halls and media communications to all employees. The company also set up a formal capability-building program for the leaders and participants in the IBP decision cycle.

Rolled out in every region, the new training helps people learn how to run an effective IBP cycle, to recognize the signs of good process management, and to internalize decision authority, thresholds, and escalation paths. Within a few months, the new process, led by a confident and motivated leadership team, enabled closer company-wide collaboration during tumultuous market conditions. That offset price inflation for materials (which adversely affected peers) and maintained the company’s EBITDA performance.

Our research shows that these high-maturity IBP examples are in the minority. In practice, few companies use the IBP process to support effective decision making (Exhibit 2). For two-thirds of the organizations in our data set, IBP meetings are periodic business reviews rather than an integral part of the continuous cycle of decisions and adjustments needed to keep organizations aligned with their strategic and tactical goals. Some companies delegate IBP to junior staff. The frequency of meetings averages one a month. That can make these processes especially ineffective—lacking either the senior-level participation for making consequential strategic decisions or the frequency for timely operational reactions.

Finally, most companies struggle to turn their plans into effective actions: critical metrics and responsibilities are not aligned across functions, so it’s hard to steer the business in a collaborative way. Who is responsible for the accuracy of forecasts? What steps will be taken to improve it? How about adherence to the plan? Are functions incentivized to hold excess inventory? Less than 10 percent of all companies have a performance management system that encourages the right behavior across the organization.

By contrast, at the most effective organizations, IBP meetings are all about decisions and their impact on the P&L—an impact enabled by focused metrics and incentives for collaboration. Relevant inputs (data, insights, and decision scenarios) are diligently prepared and syndicated before meetings to help decision makers make the right choices quickly and effectively. These companies support IBP by managing their short-term planning decisions prescriptively, specifying thresholds to distinguish changes immediately integrated into existing plans from day-to-day noise. Within such boundaries, real-time daily decisions are made in accordance with the objectives of the entire business, not siloed frontline functions. This responsive execution is tightly linked with the IBP process, so that the fact base is always up-to-date for the next planning iteration.

A better plan for IBP

In our experience, integrated business planning can help a business succeed in a sustainable way if three conditions are met. First, the process must be designed for the P&L owner, not individual functions in the business. Second, processes are built for purpose, not from generic best-practice templates. Finally, the people involved in the process have the authority, skills, and confidence to make relevant, consequential decisions.

Design for the P&L owner

IBP gives leaders a systematic opportunity to unlock P&L performance by coordinating strategies and tactics across traditional business functions. This doesn’t mean that IBP won’t function as a business review process, but it is more effective when focused on decisions in the interest of the whole business. An IBP process designed to help P&L owners make effective decisions as they run the company creates requirements different from those of a process owned by individual functions, such as supply chain or manufacturing.

One fundamental requirement is senior-level participation from all stakeholder functions and business areas, so that decisions can be made in every meeting. The design of the IBP cycle, including preparatory work preceding decision-making meetings, should help leaders make general decisions or resolve minor issues outside of formal milestone meetings. It should also focus the attention of P&L leaders on the most important and pressing issues. These goals can be achieved with disciplined approaches to evaluating the impact of decisions and with financial thresholds that determine what is brought to the attention of the P&L leader.

The aggregated output of the IBP process would be a full, risk-evaluated business plan covering a midterm planning horizon. This plan then becomes the only accepted and executed plan across the organization. The objective isn’t a single hard number. It is an accepted, unified view of which new products will come online and when, and how they will affect the performance of the overall portfolio. The plan will also take into account the variabilities and uncertainties of the business: demand expectations, how the company will respond to supply constraints, and so on. Layered risks and opportunities and aligned actions across stakeholders indicate how to execute the plan.

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Trade-offs arising from risks and opportunities in realizing revenues, margins, or cost objectives are determined by the P&L owner at the level where those trade-offs arise—local for local, global for global. To make this possible, data visible in real time and support for decision making in meetings are essential. This approach works best in companies with strong data governance processes and tools, which increase confidence in the objectivity of the IBP process and support for implementing the resulting decisions. In addition, senior leaders can demonstrate their commitment to the value and the standards of IBP by participating in the process, sponsoring capability-building efforts for the teams that contribute inputs to the IBP, and owning decisions and outcomes.

Fit-for-purpose process design and frequency

To make IBP a value-adding capability, the business will probably need to redesign its planning processes from a clean sheet.

First, clean sheeting IBP means that it should be considered and designed from the decision maker’s perspective. What information does a P&L owner need to make a decision on a given topic? What possible scenarios should that leader consider, and what would be their monetary and nonmonetary impact? The IBP process can standardize this information—for example, by summarizing it in templates so that the responsible parties know, up front, which data, analytics, and impact information to provide.

Second, essential inputs into IBP determine its quality. These inputs include consistency in the way planners use data, methods, and systems to make accurate forecasts, manage constraints, simulate scenarios, and close the loop from planning to the production shopfloor by optimizing schedules, monitoring adherence, and using incentives to manufacture according to plan.

Determining the frequency of the IBP cycle, and its timely integration with tactical execution processes, would also be part of this redesign. Big items—such as capacity investments and divestments, new-product introductions, and line extensions—should be reviewed regularly. Monthly reviews are typical, but a quarterly cadence may also be appropriate in situations with less frequent changes. Weekly iterations then optimize the plan in response to confirmed orders, short-term capacity constraints, or other unpredictable events. The bidirectional link between planning and execution must be strong, and investments in technology may be required to better connect them, so that they use the same data repository and have continuous-feedback loops.

Authorize consequential decision making

Finally, every IBP process step needs autonomous decision making for the problems in its scope, as well as a clear path to escalate, if necessary. The design of the process must therefore include decision-type authority, decision thresholds, and escalation paths. Capability-building interventions should support teams to ensure disciplined and effective decision making—and that means enforcing participation discipline, as well. The failure of a few key stakeholders to prioritize participation can undermine the whole process.

Decision-making autonomy is also relevant for short-term planning and execution. Success in tactical execution depends on how early a problem is identified and how quickly and effectively it is resolved. A good execution framework includes, for example, a classification of possible events, along with resolution guidelines based on root cause methodology. It should also specify the thresholds, in scope and scale of impact, for operational decision making and the escalation path if those thresholds are met.

Transforming supply chains: Do you have the skills to accelerate your capabilities?

In addition to guidelines for decision making, the cross-functional team in charge of executing the plan needs autonomy to decide on a course of action for events outside the original plan, as well as the authority to see those actions implemented. Clear integration points between tactical execution and the IBP process protect the latter’s focus on midterm decision making and help tactical teams execute in response to immediate market needs.

An opportunity, but no ‘silver bullet’

With all the elements described above, IBP has a solid foundation to create value for a business. But IBP is no silver bullet. To achieve a top-performing supply chain combining timely and complete customer service with optimal cost and capital expenditures, companies also need mature planning and fulfillment processes using advanced systems and tools. That would include robust planning discipline and a collaboration culture covering all time horizons with appropriate processes while integrating commercial, planning, manufacturing, logistics, and sourcing organizations at all relevant levels.

As more companies implement advanced planning systems and nerve centers , the typical monthly IBP frequency might no longer be appropriate. Some companies may need to spend more time on short-term execution by increasing the frequency of planning and replanning. Others may be able to retain a quarterly IBP process, along with a robust autonomous-planning or exception engine. Already, advanced planning systems not only direct the valuable time of experts to the most critical demand and supply imbalances but also aggregate and disaggregate large volumes of data on the back end. These targeted reactions are part of a critical learning mechanism for the supply chain.

Over time, with root cause analyses and cross-functional collaboration on systemic fixes, the supply chain’s nerve center can get smarter at executing plans, separating noise from real issues, and proactively managing deviations. All this can eventually shorten IBP cycles, without the risk of overreacting to noise, and give P&L owners real-time transparency into how their decisions might affect performance.

P&L owners thinking about upgrading their S&OP or IBP processes can’t rely on textbook checklists. Instead, they can assume leadership of IBP and help their organizations turn strategies and plans into effective actions. To do so, they must sponsor IBP as a cross-functional driver of business decisions, fed by thoughtfully designed processes and aligned decision rights, as well as a performance management and capability-building system that encourages the right behavior and learning mechanisms across the organization. As integrated planning matures, supported by appropriate technology and maturing supply chain–management practices, it could shorten decision times and accelerate its impact on the business.

Elena Dumitrescu is a senior knowledge expert in McKinsey’s Toronto office, Matt Jochim is a partner in the London office, and Ali Sankur is a senior expert and associate partner in the Chicago office, where Ketan Shah is a partner.

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How to transition to integrated business planning for enhanced performance.

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Guru Rath is the managing principal at Grath and Associates and is a supply chain and digital transformation expert.

The business environment is constantly evolving, and companies must adapt to remain competitive while balancing customer expectations with shareholder goals. One way companies can do this is by transitioning from sales and operations planning (S&OP) to integrated business planning (IBP). S&OP is a planning process that aims to align sales, marketing and operations with the overall business strategy. On the other hand, IBP takes this a step further by incorporating financial planning, product development and risk management into the process.

Basic demand, supply and inventory management processes are achievable through traditional S&OP, but there is not much progress beyond a certain threshold limit. Hence the problem is: How do we manage the volatility of the business environment while dealing with business process management?

Benefits Of IBP

Here are some of the benefits of switching to IBP.

• Higher agility: Integrated business planning enables companies to respond quickly to the business environment and market volatility by providing a detailed and comprehensive view of their operations. This can help companies streamline operations and grab customer opportunities.

• Seamless collaboration: IBP requires and enables cross-functional collaboration between various business departments. This inhibits teams from working in silos and brings collaborative team effort, which can enable accurate decision making and operations execution.

• Financial planning: I've found IBP is the key integration process between operational and financial planning. IBP can help companies align their operational and financial goals, resulting in optimized material and financial allocations

• Better risk management: Due to an integrated and holistic end-to-end view between finance and operations, companies can catch the risks upfront and plan for mitigation.

Challenges Of Transitioning From S&OP To IBP

While the benefits of transitioning from S&OP to IBP are significant, there are also some challenges that companies may face. Here are a few.

• Change management: Transitioning from S&OP to IBP requires significant changes in processes, systems and organizational culture. Companies must manage this change effectively to ensure a successful transition.

• Data integration: IBP requires data from multiple sources, including sales, operations, finance and supply chain. Companies must ensure that this data is accurate, reliable and integrated to avoid errors and inconsistencies.

• Technology infrastructure: IBP requires a robust technology infrastructure to support data integration, analytics and reporting. It's important for companies to invest in the right technology to support IBP effectively.

Best Practices For Transitioning To IBP

To ensure a successful transition from S&OP to IBP, I suggest companies follow these best practices/

1. Define the scope.

Start by defining the scope of the transition, including the key business units and functions that will be included in the IBP process.

When thinking about the scope, consider the planning horizons (operations, tactical and strategic), the KPIs (customer satisfaction, on-time delivery, inventory turns, revenue growth, working capital), process governance structure, data and technology requirements. All of these should be in alignment with the organization's strategic objective.

2. Engage stakeholders.

IBP requires cross-functional collaboration, so it is important to engage stakeholders from across the organization in the transition process. The first step is to identify your stakeholders. Then, some of the best ways I've found to engage stakeholders are to discuss the benefits of deeper process involvement, address any questions or concerns that arise, provide training as needed and, last but not least, identify a measure to monitor the progress.

3. Align processes and systems.

Align your processes and systems to support IBP effectively. This includes integrating data sources, defining workflows and ensuring that technology infrastructure is in place. Avoid relying on unavailable or only partially available data.

4. Provide training and support.

Ensure that employees understand the new processes and systems and are able to use them effectively. To make this training effective, make sure you have the support of the management leadership. Consider customized training as per the organization's needs (generic content can be provided as an overview). Measure effectiveness, and ensure clear communication between the trainer and participants.

5. Monitor and evaluate.

Finally, monitor and evaluate the IBP process to ensure that it is delivering the expected benefits. This includes tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) and making adjustments as needed. Some of the KPIs that leaders should pay attention to include forecast accuracy, inventory turns, customer service levels, working capital, etc. The key would be to set a baseline before implementing IBP and measure against the baseline for benchmarking.

Transitioning from S&OP to IBP is a strategic move that can help companies to improve their business performance. IBP provides a comprehensive view of the business, enabling companies to make more informed decisions and respond more quickly to changes in the business environment. While there are challenges to the transition, companies can follow best practices to ensure a successful transition and reap the benefits.

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Integrated Business Planning

Embracing change: the power of integrated business planning.

In today’s dynamic business landscape, conventional planning processes riddled with departmental silos often hinder visibility and efficiency. However, a transformative shift is underway. Forward-thinking companies are embracing digital transformation and adopting Integrated Business Planning (IBP) to empower their activities with enhanced coordination and collaboration. This blog delves into the definition of IBP and explores the substantial benefits it’s brings to organizations in a modern setting.

What is Integrated Business Planning?

IBP is considered a best practice approach that seamlessly integrates financial and operational data from across the organization. This strategic method allows companies to optimize their output by connecting strategic plans with sales, operational, and financial plans. The result is enhanced visibility of the intricate relationships between resources, capabilities, and results. Through IBP, organizations collectively develop a comprehensive go-to-market plan that reflects contributions from every department.

Main objectives of Integrated Business Planning

IBP establishes a framework to achieve the following key goals:

• Align company plans and resources with corporate strategy: IBP ensures that all parts of the business are aligned with the strategic goals, focusing on financial performance as much as on operational capabilities.
• Improve visibility and collaboration across the business: By bringing together various functions—such as sales, production, logistics, and finance—IBP fosters collaboration and transparency across departments.
• Enable more accurate and forward-looking decision-making: With a unified view of business data and forecasts, companies can make more informed decisions, anticipate market changes, and react proactively.

Core elements of Integrated Business Planning

IBP consists of a series of interconnected processes that work together to create a unified business plan:

• Product and portfolio management: Managing the life cycle of products and aligning the product portfolio with market demands and strategic objectives.
• Demand planning: Estimating customer demand to guide supply chain and business planning.
• Supply planning: Ensuring the organization can meet the demand plans with optimal resources.
• Financial review and integration: Tying operational planning to financial planning and analysis to ensure that business plans are financially viable and aligned with financial goals.
• Strategic business planning: Aligning all business plans with the company’s long-term strategic goals, including financial objectives.
• Integrated reconciliation: Harmonizing plans across the business to ensure alignment and commitment from all departments.

Key benefits of Integrated Business Planning

IBP offers a multitude of advantages, including:

• Enhanced agility: Respond faster to market changes and capitalize on new opportunities.
• Improved financial performance: Make data-driven decisions that optimize resource allocation and profitability.
• Better risk management: Proactively identify and mitigate potential risks that could impact your business.
• Increased collaboration: Break down departmental silos and foster a culture of teamwork.
• More accurate forecasting: Gain a clearer picture of future demand and supply to optimize inventory levels.

While IBP requires a mature planning process with the right technology and tools, successful implementation also depends on strong leadership, clear communication, and a collaborative culture across all levels of the organization. It’s a strategic approach that, when executed well, can significantly enhance a company’s performance and competitive edge.

Challenges of traditional business planning processes

Conventional planning activities are often disjointed, especially across the supply chain. The use of disparate spreadsheets and standalone business intelligence solutions creates isolated pockets of knowledge, hindering a holistic approach to planning. While some firms implement Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) principles, true unification across the entire organization remains elusive. This fragmented approach leads to inefficiencies and suboptimal performance due to:

• Limited visibility into departmental activities and their impact on the financial bottom line.
• Disconnection between strategies and operational activities, resulting in delayed responses to market changes.
• Lack of a collaborative approach and accountability, fostering business silos rather than a unified team.
• Multiplicity of point solutions and applications across divisions, increasing costs and data disparities.

Overcoming these challenges requires a shift towards a unified planning process. IBP offers a comprehensive framework that breaks down departmental silos, integrates financial and operational data, and fosters a culture of collaboration. By implementing IBP, organizations can gain a clear view of their business, make better decisions, and achieve their strategic objectives.

