Evaluation of Regional Operations Directorate activities

Abbreviations

AAFC

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

ROD

Regional Operations Directorate

Executive summary

Purpose

The Office of Audit and Evaluation of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) conducted an evaluation of the Regional Operations Directorate's (ROD) activities to assess relevance, design, delivery and effectiveness.

Scope and methodology

Regional sector engagement and development activities and regional intelligence and analysis activities from 2015-16 and 2021-22 were evaluated using multiple lines of evidence including: a document review, case studies and interviews with AAFC staff, provincial, territorial and industry stakeholders.

Background

Canada's agriculture sector is a complex, multi-jurisdictional sector which maintains an integrated domestic and international supply chain. Within this context, ROD, with its 5 regional offices across the country, acts as the "boots on the ground and the eyes and ears of the department" across Canada to address the needs of the sector across regions and gather regional intelligence to support AAFC policies and programs.

Findings

• Strong local networks support ROD's provision of services to regional sector stakeholders; and regional intelligence to AAFC including during emergency management.
• ROD activities respond to AAFC priorities for Domestic and International Markets; and equity, diversity and inclusion of under-represented populations.
• The lack of an adequate structure to address emergency management and increasing workload undermines ROD's ability to continue prioritizing ongoing activities in support of regional stakeholders and AAFC.
• ROD activities are generally complementary with other programs, although there is potential duplication with Global Affairs Canada and with provincial and territorial governments.
• Gender-Based Analysis Plus considerations are integrated but promotion of official languages outside of national headquarters and the Quebec region is limited. Regional staff lack specialized knowledge and skills to support outreach to Indigenous peoples.
• Performance metrics are limited to numerical counts of outputs. The lack of outcome measures tailored to ROD activities make it difficult to assess ROD impacts and outcomes.
• Outcomes of ROD activities identified for industry stakeholders include business expansion, increased local employment and ongoing support of under-represented groups' participation in the agriculture sector. ROD activities supported optimal use of AAFC program funding and informed several national emergency management efforts.

Conclusion

Strong local networks enable ROD to provide services to regional sector stakeholders and regional intelligence to AAFC, including during emergencies, in support of AAFC priorities for domestic and international markets. Regional Offices are well placed to respond to local emergencies because of their networks and knowledge of local situations however, the ROD is not structured to manage responses to increasing pressures arising from more frequent and severe emergencies and other unanticipated activities in an ongoing or sustainable manner. Identification of ROD-specific outcome indicators will support assessment of outcomes and impacts of ROD.

Recommendations

Recommendation 1

The Assistant Deputy Minister, Market and Industry Services Branch, review, identify and clarify core activities to be undertaken by regional offices and ensure that an adequate structure is in place to deliver them.

Recommendation 2

The Assistant Deputy Minister, Market and Industry Services Branch, develop appropriate outcome measures for Regional Operations Directorate Business Plan and accompanying performance indicators.

Management response

Management agrees with the evaluation recommendations and has developed an action plan to address them by implement most actions by March 31, 2024.

1.0 Introduction

This report presents results of the evaluation of the ROD activities supporting regional sectors and AAFC. The evaluation was conducted in accordance with the Treasury Board Policy on Results, the Financial Administration Act and AAFC's 2020-21 to 2024-25 Office of Audit and Evaluation Plan.

The evaluation was informed by the 2019-20 preliminary assessment of the Sector Engagement and Development program which was conducted in consultation with program officials. The preliminary assessment recommended an evaluation of activities delivered by the ROD in support of regional sector engagement and development.

2.0 Scope and methodology

This evaluation assessed the relevance, design and delivery and effectiveness of 2 ROD activities from 2015-16 and 2021-22.

The evaluation examined activities and services related to regional sector engagement and development and regional intelligence and analysis. excluded were the regional partnership and collaboration activities which include regional directors' role as federal co-chairs of the bilateral management committees as this activity was evaluated separately under the Evaluation of Canadian Agricultural Partnership Cost-shared Strategic Initiatives. ROD corporate roles and responsibilities activities were also out of scope.

The evaluation used multiple methods including a document review, case studies and interviews with AAFC staff, and provincial, territorial and industry stakeholders. A detailed description of the evaluation methodology is included in Annex A.

3.0 Regional Operations Directorate profile

ROD is located in AAFC's Market and Industry Services Branch and is part of AAFC's Sector Engagement and Development Program. The program's objective is to support the growth, adaptability and competitiveness of Canada's agricultural industry through data gathering and analysis from markets and industry; industry relations and analysis; and sector development. Together with activities undertaken by the Sector Development and Analysis Directorate and programs delivered by AAFC's Programs Branch, ROD responds to AAFC's core responsibility in Domestic and International Markets. (See Annex B for the Sector Engagement and Development organization chart.)

