Privy Council Office

Goal setting

Question 1

Has your organization set goals (for fiscal year 2023-2024 or future fiscal years) for recruiting and promoting Indigenous peoples and Black and other racialized people?

• My organization has set recruitment goals for:
  • Indigenous peoples
  • Black people
  • Racialized people
• My organization has set promotion goals for:
  • Indigenous employees
  • Black employees
  • Racialized employees
• Work is underway to set goals.

Please provide details and/or examples, including what your organization is using to set its goals (e.g., operational priorities, labour market availability [LMA], population data, workforce availability [WFA]), and how these goals are communicated to employees, if applicable. What has been the most helpful in advancing towards the goals you have set? What challenges, if any, have you encountered?

The Privy Council Office (PCO) consists of the Clerk, two Deputy Clerks and nine deputy secretaries/deputy ministers who are responsible for their respective secretariats and branches. Employment equity (EE) data is presented and discussed quarterly at PCO’s Executive Committee and informs departmental priorities. In September 2023, the Clerk announced the creation of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Anti-Racism Secretariat (IDEA Secretariat) led by the Chief Diversity Officer (CDO). As part of their mandate, the CDO convenes various stakeholders including the Corporate Services Branch (CSB), employee network leads and equity champions to establish departmental goals. The IDEA Secretariat and CSB also support branches as they determine their goals to ensure they are aligned with branch data.

Recruitment

Fiscal year (FY) 2023-24 – Based on EE data, the Executive (EX) cadre was identified as a priority area in the 2023-24 Departmental Plan given that they are a key precursor to senior leadership both at PCO and across the federal government. PCO has made progress on representation. Since the launch of the Call to Action, the department has increased representation in the EX cadre as of March 2024 for racialized people (10.1% to 27.3%), Indigenous people (0% to 3.6%), persons with disabilities (2.5% to 5.5%) and women (53.2% to 58.2%).  

FY 2024-25 – PCO is developing its first Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan. Current departmental data, disaggregated by equity group and further broken down into racialized people and Black people, reveals a significant equity gap within the EX-feeder group for the department. Reducing this gap will be a focus for the department as these positions are a key precursor into the pipeline for leadership. Gaps persist for Indigenous employees at all levels. The following organizational goals have been established:

• Intentional focus on hiring Indigenous, Black and racialized people, particularly into the EX-feeder group.
• Increase efforts to attract, recruit and retain Indigenous employees at all levels while creating an inclusive environment to support development and belonging.
• At a branch level, individual branches have set their goals for recruitment that align with their EE data. Progress on these goals will be monitored collaboratively with the Corporate Data Analytics team, branch leads and the IDEA Secretariat.

Promotion

FY 2023-24 – Promotion of Indigenous, Black and racialized employees varied across secretariats and branches with some branches having set goals. As a result of PCO’s small size and the scope of its mandate, promotion is a recognized area for improvement going forward.

FY 2024-25 – PCO is prioritizing career development of Indigenous, Black and racialized employees at all levels, including entry, intermediate and leadership. Under this goal, PCO will explore opportunities to expand available talent pools and focus on developing talent from within the organization. For example:

• Developmental programs to recruit, develop, and promote staff, focusing on Indigenous, Black, and racialized individuals, and persons with disabilities will be explored within and outside of PCO and where they exist, they will be communicated to employees. The objective will be to bridge talented individuals into developmental roles and offer more opportunities for career progression.
• Other opportunities to increase promotion rates include identifying and addressing barriers that limit movement between classifications such as exploring long-term staffing actions like two-year assignments to attract potential candidates to PCO.

Question 2

Has your organization set goals to foster greater inclusion (for fiscal year 2023-2024 or future fiscal years)?

• Work is underway to set goals.

Please provide details and/or examples, including which metrics or data your organization is using, if applicable (e.g., your Public Service Employee Survey results, pulse surveys, exit interviews, human resources administrative data).

Work is underway at PCO to set goals to foster greater inclusion for future years through the implementation of PCO’s first Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan. This builds on previous department-wide discussions and recommendations put forth by the Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) Focus Group of PCO employees, the Safe Space Initiative and the Employment Equity and Diversity Advisory Committee (EEDAC). These efforts resulted in key recommendations and goals presented to senior management with the objective of advancing inclusion, diversity, equity and anti-racism (IDEA) at PCO.

