Supplier Advisory Committee meeting: February 15, 2023
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Agenda
Meeting location: MS Teams meeting
| Time (EST) | Subject | Speaker |
|---|---|---|
| 13:00 to 13:05 (5 min) |
Welcome and opening remarks
|
Co-Chairs, Minister’s SAC Mollie Royds, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister (AADM) Procurement Branch (PB), Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) Michele Lajeunesse, Senior Vice President, TECHNATION |
| 13:05 to 13:10 (5 min) |
Approval of December 7 Record of discussion
|
Co-chairs, SAC |
| 13:10 to 13:25 (15 min) |
PSPC updates
|
Levent Ozmutlu, Director General (DG), SPS Lucie Levesque, DG, Acquisitions Program Transformation Sector (APTS), PSPC Clinton Lawrence-Whyte, DG, Procurement Assistance Canada (PAC), PSPC |
| 13:25 to 14:05 (40 min) |
Regional Supplier Advisory Committee updates
|
Co-chairs of regional SACs |
| 14:05 to 14:10 (5 min) |
Health break | n/a |
| 14:10 to 14:40 (30 min) |
Women Business Enterprises Canada Council (WBE Canada)
|
Silvia Pencak, President and CEO, Board Director, WBE Canada |
| 14:40 to 14:55 (15 min) |
SAC priorities and governance
|
Clinton Lawrence-Whyte, DG, PAC |
| 14:55 to 15:00 (5 min) |
Roundtable and closing remarks
|
Co-Chairs, SAC |
Record of discussion
February 15, 2023
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm EST
Attendees
Co-chairs, Minister's Supplier Advisory Committee
- Mollie Royds, AADM, PB, PSPC
- Michelle Lajeunesse, Senior Vice-President, Government Relations and Policy, TECHNATION and industry co-chair of the SAC
Members present
- Clinton Lawrence-Whyte, DG, PAC, PSPC
- Frances Delsol, Vice-President, Partnerships, Outreach and Procurement, Black Business and Professional Association (BBPA)
- Nicolas Todd, Vice-President, Policy, Communications and Government Relations, Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI)
- Sandy Moir, Partner at Goss Gilroy Inc., Management Consultants, and member of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants (CMC Canada)
- Diana Palmerin-Velasco, Director, Indigenous Affairs & Diversity & Inclusion Policy, CCC
- Michelle Auger, Manager, National Business Issues and Projects, CFIB
- Ray Wanuch, Executive Director, Council for the Advancement of Native Development Officers (Cando)
- Silvia Pencak, President and CEO, Board Director, WBE Canada
Members absent
- Dwayne Lucas, Vice-President, Special Project, Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC)
- Cassandra Dorrington, President, Canadian Aboriginal and Minority Supplier Council (CAMSC)
- Donna Ringrose, Executive Director, CMC Canada
- Darrell Schuurman, Co-Founder and CEO, Canadian Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (CGLCC)
- Matt Poirier, Director, Trade Policy, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME)
Special invitees
- Cheryl Cardinal, Director of Policy and Indigenous Procurement, Office of the Minister of PSPC
- Greg Noseworthy, Special Assistant (Atlantic), Office of the Minister of PSPC
Secretariat
- Louis-Martin Parent, Acting (A)/Senior Director, PAC, PSPC
- Richard Lincoln, Manager, PAC, PSPC
- Michael Semenick, Inreach Senior Analyst, PSPC
- Huda Sadik, Inreach Officer, PSPC
- Michel Gagne, Inreach Officer, PSPC
Guest speakers
- Levent Ozmutlu, DG, SPS, PSPC
- Lucie Levesque, DG, APTS, PSPC
- Tara Hartley, Regional Director, Pacific Region, PAC, PSPC
- Adam Yule, Regional Director, Ontario Region, PAC, PSPC
- Fred Nagy, President, Solutions in Context Inc., Ontario Region
- Anne-Marie Signori, Regional Director, Quebec Region, PAC, PSPC
- Pierre Hamel, Director, Legal & Government Affairs, Construction Association of Quebec
- Patrick Loyer, Regional Director, Atlantic Region, PAC, PSPC
- Stephen Sauveur, Regional Service Line Leader (RSLL), Environmental Services at Defence Construction Canada (DCC) and Director and Board Member with the Environmental Services Association Maritimes (ESAM)
- Chantal Potvin, Regional Director, National Capital Region, PAC, PSPC
- Kelsey Debets, Regional Director, Western Region, PAC, PSPC
Co-chair's welcome and opening remarks
PSPC SAC Co-chair, Mollie Royds (M. Royds), welcomed members and guests from the Minister's office.
