Ashley Casovan

Thanks Public Sector Network - Canada @ConnectPSN for the invite to deliver a Plenary Speech on ‘Cultivating Change: Operational Excellence through Digital Transformation of Program and Service Delivery’. Discussed the advances in Program Delivery through the Grants and Contributions Digital Platform (GCDP) and in Service Delivery through Generative AI driven AgPal Chat, dall designed to support the Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector. #PSNCorporate #aafc #digitaltransformation

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New paper out today from the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP) authored by former CRTC chair Ian Scott titled "Conquering the Next Frontier in Bridging the Digital Divide". Canada has made major strides in rolling out high-speed internet across the country, with major public and private investments. At an aggregate level, Canada appears to be on track to provide access to internet with minimum speeds to 98 per cent of Canadians by 2026. But we need to think about more than aggregates. Internet is so fundamental to every day life, and critical to improving societal outcomes on health, education, employment and more. Yet the people who could benefit the most are the ones who struggle with access or don't have the income needed to afford service: ➡ Northern and Indigenous communities - only 50% of First Nations communities and 58% of Northern communities meet CRTC's basic coverage target for internet speed (and this is 0% in Nunavut!) ➡ Low-income households - existing public programs that offer low-cost internet service have limited eligibility, and are inadequate for households struggling to afford the high cost of rent and food. Ian Scott recommends refocusing efforts, with better co-ordination within and across governments to close gaps in service, prioritization of northern and Indigenous communities for investment, and expanded discounted internet plans for low-income households (possibly drawing on the proceeds of spectrum auctions). See the report for more detail, and mark your calendar for the panel discussion September 24th in Ottawa. https://lnkd.in/egjaZGhm

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Many governments and public institutions adopt and implement best practices to improve policy-making and service delivery. They do this because they want to make the best decisions and provide the best service. Making the best decisions is critically important because public policy decisions are the most impactful decisions in society.    When I was the CAO in Stratford PEI, we adopted many best practices in policy-making including viewing decisions through a sustainability lens, building a diverse and inclusive community, engaging citizens meaningfully in the policy-making process, and being open and transparent.  I know first-hand how much time and effort it takes to implement these best practices successfully.   So I thought to myself, wouldn’t it be more effective and efficient if best practices were identified and integrated into one policy-making process, for any government or public institution to use! They would instantly have a better policy-making process, at a fraction of the time and effort it would take them to research and build a better process one best practice at a time.      So I started a company, Civonus, to do just that. Civonus is building a web application, which incorporates a comprehensive suite of best practices, for any government or public institution to use to improve their policy-making process. It is designed to engage citizens, government officials, subject matter experts and other stakeholders openly, deeply, and transparently in the policy-making process; and to produce policy decisions which are sustainable, equitable, inclusive, consensus based, and evidence informed.     Because it is a web application, it can also be used jointly by governments and/or public institutions to address a policy issue they have in common, an issue which none of them can solve on their own.   We seek early adopters to help us to demonstrate how effective and efficient this innovative new approach to policy-making is, and to help us to improve the design and implementation of the web application for widespread use.   #policy-making #governance #best practices #Civonus  

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Excellent policy work and research reviewing the increase of online harassment - which is more severe for women, 2SLGBTQAI+ folks, and BIPOC community leaders - and the affects on our democracy. Here are a couple of excerpts: "Digital violence is becoming more pervasive around the world. Social media platforms facilitate the spread of abusive content that has offline consequences, including widespread polarization, alienation and physical violence. Algorithms that recommend content to users on social media accelerate the distribution of this material, allowing it to reach new audiences and normalize harmful discourse." "A key metric of the success of this bill will be how well it protects and enables research into online harms because this has the potential to empower both the public and the government to adapt and respond to rapidly changing digital technologies in a way that supports a resilient and strong democratic culture."