ROD aims to support regional sector engagement and development by building and maintaining relationships with provincial governments, industry associations and businesses, and other AAFC branches such as Science and Technology Branch Research Centres across the regions; and by collecting and disseminating data and guidance on departmental initiatives, business development services and international market development opportunities. ROD gathers regional intelligence to inform departmental decision-making, policy and programming to ensure a reflection of regional perspectives. (See Annex C for a summary of ROD activities)

ROD comprises the Director General's Office at AAFC's national headquarters and 5 regional offices:

• Atlantic Regional Office (New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island)
• Midwestern Regional Office (Manitoba and Saskatchewan)
• Northwestern Regional Office (Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon and Northwest Territories)
• Ontario Regional Office
• Quebec and Nunavut Regional Office
• Events Team

ROD employs approximately 80 employees and has an annual staff (full-time equivalent) budget of approximately $8.5 million, as shown in Table 1.

4.0 Relevance

This section summarizes evaluation findings on the relevance of ROD activities, specifically the continued need for these activities and their alignment with federal and departmental roles, responsibilities and priorities.

4.1 Addressing regional sector and AAFC needs

Canada's agriculture sector is a complex, multi-jurisdictional sector which maintains an integrated domestic and international supply chain. In 2021, the sector employed over 2 million Canadians (representing 1 in 9 jobs) and generated $135 billion (nearly 7%) of Canada's gross domestic product.^{Endnote 2} Within this context, there is a need for local AAFC experts who can connect with industry stakeholders and act as the "boots on the ground and the eyes and ears of the department" to address the needs of the sector across regions. The evaluation found that the design of the Regional Operations Directorate supports the relevance and effectiveness of ROD activities. Because ROD comprises 5 regional offices across the country, it is uniquely positioned as the liaison between the department and industry stakeholders across the regions and is best able to support regional sectors and provide regional intelligence needed by the department.

There was an increasing frequency of emerging needs in several regions during the evaluation time frame. These include the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, several disruptions to the supply chain, climate change emergencies in multiple regions and outbreaks of crop diseases. The evaluation found the Regional Offices were instrumental in supporting both regional industry and the department during these situations; AAFC responses to these emergency situations would have been hindered without the benefit of the local expertise and networks held in Regional Offices.

4.2 Alignment with AAFC and government priorities

The evaluation found that ROD engagement with regional industry stakeholders and activities supporting local businesses and its contributions to emergency management of several crisis situations help AAFC meet its core responsibility for domestic and international markets.

ROD's outreach to under-represented and marginalized groups support the Minister and the Government of Canada to address systemic inequities and disparities in Canadian society and institutions.

5.0 Design and delivery

This section describes the evaluation findings related to the design and delivery ROD activities and services.

5.1 Relationship-building as key element of ROD design and delivery

Delivery of regional sector engagement and development

The evaluation found that Regional Office staff liaise and collaborate with other federal departments and AAFC branches, provincial and territorial governments as well as private industry associations and non-profit organizations that support, represent or provide services to clients within Canada's agriculture, agri-food, fish or seafood sectors.

Regional office clients are primarily locally owned and operated small and medium enterprises involved in the production or development of agriculture, agri-food, fish and seafood in Canada. Evidence found that Regional Offices support these small and medium enterprises through the delivery of 4 key services:

• Outreach including site visits to farms, businesses or other industry stakeholder locations for in-person meetings and discussions
• Pathfinding such as providing information to clients about services and programs available to support them and referring clients to appropriate subject matter experts
• Matchmaking to connect export-ready Canadian suppliers with actionable trade leads and Trade Commissioners abroad
• Targeted engagement tailored to the specific needs of vulnerable populations that ROD engages with

Building and sustaining connections with industry stakeholders is the core activity of Regional Offices. The evaluation found that strong local networks enabled ROD to provide the services necessary to local stakeholders and to provide local intelligence required by AAFC.

The evaluation found no other federal organization possessing ROD's level of expertise or ability to establish long-lasting networks among regional industry associations and stakeholders.

Delivery of regional intelligence and analysis to AAFC

Regional Offices collect regional data and information, analyze and disseminate it within AAFC to inform decision-making, policy and programming within AAFC and in cross-government collaborations. The evaluation found that the rapid gathering and assessment of regional intelligence is crucial to the management of emergency situations and is made possible by the strength of local networks.

