1. Integrated Risk Management
Service and solutions
Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC)
Real Property Services (RPS)
In PWGSC/RPS, we are taking action to instill a risk aware culture in our organization and to provide our people with the enabling environment to support them in understanding risk and in managing it.
In addition to providing tools, techniques and training, a critical element of risk awareness is a supportive management culture to allow our people the opportunity to benefit from past experience and to truly become part of a learning organization.
Risk management is about managing risk, not being risk averse under all circumstances. Risk management is as much about avoiding lost opportunities as it is about minimizing loss. Integrated Risk Management is a comprehensive approach to managing risk as a management function to ensure risk from all sources is addressed within an organization-wide perspective, as well as a Branch and project perspective.
This is the basic premise under which RPS is nurturing a risk aware corporate culture.
Hank van der Linde
Director General
Asset and Facilities Management Services
Real Property Services
Public Works and Government Services Canada

2. Presentation Outline Our Risk Management context
Integrated Risk Management Framework
Culture and Supportive Environment
Project Delivery System
Future Direction
I will provide you with a brief description of the risk management context within the Government of Canada.
My primary objective here today however, is to share with you how RPS is moving down the road of integration and implementation in risk management, particularly in the area of project management and delivery.
I will walk you through the key elements that are contained in our approach and our framework for managing risk. Our framework is a "tool in itself" which will provide our people at the front-line with a guideline for becoming risk aware, communicating management's risk tolerance and in assessing the risk our people deal with on a day-to-day basis.
I will briefly provide you with some examples of specific tools in place or under development in RPS that assist us in managing the risks that we encounter in providing our program and in delivering projects for our clients.
I will also speak to how we are beginning to view risk management as an integrated concept within our strategic planning and performance measurement processes.

3. Our Risk Management Context
Modern comptrollership - Results for Canadians
Government policy and direction
Fostering a risk aware culture and supportive environment
Managing risk on behalf of our clients
Our Integrated Risk Management approach delivers on the commitment set out in Results for Canadians - a Management Framework for the Government of Canada to strengthen risk management practices within the Public Service.
Risk Management is a key component of Modern Comptrollership and a priority on the government management agenda.
Application of sound risk management practices will support a cultural shift to a risk-aware workforce and environment in the Public Service of Canada. Such an environment is one that supports responsible risk management, where risk management is built into existing governance and organizational structures, and planning and operational processes. An essential element of a risk-aware environment is to ensure that the workplace has the capacity and tools to be innovative while recognizing and respecting the need to be prudent in protecting the public interest and maintaining public trust.
We have developed a "Value Proposition" with our clients that has the "management of risk" as one of its key components. Our clients expect and value our capacity to manage risk on their behalf. This is a business objective of our organization

4. Categories of Risk
Strategic Risks: Risks entailing significant sensitivity. These risks are not easy to deal with because they cannot be directly controlled. They also include significant horizontal operational and project risks.
Operational Risks: Risks that can generally be controlled. These risks are associated with areas such as operational processes, human resources, integrity, liability, information processing, technology and financial issues.
We manage a wide range of risks that can be broadly gathered into three main categories:
Strategic risks are risks entailing significant sensitivity. They are not easy to deal with because they cannot be directly controlled (e.g. risks related to the inability of an organization to change its culture). They include significant horizontal operational and project risks (e.g. loss of corporate memory or implications of capacity in dealing with increasing business volumes).
Operational risks can generally be controlled. These risks are associated with areas such as operational processes, human resources, integrity, liability, information processing, technology and financial issues.
Project risks are associated with technical, development, implementation and management issues that can affect cost, quality, schedule and safety. Such issues are related to a long list of sources including unclear roles, poor contractor performance and environmental related events. They are generally within our span of control.
Risk in one area can have repercussions in others and in some cases, risks have to be considered in all areas. Integrated Risk Management ensures appropriate response in and across all areas of risk.
Project Risks: Risks associated with technical, development, implementation and management issues that affect cost, quality, schedule and safety.

5. Integrated Risk Management Framework
Part I Risk Context and Organizational Setting
Part II Policy
Part III Tools
and techniques
Our framework is designed to provide a greater awareness of:
liability risks and the need for due diligence
potential political risks
the need to balance mandate and service risks
sharing of information and ideas.
Our framework is the collection of management practices and operational processes that enable risk to be managed well.
There are three components:
Risk Context/Organizational Setting: For ensuring the success of a "risk management process" and related practices and tools.
Risk Management Policy: For communicating senior management's commitment, roles and responsibilities, and an explanation of the level of risk tolerance that is appropriate within our organizational environment.
Risk Management Tools and Techniques: For ensuring that risks are identified, assessed, responded to, monitored and reported on efficiently and effectively.