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Cyber security safeguards both our professional and personal lives against malicious online threats; however, attitudes on individual responsibility towards cyber security vary. The Canada School of Public Service’s Digital Academy has just published an engaging microlearning article highlighting the importance of cyber security in the public service. Consider that, as a federal public servant, your good cyber security habits can also safeguard information on Canadians, even national security in some cases. The article also includes an interactive quiz designed to help you make sense of your perspectives on cybersecurity. Take the test! Check out “Cyber Security in the Public Service” at https://lnkd.in/ge6gTTMP You can find all the Digital Academy’s microlearning articles at https://lnkd.in/guy-FV9W. Canada School of Public Service | École de la fonction publique du Canada #GCLearning #CyberSecurity #NationalSecurity #Canada #Digital

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I wanted to share a resource I discovered today via our amazing Shared Services Canada | Services partagés Canada Mental Health Ambassador network. Choose Your Words Have you ever wondered how we come across when communicating, especially in the world of remote work, where much of our communication is via text with no body language to gauge tone or intent from. I'm challenging myself to see how I can replace what could be perceived as fighting words and replacing them with collaborative ones. https://lnkd.in/e6xNQ-q3 #continuousimprovement #selfreflections #collaboration #collaborativeworkplace Workplace Strategies for Mental Health

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🎊 🎊 🎊 Public Services and Procurement Canada | Services publics et Approvisionnement Canada (PSPC) is making the most of the historic rehabilitation of the Centre Block, demonstrating true leadership in advancing (read: mainstreaming) accessible and inclusive design. The 200 (or so) washrooms in the #CentreBlock and the new Parliament Visitor Centre will be gender-neutral, 70 washrooms will be barrier-free, and 15 washrooms will be universally accessible with extra maneuvering space and their own washbasins. PSPC (in collaboration with the Public Service Pride Network (PSPN) / Réseau de la Fierté à la fonction publique (RFFP)) is also developing an inclusive washroom guide to support the mainstreaming of accessible and inclusive design in other federal buildings. What a fantastic example of 'building better' so that our fixed assets actually meet the diverse needs of the diverse persons who will work there and visit. This type of accessible and inclusive design, committed to and woven into planning at the earliest of stages, really communicates a dedication to wellbeing, safety and respect.

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🔍 Breaking Legal Update from IPC Ontario! 🔍 The Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC) has just released new guidance on public sector contracting with third-party service providers. Dive into our latest blog by privacy and data security lawyer Jennifer Hunter, which provides an overview and hits the highlights for ensuring your organization is maintaining FIPPA and MFIPPA compliance!

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Two posts from me in one day... but I just watched Jonathan Craft give the Jocelyne Bourgon Visiting Scholar Lecture with the Canada School of Public Service | École de la fonction publique du Canada on the theme of "stewardship" in building capacity for policy + delivery. I'm sure it will be posted soon for those #wonks out there. Admittedly, this stuff isn't headline grabbing stuff in #cdnpoli, but my goodness, it's the foundation for getting stuff done! And Jonathan knows so much about how other public services of the world get their stuff done. Lots to learn! One of Professor Craft's many insights that I found most interesting is that "stewarding capacity" isn't just about the public service anymore -- a broader ecosystem is engaged in making a policy cycle successful. For me, this signals the importance of regular forums that bring leaders in public service, nonprofits and academia together to share successes and colloborate on improvements that will deliver the outcomes and services the Canadian public is looking for. I felt this *magic* at the #BetterEvidence24 conference with Blueprint + Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy at uOttawa. Such a convening is much deeper than a stakeholder exercise! It's about recognizing that different players hold different pieces of the puzzle that is the key to impact. Public services have a unique leadership role to pull those puzzle pieces together.

