1. Cohort XIII – University of Ottawa
The modern GCworkplace: A strategic tool for service delivery excellence for the Government of Canada
Kevin Radford
Assistant Deputy Minister, Real Property Services
Public Services and Procurement Canada
Cohort XIII –
University of Ottawa
January 30, 2018
Key themes/discussion points:
Use of technology in government
Innovations in service excellence through GCworkplace
Approach
- Build presentation around a question to be answered and make statements to spur discussion in the audience

2. Let me show you a new perspective…
Play video
*** BE SURE TO HAVE THE VIDEO QUEUED UP BEFORE THE PRESENTATION STARTS**

3. What if… the workplace was about enabling employees?
What do employees care about?
Being busy (occupied)
Contributing
Being empowered to do their best
How do we translate this into decisions and designs for the workplace?

4. Past workplace
Taken together, Public Services and Procurement Canada employees travel the globe almost 6 X to get to work at the Place du Portage complex every day.
Paper document storage burden
Utilization rate of Portage IV = 47% daily on average

5. Future workplace The vision for our workplace must be:
employee-centric
principle-based
anchored in public service values
We surveyed 1,300 employees from across Canada…
They ranked “flexibility" as the most important workplace dimension, with “healthy” coming in as a close second.
Why is this a “Fresh” vision?
This vision has a foundation in BP2020 and the direction of the Clerk, but was developed through the engagement and responses of employees in a series of workshops nation-wide.
250 participants
from 12 departments and agencies
**Result: 7 dimensions on GCworkplace – Tech is an essential component of most of these
Not only that… the whole vision-setting process was conducted using technology…
Delivered through tech – webex and online surveys.
Developed in an innovative way – agile, co-development which became the foundation for layers of future work: personas, then the vision for the GCworkplace
**This shows how technology can help to improve the GC experience – can help us achieve new and better results.
“The [Blueprint 2020] vision foresees a capable and high performing public service that embraces innovation, transformation and continuous renewal” Destination 2020
The current GC workplace lacks the functionality, technology and capability to provide our employees with the tools they require to deliver public services and make decisions.
The workplace of the future must be informed by the client’s business objectives; what they do and who they do it with. It must be oriented to business processes, behaviours and culture, and to an inclusive, innovative future-oriented vision.
Speaking notes regarding accessibility:
Our fit-up standards include accessible design to meet CSA standards (the current TBS requirement). There is flexibility to include more progressive standards like universal access. We recognize that accessibility means much more than mobility restrictions. Our design guidelines encourage progressive designs.
We also want to develop, and design for, a culture of inclusiveness. This would be through multi-purpose spaces that allow for different genders, faiths and cultures, individual wellness requirements (such as quiet spaces, outdoors spaces, dark spaces, etc.), etc. and would be included in the Change management engagement strategies best practices related to this (from both our GCpedia reference pages and our GCconnex communities of practice examples).

6. Future workplace
Putting Wi-Fi in all of our federal office spaces would save 12,500 km worth of copper wiring… the distance between Ottawa and Fiji!
12,500 KM
Calculations for fun fact stat:
The maximum Ethernet cable is 100 meters.   Let’s say we split it in the middle, and we assume the average user is 50 cable-metres from the Telecom Room. There are 250,000 civil servants.
If we converted 250,000 civil servants to wireless only, we would save 12,500 KM of copper wiring. That’s the distance between Ottawa and Fiji.

7. User experience expectations and technology requirements
In a series of workshops, with over 250 participants from 12 departments and agencies, employees identified five key themes for the user experience, which align to the Blueprint 2020 guiding principles.
These user experiences are supported by five technology pillars, on which Shared Services Canada is focusing as part of their workplace technology enablement strategy:
Hardware and software used to secure the environment
Technologies that provide a connection between two end-points
Hardware that interacts directly with an end-user or their environment
Information produced and/or consumed by end-users
Software for common business activities independent of user function and position

8. Enterprise GCworkplace Model Policy/Regulatory/ Social/Economic
Holistic approach that applies the workplace vision to the entire portfolio and brings like-minded organizations together to create the conditions for collaboration and innovation
Enterprise GCworkplace Model
Policy/Regulatory/ Social/Economic
Housing
Science
Security
Warehouse
Judicial
Current workplace
model
And… savings generated by sharing resources can be better applied to the 7 dimensions of highly effective workplaces to make best use of new tools, technology and data
Speaking notes:
GCworkplace is not only about office space – it is also science, security, special purpose, etc.
The various types of space are not mutually exclusive – in fact, they intersect in many ways
GCworkplace is the ultimate integrator of the many functions – and technology is the glue!
Background:
Space Type m2r # of Custodial Departments
Housing 1,683,786 15
Museum/Cultural/Park 600,057 11
Office* 7,575,207 33
Other 3,804,451 26
Science 1,849,111 16
Security 9,617,877 10
Warehouse 767,675 24
Total 25,898,164

9. Imagine if…
You could collaborate across the Government both physically and virtually,
with choices of location to work from, including closer to home and with like-minded organisations (e.g. science-based or security-focused).
You could work from anywhere, at anytime.
The workplace allowed you to be healthier and reduced its impact on the environment.

10. It exists here and the future is now
Leadership from the top down: Modern interim space for the Assistant Deputy Minister’s Office
Unassigned, with a variety of work-point options
Zero enclosed offices – including assistant deputy ministers, directors general and directors
Collaborative spaces
Large community spaces
High employee satisfaction
Kevin’s office
Leadership
Next steps are to go even further (within 3 months) to an even more flexible and choice-rich environment!