• Acting on recommendations from PCO’s Safe Space report – to help set goals and foster greater inclusion at PCO – the Clerk of the Privy Council appointed the first Chief Diversity Officer in September 2023, and established the IDEA Secretariat.
• To help foster trust and psychological safety, the Clerk of the Privy Council appointed PCO’s first ombuds in January 2024. The Ombuds supports a culture of inclusion by providing an informal mechanism for conflict resolution and by building trust among employees and executives through an anonymous disclosure mechanism for addressing real or perceived discriminatory and harmful behaviour.
• Work is also underway by the IDEA Secretariat, in collaboration with employees, to renew and formalize employee networks that support equity-deserving groups. Existing and formalized groups are currently in place for Indigenous employees, Black employees, persons with disabilities and employees from the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.
• PCO continues to foster inclusion by recognizing important and commemorative dates as outlined by the Department of Canadian Heritage. Over the past year, PCO has highlighted individuals from various communities on a voluntary basis by sharing employee profiles during commemorative months to build a stronger sense of community in the department.

In addition to the above initiatives, PCO will be exploring new ways to showcase diversity and to create a sense of belonging throughout the year, as well as conducting a review of internal guidance material and templates to ensure the use of more inclusive and gender-neutral language in departmental communications.

Secretariats/branches continue to use formal and informal training focused on employee well-being, IDEA, and reconciliation. For example, PCO purchased Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action booklets and distributed them throughout branches to facilitate discussions in team meetings. Branches carried out implicit bias training and Reconcili-Action training. PCO’s Ombuds provided Cultural Humility Training to employees including specific sessions for EX staff. A placemat of key resources was also shared with all employees. One branch invited an external expert to lead an all-staff session on how to be an active bystander, building off discussions following sessions on values and ethics, the IDEA Conversation Circles led by the IDEA Secretariat and training led by PCO’s Ombuds.

PCO uses key metrics and data to guide internal discussions and gauge employee sentiment on inclusion. This includes reviewing and acting on the results from the Public Service Employee Survey (PSES) and exploring ways to monitor employee engagement and attitudes towards inclusion. The IDEA Secretariat is developing a department-wide biannual pulse survey to provide feedback to managers from their employees throughout the fiscal year.

Measuring progress

Question 3

Has your organization developed an approach for measuring progress towards your established goals? 

How is the approach being implemented within your organization (e.g., how is it communicated to employees? What are the roles of executive team members including the Chief Data Officer and Head of Audit and Evaluation and regional management if applicable? How are you reporting on results and outcomes both internally and externally?)?

PCO’s Corporate Data Analytics team, established in April of 2020, provides the PCO Executive Committee with EE Representation Dashboards. The EE Dashboards include disaggregated data of EE groups at both the departmental and branch level, with breakdowns by position level and classification, and show disaggregated subgroup information for Indigenous, Black and racialized employees. The information provided in the EE Dashboards identifies representation gaps, which also allows individual branches to track progress on recruitment and promotion goals. This is presented quarterly to PCO executives with an ensuing senior management discussion.

The EE Dashboards use self-identification survey results from the Human Resources system (i.e., PeopleSoft) and compare them against workforce availability data from the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) and has been updated quarterly since April 2020. They are also published internally every quarter and shared via governance committees to senior management, as well as employee network groups and through all-staff newsletters for continued visibility and awareness of progress.

FY 2023-24 – PCO continued to monitor EE representation data, conducted additional analysis on key areas such as disaggregated subgroup information, and promoted self-identification. In addition, PCO continued to review and act on the results from the Public Service Employee Survey (PSES), conducting regular consultation with staff that include advancing inclusion, diversity, equity and anti-racism (IDEA). For example, the recommendations of the Safe Space report led to the establishment of the IDEA Secretariat.

FY 2024-25 – A gap that persists is the influence of EE data on hiring practices. To address this gap, PCO will continue to leverage the data and provide quarterly updates to senior management and executives via the Corporate Data Analytics team. The IDEA Secretariat will also work with branch leads to align their respective set goals with their representation data and track progress. This will be anchored in the Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan. Regular updates will be provided to employees to continue to drive transparency and accountability. To further employee engagement, gauge attitudes towards inclusion and measure progress, the IDEA Secretariat is also developing a department-wide biannual pulse survey to provide feedback to managers from their employees throughout the fiscal year. PSES results will also continue to be leveraged to identify insights to advance IDEA within the department.

Consequential accountability

Question 4

How is your organization using performance management and/or talent management processes to establish accountability for results?

• Quantitative goals are part of performance management agreements. 
• Qualitative objectives are in performance management agreements.
• Progress towards representation and inclusion goals is part of the criteria for being considered for talent management.