Integrated Business Planning vs Sales and Operations Planning: What’s the difference?

IBP and S&OP are both strategic processes used by companies to align various functions within the organization. While they share similarities in aiming to improve business performance through better planning and alignment, there are distinct differences in scope, focus, and depth.

Here’s a comparison between the two:

Key differentiators

• Breadth: IBP takes a more comprehensive approach, encompassing the entire organization’s planning processes. S&OP has a narrower focus on aligning supply chain operations.
• Time horizon: IBP has a longer-term perspective, considering market trends and setting strategic direction. S&OP prioritizes short-term efficiency and meeting near-term targets.
• Financial emphasis: IBP integrates financial planning with operations, ensuring financial viability. S&OP gives less weight to financial considerations, focusing on operational costs.
• Decision-making: IBP empowers decision-making across all levels, while S&OP primarily supports operational-level choices.

IBP builds upon the foundation of S&OP. It extends the principles of supply chain alignment to encompass broader financial and strategic planning. While both processes are valuable, IBP offers a more holistic and future-oriented approach for businesses seeking to optimize performance across the entire organization.

Case in point: Coca-Cola European Partners

Automating 90% of financial data input, slashing data transfer time from 24 hours to 15 minutes, and enabling digital, driver-based planning from production to delivery.

Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) leveraged IBP to transform their supply chain finance function. They implemented driver-based planning, which integrates financial and operational data, enabling them to make data-driven decisions and optimize resource allocation. IBP also improved collaboration across departments by providing a single platform for all users to access and analyze data.

This resulted in:

• considerable savings in time: a 90% reduction of manual tasks
• improved efficiency of data transfers: from 24 hours to 15 minutes
• a streamlined consolidation process: just one-click to incorporate 48 plants and 85 warehouses

Overall, IBP increased transparency, streamlined processes, and empowered informed decision-making at CCEP.

The future of business planning

The era of disjointed planning processes is giving way to the transformative power of IBP. Companies adopting it can unlock improved visibility, collaboration, and efficiency—setting the stage for sustained success in today’s rapidly evolving business landscape.

For further insights, explore our complimentary whitepapers and reports on the benefits of an IBP process.

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The 2024 Intent Group Guide on IBP

A comprehensive resource for organizations considering Integrated Business Planning

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Integrated planning: The key to agile enterprise performance management

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Table of contents

What is integrated planning, change as a given: the truth about plans, planning across the organization, the ultimate integrated planning solution.

• Need for real-time insights
• Integrated planning
• Agile and ready organizations
• Integrated planning drives better results

Integration is key to streamlined planning, budgeting, and forecasting. In order to adapt to today's quickly changing business conditions, you need an enterprise performance management solution that creates a single source of truth and delivers speed and agility to your planning process.

Did you know that 33 percent of critical information is delivered late?

The delay of critical information can cause a ripple effect that drives poor decision making and poor results. Today’s business simply cannot afford this type of cost in our customer-centric environment, where data is one of our most valuable assets. To stay ahead of the competition, businesses rely on a solution that can deliver acceleration, agility, and collaboration in every part of the organization.

Integrated planning ensures all parts of the organization are connected and planning is streamlined.

A must in the culture of “now.”

In virtually all industries, work has become more interactive and collaborative. More sharing is required, and more data is available than ever before. Success means integrating information across strategic and operational perspectives, as well as different functional and external sources.

Integrated planning mirrors the modern way we do business — it elevates the critical value of collaboration and cuts through data silos, driving more access to information and faster insights. Leaders use highly collaborative approaches to plan, budget, and forecast. Business planning requires accurate and complete data and buy-in across the entire organization, both from the top down and the bottom up. It sounds simple, but organizational silos are some of the biggest obstacles to accomplishing good work because they hinder critical decisions that strategically steer the business. And at the modern enterprise, silos are everywhere.

Integrated planning starts with a sophisticated planning platform that everyone in the organization can use, creating one source of truth. Data from diverse data sources such as ERPs, CRMs, and HRMs is unified, so users can access the information they need when they need it. Integrated planning helps ensure that plans, budgets, and forecasts are created with a holistic approach. Trends are easier to spot and quickly act on with more accurate and reliable plans. According to analysts at the Aberdeen Group , those organizations that champion data accessibility and collaboration between stakeholders promote organizational accountability and decrease time-to-decisions while increasing revenue. 1

The fact of the matter is that without effective communication, coordination, and collaboration between stakeholders, there is no way to improve organizational performance. 1

Bringing together people, data, and technology leaves organizations well-poised for optimal performance. Most importantly, integrated planning enables employees to be agile in responding to changing circumstances and able make the best decisions possible — all at the speed of modern business.

According to an Aberdeen study, 1 leaders who adopt enterprise performance management tools show a keen understanding of the importance of collaboration. They recognize that to make data driven decisions, they need to make all information accessible by integrating data and breaking down silos. Figure 1 shows steps taken by leaders to democratize data and drive more accurate forecasts.

Leaders put a high value on data integration and accessibility. They see the value of providing real-time data to decision makers and taking the guesswork out of forecasting. These strategies create comprehensive, actionable visibility into overall company performance and drive better results.

Gartner Predicts by 2020, at least 25 percent of large organizations will increase planning accuracy by integrating key operational planning processes with financial planning and analysis. 2

Do you have an integrated view of your data?

I do not feel confident in where to find comprehensive data, even for just my department

I have a good handle on my own departmental data (but only mine)

I have access to my data and that of other departments that impact my planning

IBM Planning Analytics helps Deutsche Bahn unite its global enterprise

Deutsche Bahn AG is a German railway company, and one of the largest IBM Planning Analytics customers with over 6,000 users worldwide. Deutsche Bahn uses IBM Planning Analytics to unite their wide-ranging operations across the globe, ensuring that the most accurate data is being used to create critical plans and forecasts that drive their business forward.

The truth about plans is that they always change. The goal of a dynamic, integrated planning approach is not to create a perfect, fixed plan. It’s to use all the resources available to create the most accurate, flexible and transparent plan possible, using a solution that does more than just plan — it analyzes data, reveals trends, and allows for real-time iteration.

Better, quicker access to data means faster and more informed decisions, laying the foundation for an organization to be agile and ready to pivot when changing business conditions demand.

If you’re reading this and thinking, “great, the finance team integrates all our plans, so we are off the hook,” think again. While we’d like to think that finance is the well-informed master of plans, miraculously weaving them together in perfect harmony and balance, that’s not always the case. In fact, it rarely is. Many, many finance teams rely on the manual collection of data into spreadsheets, which are often disconnected. Remember that much of an organization’s critical planning starts outside of finance and never gets communicated back up the chain or across the organization. There are simply too many top-down and bottom-up communication problems. Spreadsheets only complicate smooth communications. When a finance person is collecting and analyzing budget spreadsheets from across the organization, there is high risk for error in the process of combining and editing, causing confusion at the highest levels. Contradictory data can inhibit a clear picture of what is actually going on and identifying business drivers or detractors. Spreadsheets have proven over and over to be a highly imperfect yet highly common business practice.

With real-time access to data, companies take the guesswork out of planning, decreasing time involved in forecasting and increasing forecast accuracy. 3

Bye bye, silos. Hello, cross-functional planning.

A centralized, automated solution for performance data and planning allows coordination between different parts of the business and enables more streamlined, accurate plans. Leadership needs to understand what is truly driving the business — what causes increases and decreases in revenue or demand. At every level, access to a full range of data is critical to understanding how change (both internal and external) impacts the business. Though planning often starts with finance, other areas of the business can benefit from a dynamic planning solution as well. Let’s dive into a few use cases.

Supply chain planning

The term “operations” covers an enormous range of business activities. But one that’s almost universal is supply chain management. Supply chain planners are under constant pressure to reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve margins. Unfortunately, too many of them lack visibility into data and are misaligned with other teams. One centralized tool can help connect operational tactics with financial plans to allocate resources more effectively in response to market opportunities or competitive threats. This helps planners avoid mismatched data across multiple spreadsheets and enables them to pivot in the case of supply chain disruptions.

“ Our managers all have quick, easy access to the latest operational data via detailed reports that help them make better-informed decisions to improve the efficiency of the entire supply chain. ”

- Homarjun Agrahari, Director, Advanced Analytics, FleetPride

Learn more about supply chain planning

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Workforce planning

A company is only as good its people. That’s why it’s so important to hire and retain the right talent. Alignment between HR, finance and operations is crucial to ensure that the right people are in the right roles at the right time in order to meet organizational demands. This is rarely a simple task and too often it involves manual spreadsheet-based processes. Ensuring that departmental staffing targets are in sync with broader organizational objectives requires high levels of planning integration.

“ Our business is based on people. IBM Analytics is helping us manage that critical asset much more efficiently and effectively than ever before. ”

- Nadia Bertoncini, Coordinator of Governance, Projects and HR Analytics for Latin America, Natura Cosméticos

Learn more about workforce planning

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Sales planning

Misalignment between finance, marketing and sales could lead to investment in the wrong initiatives, missed opportunities and inaccurate revenue forecasts that can severely hinder sales growth. And in a fast-moving market, manual processes and siloed systems are detrimental to agility. Decisions that are based on outdated information can lead to misguided sales strategies and thus lost sales and lost revenue. It’s critical to unite data under one roof for one single view to boost sales and effectively manage sales people.

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Marketing planning

Constantly changing customer preferences and rising customer expectations require marketers to interpret high volumes of data and respond appropriately. But siloed data systems give only a partial picture and hinder smart decision-making. In addition, marketing teams can be fragmented and often disconnected from sales. Siloed planning causes misalignment with overall marketing goals, driving misallocated spend on the wrong elements of the marketing mix. Manual, siloed processes reduce visibility into how marketing activities affect one another, how marketing and sales touches move a lead through the funnel and how marketing helps achieve overall financial and business goals.

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IT planning

With IT, you need a business case for every dollar spent. But balancing the IT needs of an entire organization with digital transformation objectives and constant technology innovation is no simple task, and often requires additional resources. That’s why it’s so important leverage a planning solution that keeps IT focused on the projects that matter, automates planning tasks, gives a clear view into resources available and helps measure ROI. It’s also critical to coordinate with both finance and human resources to ensure the right resources are provided for IT initiatives and projects.

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- Vimal Dev, Vice President – IT, Global Enterprise Applications Leader, Genpact

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Operations, sales, marketing, human resources and other departments and disciplines all have a need for fast, flexible planning and analysis. And all of them can use the same tools to provide insight and manage performance. When people in one part of the organization see how their decisions affect other parts of the organization, all of the activities will be better coordinated and drive better results. In fact, according to Aberdeen, leading organizations are those who align planning across departments at double the rate of laggards in areas like sales, marketing and finance.

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IBM Planning Analytics offers all areas of your business — finance, operations, HR, sales, marketing, operations, IT and more — the ability to solve problems today and respond to new challenges with agility tomorrow.

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The Ultimate Guide To Integrated Business Planning

Are you looking for a way to streamline your business planning process? Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is the perfect solution. It’s an approach that combines all aspects of business planning into one comprehensive strategy, allowing you to make decisions quickly and accurately. This guide will help you understand how IBP works and how it can benefit your organization.

With IBP, you can save time by having all of your data in one place, making it easier to identify trends and opportunities as they arise. You’ll also be able to make more informed decisions based on real-time data analysis instead of relying on outdated information or guesswork.

What Is Integrated Business Planning?

Integrated business planning (IBP) is a powerful process that could become central to how a company runs its business. It is one generation beyond traditional sales and operations planning (S&OP) and combines financial and operational data from across the organization to create an aligned, cross-functional plan for the future. IBP enables businesses to make decisions based on key assumptions that are documented and updated regularly, helping them to achieve corporate goals.

IBP solutions help align financial and operations plans, giving companies greater planning accuracy and operational performance. This process also incorporates forecasting and demand response , demand-driven supply management, inventory optimization, production scheduling, transportation optimization, and more. With business planning processes in place, companies can make better decisions faster by leveraging real-time data from across their organization.

What Is the Difference Between Sales & Operations Planning and IBP?

Sales And Operations Planning (S&OP) and Integrated Business Planning (IBP) are two different integrated processes used to manage the supply chain. S&OP is a cross-functional process that focuses on aligning demand forecasts and supply in volumes in a tactical range, while IBP has a broader scope that looks at aligning all aspects of the business to ensure better decision-making.

Sales and operations planning processes typically have medium-term planning horizons that rarely extend beyond 18 months, while IBP naturally has a longer time scale. Additionally, IBP starts at the executive level, and each month or planning cycle culminates in a performance review against plans.

Both S&OP and IBP are important for managing the supply chain and ensuring successful operations. However, it’s important to understand their differences to choose which process best meets your needs.

What is an example of an integrated business model?

An example of an integrated business model is a supply chain management system. This type of system links different parts of the organization, from the production and inventory to customer service and sales. It leverages data to streamline operations, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. By integrating processes across departments, businesses can gain greater visibility into their operations and make better decisions faster than ever before.

Benefits Of Integrated Business Planning

The main benefit of implementing IBP is increased revenue, followed by forecast accuracy and improved Perfect Order Delivery. Other benefits include creating transparency between strategic goals and financial and operational activities, unlocking P&L performance through coordinating strategies and tactics across traditional business functions, creating more collaborative decision-making, providing higher agility in responding quickly to the business environment and market volatility, and generating insights on developments in the market.

IBP is important because functional and technical silos across organizations can result in flawed decision-making. Transitioning to IBP can help companies enhance their performance by improving their ability to respond quickly to changes in the market.

Challenges Of Integrated Business Planning

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is a powerful process that can revolutionize how companies run their business. However, it is not without its challenges. IBP requires an organization with the right technology, processes, and people to succeed.

One of the biggest challenges of IBP is getting all departments within an organization on board with the process. It requires buy-in from all levels of the organization, including executives, operations, and finance teams. Without this unified approach and skilled and experienced employees, getting everyone working together towards a common goal can be difficult.

Another challenge of IBP is data integration. In order for IBP to be successful, data must be collected from multiple sources and integrated into one system. This can be difficult due to different systems used by different departments or even different countries within an organization. It also requires a high level of accuracy and consistency in order for the results to be meaningful and actionable.

Finally, IBP requires constant monitoring and adjustment as market conditions change over time. Companies must stay up-to-date on changes in demand, supply chain disruptions, and other factors that could affect their plans. Without regular monitoring and adjustments, companies risk making decisions based on outdated information, which could lead to costly mistakes down the line.

Why Is Integrated Business Planning Important?

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is an important process for businesses to align their goals with their financial, supply chain, product development, marketing, and other operations. It helps companies to create a unified plan that can be used to make better decisions and reach corporate objectives.

IBP is a powerful tool that allows businesses to consider all the different elements of their operations when making decisions. This means they can make more informed choices about allocating resources, developing products and services, and managing their finances. By taking into account all these factors, IBP enables companies to make better decisions and more informed strategic plans that will lead them toward success in the long run.

Another benefit of an Integrated Business Planning process is that it helps businesses become more agile and responsive to changes in the market. With IBP in place, companies are able to quickly adjust their plans based on new information or changing customer needs. This allows them to stay ahead of the competition and remain competitive in an ever-changing business landscape.

Overall, Integrated Business Planning is essential for businesses looking to stay ahead of the competition and reach their goals. By considering all aspects of operations when making decisions, IBP provides companies with a unified plan that can help them succeed in the long run.

Elements Of Integrated Business Planning

The three main parts of integrated business planning are categorized as “Plan,” which involves creating a strategy, “Execute,” which involves carrying out the plan; and “Monitor and Adjust,” which involves reviewing and making changes as needed.

The Plan element involves the initial step of creating a strategy. This includes identifying key goals, objectives, and expectations around the company’s products and services to understand better how those should be used in an overall strategy. Additionally, it includes developing plans for specific initiatives that will help advance those goals.

The Execute element is about carrying out those plans. This includes everything from setting timelines, allocating resources, and developing procedures to ensure the plan is implemented properly.