Risks to core activities

The evaluation found that Regional Offices are required to spend increasing amounts of time undertaking activities arising from the implementation of unanticipated new programs and prioritizing the increasing number of emergency management efforts. For example, the introduction of the On-Farm Climate Action Stream of the Agricultural Climate Solutions Program in 2021 required significant resources to provide input to technical assessments of applications to the new program. Applications for assessment are generally lengthy technical documents which require several hours to review. Often there is little advance notice when technical assessments are requested and the timelines to complete assessments is usually short. As a result, work is often reprioritized to enable the completion of technical assessments within the required timeframe.

Emergency management is one of ROD's standard activities. Regional Offices are well placed to respond to local emergencies because of their networks and knowledge of local situations. However in recent years, the number and extreme nature of crises have required that ROD staff prioritize crisis management over other activities. For example, during the evaluation period, ROD staff contributed to efforts managing the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 British Columbia floods and the 2022 Tropical Storm Fiona in the Atlantic region. By its nature, crisis management often entails extended hours and new activities. The British Columbia Regional Office adapted by putting as many staff possible on crisis management and bringing in additional staff from Alberta Regional Office to help maintain daily activities. The Atlantic region has recently taken on proposing new program options in response to Tropical Storm Fiona in October 2022.

The evaluation found that the existing ROD construct did not include a formal structure to manage emergencies. In the case of the British Columbia floods, the lack of an overall incident command structure, including clear roles and responsibilities for the jurisdictions involved, initially caused confusion among responders. The flood crisis management efforts relied primarily on the personal relationships established over years between multiple federal and provincial departments involved in communication, advisory and decision-making throughout the crisis including AAFC, Public Safety Canada, British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food and Emergency Management British Columbia.

A lack of clear coordination and communication challenged effectiveness of the response. For example, the lack of a dedicated emergency management communication system left ROD staff to use MS Teams to post real-time updates. In another example, 2 branches within AAFC were working separately with the provincial government, creation an internal confusion as to the response activities.

The evaluation found that pivoting to address increasing volumes of emerging priorities undermines ROD's ability to prioritize ongoing activities in support of regional stakeholders and AAFC.

5.2 Gaps, overlaps and complementarity in roles and responsibilities

The evaluation found that overall, ROD activities and services are complementary with activities and services provided by other federal programs or groups Internally within AAFC, Market and Industry Services Branch streamlined its technical assessment process to minimize duplication between the Sector Development and Analysis Directorate and ROD in completing technical assessments. As a result, Regional Offices contribute their unique knowledge of applicant capacity to complete projects to the technical assessments of program applications. The strength of Regional Office multi-jurisdictional networks was found to be instrumental to the management of the 2021 British Columbia flood emergency and to support the business development of the Blood Tribe over several years. In each instance, Regional Office collaborations with industry and other jurisdictional stakeholders was found to be complementary, not duplicative. However, the evaluation found instances of overlap where Regional Office staff and provinces share the same clients, namely food businesses and industry associations, but do not collaborate in interacting with clients.

The evaluation found that there was confusion regarding the roles and responsibilities, and thus potential overlap and duplication with Global Affairs Canada which operates its own domestic network of Regional Office Hubs and Client Service Hubs.^{Endnote 3} Between the departments, the objective is to "have no wrong windows," that is, to ensure the correct information is provided to organizations requiring assistance regardless if they approach AAFC regional offices , AAFC headquarters or Global Affairs Canada. Industry representatives find this "one stop shop" is ideal. However, there is potential duplication if industry approaches multiple departments for the same information. A Memorandum of Understanding between AAFC, Global Affairs Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, updated in March 2022, notes that an evergreen cooperation plan "will be finalized to better define roles and responsibilities and collaboration with a view to offer a more consistent support to the agriculture and agri-food sector across Canada."^{Endnote 4}

5.3 Gender-based analysis plus

The evaluation found that Regional Offices employ several practices aimed at integrating Gender-Based Analysis Plus considerations. These practices include respecting provisions of the Official Languages Act, promoting diversity in the sector through increased representation at meetings and events, and targeting under-represented and marginalized populations through communications and outreach efforts. However, the evaluation found the promotion of official languages outside of national headquarters and the Quebec region is limited. In addition, regional staff lack the specialized knowledge and skills that would support outreach to specific populations such as Indigenous peoples.

5.4 Performance measurement

ROD activities are partially reflected in the Sector Engagement and Development Performance Information Profile (See Annex D). The 2022 Regional Operations Directorate Business Plan includes key performance indicators for ROD-specific activities including their role responding to emergency situations. (See Annex E). In both documents, performance metrics are limited to numerical counts of outputs. The lack of outcome measures tailored to ROD activities make it difficult to assess the impacts of ROD activities and the extent to which ROD contributes to achieving identified outcomes.