Please provide details about how performance management and/or talent management processes are being used to establish accountability for results.

In current practice, branch data provided to each deputy secretary and assistant secretary informs end-of-year performance discussions with the Clerk and/or Deputy. Performance ratings are informed by both qualitative and quantitative measures, which includes consideration for the branch representation data and employee morale results from the Public Service Employee Survey (PSES).

FY 2023-24 – PCO evaluated the performance management agreements of all executives, including deputy secretaries who report to the Clerk, taking into account progress made on broad departmental representation and inclusion objectives.

• Data used to monitor and measure progress on IDEA goals was shared with senior management throughout the fiscal year on a quarterly basis in the form of EE Dashboards which are developed for each branch. Results from the PSES were also shared as results become available (biennially).

Qualitative goals and objectives were also evaluated under performance management agreements to ensure that every executive understands the continued effort required to promote IDEA.

• For example, executives were required to demonstrate how they met key leadership competencies related to “Mobilizing People” and “Upholding Integrity and Respect”. This involves building cohesive teams, creating opportunities that encourage bilingualism and diversity, and implementing practices to advance an inclusive, diverse and healthy organization that is free from harassment and discrimination.

FY 2024-25 – Executive performance will be linked to the progress made on branch-developed IDEA goals that include commitments outlined in the Call to Action and Forward Direction, EE representation and broader inclusion goals.

• Individual branches have set specific goals for IDEA related activities such as demonstrating progress in reducing representation gaps, sponsoring Indigenous, Black, or racialized employees, or leading/supporting targeted recruitment campaigns for these groups. Progress will be monitored and tracked throughout the year, and performance ratings will be allocated in part based on the degree of progress or lack of progress on branch goals.
• By addressing the consequential component of accountability, PCO aspires to build a workplace where everyone can thrive and contribute to our equity, diversity and inclusion goals while remaining consistent with our core values and ethics.

Going forward – All employees at PCO are encouraged to enhance feedback and discussions regarding IDEA in performance management agreements and include objectives for all non-EX employees that align with the Call to Action and Forward Direction where appropriate. Managers are encouraged to provide guidance to support employees who wish to participate in employee networks and communities, and employees can leverage learning plans to foster cultural competencies and objectives to advance reconciliation.

Specific, tangible actions outlined in the forward direction of the Call to Action

Question 5

Have you, as head of your organization, and/or your executive teams sponsored at least two Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees to prepare them for leadership roles?

• I have sponsored at least two Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees to prepare them for leadership roles.
• My executive team has sponsored at least two Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees to prepare them for leadership roles.
• Work is underway to develop an approach to sponsorship.

Please provide details about the nature of sponsorship that you and/or your executive team have provided, along with other programs, such as mentorship or leadership development, if applicable.  

PCO sponsorship and development programs aim to foster an inclusive and diverse workplace. These programs are specifically designed to support the professional growth of Indigenous, Black, and racialized people, and other equity-seeking employees to achieve tangible outcomes, including career advancements and promotions to executive positions. The recognition of employees’ experience, leadership potential, and qualifications has been central to these successes.

• The sponsorship practices at PCO focus on providing access to developmental opportunities such as acting roles, secondments, language, and leadership training. They also facilitate connections with key partners both outside the organization, such as central agencies and other government departments.
• Sponsorship has become a crucial element of career development at PCO. Senior leaders play an active role in ensuring that Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees have equitable opportunities for advancement.

FY 2023-24 – All senior leaders and most executives sponsored at least two Indigenous, Black, or racialized employees.

• Many executives also sponsored employees from other government departments through both formal and informal mechanisms.
• PCO also developed an internal sponsorship program for Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees at the EX-feeder level, recognizing that this is a key precursor to entry in the EX cadre. Senior executives participated as sponsors, providing not only mentorship but also active advocacy to help proteges gain visibility and access to career-advancing opportunities. Lessons learned from this cohort will be used to enhance the program for FY 2024-25.
• Externally, leadership has leveraged other career development initiatives to support employees in their efforts to participate in programs such as the Action Canada Fellowship, the Certificate Program in the Public Sector Leadership and Governance (Odell Program), and the Institute on Governance’s Stepping into the Executive Cadre course. By directly involving senior leaders in these initiatives, PCO demonstrates a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion at the highest organizational levels.