Finally, the Monitor and Adjust element involves reviewing progress on the strategy and business performance and making any necessary changes or adjustments. This could include changing timelines for certain initiatives, modifying business processes, or introducing new initiatives to stay ahead of competitors. This element is important to ensure the plan remains up-to-date and relevant in an ever-changing business environment.

The Integrated Business Planning Process

To be successful, integrated business planning needs to occur on a regular basis, usually every month or every quarter. This strategic planning process should be undertaken to align the different parts of the business and create a unified plan that everyone can work towards.

1. Product Management

A cross-functional team meets monthly to review the status of all product-related projects. This includes managing the entire product portfolio, identifying any new risks or opportunities, prioritizing high-value products, and aligning them with business goals. The ultimate aim is to ensure that raw materials and manufacturing floor capacity are available as needed. Whenever necessary, product managers update and publish a master plan that outlines the required resources for delivering the changes.

2. Demand Planning

Demand planning is a team effort that involves members from sales, marketing, and finance. Its goal is to meet customer demand and reduce excess inventory while avoiding supply chain operations issues. Improving profitability, customer satisfaction, and efficiency are all benefits of demand planning. The team works to create a demand plan that accurately estimates future demand, tailored to the right markets and methods. KPIs such as sales forecast accuracy, inventory turns, fill rates, and order fulfillment lead times are used to measure success.

3. Supply Chain Planning

Supply chain professionals aim to find a cost-effective way to meet expected demand efficiently. To achieve this goal, having visibility into complex supply chains is crucial. One way to accomplish this is through a formal supply chain optimization project, which helps identify and fix potential weaknesses, such as low inventory levels or order fulfillment challenges. The ultimate goal of supply chain management is to reduce the cost of goods sold (COGS) .

Supply chain leaders should deeply understand the production process from raw materials to finished goods. By understanding upstream and downstream processes, supply chain professionals can better anticipate customer needs, uncover new opportunities for cost savings, and mitigate risks. Additionally, they should build relationships with key suppliers and develop strategies to ensure a consistent flow of materials.

4. Financial Planning

Financial planning involves setting short-term and long-term goals for a company that are achievable through the best use of resources. This includes understanding financial trends, managing budgets, monitoring cash flow , financial forecasting, and making decisions about investments.

Financial planning gives organizations an understanding of their current economic environment and helps them create plans to achieve their objectives. It also helps to reduce risk and maximize profits. Ultimately, financial planning is essential for success in any organization.

Integrated planning can be challenging for organizations used to a traditional budgeting process. However, companies can improve their overall financial performance and better meet customer needs by taking a more strategic approach. This requires data-driven insights to inform decisions and the ability to quickly shift resources in response to changing market conditions. The finance team’s influence is driven by their ability to analyze and recommend quickly.

5. Customer And Channel Plan Development

Customer and channel planning are integral components of a successful business. These plans involve researching customer needs, segmenting target audiences and creating strategies to reach them. Additionally, customer and channel plans help determine the most effective marketing tactics for each target audience with the goal of increasing sales and brand loyalty.

This includes selecting the best delivery channels (offline or online) that suit certain markets and target audiences and considering customer preferences when designing products or services. Through customer and channel planning, organizations can create a more successful marketing strategy and reach their desired goals.

4. The Integration Team

The integration team, which is usually composed of individuals from the finance organization, combines the initial product, demand, and supply plans into a single strategic plan that covers a 24- or 36-month period. As necessary updates are made, significant changes are identified by the teams. Decisions that require higher-level approval are prepared for executive review.

The integration team also leads scenario planning . This process involves considering different potential business plan outcomes and helping identify risks. The teams then help develop strategies to mitigate risk, thereby ensuring the success of the overall planning process.

5. The Executive Team 

The executive leadership team addresses disagreements and shares the revised plan with the entire organization. This management team is responsible for making final decisions on the plan and ensuring it reflects the organization’s objectives. Additionally, they review progress made against the plan and make adjustments as needed.

The executive team also considers external factors such as market conditions, customer expectations, competitive environment, and other factors to ensure the organization is on track to reach its desired goals.

6. Supporting Software

Many organizations use software to support their IBP process. This software may include budgeting and forecasting tools , customer relationship management (CRM) systems, financial analysis programs , and inventory tracking applications. Such software assists in streamlining the process of gathering data from multiple sources and increasing overall efficiency within the organization. It can also assist with scenario planning.

7. KPI Assessment

At regular intervals, organizations assess the performance of their plans using key performance indicators (KPIs). These KPIs provide a snapshot of progress and help determine whether or not the plan is on track to achieve its desired outcomes. By evaluating KPIs on an ongoing basis, organizations can identify areas that need improvement and adjust their plans accordingly.

Software To Support IBP

Software solutions are available to support Integrated Business Planning processes. These enterprise performance management solutions provide a comprehensive view of the entire business, allowing you to analyze financial data in real-time data analysis from multiple sources. This helps organizations make informed decisions based on accurate information and forecasts. Additionally, software solutions can automate many of the manual processes associated with IBP, such as data collection and analysis, which helps streamline operations and reduce costs.

Organizations looking to transition to Integrated Business Planning should consider investing in cloud based technology and software solutions supporting their IBP initiatives. Many software solutions can support financial forecasting processes with new tools like predictive analytics ,and feed right into your financial plan.

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Mike Dion brings a wealth of knowledge in business finance to his writing, drawing on his background as a Senior FP&A Leader. Over more than a decade of finance experience, Mike has added tens of millions of dollars to businesses from the Fortune 100 to startups and from Entertainment to Telecom. Mike received his Bachelor of Science in Finance and a Master of International Business from the University of Florida, laying a solid foundation for his career in finance and accounting. His work, featured in leading finance publications such as Seeking Alpha, serves as a resource for industry professionals seeking to navigate the complexities of corporate finance, small business finance, and finance software with ease.

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Integrated Business Planning: A Complete Guide

Do your sales teams push for continuous promotions? Meanwhile, does your supply chain struggle with stock levels as finance grapples with margins? This familiar scenario often arises from operational silos within an organization. It leads to missed opportunities, operational inefficiencies, and uninformed decision-making.

How do you achieve seamless coordination across all departments? The answer lies in Integrated Business Planning. IBP is not merely a strategy; it transforms processes. It aligns your teams, enhances collaboration, and ensures every department works towards the same goals.

Are you ready to streamline your operations and improve decision-making across your organization? Dive into our comprehensive guide to discover how IBP turns your business challenges into opportunities for growth. Keep reading!

What is Integrated Business Planning?

IBP is a strategic approach that transcends traditional planning methods. It integrates diverse business processes to enhance overall corporate performance. IBP aligns departments such as sales, operations, finance, and marketing. This ensures every unit works towards unified goals. Such harmony is crucial for retailers facing rapid market changes and evolving consumer demands.

IBP operates on a rolling horizon, typically spanning 24 to 36 months. This enables retail leaders to make proactive decisions based on long-term forecasts and analyses. This forward-thinking approach aligns strategic and operational plans. It ensures that tactical decisions support the business’s overarching goals.

Consider a national retail chain planning to expand its product line. IBP coordinates new product development with sales forecasts . It aligns with supply chain capabilities and financial budgets. This strategic alignment prepares all departments to support the launch effectively.

Why is Integrated Business Planning Essential?

Before diving into Integrated Business Planning, we acknowledge its core, Sales and Operations Planning. S&OP traditionally focuses on balancing demand and supply within a shorter-term horizon. It establishes the operational groundwork necessary for effective integration. In retail, adapting quickly to market trends is crucial. S&OP ensures your operational capabilities align with immediate market demands. IBP builds on this foundation. It incorporates strategic elements like financial forecasting and long-term market analysis. This broadens the scope from merely operational to strategic.

IBP offers a cohesive approach to decision-making. It ensures that all business facets, from inventory to finance, are in harmony. Here’s why embracing IBP is crucial for your retail operations:

• Enhanced Visibility Across Departments: IBP integrates data and goals across various departments. This provides a clear overview of business operations. Such transparency lets you see how decisions in one area impact others. It leads to more informed decision-making. For instance, a decision to launch a new product line will involve input from the supply chain, sales, marketing, and finance. This ensures that all aspects are aligned and supported.
• Improved Forecast Accuracy: With IBP, you use advanced analytics and collaborative insights to refine forecasting. Insights come from various departments. This accuracy is vital in retail. It predicts market trends, consumer behavior, and potential disruptions. Accurate predictions directly influence stocking and marketing strategies. Better forecasting lets you adjust inventory levels more precisely. This avoids both overstock and understock situations, which erode profits.
• Strategic Resource Allocation: IBP links strategic goals with operational planning, ensuring efficient resource allocation. This strategic alignment drives investments in personnel, technology, and inventory. Investments are based on a deep understanding of business goals, market demands, and financial constraints.
• Faster Response to Market Changes: Market conditions shift rapidly due to factors like consumer trends, economic changes, and technological advancements. IBP allows swift responses to these changes. You adjust plans in real time, ensuring agility and resilience. For example, if a sudden fashion trend emerges, IBP lets you quickly increase production or distribution in targeted areas. This quick action enables you to capitalize on the trend.
• Increased Operational Efficiency: IBP breaks down silos within the organization, fostering collaboration and coordination. This approach boosts efficiency by getting departments to work together. They optimize workflows and reduce redundancies. Whether streamlining the supply chain or synchronizing marketing and sales, IBP ensures smoother, more cost-effective operations.
• Risk Mitigation: IBP incorporates proactive risk management, anticipating disruptions, and formulating strategic responses. This preparedness is crucial in retail, where supply chain issues significantly affect availability and sales. With IBP, you identify risks and weave risk management into your planning. This ensures your business stays strong against unexpected challenges.
• Sustained Competitive Advantage: IBP’s comprehensive nature provides a competitive edge. You stay ahead of the market and even shape future trends. This forward-thinking lets you innovate continuously. It also enables you to meet customer expectations effectively. Thus, you distinguish your business from competitors.

Integrated Business Planning Process

IBP is a strategic process that aligns demand, supply, new product development, and financial strategy into a cohesive plan. Here’s how you implement IBP effectively in your retail business, ensuring each step contributes to your overarching strategic goals:

• Strategic Review: Start by assessing your long-term business goals and market strategies. This foundation ensures that all IBP efforts align with where you want your retail business to be in the next three to five years. You examine trends, consumer behaviors, and potential disruptions that might affect your market.
• Demand Planning: This step involves forecasting customer demand for your products. You analyze historical sales data, market trends, promotional activities, and seasonality. This forecast forms the basis for all other planning activities. It ensures that you match your inventory and resources to anticipated demand.
• Supply Planning: Once you have a clear forecast of customer demand, you plan your inventory and procurement . This step involves scheduling deliveries from suppliers. You manage inventory levels and ensure logistics handle incoming and outgoing products efficiently.
• Product Portfolio Management: Manage your product portfolio by analyzing existing product performance. Plan the introduction of new products to keep your offerings competitive. Ensure your products stay relevant in the market. Base your decisions on lifecycle management, customer preferences, and profitability analysis.
• Financial Integration: Align your financial plans with operational strategies. This step involves budgeting, profitability analysis, and setting financial targets. Ensure these targets match your operational capabilities and constraints. Optimize all financial resources to support business growth and sustainability.
• Collaborative Reconciliation: In this crucial step, you reconcile all plans across different functions. These include demand, supply, product, and financial plans. Collaboration involves regular meetings with all stakeholders. This ensures every department understands and supports the integrated plan. Resolving conflicts between different areas is vital. Ensure the strategy is achievable and aligned across the organization.
• Execution and Monitoring: Implement the integrated plan across your retail operations. This step demands effective communication and the planned deployment of resources. Continuously monitor performance against the plan. Use key performance indicators and real-time data to ensure execution stays on track and meets expected outcomes.
• Continuous Improvement: The final step in the IBP process involves regular reviews of the outcomes. You analyze what succeeded, what failed, and the reasons. Continuous feedback loops adapt the planning process. This adaptation enhances accuracy and efficiency over time. Ongoing evaluation and adjustment maintain agility and responsiveness to market changes. These actions drive continuous improvement in business performance.

💡Fact McKinsey reports that companies with mature IBP processes reduce delivery penalties and missed sales by 40-50 percent.

S&OP primarily balances supply and demand. IBP extends beyond this. It integrates financial planning and product development into its framework. This makes it a broader, more strategic approach. It encompasses long-term goals and focuses on profitability.

Challenges of Integrated Business Planning

• Complex Data Integration: IBP synthesizes large volumes of data from sales, operations, finance, and marketing. Integrating and harmonizing this data presents significant challenges. If you rely on disparate systems that do not communicate seamlessly, the task becomes more complex. Ensuring data accuracy and consistency requires robust IT support. You also need sophisticated software solutions.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: IBP requires ongoing collaboration across your company’s departments. Siloed operations and misaligned departmental objectives hinder effective IBP execution. Encouraging a culture of teamwork and aligned goals is crucial. Achieving this culture is challenging. It involves changing organizational behaviors and mindsets.
• Change Management: Shifting to integrated planning demands significant changes in your business processes and systems. These changes affect every organizational level, from top executives to operational staff. You must manage these changes effectively. Securing buy-in from all stakeholders often proves challenging. Overcoming resistance to change is crucial. Everyone must understand the benefits and their roles in IBP clearly.
• Skill Gaps: IBP demands advanced analytical capabilities, strategic thinking, and operational expertise. Combining these skills poses a significant challenge. You must find and develop talent with these cross-functional skills. Training and hiring new talent are necessary but require time and resources.
• Consistent Execution and Monitoring: Once implemented, applying IBP principles consistently across all business units is challenging. You must continuously monitor its performance. Ensuring the IBP process is dynamic and adaptable to market changes is crucial. This requires ongoing attention and refinement.
• Technology Adoption: Implementing the right technology to support IBP is crucial. Selecting, customizing, and deploying enterprise planning software to fit your specific needs is daunting. Additionally, technology alone is not a solution. You must align it with your business processes and train your team to use it effectively.
• Balancing Strategic and Operational Focus: Maintaining a balance between strategic objectives and operational realities is key. You ensure that long-term strategic goals do not overshadow immediate operational needs. This balancing act requires sophisticated forecasting. It also demands effective scenario-planning capabilities.

Embracing Integrated Business Planning positions you to manage your resources smartly. It keeps your business agile and aligned with market demands and growth objectives. It promotes sustained business success and differentiates your company in a competitive market.

Take the Next Step

Embrace Integrated Business Planning today with the right means and unlock the full potential of your business.

Elevate your forecasting strategies with integrated business planning that seamlessly integrates with your operations for synchronized decision-making, enhanced collaboration, and optimized resource allocation. Ensure success across every facet of your organization.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the key differences between s&op and integrated business planning.

S&OP primarily focuses on balancing supply and demand and aligning production and inventory levels with sales forecasts. In contrast, IBP integrates these operational planning activities with strategic and financial planning, providing a more holistic view and a longer-term focus.

Is Integrated Business Planning adaptable to various industries or business models?

Yes, Integrated Business Planning is highly adaptable and can be tailored to meet the specific needs of different industries and business models. By adjusting the focus on key metrics, processes, and strategic priorities, IBP can effectively support unique operational and strategic requirements across sectors.

What metrics do companies use to evaluate the effectiveness of their Integrated Business Planning initiatives?

Companies assess the effectiveness of their Integrated Business Planning initiatives through various metrics: improved forecast accuracy, increased revenue, enhanced customer satisfaction, and reduced inventory costs.

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What is IBP? (Integrated Business Planning)

Video: What is IBP?

Why is IBP important?

IBP Framework

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Summary: ibp software by o9 solutions.

Integrated Business Planning is a best-practice process that aligns Commercial, Financial and Supply Chain activities. In doing so, they are performed as coordinated business decisions with the intent to deliver increased revenue, improved service levels, reduced supply chain costs, greater productivity, better cash flow and higher profits. In short: your integrated business planning process (IBP process) will never be the same.

Integrated business planning (IBP) is important because functional and technical silos across organizations result in flawed decision-making. Within every enterprise there are many thousands of decisions being made and business processes to be aligned, resulting in a final business strategy.