6.0 Performance

This section presents findings related to performance, outcomes and impacts. The section examines the effectiveness and efficiency of activities, with a particular focus on outcomes from 5 case studies.

6.1 Outputs

The evaluation was not able to quantify activities undertaken by Regional Offices according to outputs identified in the Sector Engagement and Development Performance Information Profile, the 2022 Regional Operations Directorate Business Plan and the associated key performance indicators. However, some activities reported for fiscal year 2021-2022, which are presented in Table 2, demonstrate the volume of various activities undertaken by the 5 Regional Offices during 2021-22. Target numbers were not available.

6.2 Outcomes

While a lack of collected outcome indicators and data makes it difficult to assess impacts of ROD activities, the evaluation found evidence of outcomes and impacts of ROD activities through case studies conducted on 5 ROD activities.

Case study: British Columbia floods (2021)

Situation

In November 2021, British Columbia experienced a severe weather event causing mudslides and flooding lasting several weeks, impacting infrastructure and cutting off main land access routes to several areas of the province leading to the Government of British Columbia declaring a state of emergency.^{Endnote 5}

The agriculture industry was severely affected with flooding of more than 15,000 hectares of land, and damaged farm machinery and infrastructure on more than 1,000 farms and the loss of more than half a million farm animals.^{Endnote 6}

Activities

ROD collected intelligence through regular communications and meetings with other jurisdictional stakeholders and industry representatives and prepared daily status reports for AAFC's Deputy Minister who shared the information with Public Safety Canada and the Privy Council Office.

ROD served as the link between provincial government stakeholders, AAFC national headquarters and other federal departments including Public Safety Canada, Transport Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces.

Outcomes

Well-established relationships between the NorthWestern Regional Director and provincial partners enabled ROD to quickly acquire detailed provincial information to support AAFC in responding rapidly to the needs of the agriculture sector in British Columbia.

The evaluation found that ROD was indispensable in its role in opening supply chains, mitigating the risk of more extensive loss for producers and identifying opportunities to strengthen emergency management and disaster planning in anticipation of future crises.

Source: Case studies developed during the conduct of this evaluation using project document review and interviews as source information, as of September 2022.

Case study: COVID-19 Meat plant and farm outbreak trackers (2020-22)

Situation

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, 2 intelligence products were launched to provide real-time updates on potential and actual COVID-19 outbreaks in meat plants and on farms across the country and the impacts of outbreaks on the food supply chain.

Activities

Regional Offices gathered detailed information from a range of media sources, private enterprises and other government departments and agencies including Market and Industry Services Branch, Employment and Social Development Canada, Canadian Food Inspection Agency. They compiled daily trackers early in the pandemic, with the frequency gradually reducing until January 2022. This information was provided to AAFC senior management and the Privy Council Office to keep them up-to-date on evolving risks and to support risk mitigation efforts.

Outcomes

Regional Offices' strong local networks and knowledge, together with ongoing collaboration with other government stakeholders, was essential to the regional offices ability to carry the initiative for nearly 2 years. The trackers provided outbreak details across diverse industries and the country, in one reporting product. The evaluation found this user-friendly format supported better understanding, analysis and decision-making and informed policies and programming throughout the pandemic.

Source: Case studies developed during the conduct of this evaluation using project document review and interviews as source information, as of September 2022.

Case study: Outreach to Blood Tribe (2018-ongoing)

Situation

The Kainai Nation, also referred to as the Blood Tribe, located on Treaty 7 territory in southern Alberta, owns several farms including the largest irrigated land area in Canada.

Activities

Since 2018, the Northwestern Regional Office has engaged in outreach with the Blood Tribe. These outreach activities reflect AAFC's priority to support under-represented and marginalized groups interested in entering or expanding their interests in the agriculture and agri-food sector.

Outreach activities have focused on building and maintaining good working relationships; attending meetings and conducting site visits, new technologies acquired; providing pathfinding services; facilitating scientific cooperation among stakeholders; and identifying potential innovations, technologies and opportunities including marketing possibilities.

Outcomes

The evaluation found that ongoing outreach supported a more informed and respectful partnership. Outreach activities contributed to outcomes including: access of government supports for projects; the installation of new machinery and technology on Blood Tribe territory; increased networks with experts, training specialists and processors for their crops; increased interest in the agriculture sector among Indigenous communities; 33 new employees at their operations plant; and expansion of several business lines.