- PSPC acknowledged the land on which the committee gathered as the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg people and recognized the importance of continuing the effort towards reconciliation with Indigenous peoples
- PSPC noted that February is Black History Month and encouraged all SAC members to reflect on Canada's historical relationship with the black community, and consider how to continue to expand engagement with black businesses and communities
- PSPC acknowledged the continued commitment of SAC members and thanked them for their valuable contributions towards the improvements in federal procurement. PSPC welcomed 2 new members to the Committee, Diana Palmerin-Velasco, from the CCC, and Michelle Auger, from the CFIB
Approval of December 7, 2022 record of discussion
The SAC secretariat previously circulated the December 7, 2022 SAC meeting for the review and comments by Committee members.
- At this time, PSPC invited SAC members to raise any additional revisions, comments or suggestions
- With no members providing feedback and comments, PSPC declared the record of decision for the SAC meeting of December 7, 2022 approved
Public Services and Procurement Canada updates
M. Royds welcomed Levent Ozmutlu (L. Ozmutlu), Lucie Levesque (L. Levesque), and Clinton Lawrence-Whyte (C. Lawrence-Whyte) to each provide updates on behalf of their respective sectors.
Strategic Policy Sector update on mandate letter commitments
Update summary:
- L. Ozmutlu (SPS) provided an update on the mandate letter commitment made by the Minister of PSPC
- As part of PSPC's work to support the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking and the development of an Ethical Procurement Policy and Human Rights Due Diligence Framework, SPS held 2 external in-person and virtual engagement sessions bringing together over 100 stakeholders per session to gather views and challenges from suppliers and other stakeholders. SPS will be circulating a What We Heard report in the coming months
- SPS introduced 2 new standards, for embodied carbon and for disclosing greenhouse gases for green procurement, developed in collaboration with the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) and other federal departments through the Greening Government Strategy
- SPS will continue to seek incorporating more environmental considerations in procurement to met net-zero emissions by 2050
Discussion summary:
- Michelle Lajeunesse (TECHNATION) reinforced the point on the greening procurement, comments that governments cannot do it alone and offered industry's assistance. A recent Accenture report stated that only 8% of firms will achieve net-zero by 2050
- TECHNATION added further that awareness among small and medium businesses of the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada's net-zero accelerator program is not significant, and the SAC may seek a presentation about it for an upcoming meeting
- Nicolas Todd (CADSI) inquired about the timelines for ethical procurement, expressed the need for clear guidelines around the approach, especially in the defence sector, and raised that past inquires had issues regarding integrity in procurement
- SPS responded that there are reviews under way looking into to procurement practices, including ethical procurement
- SPS also noted there will be a consultation and summary report about Bill S-211, an Act that would require reporting on forced labour and child labour in supply chains
E-Procurement/CanadaBuys status
Update summary:
L. Levesque APTS, PSPC provided updates on CanadaBuys and the Electronic Procurement Solution:
- APTS indicated that since CanadaBuys' official release on September 19, 2022, the platform has been stable and operating as the federal government's official single point of access for procurement activities, with some minor exceptions
- The team is using a phased approach to transfer BuyandSell data, including contract history, to CanadaBuys so it will be a single platform where procurement officers and suppliers can find all procurement information
Discussion summary:
- CFIB asked if there have been many opportunities to provide seminars or training to suppliers
- APTS said that there have been several engagements carried out by PAC
Procurement Assistance Canada key activities
Update summary:
- PAC continues to be very active in all parts of the country, at higher rate than last year, with diverse and small businesses and Indigenous businesses in a mix of virtual and in-person engagements, supporting its mandate to make them aware how to sell to the Government of Canada
- PAC carried out targeted and direct engagements with suppliers to increase awareness of the transition to CanadaBuys and PAC's services
- PAC, in partnership with Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and Indigenous stakeholders, is also continuing its Indigenous Business Information Sessions across the country to discuss the 5% target, promote the Indigenous Business Directory, highlight procurement opportunities, discuss the transition from BuyandSell to CanadaBuys, and promote PAC's services
Discussion summary:
- A question was asked about PAC's engagement
- With the shift from BuyandSell to CanadaBuys, PAC responded by indicating that it is increasing engagement with suppliers, and noted that updated information will soon be available to ensure suppliers understand where to go for tendering opportunities
- PAC will continue to help CanadaBuys navigate the CanadaBuys, and offered to engage with SAC members on the site
Regional Supplier Advisory Committee updates
M. Royds welcomed the regional SAC presentations, in this third Joint National-Regional SAC meeting to date.
Pacific region
Tara Hartley (T. Hartley), Regional director for PAC’s Pacific region and the Government Co-chair for the SAC-Pacific region presented the update for the Pacific region.
