Information Management Results in the Canadian Government's 2014-15 Departmental Performance Reports

The website Librarianship.ca has compiled a list of information management-related results contained in the Departmental Performance Reports (DPRs) for 93 government departments and agencies. This includes the Supreme Court of Canada.

These annual Reports are part of the federal Estimates Process that includes government expenditure plans, the main and supplementary budget estimates, and Reports on Plans and Priorities (RPPs).

Every year, federal departments and agencies publish RPPs outlining their strategic goals. At the end of the fiscal year, Departmental Performance Reports look back on actual accomplishments and expenditures, to assess how well the agencies performed as measured against the objectives that were set out in the RPPs.

Here are the IM-related parts of the Supreme Court's DPR:

• Business Transformation
  • The mapping of current case management processes and processes relating to judgments was concluded, and a comprehensive document detailing the requirements of a new integrated case management system was developed. Phase 1 of the migration of the Case Management System to a new operating system began, starting with Records Centre operations. An automated process for the management of cases from the time initiating documents are received at the Court to the case being accepted for filing was developed, and allows for a reduced need for duplicate data entry. A proof of concept of a records management system, i.e. GCDOCS, showed that it could be integrated with the Court’s document management system. Amendments to the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada now allow the electronic processing of motions, the Court’s first fully electronic case process. The updated Policy for Access to Supreme Court of Canada Court Records came into force in March 2015, and allows for a more efficient service to frequent requesters. A trial of secure digital transmission technology was conducted and used to evaluate the use of the technology in a judicial environment and to identify future requirements for the authentication of users and / or documents for electronic filing.

Analysis of Programs by Strategic Outcome

• Program 1.1:  Court Operations
  
  
  • The Supreme Court has a consistent record of meeting its objectives in processing cases without delay, providing effective access to Court services and programs, including reference information, and providing reliable courtroom services.  At the same time, the Office of the Registrar has maintained stakeholder satisfaction and high standards of service quality.
  • Over the last three fiscal years, the Court has focused on its Business Transformation Initiative to address issues associated with aging mission critical systems while moving the Court towards increased electronic access and processing of cases, more effective and efficient work processes, as well as the protection and preservation of historical and archival information in electronic format. Electronic recordkeeping, through the implementation of an enterprise information management strategy, will continue to be considered as a core foundation of business transformation.  Business process mapping will look at current work processes and will identify workflows which may be streamlined or made more efficient through the introduction of new technologies.
• Internal Services
  • The Library and Information Management Branch supports the information management needs of the organization.  Accomplishments for 2014-15 included progress in the following key priorities:
    • As part of an ongoing assessment of the Enterprise Information System Proof of Concept/prototype in support of business transformation, there were service enhancements to the case-related document management system as the Court moved to electronic transcripts. This has the added impact of saving photocopying and distribution costs.
    • Significant progress has been made on implementing GCDOCS across the organization to manage documents and records of business value. Issues related to the configuration of the software have been resolved and the system is scheduled for roll-out in the Records Centre in Q1 of 2015-16. This will support the organizational requirement for managing the full life-cycle of both physical and electronic records.
    • Ensuring that the Office of the Registrar is able to meet its obligations under the Treasury Board Secretariat’s Directive on Recordkeeping continues as a key objective. In 2014-15, a formal Disposition Plan was approved by the Executive Committee, laying the groundwork to streamline disposition processes for electronic documents and records. Much work was done to finalize a Memorandum of Understanding with Library and Archives Canada for the long-term storage and care of the SCC’s records of enduring value. A revised Access to Court Records Policy was approved in March 2015. A digitization project to back-date the Supreme Court Reports to 1876 has been completed.