Source: Case studies developed during the conduct of this evaluation using project document review and interviews as source information, as of September 2022.

Case study: Agricultural Climate Solutions technical assessments

Situation

In 2021, the Government of Canada established the Natural Climate Solutions Fund, a 10-year (2021-22 to 2030-31) $4 billion horizontal initiative. AAFC's Agricultural Climate Solutions — Living Labs program ($185 million) is one of the original 3 separate programs ^{Endnote 7}. Budget 2021 announced an additional $200 million over 2 years to launch the On-Farm Climate Action Fund under the ACS program.

Activities

ROD contributed input to technical assessments of applications to the Living Labs and On-Farm Climate Action Fund^{Endote 8}. ROD applied their regional knowledge of local industry to assess applicants' knowledge, capacity and partnership network to deliver the project.

Outcomes

ROD provided a regional perspective that was not otherwise available to national headquarters. This contributed to ensuring program funds were optimized to support innovative enterprises and projects.

Source: Case studies developed during the conduct of this evaluation using project document review and interviews as source information, as of September 2022.

Case study: Regional industry engagement initiative

Situation

Since 2017, the Regional Industry Engagement Initiative provides a total annual allocation of $50,000 to regional offices to provide targeted funding supporting engagement initiatives with industry stakeholders. Each funding allocation ranges between $2,000 and $6,000.

Activities

Consultations between the Quebec Regional Office and AAFC's Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Research and Development Centre identified a need for better knowledge transfer of AAFC research activities to intended research beneficiaries in Quebec's horticulture industry.

In July 2022, ROD provided approximately $2,600 to cover logistical items for a half-day event held on AAFC's experimental farm located in Sainte-Clotilde de Châteauguay. The Quebec Regional Office provided logistical support for the event.

Outcomes

The small amount of discretionary funding, not easily accessible through other mechanisms, supported a knowledge transfer event attended by approximately 100 researchers from AAFC's Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Research and Development Centre, producers and other industry stakeholders involved in horticulture.

Regional sector stakeholders learned about AAFC innovative technologies relevant to their businesses which supports the mission of the Research and Development Centres and enables the Quebec Regional Office to promote this research to stakeholders not in attendance.

Source: Case studies developed during the conduct of this evaluation using project document review and interviews as source information, as of September 2022.

7.0 Conclusions and recommendations

The evaluation found that the design of the Regional Operations Directorate supports the relevance and effectiveness of ROD activities. Through the connections of the 5 regional offices with industry stakeholders and their regular provision of data and insights to AAFC, ROD provides activities and services that support AAFC priorities for domestic and international markets and equity, diversity and inclusion of under-represented populations.

Regional Offices spend increasing amounts of time in activities arising from the implementation of unanticipated new programs and prioritizing the increasing number of emergency management efforts. Strong local networks enable ROD to provide the services necessary to local stakeholders and to provide local intelligence required by AAFC, including during emergency management situations. While regional offices are well placed to respond to local emergencies because of their networks and knowledge of local situations, the ROD is not structured to manage responses to increasing pressures arising from more frequent and severe emergencies and other unanticipated activities in an ongoing or sustainable manner.

ROD activities and services are generally complementary with other programs, although there is an opportunity to mitigate potential duplication of information provision with Global Affairs Canada. Greater collaboration between provinces and regional offices that meet separately with the industry partners may provide opportunities to better support regional industry.

Although ROD employs several practices aimed at integrating Gender-Based Analysis Plus considerations, opportunities remain to improve the promotion of official languages outside of the national headquarters and Quebec region, and to better develop the specialized knowledge and skills to support outreach to specific populations such as Indigenous peoples.

The evaluation found limited reflection of ROD activities and outcomes in the Sector Engagement and Development Performance Information Profile. While ROD activities are tracked against a separate ROD business plan and key performance indicators, without ROD-specific outcome indicators, it is difficult to assess the outcomes and impacts of ROD activities.

The evaluation found outcomes of ROD activities for industry stakeholders, including business expansion, increased local employment and ongoing support of under-represented groups' participation in the agriculture sector demonstrating ROD achievement of AAFC priorities. ROD activities led to outcomes for AAFC including supporting optimal use of program funding through technical assessments, informing national policy during the COVID-19 crisis and contributing to re-opening supply chains following the British Columbia flooding disaster.

Recommendations

Recommendation 1

The Assistant Deputy Minister, Market and Industry Services Branch, review, identify and clarify core activities to be undertaken by regional offices and ensure that an adequate structure is in place to deliver them.

Recommendation 2

The Assistant Deputy Minister, Market and Industry Services Branch, develop appropriate outcome measures and performance indicators for ROD activities.