6. Key Elements of Our Approach
Moral Contract
Managers foster an environment of support within which employees can manage risks. Employees determine level of risk associated with each activity and apply an appropriate Risk Management approach suitable for that level of risk.
Risk Tolerance
The guidelines communicate management’s risk tolerance and define the approaches depending on level of risk and risk factors.
When managing risk, RPS management and staff enter a moral contract.
The manager fosters an environment of support within which employees can manage risks. Employees must determine the level of risk associated with an activity or project and apply the risk management approach suitable for that level of risk (intuitive vs.. systematic).
In managing risk, all of us have responsibilities. Managers and employees have to engage in a continuous dialogue on risk management. Management is responsible for communicating about risk tolerance. Employees are responsible for communicating about risk assessment.
This does not imply that we encourage our employees to take inappropriate risks or break the rules. What we do expect is that if someone has exercised due diligence and effectively managed risk on a project or an activity and a negative occurrence that could not have been anticipated or that was anticipated and planned for properly does occur, management and the organization will stand behind them. We will learn from such experiences and take steps to ensure that they do not happen again.
Communication
Roles and responsibilities
Tools and techniques

7. RPS Risk Management Process
Understand Objectives
Risk Identification
Risk Communication & Context
Risk Assessment
Our risk management process is the "engine" that drives the concept.
I'm not going to go through this model in detail with you today but this tool provides our people with a generic process that they can apply within the context of delivering a project, carrying out an activity or managing a program.
The five steps in our process reflect both the steps in our overall Departmental (PWGSC) approach and the steps in the process used by the Project Management Institute, which is a process many of our staff are familiar with.
Risk Response
Monitoring & Reporting

8. Front Line Tools in RPS (Examples)
Architectural and Engineering Services
Risk management committee
On-line project management practice standard
Integrated support centre (including risk management expertise)
Formalized risk management plans on all projects
This is a partial list of the front-line tools that we have in place or under development that assist us in managing risk.
This "menu" will evolve over time and as we continue to learn.
Risk management is not new to RPS. In many areas, in particular project management and delivery, we have taken a lead in the management of risk. There are many best practices and guidelines available related to project delivery, which support risk management.
Our AES sector has a risk management committee that reviews our project delivery system, which I’ll speak to in a moment, to ensure that risk is managed effectively throughout our delivery of projects. Our on-line project management practice standard provides access to best practices, templates and lessons learned on project charters, contracting authority guidelines, developing risk management plans etc.
Office Accommodation and Real Estate Services
Investment analysis reports
Lease control framework
Capital project priority ranking policy

9. Front Line Tools in RPS (Cont’d)
Asset and Facilities Management Services
AFD management: KPIs, tenant satisfaction survey
Contract management: change order centres, standing offers
Security threat and risk assessments (TRA)
Our Project Management Unit has a dedicated group of experts in risk management to support our project managers. This unit provides guidance in developing and managing risk management plans for major projects, particularly those that have been assessed as having potentially high risk factors.
This list simply provides some examples of tools and techniques that relate to risk management within our organization.

10. Project Delivery System
Planning
Definition
Implementation
Commissioning
Operating
In RPS, we follow a Project Delivery System, which consists of six phases. The PDS is the basic framework within which our organization manages real property projects. The system helps ensure a quality end product, delivered on time and within budget.
In the context of risk management, our focus has been on the front-end of the project, particularly those areas dealing with contracting and procurement. As an example, we have developed a Pre-authorized Amendment Authority (PAA) process, which develops a plan of action for quickly implementing contract changes should they be required. The process begins with conducting a project risk assessment to identify risk factors that may occur and their impact and likelihood of occurrence for each project. The funding impact of such occurrences is determined and a mechanism put in place for pre-authorizing contractual changes to the project more efficiently. This process also provides an effective way of sitting down with a client and entering a dialogue on potential risks for a project and the possible impact on cost and schedule.
Risk Management Plans are developed for each project during the planning and definition phases and continue to be reviewed and updated as the project evolves. Post Occupancy Evaluations and Post Project Evaluations are other tools to review each project and to learn from past experience.
This provides a very high level overview of some of the tools and techniques that we are applying to manage risk during the delivery of a project.
Evaluation

11. Future Direction Communications, awareness training
Risk Management Website - on-line tools
Continuous learning and lessons learned
More fully integrate Risk Management into our strategic planning and performance measurement processes
Our next steps include a focused communication and awareness program around the management of risk that is being developed in coordination with the other Branches in our Department.
We are in the process of developing an intranet site to provide, in addition to the contents of our framework, basic information about risk, reference to external information and training sources, and links to specific best practices, checklists and other tools to support our people.

12. Contacts
Bruce Lorimer - Director General RPS/Architectural and Engineering Services
Jennifer Stewart - Director General RPS/Strategic Management
Lastly, we realize that risk management is strongly a part of our strategic planning and performance measurement processes. We will continue to integrate risk management concepts and language within those processes and the communication around them.
Thank you for the opportunity to share with you how we are going down the road of integrating risk management within our program and the delivery of our projects. If you are interested in more information about risk management in RPS, I invite you to contact Bruce Lorimer, our Director General of Architectural and Engineering Services or Jennifer Stewart, our Director General of Strategic Management at the addresses shown on the slide.