Presentation summary:
- Pacific started by noted its work with PAC-Pacific members to tailor learning materials to meet the needs of businesses, including coaching and mentoring programs for black business and webinars for women entrepreneurs
- Pacific also started to develop a learning service for unsuccessful bidders to learn how to improve future bids
- This region highlighted its efforts to consider low value bids, as they are a great way for bidders to learn how government procurement works, and ain confidence in responding to tenders
- PAC-Pacific indicated some challenges, including the need to raise awareness of low dollar value contracts, and the requirement to teach suppliers how to use CanadaBuys to find such tender opportunities in the Government of Canada. Another emerging challenge has been suppliers' assumptions regarding capacity and how procurements are structured
- PAC Pacific's list of members has a mix of industry verticals and social organizations, and discussions occurred on whether a more structured approach to membership is needed
Ontario region
Adam Yule (A. Yule), Regional director for PAC’s Ontario region and Government co-chair for that region’s SAC, and Fred Nagy (F. Nagy), President of Solutions in Context, jointly provided the update for SAC-Ontario region.
Presentation summary:
- PAC-Ontario highlighted that supplier diversity is a positive theme that has shaped SAC Ontario region's work
- The commitment to Indigenous procurement, which includes ensuring that 5% of the value of government contracts is awarded to Indigenous businesses, has prompted increased collaboration and engagement with Indigenous businesses and communities
- Some Indigenous partners are looking to join SAC-Ontario in the future
- Procurement modernization has also guided SAC planning and discussions
- The Ontario region's SAC co-chairs also shared some key achievements, such as an increase in its membership based on new priorities to ensure diverse participation, collaboration with SAC members on supplier education and awareness events, and piloting the Contract Modernization Initiative, which generated positive feedback from supplier
- PAC-Ontario identified some challenges in their region. Some microbusinesses of fewer than 5 people find it difficult, to bid and win federal procurements. CanadaBuys may be able to support finding smaller, lower risk contracts with a better fit that are easier with respect to insurance, reliability, and the learning curve
Quebec region
Anne-Marie Signori (A. Signori), Regional director for PAC’s Quebec region and Government co-chair for that region’s SAC, and Industry co-chair, Pierre Hamel (P. Hamel) from Quebec Construction Association jointly provided the update for SAC-Quebec.
P. Hamel noted that this was his last update as Industry co-chair.
Presentation summary:
- Like other regions, PAC-Québec indicated that recent PSPC initiatives had shaped SAC-Québec's work
- The Indigenous Procurement Commitment has encouraged that region's members engage with Indigenous businesses. PAC-Québec highlighted the significant participation in regional events with entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds
- Supporting the implementation for CanadaBuys, the APTS team visited Québec region 3 times to discuss the transition, including PAC Québec hosting a joint session with the construction industry on CanadaBuys and registration to SAP Ariba
- P. Hamel noted that five regional SAC meetings were held in 2022, all with quality exchanges and positive feedback
- PAC-Québec mentioned some challenges in their region, including labour shortages, the need for criteria for companies to self-identify, the lack of statistics on contracts awarded to diverse groups to evaluate results, and the difficulty to hold in-person regional activities
Atlantic region
Patrick Loyer (P. Loyer), Regional director for PAC’s Atlantic region and Government co-chair for the Atlantic regional SAC, and Industry co-chair, Stephen Sauveur (S. Sauveur), board member of Environmental Services Association Maritimes provided the update for SAC-Atlantic.
Presentation summary:
- PAC-Atlantic reflected on PSPC initiatives that made an impact on the region. CanadaBuys is a reoccurring item in every SAC-Atlantic agenda
- PAC-Atlantic has engaged with ISC and the Atlantic Canada Opportunity Agency to increase the number and value of contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses
- PAC-Atlantic highlighted some recent achievements, including holding a regional SAC meeting twice this year and adding 2 new members to the Committee
- S. Sauveur shared some of the challenges facing the Atlantic region such as labour shortages, especially in construction, the lack of clarity on how the SAC members feedbacks are addressed at a national level, and the slow rate of registration by Atlantic Canadian businesses in SAP Ariba
Discussion summary for the regional Supplier Advisory Committee presentations
- P. Hamel, the industry co-chair for SAC-Québec noted that the SAC National and Regional Co-chairs could meet more regularly and less formally to discuss how to improve procurement
- PSPC thanked the regions, noting the proposal by the outgoing industry co-chair for Quebec and adding that maximizing regional input in conversations at the national level is important
Women Businesses Enterprises Canada Council
Industry co-chair, M. Lajeunesse, welcomed Silvia Pencak, President, CEO and Board Director, WBE Canada to lead the presentation.