Management response

Management agrees with the evaluation recommendations and has developed an action plan to address them by implement most actions by March 31, 2024.

Annex A: Evaluation methodology

Document review

To assess relevance and design and delivery, a review was undertaken of corporate and broader federal government documentation including, but not limited to, program, departmental planning and performance documents, financial reports and internal preliminary assessment and evaluation reports, among others.

Interviews and consultations

Interviews were conducted to develop an understanding of the role of Regional Office staff, of major activities and services provided, of costs associated with ROD activities and to assess delivery and performance.

A total of 29 interviews were conducted with 47 individuals, as follows: 29 representatives of AAFC staff (senior management, Regional Office directors and staff and members of other groups at AAFC who are involved with the work of Regional Offices); 10 provincial/territorial stakeholders; and 8 industry representatives.

Case studies

To assess relevance and performance in more depth, 5 case studies were undertaken to study specific aspects of Regional Office activities. The case studies provide insight into the impact of ROD activities on the department and on industry stakeholders in these specific situations. The evidence from case studies, used in conjunction with evidence from key informant interviews, bolstered the findings on the relevance and effectiveness of ROD activities.

The approach to examine the case studies included interviews with both AAFC representatives as well as a variety of other stakeholders who were impacted by ROD activities particular to each case study; the case studies were further supported by a document review.

The 5 case studies were:

• 2021 British Columbia floods
• Agricultural Climate Solutions Technical Assessments
• Outreach to Blood Tribe
• COVID-19 Meat Plant and Farm Outbreak Trackers
• Regional Industry Engagement Initiatives

Methodological limitations

A number of challenges and limitations arose in the evaluation. The key limitations are outlined below:

Table A1: Methodological limitations, mitigations and impacts

Limitation	Mitigation strategy	Impact on evaluation
Lack of information available about the program. Because ROD does delivers activities and supports rather than a program, traditional sources of information defining the program, its objectives and its results were not as available.	Available documentation was used and data gaps were filled with information gathered through interviews.	The evaluation placed higher reliance on interview data and case study evidence.
Limited documentation tracking performance. Limited documentation exists to track ROD outputs and outcomes.	Effectiveness was explored primarily qualitatively, using examples of outputs and their impact (primarily as discussed in interviews and through case studies); quantitative information was included as available.	The evaluation placed higher reliance on interview data and case study evidence.

Annex B: Sector engagement and development organizational chart

Source: Office of Audit and Evaluation. Preliminary Assessment of Sector Engagement and Development. August 2020.

Description of the image above

The figure in Annex B presents the organizational chart of the Sector Engagement and Development program, highlighting the Regional Operations Directorate within this program.

The Sector Engagement and Development program is delivered by Market and Industry Services Branch and Programs Branch.

Market Industry and Services Branch

Within Market Industry and Services Branch, 2 directorates deliver activities under the Sector Engagement and Development program. The Sector Development and Analysis Directorate includes the following divisions:

• Animal Industry Division
• Food Industry Division
• Crops and Horticulture Division
• Industry Engagement Division

The Regional Operations Directorate includes the following regional offices:

• Atlantic Regional Office
• Quebec Regional Office
• Ontario Regional Office
• Midwestern Regional Office
• Northwestern Regional Office

The following 2 units within Market Industry and Services Branch are not part of the Sector Engagement and Development Program:

• Trade Agreements and Negotiations Directorate
• Policy Planning and Emergency Management

Programs Branch

Within Programs Branch, the Competitiveness Division of the Business Development and Competitiveness Directorate delivers the following 3 programs as part of the Sector Engagement and Development Program:

• AgriCompetitiveness Program
• AgriDiversity Program
• Youth Employment and Skills Program

Annex C: Regional Operations Directorate activities

• Regional sector engagement and development
  • Industry outreach
  • Targeted engagement
  • Identification of export opportunities
  • Support of market development activities
• Regional intelligence and analysis
  • Provision of intelligence reports and inputs
  • Emergency management
• Regional partnership and collaboration
  • Liaison with provincial/territorial stakeholders
  • Event planning
  • Support of government priorities through industry engagement
• Corporate roles and responsibilities
  • Development of departmental tools
  • Participation in working groups/committees
  • Provision of intelligence to inform governance
  • Leadership of communities of practice
  • Standardize provincial profiles
  • Enhancement of efficiency through collaboration on market development activities

Annex D: Sector engagement and development logic model 2021

The sector engagement and development logic model, which encompasses ROD activities, describes the key activities and outputs of the program and the sequence of immediate, intermediate and end outcomes.

