2003/04 – 2005/06 SERVICE PLAN Ministry of Community, Aboriginal and Women's Services

Goals, Objectives, Strategies and Performance Measures

Ten sections follow this introductory one. Each section presents the planning information for a single goal and follows a consistent format including:

• Goal
  This is the long term result that the Ministry wants to achieve to fulfill its vision and mission.
• Planning Context
  This identifies and examines internal and external factors that can influence our goals, objectives and strategies.
• Objectives
  Objectives elaborate on the goals and provide more specific direction for the Ministry. We aim to achieve our objectives within the period of the plan.
• Key Strategies
  These activities are key program priorities over the next three years which will help the Ministry achieve its objectives.
• Performance Measures and Targets
  This service plan includes two types of performance measures: outputs and outcomes. Output measures are a program’s level of service and are generally produced through the activity. An outcome measure indicates how well the intended results of a program’s activities and outputs have occurred. As performance targets are the culmination of the planning process, we discuss this planning component more fully below.

Each goal’s table of performance measures includes targets in each of the next three years for the key output and outcome measures. Keeping the performance measures to a limited number was a challenge for two reasons:

• the Ministry of Community, Aboriginal and Women’s Services has nearly 40 branches (Appendix B); and,
• the full success of a program cannot be demonstrated with a single definitive measure.

As a result, the performance measures for each goal tell only a portion of the story of the results that the Ministry aims to achieve in the next three years. Each branch or division has its own service plan in which multiple performance measures are used. Accountability for these results is monitored internally.

The Ministry has made good progress in developing outcome measures. Part of this success is due to focusing on immediate outcomes. This is usually the impact on our direct clients. At this level, we maintain a significant amount of control and can be held accountable for the result.

However, ultimate outcomes, or the benefits to British Columbia society, are influenced by many external factors beyond the control of our programs. This can include other ministries, other levels of government, the economy, changing demographics, and the motivations of our clients. The Ministry is accountable for these results by way of monitoring them and responding with strategy adjustments as may be needed.

To be included in this plan, a performance measure must meet the following criteria:

• it is logically linked to the objectives and goal;
• it is relevant and understandable to the public and others service plan users;
• it is reliable, verifiable, practical, and cost-effective;
• it helps answer questions that the key users of our performance information might ask; and,
• the Ministry has a reasonable degree of control over the result, thereby making it fair to hold the Ministry accountable for that result.

In applying these criteria, some performance measures used in last year’s service plan have been replaced with new measures. This is an expected part of the evolution of performance management in the Ministry. It provides a more meaningful and useful presentation of our intended results.

Changes from the Previous Plan

There are two significant changes to the Ministry’s business and structure from those outlined in the 2002/03 to 2004/05 service plan. First, the Government Agents Branch has been transferred to the Ministry of Management Services. And second, the Ministry has assumed responsibility for the Child Care Subsidy Program, formerly with the Ministry of Human Resources.

Compared to the presentation of last year’s service plan, this document differs as follows:

• Core businesses have been aligned with the Ministry’s sub-votes as they appear in the Estimates. Last year’s plan had five core businesses, some of which were very broad in scope. We now have eight.
• Goals and objectives have been restated to fit with the revised core businesses and to more fully represent the significant programs of the Ministry. We have moved from eight to 10 goals.
• Performance targets still include significant outputs; however, there is now a greater emphasis on outcome measures.
• As mentioned earlier, we now have a section for each goal in which we present all the planning components for that goal. This is a shift from last year when the plan’s sections were by planning component.