Among those decisions are: commercial decisions related to new products, marketing and sales decisions, supply chain decisions (across the full supply chain and supply chain management, related to positioning of material and capacity and then fulfilling customer demand). Last but not least, financial decisions (related to setting budgets and targets, allocating resources and the forecast that you hold to external stakeholders).

Making the right decisions is not easy and many decisions counteract each other, which may lead to poor business outcomes. Let’s look at some of the fundamental challenges that enterprises face.

1. Isolated decisions are being made

Planning decisions need to be made in a synchronized fashion, but for practical purposes organizations sometimes have to create functional planning departments.  For example, the demand planning and supply and operations planning processes are used to manage the supply chain. Then, you have commercial & sales and operations planning processes driving commercial decisions and finally, financial planning processes to set the budgets and targets.

These plannings and processes are the core of functional planning processes, but they are largely operating in silos today.

2. Cycles are not properly synchronized

Not only do organizations have departmental silos, a second challenging factor is that the siloed teams perform their planning processes in what are called ‘planning cycles’.  A business planning process can involve daily planning cycles for operational planning, weekly and monthly planning cycles for tactical planning and annual cycles for strategic planning.

If these planning cycles are disconnected then the execution of each can be flawed and will almost certainly end up deviating from the intended strategy. In short: an integrated business planning process is very important to connect the planning teams, their processes and their schedules.

3. Technology stacks don’t communicate

The third major challenge to successful Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is the decision-making technology stacks. Historically, many technologies have been used to aid enterprise decision-making and performance management. There are data stacks, planning stacks and reporting stacks. Plus, there’s technology for importing data and then technology used for insights, learning and algorithm development.

All of these types of technology aid decision-making and may lead to integrated business planning (IBP). Still, they can also make the lives of business users much more complex and the adoption of integrated business planning (IBP) more difficult to achieve.

Integrated Business Planning

Functional silos, disconnected cycles and separated technology stacks mean that commercial, financial and supply chain decisions are not easily synchronized. As a result, enterprises will typically suffer from service level issues, inventory issues, excess costs in the supply chain and lower returns on investment from marketing and sales spend.

What this translates to is a significant amount of value leakage. Integrated Business Planning is the strategy and methodology of bringing all these planning processes together and connecting them to respond effectively to market risks and opportunities. IBP can help with your business performance – for example supply chain optimization – and help to develop an effective business planning process, enabling the right decisions to be made to reach your company’s business goals.

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Integrated business planning framework

Integrated business planning (IBP) is a journey with many steps requiring a roadmap of prioritized actions that drive quick wins and sustainable benefits. But, before you can plan that roadmap and the business planning process, you need to understand the basic elements of an IBP framework (which we detail below) alongside the benefits each element brings to the table.

Establishment of accountability

The first element to consider is defining the correct roles and responsibilities as well as setting effective governance to ensure the establishment of accountability.  Clear roles, decision rights, policies, and incentives create an atmosphere that enables everyone to work together as an organized unit to achieve the company’s mission.

Alignment with Leadership

The next element is to detail the objectives with a high-level action plan and seek leadership alignment.  Having a clearly defined aim sets the path for integrated business planning (IBP) and defines what IBP will deliver.  Strategic plans, strategic goals, a business strategy as a whole and scenario planning will help with defining a clear mission.

Alignment among the leadership team is vital if integrated business planning is to achieve its goals.  A clear mission provides the pathway people can follow and ensures that the actions and goals are correct, rather than simply the integrated planning process itself.

Achieve Organizational alignment

When processes are cross-functional and designed to align the organization in one desired outcome, you can focus on meeting the goal instead of maintaining the process. This is why both scenario planning and business strategy are important.

You can write down different processes and define operations planning next to financial planning. Still, if the overall strategy is not clear enough, it’s impossible to reach an organized cross-functional process.

Build Talent base

Build a talent base with the skills and core competencies essential to IBP, such as strategic planning, financial planning, and supply chain planning. With skilled and experienced employees on board, you’ll be able to implement IBP across the enterprise more effectively.

Not only that, but new possibilities will equate to new opportunities and the imagined future state will garner enthusiasm and bring new energy to the business.  Successful Integrated business planning will transform process efficiency and motivate the workforce to achieve even greater improvements.

Real-time analytics

With access to real-time analytics, you can run “what-if” scenarios, quickly respond to disruptions and market adjustments, and make insight-driven decisions the core of your business planning. This helps you to be proactive and stay ahead of your market instead of relying on reactive decisions. This way, tasks like financial forecasting and predicting business performance become simpler and easier.  Scenario planning encourages thinking about ranges of possibilities.  Allowing planning teams to have a recognised and structured approach to future states reduces the likelihood of being blindsided by events and being unable to react to risks or leverage opportunities.

Usage of technology

Since IBP is a cross-functional initiative, you need an agile, flexible, cloud-based technology to provide a central platform for IBP collaboration and execution.  Next-generation planning solutions will provide advanced AI/ML capabilities, but equally important for integrated business planning should be the collaborative functionality, dashboards, volume-to-value conversions, metrics and exception handling, automation, performance and security.

The technology you use for implementing integrated business planning throughout your entire business should not only help supply chain management, but also the integrated processes used by the highest management team.

o9 solutions came up with a single integrated plan for all planning processes across the horizon. o9’s Graph Cube Data Model allows for aggregation and disaggregation to the right level of detail for each planning horizon to support end-to-end synchronization.

09 solutions offers  IBP software  that can be used throughout the entire organization and will solve the future demand of business-wide business planning. A few reasons why this software works:

Complete P&L and KPI visibility

The software summarizes scenarios with connected financial KPIs and strategic plans. It understands financial metrics, such as margins, revenues, and working capital and molds this into operational data.

With the help of the Graph Cube Data Model, most companies can use financial performance, financial reasoning and reconciliation within the integrated planning process of your business.

Cross-functional and interactive plan review & publication

o9’s integrated business planning uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) based search & discovery. With this IBP process platform, you can create interactive views instead of static dashboards and turn cross-functional processes, review and alignment into a fluid process.

Live on platform meeting capability

Your management or business leaders can create live presentations step by step with live data for S&OP meetings, removing hundreds of hours of manual work. The business planning process will take up less time, and the complex supply chains and their ways of working will be easier to understand.

Big data enabled

With the help of the IBP software, you can leverage real-time structured and unstructured data from the market, customers, and operations to drive insights into trends and potential disruptions and thus set up a strategic plan for the future.

o9 Solutions’ Integrated Business Planning provides an intelligent, automated planning solution that bridges all the functional silos across the planning cycles in a unified technology stack that can drive up user adoption and enable better decision-making.

o9’s Integrated Business Planning solution uses automation to bring together finance, marketing, sales, and supply chain to address risk and opportunities in an online live platform.

It provides full visibility and complete transparency on the gap vs. the annual strategic plan in revenues, cost, margin and volumes, and therefore enables management to quickly come up with a strategic plan and informed decisions. This results in predictive analytics, profitable growth that balances strategic, financial and operational objectives and many more benefits for your business.

Want to learn more about Integrated Business Planning (IBP)?

View our collection of white papers regarding IBP, tailored to your industry.

About the author

o9 Solutions is a leading AI-powered platform for integrated business planning and decision-making for the enterprise. Whether it is driving demand, aligning demand and supply, or optimizing commercial initiatives, any planning process can be made faster and smarter with o9’s AI-powered digital solutions. o9 brings together technology innovations—such as graph-based enterprise modeling, big data analytics, advanced algorithms for scenario planning, collaborative portals, easy-to-use interfaces and cloud-based delivery—into one platform.

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How To Build An Integrated Business Planning Process

Why is it crucial to build an Integrated Business Planning process?

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) is an enhanced version of Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) that offers improved cross-functional coordination with finance. IBP is a forward-looking mechanism that covers a 24 to 36-month horizon. Its primary aim is to align strategic and financial objectives with operational feasibility by reacting proactively and promptly to changing conditions. A well-executed IBP process minimizes volatility in plans, allowing businesses to stay on track with their strategic ambitions and make informed critical decisions that add value and increase profitability.

By embedding an effective IBP process, organizations can enjoy significant benefits throughout their supply chain. With fewer reactive and sub-optimal decisions to make, more time is available for informed critical decision-making that maximizes profitability.

The 5 Key Pillars To Build Integrated Business Plan (IBP)

How can FuturMaster help you build an Integrated Business Planning process?

FuturMaster streamlines the IBP process with a single planning system that combines data and AI capabilities for each step.

• Portfolio Review: AI and collaborative planning shape consensus on new product launches with ROI modelling for decision-making.
• Demand Review: Statistical forecasts enriched with business insights allow instant scenario modelling of their impact on supply and finance.
• Supply Review: Fully costed evaluations consider real supply constraints, automate sourcing decisions and focus on exceptional conflicts.
• Financial Review: Fully costed planning evaluates financial viability and alignment with long-term goals.
• Business Review: Visualisations enable data-driven decision-making based on stable planning models

Download this whitepaper and discover the 5 key pillars of building an IBP journey!

In this white paper, you will also learn:

• Who’s concerned by building an IBP process?
• How to build IBP? The journey towards IBP – The 5 Key Pillars
• How can FuturMaster help you build IBP?

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Your Complete Starter Guide to Understanding Integrated Business Planning

Integrated business planning gives you a 360 degree view of the business by connecting all your business applications. Here's how to get started.

Create flexible and predictable sales forecasts

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) has emerged as the hallmark of businesses undertaking concentrated digital transformation efforts.

While business planning has been a standard part of every organizational strategy, it has been a disjointed process until recently. Different departments ended up formulating their own strategies which impeded the organization's growth potential. Without a cohesive planning process in place, companies were unable to get a 360° look at the business and were unable to plan for the future.

Realizing the bottlenecks created by disjointed business planning, companies are now migrating to IBP as their default strategy.

What is Integrated Business Planning?

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) can be described as a process that offers management a 360° view of organizational functions like sales, marketing, finance, accounting, and others. These insights enable decision makers to prepare a comprehensive strategy to carry the business towards a promising future marked by enhanced growth potential.

Integrated Business Planning (IBP) has been a buzzword in the corporate sector for quite a few years, but its importance has increased exponentially in the last decade. IBP can be considered as a refined mashup of financial planning, operational best practices, and supply chain optimization to not only mitigate the risks but also deliver savings, responsiveness, and speed for the company and improve customer experience .

What is an Integrated Business Strategy?

Integrated Business Strategy (IBS) is a set of processes that companies can employ to bolster their efficiency and competitiveness in the market through expansion in different avenues.

These areas could include logistics, distribution, or competition. Businesses can use the IBS to enhance their sway in the distribution network to forge ahead of the competition and have a strong market presence. When compared, IBP is more focused on creating a cohesive business strategy that is in harmony with organizational objectives, while IBS is more about executing the IBP to achieve the desired goals.

What’s the difference between Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) vs. Integrated Business Planning (IBP)?

There is a constant debate amongst experts if there is any difference between IBP and S&OP. While some argue that these strategies are complementary, there is a slight difference between these two integral tactics. 

S&OP is described as a cross-functional planning process undertaken to maintain the balance between supply and demand through the communication of changes in market demand to management. Finance, production, and supply chain departments utilize this data to optimize their production planning and purchasing decisions. S&OP empowers the organization with shorter lead times, improved management control, better customer service, and superior supply chain management. 

In comparison, it is evident that IBP is an extension of S&OP. Where S&OP is more inward-looking, IBP attempts to strike a balance between internal and external factors. After an organization has achieved a higher maturity level in S&OP, it must embark on the journey towards incorporating IBP as a standard business process. 

What are the key benefits of integrated business planning?

In the modern business environment, management must ensure alignment across cross-functional groups to maintain a competitive edge. IBP helps an entity overcome challenges posed by disjointed business planning to augment the decision-making processes. Some of the noteworthy benefits of IBP are:

• Accountability : Departmental teams are aware of the impact of their actions on other departments and the entire organization. Managers can fix individual responsibilities of employees to determine employee accountability.
• Transparency : IBP offers a consolidated view of data that enables departments to undertake scenario planning for different possible situations in sync with other departments. Such transparency in operations bodes well for the company's future.
• Alignment: With IBP, departments can understand the overall organizational objectives and then align their operations with syncing with those objectives. 
• Optimization : Management can ensure optimal resource utilization by addressing common bottlenecks that impede the operations of multiple departments. 

What is the purpose of integrated business planning?

IBP is a process designed to enhance the efficiency of the decision-making process for the entire organization. It enables management to lay down a detailed plan for managing the enterprise with a long-term horizon. Some of the key aspects that IBP addresses are allocating crucial resources, supply chain management, personnel requirement, financial analyses, and time management to ensure a balance between profitability and customer satisfaction.

IBP is the next step in the evolution of S&OP which in itself originated in the 1980s from supply and demand balancing processes. IBP ensures alignment of all departmental functions to prepare the entity for possible scenarios through accurate strategy deployment and better cooperation between key stakeholders.

Why do you need integrated business planning?

Whether you are a start-up looking to establish a strong presence in the market or an established enterprise interested in consolidating your market position, IBP must be an integral part of your strategy. Companies need IBP to devise a set of concrete actions to achieve different objectives. 

• Quality of inputs, outputs, and processes : Companies can maintain a uniform demand and supply plan that is in sync with the financial goals by attending meetings attended by cross-functional decision makers.
• Organizational capabilities : IBP promotes cross-functional collaboration across multiple layers of the organization to encourage functional excellence and problem-solving.
• Accountability and Performance : IBP helps design incentives to encourage transparency and accountability of performance. Shared metrics made available promote collaboration between key stakeholders. 
• Data systems : IBP promotes integrating data systems across departments to deliver a single point data source for all requirements. Automated data flows and system detection promote real-time decision-making. 
• Process design : IBP helps bridge the gaps left by short-term and long-term planning by enabling flexible strategies for addressing issues arising between these two time horizons. It also promotes strategy via management-level operational planning and target setting. 

How do you implement integrated business planning for your company?

Many companies struggle with implementing IBP as crucial responsibilities and metrics are not aligned across functions. This might pose difficulties with steering the operations collaboratively. Thus, it is important to clearly understand implementing IBP for your company. 

Integrations

To save crucial time and resources for different departments, it is important to select an IBP platform that seamlessly integrates with your existing tech stack. This will help eliminate data transfer errors and reduce data consolidation time, as well as maintain critical data security standards. Therefore, the first and foremost requirement for implementing IBP is to ensure seamless integration of the IBP software with your tech infrastructure, including ERP software, CRM software, Billing Systems, Data Warehouses, and more. 

Consolidating data sources into a single source of information 

Duplicate and inconsistent data sources pose challenges for an organization at multiple levels, leading to a waste of precious resources and impacting the bottom line. It is, therefore, important to have a single source of information that can act as a reference point for multiple departments. After integrating the IBP software with your tech stack, your next focus should be ensuring accurate data collection and aggregation in real time. This approach would provide a single source of truth for all the departments, eliminating errors due to omission or duplication.

Building forecasting models

Forecasting in IBP is used for demand sensing in the short, medium, and long term. To create a forecast model with your IBP software, you must define the algorithms and key figures related to outputs and inputs. A forecast model features three steps, i.e., pre-processing, forecasting, and post-processing. But a forecast model only works as a container of functionality, and it is you who must define its aggregation level and timing of running.

Financial forecasting methods

There are different financial forecasting methods that you can opt for per specific requirements according to different situations.

• Straight Line Forecasting : - This method is used to get a simple view of continued growth at a consistent speed to derive predictions for guiding financial and budget goals.
• Moving Average Forecasting : - This method calculates average performance for different metrics in a specified time frame. Companies use this method for the identification of underlying patterns for varied financial metrics.
• Simple Linear Regression Forecasting : - This method helps create a trend line based on the relationship between an independent and dependent financial variable. 
• Multiple Linear Regression Forecasting : This method uses two or more financial variables to make a projection. This forecasting model helps understand the relationship between different financial parameters and possible outcomes.