Logic model for the Sector Engagement and Development Program

Activities

• Qualitative and quantitative data gathering and dissemination of market information
• Engagement with stakeholders (for example, producers, companies, industry organizations, provincial and territorial governments)
• Analysis of industry competitiveness, including the impacts of government policies, programs, regulations and sector-related issues
• Sector development, including analysis and resolution of sector issues, oversight of federal–provincial–territorial (FPT) agreements, assistance with industry-led activities and in identifying and resolving technical trade issues
• Program and project management activities (for example, assessing applications, managing contribution agreements, reporting on results, etc.)

Outputs

• Strategic and technical information and advice to sector and government (for example, reports, information services)
• Productive relationships forged with stakeholders
• Analysis of provincial/territorial governments' positions and activities
• Program and project management products such as contribution agreements, financial claims and performance reports, as well as recipient-led activities (for example, activities that provide mentorship, share best practices and build on existing capacity)

Government departments and stakeholders

• AAFC
• Other government departments
• Global Affairs Canada; Canadian Food Inspection Agency; Health Canada; Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; Finance Canada
• Producers, industry and associations
• Provinces and territories

Immediate outcomes

• Prepare the sector to respond to change through building awareness and knowledge, improving skills and adopting best practices
• Improve access to and usefulness of services that are helpful in managing trade and market-related issues
• Issues important to stakeholders are formally incorporated into AAFC policy-crafting

Intermediate outcomes

• The Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector is supporting and/or successfully adapting to market demands, opportunities and issues
• The Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector is successfully supported in its efforts to take advantage of new domestic and international market opportunities

Ultimate outcomes

• The Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector contributes to growing the economy

Source: Performance Information Profile Sector Engagement and Development.

Annex E: ROD key performance indicators, 2022–23

Pillar 1: Regional sector engagement and development

1.1 Number of services provided to stakeholders

Number of services provided to stakeholders.
Include interactions where information is exchanged or a service provided.
These interactions and services can occur during or following an outcall, outreach, workshops, roundtable, industry-led events, other government department initiatives, program promotion, etc. according to the assigned sectors and thematic.
When counted, please identify the services provided (pathfinding, etc.), the departmental priority (markets and trade, science, environment, etc.) and if the stakeholders belongs to one of the under-represented groups (women, minorities, Indigenous, youth, persons with disabilities).

1.2 Number of documents prepared for large scale distribution

Number of documents produced include:

• Agri Trade Service Bulletin
• promotional documents

1.3 Number of events organized by regional offices

Number of regional events organized by regional offices include:

• regional industry engagement initiatives
• AAFC booth at an event
• presentations given

Please identify the departmental priority, if any (markets and trade, science, environment, etc.)

1.4 Number of minister and senior official outreach events supported

Number of minister and senior official outreach events supported, include:

• Minister, Deputy Minister, Associate Deputy Minister or Assistant Deputy Minister outreach in a region

When reporting, please identify the region.

1.5 Number of market development support activity (economic opportunity pursued)

Number of market development support activities.
This include and is not limited to, the number of companies vetted and referred to Trade Commissioners for a specific trade lead (received either from the Trade Lead Account Manager or directly from the trade commissioners).

Source: Final Performance Measurement Indicators with Explanations 2022-23.

Pillar 2: Regional intelligence and analysis

2.1 Number of regional intelligence products

Number of regional intelligence products produced, some examples might include:

• sector profiles
• sector highlights
• regional intelligence and information report
• Canadian Agricultural Partnership/Next Policy Framework reports
• provincial/territorial fact sheets

Note: Inputs to documents and significant updates are also to be captured.

2.2 Number of program technical reviews completed

Number of technical reviews completed (leading or input only) under Canadian Agricultural Partnership, AAFC funded and cost-shared with the provinces and territories and for federal partners.
Please identify which program (Canadian Agricultural Partnership related, AAFC, cost-shared, etc.)
If the technical review is provided for fund outside of AAFC, from other government department (for example Economic development agencies) we capture it under this key performance indicator (KPI) as well.

2.3 ROD response to emergency situations

Identified the emergency situation and all the activities done to address it. These might include:

• reports
• participation on calls (with the sector, provincial and territorial government or other federal departments)
• outcalls and engagement activities specific to the emergency situation

Note: participation in a preparedness exercise or training is also counted under this KPI.

Source: Final Performance Measurement Indicators with Explanations 2022-23.