FY 2024-25 – PCO will be revisiting the sponsorship program based on lessons learned and relaunching a new cohort in the fall of 2024. PCO will also be prioritizing recruitment at the EX-feeder level and exploring ways to support those employees who will be joining from outside of the department. PCO will also work with employees and networks to identify career development opportunities for Indigenous, Black and racialized employees.

Question 6

Have you, as head of your organization, personally endorsed at least one recruitment campaign for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees?

• I have personally endorsed at least one recruitment campaign for:
  • Black employees
  • Racialized employees

Please provide details.

FY 2023-24 – In support of the Clerk’s Call to Action and the government’s commitment to support the career mobility of Black public servants, PCO, in collaboration with the Black Executive’s Network/Le Réseau des exécutifs noirs (BEN/REN), developed and launched the Black Policy Leaders Development Program (BPLDP). This program responds to the lack of representation of Black employees within the Economic and Social Services cadre (EC), based on PCO’s EE data. The EC cadre is a key pathway for career growth for employees and a pipeline for leadership.

• The BPLDP offers Black public servants in the National Capital Region at the EC-04, EC-05, and EC-06 levels opportunity to gain a wide range of experiences at PCO and play a pivotal role in shaping public policy. Each participant in the BPLDP receives:
  • A dedicated on-boarding process.
  • An executive sponsor.
  • Opportunities for development to the EC-07 level.
• This program underscores PCO’s commitment to building an inclusive workforce enriched by diverse experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds.

Hiring managers also supported developmental programs by hosting employees from the Advanced Policy Analyst Program (APAP), including analysts from the pilot APAP-Indigenous stream.

FY 2024-25 – PCO will continue to explore targeted recruitment and promotion efforts for Indigenous, Black and racialized people by leveraging initiatives such as:

• Targeted recruitment into the EX-feeder group, which has been identified as a departmental priority for PCO in 2024-25.
• The BEN/REN Talent E-Binder and internal and external pools.
• A focus on eliminating structural barriers faced by candidates from employment equity groups, both within and outside PCO.

Question 7

Has your organization prioritized official language training for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who are ready for advancement?

• My organization has prioritized official language training for:
  • Indigenous employees
  • Black employees
  • Racialized employees
• Work is underway to develop an approach to prioritizing official language training for Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who are ready for advancement.

How is your organization prioritizing official language training?

Currently, PCO offers centrally funded group second-language training to all employees, including Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees. The fast-paced work environment and varying tenure of employees adds to the challenge of providing consistent and effective language training.

FY 2023-24 – In addition to group training, some branches within PCO also proactively allocated a set number of language training opportunities specifically for Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees.

FY 2024-25 – To support hiring managers, PCO is collaborating with BEN/REN on a targeted language training program that would prioritize Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees.

• Official Language requirements continue to be a significant barrier in recruiting Indigenous people, as highlighted in the Knowledge Circle for Indigenous Inclusion’s Workplace Wellness and Mental Health Strategy for Indigenous Employees (October 2022) and the Indigenous Federal Employees Network. Recognizing this, PCO is committed to exploring actions with key partners, such as the Indigenous Employee Network and Central Agencies, to address this barrier.

Does your organization offer access to Indigenous language training or have plans to offer access? Please provide details. 

Beyond English and French, the department has provided access to Indigenous language tools to support employee development in the spirit of reconciliation.

Question 8

Has your organization provided support and/or invested resources for organizational employee networks and communities?

• Engagement with employees and employee networks in my organization’s decision-making is meaningful and regular.
• Governance structures are in place to support employee networks and communities (e.g., champions, champions/chairs participate at management tables).
• Material supports are provided for employee networks and communities (e.g., dedicated funding, FTE support, allowing time to engage in activities).
• Work is underway for my organization to further engage with or to provide support for and/or invest resources in departmental employee networks and communities.

Please provide additional detail about how your organization engages with and supports employee networks and communities.

Employee networks are an integral part of the organization’s culture of inclusion.

FY 2023-24 – As part of the Safe Space Initiative, PCO continued the collaboration with the BIPOC Focus group and the Indigenous Employees Network, who were instrumental in informing the Safe Space report and recommendations to senior management.