Scenario planning

Use your IBP platform to eliminate being caught off guard while executing your strategies. You can run multiple “what-if” scenarios within minutes to analyze the aspects affecting your business. You can create new scenarios using existing scenarios and compare different scenarios per your requirements. Representations like line charts, bar diagrams, tables, and other visualizations can be used for easy understanding of data for informed scenario planning. This allows you to improve the accuracy of predictions based on a single source of truth.

Scheduled imports

With the option of scheduling data imports built-in, IBP platforms are taking the hassle out of data collection and consolidation. With the scheduling option, you can define the import requirements and get all the data presented to you in a consolidated manner. With access to real-time data, you can ensure higher data integrity and accuracy, as well as data access autonomy. You circumvent investing heavily in setting up IT infrastructure, as cloud-based IBP software solutions can operate seamlessly on your existing infrastructure.

Analytics and data visualizations

Why stick to cells, rows, and columns for data analysis when you can access stunning data visualization solutions with your IBP software? Visual analytics helps draw meaningful insights from data by offering multiple ways to look at the same dataset. IBP platforms allow you to clean and enrich your data in seconds, allowing you to spend more time on data analysis and exploration rather than on manual data collection and consolidation.

Building beautiful presentations 

The true value of data analysis lies in the decisions it enables leaders to take. Storytelling, by incorporating the data and visualizations in a beautiful presentation, is essential to reaping the benefits of an integrated planning and analytics platform. You can use your IBP platform to import and export your data from sources including Google Sheets and create impressive presentations that drive positive impact.

Measuring ROI and impact on the business

Always ensure the measurement of return on investment (ROI) with key metrics depending on the use case. For example, your Finance team might have spent several days on data preparation before achieving actual insights from financial reporting. An integrated business platform has the potential to reduce this data prep time by 80% — metrics like this can be a great way to measure your team’s efficiency post implementing an IBP.

Integrated business planning by the department

The best part of an integrated business planning platform is its ability to support a wide array of business use cases - Sales, HR, Marketing, Finance, RevOps, CX, and more:

Finance and FP&A teams 

IBP platforms empower finance teams to build, maintain, and visualize data in real-time to deliver informed forecasts. Finance teams can save considerable time and resources as they can clean and enrich data in seconds and run models in hours instead of days with up to 20x fewer formulas than Excel. 

Revenue and Sales teams 

IBP platforms enable revenue and sales teams to unlock revenue growth potential through flexible financial modeling options. Therefore, teams can spend more time on strategy by reducing planning cycles for non-productive tasks. 

Executives 

Management teams and key executives are empowered to deliver well-rounded business results as the IBP platforms offer a single data source for all stakeholders. With a 360° view of the business, informed decision-making becomes the new standard practice.

Choosing the best business planning software 

To avail the complete benefits of IBP, selecting the best business planning software is essential. When compared based on power, flexibility, and design, Pigment emerges as the clear leader and is trusted by industry leaders across domains.

Pigment is one of the most feature-rich and user-friendly business planning softwares that offers you a one-stop solution for all your planning requirements. 

Pigment allows your teams to be more efficient as they gain single-point access to enriched data and can spend more time on data analysis to draw meaningful insights.

You can quickly create impressive models with real-time previews to bring all the decision makers at speed quickly. You create a seamlessly shared understanding of numbers across multiple departments, breaking down the silos affecting operational efficiency.

Pigment removes the element of surprise from all your decisions as you can forecast and run multiple scenarios to identify suitable opportunities and risks for your business.

Book a demo today and experience the unparalleled power of Pigment for yourself.

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Minister of international development appearance before the standing committee on foreign affairs and international development (faae) on supplementary estimates (c) 2023-24 and main estimates 2024-25 - supplementary estimates (c).

May 6, 2024 Published: September 3, 2024

Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development - Organization Summary

Explanation of Requirements (dollars)

Listing of Transfer Payments

Listing of Statutory Authorities

Items for inclusion in the Proposed Schedule 1 to the Appropriation Bill

(for the financial year ending March 31, 2024)

Supplementary estimates (C), 2023-24

Statutory forecasts.

Expenditures by Purpose

Budgetary Expenditures by Standard Object

This table shows the forecast of total expenditures by Standard Object, which includes the types of goods or services to be acquired, or the transfer payments to be made and the funds to be credited to the vote.

Definitions of standard objects available at: http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/pceaf-gwcoa/2324/7-eng.html

Horizontal Items

The items listed in this table are horizontal initiatives and other jointly funded items. Both types of horizontal items generally involve two or more organizations with a formal funding agreement (e.g. Memorandum to Cabinet or Treasury Board submission). Through horizontal initiatives, the organizations work in partnership toward the achievement of shared outcomes. In jointly funded items, organizations receive incremental funding, and each independently contributes to the realization of the stated objective(s).

Frozen Allotments in Voted Authorities

Parliamentary authority typically expires at the end of the fiscal year. For example, authorities approved through all appropriation acts for the fiscal year 2023–24 will expire on March 31, 2024 for most organizations.

During the fiscal year, the government can take decisions to adjust priorities or the implementation of individual initiatives. These decisions are effected by using frozen allotments to constrain appropriated authorities where necessary. At the end of the fiscal year, these frozen allotments are included in the lapse shown in Public Accounts.

For the fiscal year 2023-24, the total amount frozen in voted authorities is $X,XXX,XXX,XXX as of January XX, 2024. Most of these frozen allotments are due to the planned reprofiling of funds to future years as well as reductions stemming from the Budget 2023 Refocusing Government Spending and Realigning Previously Announced Spending exercises.

This annex summarizes, by category and department, all permanently frozen allotments included in voted authorities.

Categories of Frozen Allotments Reprofile

Reprofiling provides for unused authorities from one fiscal year to be made available in subsequent fiscal years, to reflect changes in the expected timing of program implementation. Unused funds in the current fiscal year are put into a frozen allotment. New Parliamentary authority is required for each future year of planned spending.

Transferred or reallocated

Throughout a fiscal year, organizations may transfer or reallocate funds between votes within their organization and to other organizations. Such adjustments may be effected through frozen allotments.

An organization’s authorities are reduced when the funds are no longer available for the original purpose. This could happen because an initiative or program is canceled, or savings are identified to be returned to the fiscal framework.

Other forecasted lapses are generally related to uncommitted authorities in the Treasury Board central votes.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates(C) By vote

• $123.6M in Vote 1 – Operating;
• $26.7M in Vote 5 – Capital;
• $14.8M in Vote 10 - Grants and Contributions;
• $5.2M in Vote 15 – LES Pension; and
• $15.1M in Statutory
• Funding being sought mainly includes the following:

Vote 1 - Operating

• $60.1M for increased costs related to inflation on foreign service allowance, locally engaged staff salaries and related benefits, currency fluctuations on operations incurred at missions abroad and increased payment and currency fluctuations of assessed contributions;
• $22.2M for Canada's response to the crisis in Haiti (horizontal item); and
• $12.5M to strengthen Canada's sanctions capacity and leadership (horizontal item) .

Vote 5 - Capital

• $15.0M for an internal reallocation of resources for the Grants and Contributions Transformation project;
• $6.7M for the reinvestment of revenues from the sale or transfer of real property; and
• $3.8M to strengthen Canada's sanctions  capacity and leadership (horizontal item).

Vote 10 - Grants and Contributions

• $39.4M for increased costs related to inflation on foreign service allowance, locally engaged staff salaries and related benefits, currency fluctuations on operations incurred at missions abroad and increased payment and currency fluctuations of assessed contributions;
• $6.0M for Canada's response to the crisis in Haiti (horizontal item); and
• ($20.0M) for an internal reallocation of resources for the Grants and Contributions Transformation project.

Vote 15 - LES Pension

• $5.2M for increased costs related to inflation on foreign service allowance, locally engaged staff salaries and related benefits, currency fluctuations on operations incurred at missions abroad and increased payment and currency fluctuations of assessed

Statutory Funding

• $15.1M for contributions to employee benefit

Supplementary messages

• Vote 1 is to fund the operations of the department, which is comprised of salaries, the operating costs to deliver our programs (Trade, Development, and Foreign Affairs), including operating expenditures at missions abroad, and other operational expenses such as travel and professional services.
• Vote 5 is to cover capital expenditures, which are largely related to our Real Property program.
• Vote 10 funds our grants and contributions expenditures including programming for international development and our assessed
• Vote 15 is for expenditures relating to the costs of pension, insurance and benefits for locally engaged staff (LES).
• Vote 20 allows Global Affairs to make direct payments to International Financial Institutions, which are typically development banks.
• Direct payments for International Financial Institutions
• Contributions to employees benefit plan
• Minister’s salary and motor car allowances
• Payments under the Diplomatic Service (special) Superannuation Act

Supporting facts and figures

• The following items represent the increases by Vote

(in thousands of dollars)

• The following items represent the transfer payments for Vote 10:

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Statutory funding

• Through these 2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada is receiving a total of $15.1M in Statutory funding which only includes contributions to employee benefit plans.
• Payments to International Financial Institutions – Direct Payments ($241.1M);
• Contributions to employee benefit plans (EBP) ($149.1M);
• Payments under the Diplomatic Service (Special) Superannuation Act, a legislative grant used to provide pension benefits to senior Global Affairs Canada officials posted abroad ($900,000); and
• Ministers’ salaries and motor car allowances ($284,100).
• The $201.0M in statutory non-budgetary authorities is for the payments to International Financial Institutions – Capital subscriptions.
• Expenditure authority is provided in two ways: Appropriation Acts that specify the amounts and purposes for which funds can be spent; and other specific statutes that authorize payments and set out the amounts and time periods for those payments. The amounts approved in Appropriation Acts are referred to as voted amounts, and the expenditure authorities provided through other statutes are called statutory authorities.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Funding for Canada's response to the crisis in Haiti

• Global Affairs Canada is requesting funding of $28.6M for 2023- 24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support Canada’s initial response to supporting the crisis in Haiti.
• In May 2023, following an off-cycle funding decision, the Department of Finance allocated up to $22.5M in operating funding for 2023-24.
• In October 2023, through a second off-cycle funding decision, the Department of Finance allocated up to $20.3M in Grants and contributions funding over three years, beginning in 2023-24 to support and facilitate the training and, if necessary, for infrastructure rehabilitation of the Haitian National Police.

In total, Global Affairs Canada is seeking $42.8M (excluding PSPC Accommodations and SSC Information Technology costs) over 3 years (2023- 24 to 2025-26).

Global Affairs Canada is seeking Treasury Board Authority to access the following:

• $22.5M to support establishment of the International Security Assistance Coordination Group. Through the Group, Canada will lead and facilitate collaboration among partners from Haiti, donors’ nations and international organizations in order to effectively respond to current crisis, and;
• $20.3M over three years, beginning in 2023-24, to support and facilitate the training and, if necessary, for infrastructure rehabilitation of the Haitian National Police.

Expected results

Canada has developed a whole-of-government response in Haiti integrating four thematic pillars: 1) Diplomatic Engagement 2) Sanctions and Other Legal Measures; Humanitarian and Development Assistance; and 4) Security The overall objective of this approach is to support Haitian authorities' efforts to ensure the free and sustainable movement of fuel and humanitarian goods, and by extension, to help create the conditions for Haiti's greater political stability and an inclusive political dialogue leading towards restoration of democratic institutions through elections. Canada is to facilitate the functioning of structures and implementation of activities in support of Canada’s whole-of-government response to the crisis in Haiti by:

• staffing the Haiti Interdepartmental Task Force;
• standing up the International Security Assistance Group;
• supporting the Haiti Integrated Intelligence Cell;
• supporting training solutions for the Haitian National Police; and
• enabling the department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces provide protection and other activities included in the whole-of-government

Haiti faces an escalating political, humanitarian, and security catastrophe. Multiple political crises, systematic impunity, and a lack of public capacity and resources to provide basic services to vulnerable communities have caused widespread poverty and acute fragility.

The departure of United Nations forces in October 2021 and the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021 have led to increased insecurity. Gang violence and territory control have caused the relocation of tens of thousands of Haitians, one of the world's highest per capita kidnapping rates, increased conflict-related sexual violence, and over 2100 homicides in 2022 (a 35% rise from 2021).

Despite political unrest, 200 gangs continue to grow operations and territory with access to increasingly sophisticated weapons, including heavy weapons smuggled into Haiti. Gangs rule over 60% of Port-au-Prince and are expanding elsewhere. The security situation is worse than in decades and is worsening.

In March 2023, following the approval and ratification of a Memorandum to Cabinet, an off-cycle funding decision approved up to $95M in 2023-24 for Global Affairs Canada, funded through the existing 2023-24 International Assistance Envelope Crisis Pool to provide non-lethal equipment and financial assistance to the Haitian National Police, and up to $5M from the department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces existing resources to support lethal and non-lethal military aid to the Haitian National Police. Prime Minister Trudeau announced the $100M would be used " to bolster Haitian-led solutions to the crisis and support peace and security ".

In May 2023, through a second off-cycle funding decision, the Department of Finance allocated up to $23.6M in 2023-24 to Global Affairs Canada, less $1.1M from Global Affairs Canada’s existing resources, to continue staffing the Interdepartmental Task Force and support the stand-up of the International Security Assistance Group and up to $7.7M to the department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces for force protection and support to the Interdepartmental Task Force. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police was allocated $2.1M for 2023-24 to support the Haiti Integrated Intelligence Cell.

In October 2023, through a third off-cycle funding decision, the Department of Finance allocated up to $20.3M funding over three years, beginning in 2023-24 to Global Affairs Canada, to support and facilitate the training and, if necessary, for infrastructure rehabilitation of the Haitian National Police. These activities were announced by Prime Minister Trudeau during the CARICOM summit meeting in Ottawa on October 18, 2023.

Allocation by Core Responsibility:

Allocation by Transfer Payments:

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Funding to strengthen Canada's sanctions capacity and leadership (horizontal item)

• Global Affairs Canada is requesting funding of $17.5M for 2023- 24 via Supplementary Estimates C to strengthen its capacity to effectively implement and manage Canada’s sanctions regime.
• In October 2022, the Prime Minister announced new funding of $76M over six years (since re-profiled to five years), and $8.9M ongoing thereafter, to Global Affairs Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Department of Finance to strengthen Canada’s capacity to implement sanctions.
• In addition, a funding decision was taken in June 2023 to provide $28.1M over three years, with no funding ongoing thereafter, to Global Affairs Canada to manage the seizure, application for forfeiture and possible disposal of physical assets believed to be owned by sanctioned persons.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be requesting $66.8M (excluding PSPC Accommodations and SSC Information Technology costs) over 5 years (2023-24 to 2027-28), and $3.8M ongoing thereafter.
• Strengthen Canada’s capacity to implement sanctions, including through a dedicated bureau at Global Affairs Canada (adding up to 37 full time equivalents); and
• Establish a source of funds to manage the seizure, application for forfeiture and possible disposal of assets believed to be owned by sanctioned individuals and entities, pursuant to new authorities under Canadian autonomous sanctions legislation.
• The pressing need to access the funding, including to reimburse Public Services and Procurement Canada for ongoing costs related to the management of an aircraft seized by the Government of Canada in June 2023, underscores the importance of receiving the funding via Supplementary Estimates (C).
• Augment its operational capacity to coordinate Canada’s sanctions;
• Increased its capacity to provide guidance to the Canadian public, including the private sector; and
• Process requests for sanctions-related permits, certificates, and de- listings in a timely manner.
• Increase tracking and assessment capacity of Canada’s sanctions regime; and
• Increase evidence-based research on the impact and effectiveness of sanctions
• Increase awareness among the Canadian public and private sector of how to engage in international business and international assistance in accordance with sanctions.
• Since the passage of the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act in 2017, Canada’s approach to sanctions as a targeted diplomatic tool of last resort has shifted significantly to become a foreign policy tool that is used more frequently to address the most pressing and egregious international issues, including human rights violations and threats to international peace and security.
• Canada’s use of sanctions has increased significantly since the beginning of This is largely attributable to the rapid expansion of sanctions measures in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but is also linked to the development of important new sanctions measures to respond to ongoing crises in Haiti, Iran, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka.
• Delisting applications, from individuals/entities seeking their removal from Canadian sanctions;
• Permit applications, from individuals/entities seeking an exemption for activities that could potentially be impacted by sanctions;
• Referrals from the Canada Border Services Agency, to review imports and exports of good potentially prohibited by sanctions; and
• Inquiries and requests for information, including from other government departments, crown corporations, provinces and territories, enforcement agencies and Canada’s mission abroad, regarding now to navigate
• In June 2022, changes to the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act and the Special Economic Measures Act came into force providing the Government of Canada with the authorities to seize and forfeit assets of individuals and/or entities sanctioned under these pieces of legislation. Under these authorities, proceeds from the disposal of forfeited assets are required to be used to compensate victims, fund recovery or reconstruction efforts, or support the restoration of international peace and security. Although seizure and forfeiture of sanctioned property not linked with criminality is actively discussed among G7 partners, Canada is the first G7 country to pass legislation specifically related to the seizure and forfeiture of property belonging to sanctioned persons.
• address the ongoing resource constraints within Global Affairs Canada to effectively implement an ever-increasing suite of sanctions measures; and
• provide a source of funds to manage the seizure, application for forfeiture and possible disposal of assets believed to be owned by sanctioned persons (funding was not originally allocated to do so when the authorities themselves entered into force).