Presentation summary:
- WBE Canada began by providing a brief overview of their organization, which was founded in 2008
- WBE Canada that its vision, mission, and values were recently updated in 2022
- WBE Canada then presented a detailed overview of its membership services, including that supplier diversity certification, training, mentorship, and procurement advice are available to all its members
- Currently, WBE Canada has over 470 certified members from various industries across the country, most of whom reside in Ontario, with increasing membership across Canada
- The organization is focusing on expanding membership to Prince Edward Island and the 3 territories
- WBE Canada provided details on its certification process, which verifies that businesses are at least 51% owned, managed, or controlled by women
- The process consists of several steps to address potential challenges, inquiries, or appeals of its members' ownership by women
- Certification is built based on international standards and is recognized internationally. Being certified comes with many benefits to members, such as granting access to the WBE Canada database, information about corporate or government supplier
- There are various tools and programs to support WBE Canada's membership, including magazines, supplier diversity toolkits, and events such as the International Women's Day national conference
- PSPC thanked WBE Canada for sharing information about WBE Canada and suggested that SAC members to reach out to WBE Canada directly if they have any comments or questions
Priorities and governance
SAC industry co-chair M. Lajeunesse welcomed C. Lawrence-Whyte to discuss SAC’s priorities and governance.
Industry co-chair decision
Presentation summary:
- Based on the SAC members' support for the current Industry co-chair, M. Lajeunesse, and no other expressions of interest being raised by the SAC secretariat since the initial call-out in October, PAC announced the extension of M. Lajeunesse's tenure as SAC industry co-chair for an additional 2 years, until April 2025
- PAC gave thanks to M. Lajeunesse for her past, present, and future work
Terms of reference
Discussion summary:
- PAC noted that in the SAC meeting of 7 December 2022, participants emphasized the importance of members attending meetings regularly and contributing positively to discussions be included in the terms of reference
- PAC informed the group that the SAC secretariat used this feedback to amend the terms of reference under “Membership Role” and asked that any questions or comments be sent directly to the SAC secretariat
Non-disclosure agreement
Presentation summary:
- The NDA was recently amended to emphasize that SAC members are expected to represent their associations at SAC meetings
- The NDA also outlines what is expected of members' participation, and how SAC will resolve any potential conflicts of interest
Discussion summary:
- Nicolas Todd (CADSI) wanted to know why the NDA needed to be updated. They said that NDAs are often misunderstood by government officials, and often used negatively when they should be used sparingly to address issues. CADSI indicated that the terms of any NDA need to be clear about what is being protected and the onus is on the Government to identify which documents should be exempted from sharing outside SAC
- C. Lawrence-Whyte (PAC) responded that the principles of the NDA could be built into the terms of reference
- The industry co-chair mentioned the need to declare a conflict of interest if one exists
- Both Co-chairs agreed the NDA subject needs more discussion and will be revisited
Forward agenda items document
This item was not addressed due to time constraints.
Roundtable
The following issue was raised by Donna Ringrose (CMC Canada):
- CMC Canada is aware that the conversation around the contracts awarded to “McKinsey & Company” has broadly expanded discussions to Government of Canada consulting
- CMC Canada is very concerned about broad media statements that can undermine public confidence in the validity of work carried out by professional management consultants
- Professional consultants are required to subordinate their own interests to those of the projects they support, are legally responsible for their work, and can have their Canadian management consultant certification revoked if these and other conditions are not met
- Donna Ringrose (CMC Canada) invited SAC to look at the document in question and said that it would be very powerful if we all spoke up about the value of services delivered by management consultants
Discussion summary:
- M. Lajeunesse (TECHNATION) noted that the expertise of consultants helped government pivot quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic
- M. Royds (PSPC) responded that people have been carefully following the SAC discussion on consultants, and thanked CMC Canada for bringing the issue to SAC's attention
Closing remarks
- M. Lajeunesse, the industry co-chair, indicated a desire to know about the release of the Supplier Diversity Program
- The industry co-chair also invited SAC members to bring forward to the SAC secretariat other items that they wish to add to the forward agenda
- M. Royds (PSPC) noted that the terms of reference and the NDA would be shared with SAC members secretarially and thanked everyone for their participation