Pillar 3: Regional partnership and collaboration

3.1 Number of industry-led meetings attended

Number of industry-led meetings attended, which may include:

• annual general meeting
• workshop
• webinar
• conference

For example, a participation at an Annual General Meeting count as one. The follow-ups to be done after with the people we have met on site, will be counted separately (Key Performance Indicator 1.1) and the report counted under Key Performance Indicator 2.1.

3.2 Number of outcalls with provincial/territorial (PT) representatives

Number of outcalls with Provinces / Territories, where information is exchanged with provincial or territorial partners, might includes:

• meetings
• roundtable
• working groups

3.3 Formal meetings with PT governments

Number of formal meetings with PT governments, amongst other for the management of the bilateral agreements (Bilateral Management Committee).

Please identify the bilateral agreement or the purpose of the meeting.

• Number of Policy /eligibility questions addressed
• Financial transactions approved
• Capital projects approved
• Records of decisions
• Claims approved
• Policy framework communications products reviewed

3.4 Number of FPT events planned and supported (Event team)

Number of FPT events planned and supported for which the event team provide event planning and support, include

• Next Policy Framework meetings
• federal-PT meetings
• others

Source: Final Performance Measurement Indicators with Explanations 2022-23.

Pillar 4: Corporate roles and responsibilities

4.1 Number of briefing documents prepared

Number of briefing documents prepared, for ministerial and senior official outreach, including:

• scenario notes
• questions and answers
• briefing books
• itinerary

Note: The briefing documents prepared are counted even if the outreach is cancelled.

4.2 Number of departmental events planned and supported (Event team)

Number of departmental events planned and supported (including cancelled events)

• All branches consultations
• Sector engagement tables supported
• Advisory council (food policy, youth, women, Indigenous)
• Ministerial roundtables
• Others

4.3 Number of event lists provided

Number of event lists provided for Senior Officials for planning purpose, include:

• The quarterly "recommended outreach" document
• Other outreach proposals, (planned or adhoc)

Notes: The proposal is counted even if the outreach is not undertaken.

4.4 Cultivating wellness in the workplace

Identified the wellness initiative and all the activities done to support it. These might include:

• ROD wellness bulletins release
• participation to workshops on wellness at work

4.5 Number of Community of practice meetings and other ROD working groups meetings

Number of meeting of the Community of Practice and other ROD working groups
This indicator is to be registered once for each Community of Practice or Working Group meeting, by the Community of Practice or Working Group chair.

Source: Final Performance Measurement Indicators with Explanations 2022-23.

Annex F: Management response and action plan

Recommendation	Management response and action plan (MRAP)	Target date [9]	Responsible leads
1. The Assistant Deputy Minister, Market and Industry Services Branch, review, identify and clarify core activities to be undertaken by regional offices and ensure that an adequate structure is in place to deliver them.	Agree with the recommendation. ROD has undertaken a strategic review of its priorities and core activities which are clearly outlined in the ROD Business Plan (2021-2022) and aligned with AAFC's departmental plan and the Minister's mandate letter commitments. Through the completion of a people plan in 2023-2024, ROD will focus on supporting the business goals in the business plan by addressing the most pressing HR challenges to ensure an adequate structure is in place and that ROD has the talent, skills and training required to deliver on its mandate. ROD and the emergency management teams are now under the same director general (DG), which will help facilitate the coordination and prioritization of activities. The development and deployment of AgriClient, a client relationship management tool, will help ensure timely and accurate information on clients and stakeholders leading to productive interactions, informed decisions and better tracking of results.	Regional Operations Division Business Plan is completed (2021–2022). ROD and emergency management under same DG completed (October 2022) AgriClient was launched in November 2022; Phase II is ongoing. Ongoing: Identification of the People Plan priorities by March 31, 2024.	DG, Regional Operation Directorate, Senior Adviser, Director General's office, Regional Directors.
2. The Assistant Deputy Minister, Market and Industry Services Branch, develop appropriate outcome measures for the Regional Operations Directorate Business Plan and accompanying performance indicators.	Agree with the recommendation. ROD will build on the output KPIs developed to support the Business Plan (2021-2022) to map the relationships between the inputs, activities, outputs and outcomes produced to better assess the impact achieved by the directorate in its application of resources. Through the development of a logic model (2023-2024), ROD will seek to deepen understanding of how its various activities and services benefit its key stakeholders; help ensure that the outcomes are realistic and reasonable; help to address gaps, ensure resources are properly aligned and identify areas for improvement, as appropriate.	ROD business plan and output KPIs are completed (2021-2022). Ongoing: Updates on the ROD Performance Measurement Outcomes to be completed by March 31, 2024.	DG, Regional Operation Directorate, Senior Adviser, Director General's office, ROD business plan working group.