Supporting Facts and Figures

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Funding for hosting the Canada-CARICOM Summit and the North American Leaders' Summit

• Global Affairs Canada is requesting funding of 11.6M for 2023- 24 via Supplementary Estimates C to host the Canada- Caribbean Community Summit and the North American Leaders’ Summit. The latter is being postponed to 2024-25.
• In November 2023, the Minister of Finance approved this funding request.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be requesting $11.6M (excluding PSPC Accommodations and SSC Information Technology costs) in 2023-24
• The government of Canada is committed to global engagement as a cornerstone of Canadian foreign At a time of sharper geopolitical and economic competition, rising security concerns, pressures on supply chains and a climate crisis, Canada has a heightened interest in strengthening relationships with key international partners, building the trust and collaboration needed to face shared challenges. In that context, Canada committed to the Canada-Caribbean Community Summit (held in Ottawa, October 17-19, 2023) and the eleventh North American Leaders’ Summit during fiscal year 2023-24 (location and dates remain to be confirmed).

The Canada-Caribbean Community Summit and the eleventh North American Leaders’ Summit will contribute to Global Affairs Canada’s core responsibility to promote Canada’s interests and values through diplomacy, advocacy, and engagement. They align with Global Affairs Canada’s Departmental Plan 2023-24, the Minister of Foreign Affairs’ Mandate Letter, and the Performance Information Profile for the Americas Policy and Diplomacy Program. Past Summits have helped to advance discussions on bilateral irritants or resolved outstanding requests.

The Canada-Caribbean Community Summit (held in Ottawa, Oct. 17-19) helped Canada build consensus with the participating countries on issues of common interest. The Summit has delivered important results at the immediate and intermediate outcome levels; most of these results have exceeded expectations. For instance, 105 key influencers and decision-makers (39 female and 66 male) were reached during the Summit – more than three times the number originally targeted. Canada also facilitated 36 engagements during the Summit period - triple the number targeted. Agreement was reached at the Summit on seven deliverables advanced by Canada, one more than originally planned. Coverage in traditional and social media have also exceeded expectations.

The eleventh North American Leaders Summit is expected to further strengthen trilateral cooperation on shared priorities among Canada, the United States and Mexico. A robust eleventh North American Leaders Summit Action Plan with deliverables would be a key outcome and would guide trilateral cooperation in 2024.

• The Caribbean Community is a regional grouping of 15 full members, and 5 associate members whose mandate is to promote economic integration, foreign policy coordination, human and social development and security. The Canada- Caribbean Community Summit would be restricted to the 14 full sovereign members. As an influential regional bloc and ally, the Caribbean Community can help Canada advance key elements of our foreign policy agenda, including political, economic, and security interests, and counter destabilizing forces in the region and hemisphere. Canada-Caribbean Community collaboration on restoring security in Haiti is an example of this strategic cooperation.

Since the North American Leaders Summit has been postponed, the funding received in 2023-24 will be carry forward to 2024-25.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Funding to establish the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence (horizontal item)

• Global Affairs Canada is requesting $7.6M for 2023-24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support the establishment of the NATO Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence.
• The 2023 Federal Budget announced funding of $40.4M over 5 years ($20.2M for Global Affairs Canada and $20.2M for the Department of National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces) and $7.0M ongoing thereafter ($2.5M for Global Affairs Canada and $4.5M for the Department of National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces).
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be requesting $15.2M (excluding PSPC Accommodations and SSC Information Technology costs) over 5 years (2023-24 to 2027-28) and $1.8M per year thereafter.
• Two Memorandum to Cabinet approved respectively in May 2021 and in February 2023 supported new funding to establish and launch the Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence
• The new resources are required for Global Affairs Canada and the Department of National Defence, the departmental co-leads of this initiative, to support Canada’s leadership in the Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence and the required level of Canadian policy expertise on climate and security issues to inform this role.

Through this initiative, Global Affairs Canada will support the realization of the Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence’s unique potential to convene and collaborate with experts from across the climate change and security nexus and facilitate a multidisciplinary policy development environment. It will contribute to:

• Enhancing climate change and security understanding and coordination;
• Collaborating with international organizations;
• Advancing and improving NATO’s work on climate and security;
• Assisting in the development of NATO policies, doctrine, standards and best practices;
• Integrating the expertise of non-military subject matter experts with defence and military actors; and
• Establishing partnerships with diverse groups, including academia, civil society and

Prime Minister Trudeau announced Canada’s proposal to establish and become Framework Nation for a NATO Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence at the June 2021 NATO Summit. NATO officially accepted Canada’s formal offer to establish the Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence in May 2022. On July 2023, Canada joined 11 Allies to launch the Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence by signing its Operational Memorandum of Understanding at the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.

The Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence will enable NATO, its Allies and Partners, and other global actors, to better understand and address the security challenges associated with climate change. The Centre will support NATO’s work on climate and security; provide Allies with a central location to pool their knowledge; develop effective responses to the security impacts of climate change; and can provide a platform for outreach with diverse global actors addressing elements of this same challenge.

In September 2023, Global Affairs Canada hosted 11 Sponsoring Nations of the Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence to participate in the first meeting of the Centre’s governing Steering Committee. Director General for International Security Policy Alison Grant chaired the meeting for Canada as the Framework Nation, with the Department of National Defence’s Director General for International Security Major General Greg Smith as Canada’s voting representative on the committee. As part of the Meeting outcomes, the Steering Committee validated five Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence foundational documents, paving the way for the Centre to achieve full NATO accreditation.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Reinvestment of revenues from the sale or transfer of real property

• Global Affairs Canada is seeking access to $6.7M of proceeds for sale in the Capital Vote to address in-year pressures.
• Results shows that Global Affairs Canada is currently facing significant financial pressures in the Capital Vote. This can mostly be explained by the Global Affairs Canada’s capital
• The current investment plan was developed based on only utilizing confirmed revenue sources, to complete the projects listed, which included a conservative approach with respect to the identification of proceeds of sale. As such, it was decided to access the available proceed of sales instead of doing a vote transfer from the Operating vote which is already under in-year financial pressures.
• We can confirm that reducing the available Proceeds of Sale would not have an impact on the capacity of the department to implement the projects included in the investment plan.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Funding for the Renewal of the Business Women in International Trade Initiative

• Global Affairs Canada is requesting funding of $2.0M for 2023- 24 via the Supplementary Estimates C to support the funding renewal of the Business Women in International Trade
• In August, an off-cycle funding decision approved $6.4M over three years, starting in 2023-24, to support the renewal of the Business Women in International Trade initiative.
• In total Global Affairs Canada will be requesting $5.9M (excluding PSPC and SSC costs), over three years, from 2023-24 to 2025-26.
• Delivered by the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service within Global Affairs Canada, Business Women in International Trade is a longstanding initiative that provides support for Canadian women-owned and women- led businesses to help them export to international markets.
• Renewed funding will support eight full-time equivalents and operating funds to ensure the continuation of the Business Women in International Trade initiative.
• The Business Women in International Trade initiative aligns with the priorities and commitments of the Government of Canada, including priorities outlined in the Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade, and Economic Development’s 2021 Mandate Letter: to pursue opportunities more broadly for market diversification; to advance Canada's export diversification strategy; and to ensure that Canadian workers and businesses receive necessary support.

The continuation of the Business Women in International Trade initiative will allow the Trade Commissioner Service to continue to provide support for women-owned and women-led businesses to help them access international export opportunities. The initiative supports Government of Canada priorities, including the Export Diversification Strategy and the advancement of an inclusive approach to trade, as well as Global Affairs Canada’s Core Responsibility of ensuring “Canadian exporters and innovators are successful in their international business development efforts”. Existing Trade Commissioner Service Key Performance Indicators will be used to monitor and assess the outcomes of this initiative as they relate to Departmental Results Framework.

The Business Women in International Trade initiative was established in 1997 to support Canadian women entrepreneurs in their international business expansion efforts. The Business Women in International Trade initiative is managed by the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service within Global Affairs Canada. In 2018, Innovation, Science, and Economic Development launched the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy, a $6B investment seeking to double the number of women-owned enterprises by 2025. This strategy allocated $10M over five years (commencing in 2018-19) to expand the Trade Commissioner Service’s Business Women in International Trade. Funding for the Business Women in International Trade initiative sunset on March 23, 2023. In August 2023, the Business Women in International Trade initiative was renewed through an off-cycle decision to receive $6.4M over three years, starting in 2023-24.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Funding to support national security and intelligence review requirements (horizontal item)

• Global Affairs Canada is requesting funding of $1.8M for 2023- 24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support resourcing departments and agencies to meet national security and intelligence review requirements.
• Budget 2023 announced funding of $5.8M over two years and nothing thereafter.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be requesting $4.0M (excluding PSPC Accommodations and SSC Information Technology costs) over two years from 2023-24 to 2024-25.
• Global Affairs Canada is a core member of the security and intelligence community and among the top five most impacted of the 18 organizations obligated to respond to requests for review by the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians and the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency.
• Through this initiative, Global Affairs Canada will strengthening the overall accountability framework in national security and intelligence.
• The funds will be used to expand the External Review and Transparency Unit from the current level of seven Full Time Employes to 12.8 positions in 2023- 24 and a total of 17.3 positions for 2024-25.

While the Department has made substantial progress in responding to the new review requirements through temporary resourcing, funding an ongoing unit is no longer sustainable. The proposal augments the capacity of Global Affairs Canada to meet the ongoing and growing external review requirements by expanding the External Review and Transparency Unit to better enabling functions supporting the review process and enhance coordination with other agencies. It serves as a “single window” and is a best practice in supporting external review. Liaison units have proven to be the most efficient way to triage review body requests, and the model also mirrors the approach that the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency and the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians have indicated as their preference.

This proposal follows up the 2017 Memorandum to Cabinet “ Protecting Rights and Freedoms and Enhancing Canada’s National Security Framework ”. In 2022, a government-wide process to seek permanent funding for departments’ external review activities was led by Privy Council Office and was signaled as a priority for the Clerk. The total cost of the proposal is $42.6M over two years, $18.3M in 2023-24 and $24.3M in 2024-25.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Transfers from various organizations to support departmental staff located at missions abroad

• Global Affairs Canada is a common service provider for Government of Canada operations abroad and receives compensation for the increased cost of operations resulting from additional staff being posted at Canadian missions abroad by other government departments.
• Transfers to Global Affairs Canada are to cover the common services costs for new staff posted abroad to support Canada’s network, including those related to: Foreign Services Directives and relocation, Real Property, Security, Information Management and Information Technology and all the common services costs incurred at missions abroad to support their staff.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Transfer to the Treasury Board Secretariat for the Financial Community Developmental programs and initiatives

• Global Affairs Canada is transferring $10,000 to the Treasury Board Secretariat for 2023-24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support the Financial Management Community Development Team Programs and Initiatives.
• To ensure the leadership development needs would be met as the Financial Management community matured and the environment evolved, a three-year costing model and a resulting Memorandum of Understanding was approved. This funding enabled the Office of the Comptroller General to support program delivery and services from 2023-24 to 2028-29.
• The renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding with an enhanced funding model was presented and approved at the June 23, 2023, Chief Financial Officer Talent Management Advisory Committee meeting.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be transferring $196,755 over six years (from 2023-24 to 2028-29).
• Recruitment efforts will be further A recruitment strategy will be developed and implemented to increase collaboration and partnership across the Financial Management community. This will have a positive impact on both departments and applicants, as a united strategy will improve consistency in hiring practices, reduce duplication of efforts and identify critical skillsets that are required of the future workforce. It will further strengthen the Financial Management Community Development brand within the Financial Management community and beyond.

The Memorandum of Understanding renewal will provide the Financial Management Community Development team, within the Office of the Comptroller General, the critical resources to continue and strengthen programming and community support at a central level. The Office of the Comptroller General will play an enhanced leadership role in a fast-paced and changing landscape, ensuring the community possesses the relevant skillsets to adapt and thrive through their programming and community support.

Global Affairs Canada will be responsible to:

• Promote various developmental programs within the department;
• Promote collective staffing initiatives within the department;
• If necessary, participate in various collective staffing initiatives; and
• Promote IDEA initiatives throughout their respective.

The TBS will be responsible to:

• Fully administer all developmental programs mentioned above;
• Develop and implement a staffing and data strategy as mentioned above;
• Report on an annual basis to Talent Management Advisory Committee; and
• Assess the success of the initiatives and the possibility of renewing the Memorandum of Results of the assessment will be provided to all contributing departments and agencies.

To ensure the leadership development needs would be met as the Financial Management community matured and the environment evolved, a three-year costing model and a resulting Memorandum of Understanding transferring funds was approved. This funding enabled the Office of the Comptroller General to support program delivery and services from 2021-22 to 2023-24.

To ensure we continue to innovate and ensure relevance, and alignment to the Data Strategy for the Federal Public Service, a data strategy will be developed and will provide leaders with a clearer understanding of the community. Through data collection and analysis, systemic gaps and barriers can be identified and inform leaders of any necessary changes to ensure a vibrant and sustainable workforce.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Transfer to the Treasury Board Secretariat for the Transfer Payments Innovation Agenda

• Global Affairs Canada is transferring $15,000 to the Treasury Board Secretariat for 2023-24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support the Policy on Transfer Payments Innovation Agenda.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be transferring $165,000 over 4 years (2023-24 to 2026-27).
• The Policy on Transfer Payments Innovation Agenda will enable Treasury Board Secretariat-Office of Comptroller General, in collaboration with departments and agencies, to build upon its existing capacity and establish a centralized, enabling function for Treasury Board Secretariat leadership across the federal family in the agenda’s key domains of digital and data; policies and processes; and people and culture.
• It contributes to enterprise-wide harmonization and standardization. It will also support the identification of systemic efficiencies, leveraging work across Grants and Contributions communities.

Contributing departments will support the Office of the Comptroller General’s Policy on Transfer Payments Innovation Agenda. The agenda will be led by the Office of the Comptroller General-Financial Management Service, in partnership with the transfer payment community. Financial support from the largest seventeen Grants and Contributions delivery departments to cover incremental costs was identified as the most cost-effective strategy to support the broader transfer payment community.

• Work collaboratively with the Treasury Board Secretariat and departmental colleagues to advance key deliverables of this Memorandum of Understanding including the identification and ranking of priorities for an annual evergreen workplan, leveraging the existing Director/Director General and Assistant Deputy Minister Interdepartmental Committees on Transfer Payments;
• Promote the Policy on Transfer Payments Renewal and Innovation Agenda, providing departmental feedback as needed; and
• Participate actively in various workshops or planning sessions.

The Treasury Board Secretariat will be responsible to:

• Develop and implement a resourcing strategy to deliver on the above;
• Report on an annual basis to the Assistant Deputy Minister Interdepartmental Committee on Transfer Payments; and
• Perform an assessment during 2026-27, to review overall results and explore the possibility of renewal. Results of the assessment will be provided to all contributing departments and agencies.