• The Employment Equity and Diversity Advisory Committee (EEDAC) provides a management governance framework for the CDO, champions, and other senior executive members to advance IDEA-related issues. They seek formal management endorsement through decision items, often elevated to the PCO Executive Committee, which is chaired by the Clerk. Senior management also actively supported networks by participating in key events including:
  • The National Capital Pride Parade where the Clerk, the Pride Network champion and other key leaders were in attendance for the very first time in PCO history;
  • A Black History Month panel hosted by the Clerk and the Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) with key speakers from within and outside of the federal government; and
  • An inaugural meeting hosted by PCO’s Indigenous champion and members of PCO’s Indigenous Employees Network and central agencies Indigenous Employee Networks with attendance by the Clerk, Deputy Clerk and CDO.
• Equity champions have also been an integral part of PCO’s culture of inclusion, including for equity-deserving communities that do not have formalized employee networks.
• Currently, active PCO employee networks and communities include:
  • Indigenous Employees Network
  • Black Employees
  • Persons with Disabilities
  • PCO Pride Network
  • PCO Young Professionals Network

FY 2024-25 – PCO will continue to engage with employee networks. The IDEA Secretariat will continue to support the establishment of employee-led equity networks to create space for community and will also continue to provide support for events, platforms for engagement, and communication tools. The CDO will also work with equity champions and networks to increase visibility and highlight important and commemorative days identified by Canadian Heritage and other key dates and events important to PCO communities.

Question 9

Has anti-racism, equity and inclusion work been embedded in your organization’s integrated business plan and/or mental health plan?

• Anti-racism, equity and inclusion work has been embedded in the organizational plan.
• Anti-racism, equity and inclusion work has been embedded in regional and/or branch plans.

Question 10

Does your organization have a calendar to avoid holding major meetings and events during significant religious, spiritual, and cultural periods?

• Work is underway to develop this calendar at my organization.

If the calendar already exists, please provide additional details on how this calendar is communicated or promoted within your organization.  

FY 2023-24 – PCO made efforts to avoid holding major meetings during significant religious, spiritual and cultural periods to foster a culture of inclusion within the organization:

• Individual branches engaged employees and developed branch calendars or called attention to events and other periods to help raise awareness of dates where their employees may have religious, family, social, or other obligations.
• An all-staff email was provided to managers (for the first time at PCO) on how they can support employees during Ramadan. Feedback from employees and managers was positive as it created guidance for managers to discuss accommodations for employees where appropriate.

FY 2024-25 – As an organization, work is underway to develop a coordinated approach to sensitizing the broader PCO community to upcoming significant religious, spiritual and cultural periods. The IDEA Secretariat will build on work done by branches and collaborate with employee networks and champions to create a departmental calendar and an engagement platform. This is expected to improve communications to staff to avoid holding major meetings and events during significant religious, spiritual, and cultural periods and provide guidance to better support employees.

Additional information about your organization’s ongoing initiatives 

Question 11

What are two or three specific barriers that you have faced in advancing work on the Call to Action?

Please provide two or three examples.

Prior to FY 2023-2024, one of the main barriers to progress has been the lack of dedicated support, which has now been addressed through the creation of the IDEA Secretariat:

• The Safe Space report was a key milestone in outlining recommendations for progress, including the nomination of a chief diversity officer (CDO), the establishment of a centralized team to focus on IDEA , and the development of a departmental anti-racism, equity and inclusion action plan.
• In response to these recommendations, the Clerk established the IDEA Secretariat in September 2023, led by a CDO reporting directly to the Clerk as deputy head. The Clerk also created a mandate letter for the CDO to garner department-wide support in advancing IDEA.

Given PCO’s mandate as a central agency and fast pace, hiring and recruitment continue to be a challenge. Feedback received from participants of the IDEA Conversation Circles (March to May 2024) highlighted a lack of clarity and transparency regarding the availability of job opportunities whether through advertised or non-advertised processes. While Human Resources offers tools to hiring managers and EE data is provided to branch heads, there remains room for improvement in aligning hiring practices across the organization to better address the identified gaps in EE group representation.

FY 2024-25 – Through the Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan, the IDEA Secretariat will provide strategic and centralized oversight on progress on anti-racism, equity and inclusion. The plan will be informed by departmental priorities as well by branch-level goals, priorities and initiatives.

• Access to language training also persists as a challenge for Indigenous, Black and racialized employees, particularly given the fast pace of PCO and the operational realities. To address this, PCO is exploring opportunities to develop a targeted language program that would prioritize training for this group of employees.
• Some branches may have requirements such as specialized knowledge or expertise that is uncommon across government or the private sector. Consequently, branches recruit employees through secondments from other government departments or interchange and therefore may be reliant on a limited pool of employees belonging to EE groups. PCO will continue to work to address this challenge by collaborating with key departments to support them in increasing EE-group representation within feeder groups.