Lessons learned from the Grants and Contributions design and delivery of pandemic- related programming over the past three years, advances in technology for both internal and external service delivery, and the Budget 2023 imperative to realize efficiency savings, have all resulted in an increased focus and opportunity for an enterprise-wide Policy on Transfer Payments Renewal and Innovation Agenda.

Based on consultations, in order for the Office of the Comptroller General’s-Financial Management Services to successfully deliver an Innovation Agenda, the Transfer Payment Policy Centre will need to build upon its existing capacity which currently leads the development of guidance, advice and interpretation of the Policy to departments and agencies, including related policy instruments and guidance documents, and which provides policy guidance, interpretation and advice for Memorandums to Cabinet and Treasury Board submissions through liaison with Program Sector analysts in their advice to departments. The existing team also supports communities of practice across government, in part through the Director\Director General and Assistant Deputy Minister Interdepartmental Steering Committees it leads.

This Memorandum of Understanding has been developed following a meeting of the Assistant Deputy Minister Committee on Transfer Payments held on May 4th, 2023, where we collectively recognized that a centralized function was vital to support a more enabling leadership role for the Treasury Board Secretariat across the federal family, beyond the core Policy oversight and renewal function, to support enterprise- wide harmonization and alignment. In particular, the direction established the need to rebuild capacity within the Treasury Board Secretariat to play an integration role and to support the mandate for modernization within the domain of grants and contributions, while also acknowledging the value of departments working together and leveraging work across the system.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Transfer to the National Arts Centre Corporation for Canada's participation at World Expo Osaka 2025

• Global Affairs Canada is transferring $2.0M to the National Arts Centre for 2023-24 via Supplementary Estimates C in support of Canada’s participation in Expo 2025 Osaka.

Per the Memorandum of Understanding financial arrangement, the amount is allotted to develop, plan, program and produce Canadian cultural and artistic performances in the context of Expo 2025 Osaka, an international event to be held in Japan from April 13, 2025, to October 13, 2025. These funds are not to be used to finance ongoing operations in the delivery of the National Arts Centre's mandate for which it has been appropriated funds from Parliament.

The National Arts Centre will collaborate with Global Affairs Canada and its Canada Pavilion contractors and partners on presenting the Cultural programming for Canada at Expo 2025 Osaka as part of an integrated design concept, starting at the development phase, by providing cultural and technical input, by curating and producing performing arts programming on site, and by seeking opportunities for cross-collaborations and partnerships that can help deliver a relevant and successful Cultural Program at Expo 2025 Osaka.

Global Affairs Canada, on behalf of the Government of Canada, has the mandate to plan, coordinate and implement Canada’s participation in Expo 2025 Osaka. The theme of the expo, Designing Future Society for Our Lives, and its 3 subthemes, Saving Lives, Empowering Lives, and Connecting Lives, are the focus for the Expo Organiser and international participants to develop their pavilion programming to engage visitors, both physically and virtually.

The purpose of the transfer is to establish the activities, including roles and responsibilities, for the Memorandum of Understanding participants to explore collaborative initiatives or similar activities related to the National Arts Centre advice on and execution of curated cultural programme and live performances as part of Canada’s participation at Expo 2025 Osaka.

The main attraction of the Canada Pavilion will be the Public Presentation and exhibition area, which will be central to the integrated visitor experience. Canada’s diverse cultural offering will be on display with dedicated stages/performance areas at the Pavilion and at Expo site. The stage and/or performance area will be designed for a variety of possible disciplines and audiences and be adaptable and suitable for various weather conditions. Performances/activities may be live, virtual or hybrid and include amateur and professional shows, as well as activities such as culinary or collaborative presentations that actively engage audiences.

While the Public Presentation is the main exhibit and attraction for visitors, the related complementary/event programming (for example, cultural performances and thematic events) is an important dimension of the Canada Pavilion experience. All key pavilion spaces and surfaces must be designed to be programmable (sound, light, video, etc.) and adaptable to new or temporary programming options, such as experiential art installations, temporary exhibits, or sound and light shows. Canada will develop complementary programming to be delivered during the Expo, including cultural, trade and promotional events, and other special experiences for the public and/or invited guests.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Transfer to the Department of Natural Resources to support the Forests and Climate Leaders' Partnership

• Global Affairs Canada is transferring $2.5M to Natural Resources Canada for 2023-24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support the climate finance project Forests and Climate Leader’s Partnership Country packages for forest, nature and climate .
• This funding falls under the Emerging Priorities Fund of the $5.3B 2021-2026 Climate Finance commitment.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada will be transferring $2.5M for 2023-24
• Country Packages for Forests, Nature and Climate are integrated packages of technical, financial, and diplomatic support; investment; and business partnerships. They engage a range of public, private, multilateral and philanthropic institutions in an actively coordinated arrangement to support the implementation of a country’s raised ambitions on climate, forests and biodiversity. Country Packages begin based on a trusting dialogue between host countries and their international Packages have the potential to match the scale of the challenge faced by a country in meeting its raised ambition by pooling, coordinating, and catalyzing new and additional international sources of funding. Enhanced coordination between international partners, domestic institutions and implementing agencies and the private sector operating in those areas will help ensure that scarce concessional and grant capital is fit-for-purpose and deployed in efficient instruments to mobilize the necessary scale of finance. Country packages also aim to reduce transaction costs for all actors involved. A Country Package will be bespoken to the priorities and circumstances of the host country. The content, structure, and coordination approach of a Package would be driven by the host country and therefore be highly customized to reflect the ambitions, capacities, challenges, and current programs of the host, and capacities of interested partners. Country Packages could help drive support for conservation, restoration, and sustainable agriculture, and other economic activities consistent with host government Nationally Determined Contributions and National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans. For other partners, country packages could help reduce overlaps (and gaps) in programs and financing, generate opportunities for co-investment and blended finance, help unlock barriers to investment, and help better synchronize policy, finance, and investment around a mutually recognized set of goals. Options are being explored with the United Nations Development Fund on the best Country Package to support that will meet Canada’s international priorities and those of the Forests and Climate Leader’s Partnership.

Through this funding, Global Affairs Canada will contribute to global efforts to reduce deforestation and improve climate outcomes in Africa where needs for innovative solutions to deal with deforestation and land degradation issues are the most urgent. The Forest and Climate Leaders Partnership, a leader level commitment, is committed to accelerating momentum to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030. The Action Aras of the Forest and Climate Leaders Partnership are designed to address the climate and biodiversity crises and are aligned with Canada’s international priorities. This funding will demonstrate Canada’s commitment to advancing efforts to halt deforestation.

The Forest and Climate Leaders Partnership will support Canada’s $5.3B climate finance commitment objectives on climate change adaptation, climate-smart agriculture, nature-based solutions and deforestation. The Forest and Climate Leaders Partnership will also align with Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy and the climate finance commitment’s policy objective of at least 80% of climate projects integrating gender equality.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Transfer to the Department of Environment to support the Africa Adaptation Initiative Food Security Accelerator

• Global Affairs Canada is transferring $5M to Environment and Climate Change Canada for 2023-24 via Supplementary Estimates C to support the Africa Adaptation Initiative Food Security Accelerator.
• The funding falls under the Emerging Priorities Fund (2023-24) from the $5.3B (2021-2026) climate finance commitment.
• In total, Global Affairs Canada is transferring $5M for 2023-24
• This $5M will provide support to the Africa Adaptation Initiative Food Security Accelerator which is implemented by the Africa Adaptation Initiative. The program will be led by Environment and Climate Change Canada and delivered as a The initiative will build on Canada’s efforts to tackle food security. This includes support for technical assistance, and research, pilot and demonstration interventions for adaptation projects as well as using grants towards a blended finance facility to catalyze capital for local agricultural small and medium enterprises in Africa.

The facility will ensure a strong alignment and will contribute to the objectives of existing and new adaptation initiatives targeting agriculture in Africa. The Accelerator will help identify, structure, and de-risk a pipeline of transformative adaptation investments in food security, helping to unlock private capital that is already standing ready to invest in these innovative solutions, ranging from cold storage logistics to climate resilient agriculture and post harvesting processes.

The Africa Adaptation Initiative Food Security Accelerator was announced at an event co-hosted by the United States of America and Egypt in conjunction with COP27. The United States of America is providing $20M in support of this initiative.

Supplementary estimates (C), 2023-24 Public Accounts 2022-23 – Overview

• The Public Accounts of Canada is a report prepared annually by the Receiver General of Canada.
• The Public Accounts contain all government expenditures and revenues, accounts receivables, loans, assets and related reserves that are deemed necessary to present a fair picture of the Government of Canada’s financial position. They also highlight, among other things, any losses of public money and property and explain the nature of lapses at year-end.
• The financial information of each individual department and agency are rolled up into the Public Accounts of Canada.
• Each year, the President of the Treasury Board tables a detailed report of the financial transactions of all government departments and agencies, entitled the Public Accounts of Canada .
• The report must be tabled on or before December 31 following the end of the fiscal year to which the accounts apply; or, if the House is not sitting, on any of the first 15 subsequent sitting As a matter of tradition only, the Public Accounts are addressed to the Governor General.
• The fundamental purpose of the Public Accounts of Canada is to provide information to Parliament, and thus to the public, which will enable them to understand and evaluate the financial position and transactions of the
• Two constitutional principles underlie the public accounting system: that duties and revenues accruing to the Government of Canada form one Consolidated Revenue Fund, and that the balance of the Fund after certain prior charges is appropriated by the Parliament of Canada for the public service.

Supplementary estimates (C), 2023-24 Public Accounts 2022-23 – Losses

• The Public Accounts of Canada reports losses of public money or property due to offenses, illegal acts, accidents or accidental destruction. Total losses of public money and property reported in the Public Accounts for Global Affairs Canada in 2022-23 were $89,000.
• Global Affairs Canada has strengthened internal controls around the use of mobile devices and promoted awareness around fraud and the safeguarding of its assets.

Losses reported in the 2022-23 Public Accounts include:

• Loss, theft or misappropriation of cash and unauthorized or fraudulent use of acquisition or travel card ($8,000); and
• Accidental losses or damages of smartphones, laptops, SecurID tokens, materials, tools or supplies ($81,000).

Supplementary estimates (C), 2023-24 Public Accounts 2022-23 – Travel and Conferences

• Travel information is disclosed as part of the Public Accounts of Canada , including Travel of Ministers’ Offices (Volume III-Section 10).
• These expenditures are incurred by ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries, and Ministers’ staff in the course of their duties on behalf of Global Affairs Canada.
• Expenditures, including travel, for Canadian representation at International Conferences and Meetings are also reported in Volume III-Section 11 of the Public Accounts of Canada .
• Expenditures for Canadian Representation at International Conferences and Meetings are also included in the Public Accounts (Vol III - Section 11). This includes expenditures such as travel, hospitality and conference fees that are covered under the department’s International Conference Allotment that is approved by Cabinet to fund the protocol activities of the Governor General and the Prime Minister of Canada during official visits abroad. The allotment also supports the participation of Global Affairs Canada portfolio ministers and their official delegations in major multilateral international conferences defined as a congress, convention, briefing seminar or other formal gathering in one location outside Canada, that deals with topics related to government of Canada objectives and priorities.
• This statement also contains travel costs incurred during each visit or conference that appear separately on the “Travel Expenditures for Canadian Representation at International Conferences and Meetings” statement which lists the travelling delegates.
• 77 th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, September 2022 ($762,000);
• State Funeral for Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II, September 16-19, 2022 ($649,000); and
• G20 Leaders' Summit, November 14-17, 2022 ($481,000).
• 77 th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), September 2022 ($764,000);
• State Funeral for Her Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II, September 16-19, 2022 ($659,000); and
• G20 Leaders' Summit, November 14-17, 2022 ($485,000).

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C)  2022-23 Public accounts lapses

• In the Public Accounts of Canada, Global Affairs Canada’s Operating budget (Vote 1) was $2,106.2 M in 2022-23. The Public Accounts show an unspent amount of $65.3 M (3.1%). A total of $51.1 M (2.4%) will be carried forward to 2023-24 and $11.5 M (0.5%) will be reprofiled to 2024-25 and 2025-26.
• Global Affairs Canada’s Capital budget (Vote 5) was $240.8 M in 2022-23. The Public Accounts show an unspent amount of $123.5 M (51.3%). A total of $14.9 M (6.2%) will be carried forward to 2023-24 and $106.9 M (44.4%) will be reprofiled to 2024-25 and 2025-26.
• Global Affairs Canada’s Grants and Contributions budget (Vote 10) was $6,608.5 M in 2022-23. The Public Accounts show an unspent amount of $196.1 M (0.3%). Not eligible for carry forward.
• Vote 1 is to fund the operations of the Department, which is comprised of salaries, the operating costs to deliver our programs (Trade, Development, and Foreign Affairs), including operating expenditures at missions abroad, and other operational expenses such as travel and professional services.
• Vote 5 is to cover capital expenditures, which are largely related to the Real Property program.
• Vote 10 is for grants and contributions expenditures including programming for international development and assessed
• Departments are able to use portions of their operating and capital lapses in future fiscal years through the Operating and Capital Budget Carry Forward
• Grants and Contributions surpluses are not eligible to be carry forward to future fiscal years.

Operating - Vote 1:

• Conversion Factor (to allow for conversion of Operating to Salary Funds) ($13.9M);
• Protecting our people at Canadian Missions Abroad through Infrastructure, Mission Readiness, and Securing our Information (Known as Duty of Care at missions abroad) ($11.5 M) reprofiled to 2024-25 and 2025-26;
• Currency Gains for Operating and Foreign Services Directives Operations ($5.2M);
• Protecting Canada’s National Security ($0.9M);
• Crisis Pool - Quick release mechanism ($0.6M);
• Appointment of the Special Envoy ($0.5M); and
• Financial Management Transformation ($0.3M).
• Protecting our people at Canadian Missions Abroad through Infrastructure, Mission Readiness, and Securing our Information (Known as Duty of Care at missions abroad) ($9.2M);
• Softwood Lumber Agreement litigation ($5.7M);
• Innovative Solutions Canada ($0.8M); and
• Dispute Resolution Panelist (NAFTA) ($0.5M).
• Delays in projects approvals and cancellations of project/travel/training ($10.9M);
• Canada’s participation at World Expo Osaka 2025 ($3.6M);
• Peace and Stabilization Operations ($0.8M);
• Address the crises in Iraq and Syria and the impacts on the region (Known as Middle East Strategy) ($0.3M);
• Foreign Services Directives ($0.2M); and
• Canada Fund Local Initiative ($0.4M).

Capital - Vote 5:

• Protecting our people at Canadian Missions Abroad through Infrastructure, Mission Readiness, and Securing our Information (Known as Duty of Care at missions abroad) ($106.9M) reprofiled to 2024-25 and 2025-26; and
• Conversion Factor (to allow for conversion of Capital to Salary Fund) ($1.7M).
• GAC 125 Sussex Renovation Projects ($9.1M);
• Delays in several planned acquisitions of SQs and the development of major capital projects ($2.9M);
• GAC International Assistance Transformation Project; ($2.3M); and
• Electronic Client Relationship Management (eCRM3) system ($0.6M).

Grants and Contributions - Vote 10:

• International Financial Institutions ($80.8M);
• Crisis Pool Quick Release Mechanism ($24.4M) reprofiled to 2023-24;
• Sovereign Loan Program ($6.8M) reprofiled to 2023-24;
• CanExport Program ($1.9M) reprofiled to 2024-25 to 2026-27;
• Canadian International Innovation Program ($0.5M) reprofiled to 2024-25; and
• Aid of Academic Relations ($0.4M) reprofiled to 2024-
• Grants ($19.6M)
• World Health Organization ($27.7M including $0.6M for currency loss)
• United Nations peacekeeping operations ($18.6M including $5.9M for currency loss); and
• Other Assessed Contributions ($13.9M including $6.2M for currency loss).
• International Youth Internship Program ($1.2M); and
• Other non-assessed contributions ($0.8M).

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Briefing note on Departmental Results Report 2022-23

• Canada continued to address Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine by advocating for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity in key multilateral forums (such as the UN, G7, and NATO); working with international partners to investigate human rights violations and hold Russia accountable; sanctioning Russian and Russia- connected individuals and entities; and sanctions on Russian imports and exports of technology and services.
• Global Affairs Canada launched the integrated Indo-Pacific Strategy that focuses on diplomatic, economic, security and defence partnerships, international assistance, and strategic partnerships with key regional partners, such as Japan and the Republic of Korea, as well as an evolving China Policy Framework.
• Canada advanced negotiations toward free trade agreements with the UK, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Indonesia and India. Canada also concluded negotiations on the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and modernized its free trade agreement with Ukraine.
• The Trade Commissioner Service abroad and in Canada delivered over 57,000 services to more than 11,000 Canadian clients, of which 87% were small and medium-sized enterprises, resulting in new export deals with an estimated value of $3.8B.
• Canada contributed nearly $650M for emergency food and nutrition needs which helped the World Food Programme to reach 158 million food insecure people in 2022. Canada also provided over $143M in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan and the surrounding region, reaching 22.3 million vulnerable people with lifesaving food assistance.
• Global Affairs Canada managed almost 162,000 new consular cases, including close to 5,900 cases concerning Canadians who required urgent consular assistance while travelling or residing abroad.
• The department also continued to improve its international network infrastructure at missions, tripling its Internet bandwidth, deploying Wi-Fi at 40 mission sites and On-Net Wi-Fi capabilities at 25 sites, and continuing the rollout of the Virtual Mission Model at 13 new sites.

Global Affairs Canada’s results highlights include the following:

• Canada concluded a first successful Canada-African Union Commission High-Level Dialogue which served to deepen Canada’s partnership with the continent including the announcement of over $223M in project funding, $37M of which will be allocated for peace and security, $18M to bolster economic development and $168M for sustainable development initiatives.
• Canada implemented sanctions on 19 Haitian elites who support criminals instigating violence and undertook programming in the areas of food security and education, including $13M for emergency response.
• The Trade Commissioner Service helped bring about 157 foreign investment projects in Canada, representing a value of more than $15.8B and the creation of approximately 13,000 jobs, and facilitated the establishment of 175 international innovation partnerships worth at least $170M.
• Canada’s $220M contribution to the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) Facility enabled the delivery of over 500 million doses to COVAX participating countries and helped avert 28% of total COVID-related deaths in participating COVAX economies.
• In December 2022, Canada hosted the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) during which parties adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and instructed the Global Environment Facility to develop a new Global Biodiversity Framework Fund. Canada announced $350M in new and additional funding to support developing countries to implement the framework.
• Canada continued to advance cooperation against arbitrary arrest, detention and sentencing, securing 4 new endorsements for the Canada-led Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations (bringing the total to 71), as well as financing to create an Office of Arbitrary Detention Initiative to advance the initiative
• The Departmental Results Report describes the department’s achievements for the fiscal year against the priorities and expected results established in the corresponding Departmental It highlights several significant accomplishments achieved by the department over fiscal year 2022-23.
• The Departmental Results Report was tabled on November 9, 2023, and is available online. More information on departmental results can be found in the supplementary information tables available on the department’s website and on the Government of Canada’s InfoBase website.
• Global Affairs Canada’s total actual spending in 2022-23 of $9.2B was within its total authorities of $9.7B.
• Funding to support Canada’s response to the global food and nutrition crisis, with a focus in sub-Saharan Africa;
• Funding for Canada’s response to advance Ukrainian resilience and early recovery;
• Funding to support Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy implementation;
• Funding to protect individuals at Canadian missions abroad (duty of care);
• Funding of pandemic responses related to COVID-19;
• Funding to help developing countries address the impact of climate change;
• Funding in support of the financial intermediary fund for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response; and
• Funding for humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan.
• Funding to support developing countries’ access to vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics to fight COVID-19;
• Funding for Canada’s Middle East Strategy to address the crises in Iraq and Syria and the impacts on the region;
• Funding for humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan;
• Funding for Canada’s Engagement in United Nations Peace Operations and Peacebuilding; and
• Operating and capital budget carry-forward from the previous fiscal

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Overview – Funding by CORE responsibility

• Consistent with the Policy on Results, departments are required to obtain deputy head and TBS approval on all amendments to their Departmental Results Framework.
• $87.5M – Internal Advocacy and Diplomacy;
• $10.6M – Trade and Investment;
• $2.4M – Development, Peace and Security Programming;
• $1.7M – Help for Canadians Abroad;
• $73.2M – Support for Canada’s Presence Abroad; and
• $10.0M - Internal
• The Department’s total authorities requested in the 2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) is $185.4M.
• As of April 1, 2018, the Policy on Results requires that all departments have a new reporting framework, which includes a Departmental Results Framework, a Program Inventory and Performance Information Profiles.
• Global Affairs Canada’s Departmental Results Framework came into effect starting in fiscal year 2018-19.
• The Core Responsibilities outlined in the Departmental Results Framework stem from Global Affairs Canada’s legislative framework and describe high- level domains in which Global Affairs Canada acts or has authority to operate on behalf of Canadians.
• International Advocacy and Diplomacy: Global Affairs Canada promotes Canada’s interests and values through policy development, diplomacy, advocacy, and effective engagement.
• Trade and Investment : Global Affairs Canada supports increased and more diverse trade and investment to raise the standard of living for all Canadians and to enable Canadian businesses to grow internationally and to create economic opportunities.
• Development, Peace and Security Programming : Global Affairs Canada programming contributes to reducing poverty, increasing opportunity for people around the world, alleviating suffering in humanitarian crises, and fostering peace and security, and in so doing, advances the Sustainable Development Goals.
• Help for Canadians Abroad: Global Affairs Canada provides timely and appropriate consular services for Canadians abroad, contributing to their safety and security.
• Support for Canada's Presence Abroad : Global Affairs Canada manages and delivers resources, infrastructure and services enabling Canada’s presence abroad, including at embassies, high commissions, and
• Internal Services : Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct service categories that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Development, peace and security programming

• Through the Development, Peace and Security Programming Core Responsibility, Global Affairs Canada programming contributes to reducing poverty, increasing opportunity for people around the world, alleviating suffering in humanitarian crises, and fostering peace and security, and in so doing, advances the Sustainable Development Goals.
• The current 2023-24 funding for this Core Responsibility is $5,442.4M. Through Supplementary Estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada will receive an additional $2.4M, bringing the total 2023-24 funding to $5,444.8M within Development, Peace and Security Programming.
• Global Affairs Canada seeks to advance five high level results through this area of departmental spending: 1) Improved physical, social and economic well-being for the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly for women and girls, in countries where Canada engages; 2) Enhanced empowerment and rights of women and girls in countries where Canada engages; 3) Reduced suffering and increased human dignity in communities experiencing humanitarian crises; 4) Improved peace and security in countries and regions where Canada engages; and, 5) Canada’s international assistance is made more effective by leveraging diverse partnerships, innovation, and experimentation.
• In 2023-24, Global Affairs Canada, in coordination with key international and Canadian global health stakeholders, will continue to support COVID-19 response and recovery and strengthen pandemic preparedness and response, including by donating surplus COVID-19 vaccine doses, where feasible;
• Canada will contribute up to $1B and work with other donors on the implementation of the Climate Investment Funds’ Accelerating Coal Transition Program to advance a just transition from coal power to clean energy in emerging economies;
• To help address the consequences and root causes associated with systemic gender inequality, Global Affairs Canada will continue to play a leadership role in advancing the rights of women and girls and gender equality in the poorest and most fragile It will remain a strong voice on the international stage and work to further leverage its position in key international institutions;
• To address this unprecedented level of humanitarian needs, Global Affairs Canada will continue to step up and respond to increasing and deteriorating humanitarian crises, delivering humanitarian assistance that saves lives, alleviates suffering and maintains the dignity of those most affected.
• To help progress towards peace and stabilization in societies around the world, Canada is committed to addressing the drivers of conflict through gender- responsive, integrated approaches to conflict prevention, stabilization and peacebuilding, and to state and institutional capacity building. The department will continue to work with partners to scale up support to address immediate needs and mitigate the impact of invasions on vulnerable populations.
• The department will report on results against the 2023-24 Departmental Plan in fall 2024 via the Departmental Results Report.

(in dollars)

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Support for Canada's presence abroad

• Through the Support for Canada's Presence Abroad Core Responsibility, Global Affairs Canada manages and delivers resources, infrastructure and services enabling Canada’s presence abroad, including at embassies, high commissions, and
• The current 2023-24 funding for this Core Responsibility is $1,276.3M. Through Supplementary Estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada will receive an additional $73.2M, bringing the total 2023- 24 funding to $1,349.5M within Support for Canada's Presence Abroad.
• Global Affairs Canada seeks to advance two high level results through this area of departmental spending: 1) Sound management and delivery of resources, infrastructure and services enables Canada’s presence abroad; and 2) Personnel are safe, missions are more secure and government and partner assets and information are protected.
• Continuing to implement its Digital Strategy to modernize mission networks, improving digital security and helping employees work more efficiently.
• Continuing efforts at greening government operations by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and overall environmental footprint by reducing energy consumption, carbon emissions and water consumption; planning for climate resilience; reducing printing in all offices and missions abroad; and waste and landfill diversion through recycling and composting programs at HQ and at missions;
• Continuing to enhance cyber security capabilities and upgrading IT security and infrastructure to better prevent, detect and respond to cyber threats on networks, platforms and devices; and
• Continuing the implementation of the 10-year Duty of Care initiative to improve the infrastructure, readiness and information security at missions abroad.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) International advocacy and diplomacy

• Through the International Advocacy and Diplomacy Core Responsibility, Global Affairs Canada promotes Canada’s interests and values through policy development, diplomacy, advocacy, and effective engagement.
• The current 2023-24 funding for this Core Responsibility is $909.7M. Through Supplementary Estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada will receive an additional $87.5M, bringing the total 2023- 24 funding to $997.2M within International Advocacy and Diplomacy.
• Global Affairs Canada seeks to advance four high-level results through this area of departmental spending: 1) Canada builds and maintains constructive relationships that advance Canada's interests; 2) Canada's leadership on global issues contributes to a just and inclusive world; 3) Canada helps build strong international institutions and respect for international law; and 4) Canada’s global influence is expanded and strengthened.
• Global Affairs Canada continues to refine its advocacy and diplomacy mechanisms to advance and defend Canada’s interests and values and to better respond to the rapidly evolving global environment. As the department adapts its advocacy and diplomacy mechanisms to respond to the modern global environment, maintaining and building relationships with all stakeholders will remain at the forefront;
• Global Affairs Canada will continue to advance Canadian international interests in the Arctic, and support for a stable and rules-based approach to the region;
• Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy presents a comprehensive road map to deepen our engagement in the Indo-Pacific over the next decade: increasing our contributions to regional peace and security; strengthening inclusive economic growth and resilience; enhancing our significant people-to-people ties; and supporting sustainable development across the Through clear policy and multifaceted regional investments, Canada will enhance its presence, visibility and influence in this critical region.
• Strong institutions are the cornerstones of well-functioning governments. Canada will continue to help developing countries around the world strengthen their institutions to better serve all members of their population, including the most Canada will also continue to serve as a strong voice within multi-stakeholder forums to advocate for good governance.
• Global Affairs is exploring ways to renew and strengthen Canada’s engagement on democracy. This will take into consideration the pressures on democratic principles in a contested geopolitical world and what it means to build democratic resilience in this context. Canada will reinforce, augment and modernize its policy tools to meet rapidly evolving challenges and will actively contribute recognized Canadian expertise on democracy, human rights and related issues.
• Canada will continue its strong advocacy for human rights, including through its leadership in multilateral forums, bringing countries to consensus and speaking out on important issues. This will include sponsoring resolutions on: the Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran and Child, Early and Forced Marriage at the UN General Assembly and on Violence Against Women and Girls Resolution at the Human Rights Canada will also leverage its long-standing memberships in the Equal Rights Coalition and the Media Freedom Coalition.
• The department will report on results against the 2023-24 Departmental Plan in fall 2024 via its Departmental Results Report.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Trade and investment

• Through the Trade and Investment Core Responsibility, Global Affairs Canada aims to increase and diversify trade and investment to raise the standard of living for all Canadians and to enable Canadian businesses to grow internationally and to create economic opportunities.
• The current 2023-24 funding for this Core Responsibility is $397.3M. Through Supplementary Estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada will receive an additional $10.6M, bringing the total 2023- 24 funding to $407.9M within Trade and Investment.
• Global Affairs Canada seeks to advance three high level results through this area of departmental spending: 1) building and safeguarding an open and inclusive rules-based global trading system; 2) canadian exporters and innovators are successful in their international business development efforts; and, 3) foreign direct investment is facilitated, expanded or retained.
• The department will strengthen collaboration with other government departments and agencies, provinces and territories, bilateral and multilateral partners, and other relevant stakeholders to combat protectionism, unfair trade practices and economic coercion around the world, and to strengthen and secure critical supply chains;
• Global Affairs Canada will continue to position Canada as an innovative, responsible and competitive partner by providing enhanced support to high-potential, high-growth Canadian exporters, including through the Canadian Technology Accelerator initiative and the Global Mentor program. It will provide funding through CanExport to small and medium- sized enterprises, associations and innovators to help businesses diversify their exports and protect Canadian intellectual property in foreign markets.
• The department will continue to develop online and digital communications with Canadian businesses to raise awareness about its activities and support for exporters, innovators, and foreign investors. The department will continue to invest in information technology tools to provide the best service to Canadians.
• The Trade Commissioner Service will continue activities that raise foreign investor knowledge, awareness and interest in investing in Canada, by targeting investment projects from foreign-based multinationals to fill gaps in existing supply chains in key priority sectors, placing sustainable growth at the centre of our efforts to support the transition to a low carbon economy.
• The department will report on results against the 2023-24 Departmental Plan in fall 2024 via it’s Departmental Results Report.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Help for canadians abroad

• Through the Help for Canadians Abroad Core Responsibility, Global Affairs Canada provides timely and appropriate consular services for Canadians abroad, contributing to their safety and
• The current 2023-24 funding for this Core Responsibility is $66.7 Through Supplementary Estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada will receive an additional $1.7M, bringing the total 2023-24 funding to $68.5M within Help for Canadians abroad.
• Global Affairs Canada seeks to advance two high level results through this area of departmental spending: 1) Canadians have timely access to information and services that keep them safer abroad; and 2) Canadians abroad receive timely and appropriate government services.
• Global Affairs Canada will provide timely and essential information to Canadians on its travel website and related social media accounts to help them make informed decisions about their travel;
• Sharing information and advice for Canadians affected by crises and emergencies abroad via its Emergency Watch and Response Centre, the Registration of Canadians Abroad system, the department’s social media messages and other online information on Canada’s global network of consular officials;
• Continuing to provide timely and appropriate consular services to all Canadians abroad, including those in potentially vulnerable situations, including women, children and members of the Indigenous and 2SLGBTQ1+ communities.

2023-24 Supplementary estimates (C) Internal services

• Internal services are the services that are provided within a department so that it can meet its corporate obligations and deliver its programs.
• The current 2023-24 funding for this Core Responsibility is $301.0M. Through the Supplementary Estimates (C), Global Affairs Canada will receive an additional $10.0M, bringing the total 2023- 24 funding to $311.0 M within Internal Services Programming.
• The department has five core responsibilities that stem from Global Affairs Canada’s legislative framework and describe high-level domains in which Global Affairs Canada acts or has authority to operate on behalf of Canadians.
• Management and Oversight Services;
• Communications Services;
• Legal Services;
• Human Resources Management Services;
• Financial Management Services;
• Information Management Services;
• Information Technology Services;
• Real Property Management Services;
• Materiel Management Services; and,
• Acquisition Management Services.
• Sustain COVID response and prepare for future pandemics;
• Strengthen operations and asset management;
• Develop the workforce of the future; and,
• Enable a digital transformation.