Question 12

Recognizing that employees often have multiple identities, what actions is your organization undertaking to support Indigenous employees and Black and other racialized employees who are also members of other communities, such as persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ communities and religious minorities who face compounding barriers of discrimination?

Please provide details.

As part of the process to develop PCO’s Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan, the IDEA Secretariat leveraged existing reports including the Safe Space report, recommendations from EEDAC and informal engagement with the PCO community. The IDEA Conversation Circles were then held from March to May 2024 to seek feedback on how to advance IDEA by recognizing and building on past efforts, with Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees, persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ and non-racialized employees. The feedback from participants and recommendations from previous reports will inform the development of the Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan, better equipping PCO to tackle the systemic barriers that disproportionately affect employees with multiple equity-related identities.

FY 2024-25 – PCO will support equity networks including the Pride and the Persons with Disabilities networks to formalize their status within PCO, including ensuring that they are represented in EEDAC and other equity-related governance initiatives within the department. PCO will also commit to doing at least one speaker series exploring the complex intersectionality of racialized, person with disability and 2SLGBTQIA+ identities.

To support the Government of Canada’s Accessibility Strategy for the federal public service, which includes 5,000 net hires of persons with disabilities, PCO must work to identify and understand the intersecting barriers faced by Indigenous, Black and racialized employees with disabilities. To accomplish this, the IDEA Secretariat, will work with PCO’s Persons with Disabilities Steering Committee to address gaps in reporting (e.g., self-identification) and barriers facing members of other equity seeking groups with disabilities. Goals will be developed that align with the Call to Action.

Question 13

In your first year of implementing the forward direction of the Call to Action, what impact has this work had on the culture of your organization?

Please provide the two or three most important impacts. 

Concerted efforts by leadership: In the first year of implementing the Forward Direction to the Call to Action, there have been key actions by senior leadership to set tangible goals, measure progress and establish consequential accountability, all of which have had a positive impact in driving anti-racism, equity and inclusion at PCO.

• The Clerk’s appointment of the Chief Diversity Officer and provision of a mandate letter enabling the CDO to lead the department’s implementation of the Call to Action through the IDEA Secretariat, including the setting of goals and supporting a culture of inclusion and providing advice to branches as they advance IDEA, have allowed PCO to have a focussed and coordinated approach to implementing the Call to Action.
• The first year has entailed standing up the IDEA Secretariat, supporting the landscape of employee-led networks and leveraging existing data to establish consequential accountability. A part-time ombuds has also been appointed to support the department in driving a culture of inclusion.
• Through training sessions in cultural humility, information sharing, open discussions, and opportunities for engagement, employees at all levels have gained deeper insights into the lived experiences of and barriers faced by Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees, and employees who are members of other equity-seeking groups.

As we move into the second year of the Forward Direction, PCO will build on this momentum with the launch of the Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan and a performance measurement approach to track our progress. 

Tangible increase in representation – Since the launch of the Call to Action and the Forward Direction there has been an increase in representation of Indigenous, Black, and racialized employees within the department.

• Through concerted efforts to close the EE gaps in the EX cadre, representation has increased compared to April 2020: the department has increased representation in the EX cadre as of March 2024 for racialized people (10.1% to 27.3%), Indigenous peoples (0% to 3.6%), persons with disabilities (2.5% to 5.5%) and women (53.2% to 58.2%).
• At a departmental level PCO has collaborated with partners, such as BEN/REN, to develop targeted programs like the BPLDP and support recruitment campaigns from feeder organizations. This inaugural program will bring Black public servants in the EC category into PCO resulting in a strong pipeline of policy analysts from the EC-04 to the EC-06 levels.
• Many branches have made intentional decisions to support these initiatives, resulting in tangible benefits in their representation.

Alignment of the Call to Action with the renewed conversation on values and ethics – The Call to Action and Forward Direction have reinforced PCO's commitment to its core values and ethics, emphasizing respect, integrity, and fairness.

• The Forward Direction provides tangible guidance for the department to uphold its ethical responsibility to create a just and equitable workplace. Conversations at a departmental level on values and ethics have also included the intersection with the departmental response to the Call to Action including a session on inclusion with Deputy Clerk Christiane Fox, the CDO and the values and ethics departmental champions.
• Progress on the Call to Action is therefore an integral part to living out the department’s and the Government of Canada’s values and ethics, including respect for people, and driving a culture of excellence and innovation. Individual responsibility and leadership accountability will be integral parts of the next phase of implementing the Forward Direction and the renewed conversation on values and ethics.