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An update as we head into the summer heat - Council of Canadian Innovators | Conseil canadien des innovateurs is still measuring what's working (and what's not) inside the ecosystem, this includes the sentiments around access to capital which have been top of mind for all of us lately. We have a short survey for the ecosystem to fill out - we'd love to hear from you: You can complete the survey here: https://lnkd.in/gcR9nMce

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My whole life when I identified barriers, the first response is often denial as those who create barriers are often resistant to accept they could be responsible. Eventually when I lay it out in a way that can not be ignored they state that I make good points and though they have no capacity to fix now - they will fix later. Then come the visions plans and strategies, and when I point out that I encounter a barrier today I am told great point our vision will fix it later - while the data on areas like hiring people with disabilities remain flat lined through multiple visions strategies and plans. That is because change occurs in the moment not in the future. Each instance that is ignored is one more piece in a long chain that your vision is not important enough to create action. I have reached out to champions - one actually listened in 2019 and enabled me to be part of an Unconscious Bias working group! Most do not respond while the remainder talk about their visions but do not even acknowledge the barrier faced now. Accessibility will only be achieved when organizations use the 'A' Grade approach. Each time a person identifies a barrier: 'A'ccept that even without intent, barriers can be created. 'A'ctively listen from the perspective of the person who has encountered a barrier to understand from their perspective. 'A'ct now - promising a change later just perpetuates the problem.

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Statistics Canada | Statistique Canada are hosting a free webinar on the Crime Severity Index (see below for details):   Description:  The #webinar will explore a key indicator for #police reported #crime in Canada. Specifically, the webinar describes the Crime Severity Index and the importance of interpreting it in a broad community context to arrive at a more comprehensive statistical portrait of crime. The webinar will also instruct users on how to access relevant online data products and resources related to Crime and Justice information.     Intended Target Audience: This is an introductory webinar; it may be too basic for advanced data users.    Language, Dates, Times, and Registration Links English: July 17, 2024, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., Eastern Time  Self-Register: English Webinar on July 17th

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New episode of Public Sector Future! Thank you to Ima Okonny for joining me on the latest episode of Public Sector Future.   As the Chief Data Officer for Economic and Social Development Canada, Ima works across the department of 40,000 people to make it possible to use data to better serve Canadians. Three things really struck me throughout the discussion: intention, context and impact.   Her team’s dedication to establishing robust data platforms, fostering data literacy, and implementing responsible AI practices was a central theme of our conversation, and she shared valuable lessons and approaches on each of these. One key approach Ima shares is a deliberate approach to bringing in a wide range of stakeholders from an early stage - including privacy, legal and policy colleagues - so that collaboration and learning is built in from the beginning. As Ima said "The more we can ensure that we’ve built some of those foundational structures and the protocols in place from the start, we can move faster, and we can scale.”   Listen to the episode using the link below, or search for Public Sector Future wherever you get your podcasts #data #gcdigital #digitalgovernment #ai Mia Xerri Portia Taylor Catherine Takemori Lindsay Nubel Racheal A. Briscoe Fawad Ahmed Kenya McKenzie, MBA Pauline Martin Angela Heise Antonio De Palmas Dave Sloan

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Learn how SSC is supporting Digital Government helping the GC improve services to Canadians. #digitalgovernment #citizenservices

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The Canada School of Public Service has just premiered the “Discover Cyber Security” video series, showcasing common cyber security challenges faced by public servants! These engaging videos were developed for federal public servants but are made available to the general public, and follow three misadventures of fictional public servants who make common cyber security mistakes. These relatable stories illustrate how easy it is to fall prey to cyber threats and highlight the importance of vigilance and best practices. 📽️ Video Highlights: • Abbas’s Blunder: Abbas’s habit of copying files onto his desktop for offline work leads to a significant data breach when his laptop is stolen. • Morgan’s Mistake: Morgan falls for a phishing scam, resulting in ransomware infecting the network and causing a major service disruption. • Louise’s Lesson: Louise’s use of weak, reused passwords across multiple accounts leads to a widespread cyber attack on her department. This is another great collaboration between the Canada School of Public Service’s Digital Academy and the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security. I’m really proud of my incredible Digital Academy colleagues for producing this fun learning resource, and that we’ve made it available to everyone. Good cyber security practices are essential, especially for federal public servants entrusted with safeguarding important government data and systems. Let’s all learn from Abbas, Morgan, and Louise to protect ourselves and our departments from cyber threats. Watch the series here: https://lnkd.in/g656jDAR Canada School of Public Service | École de la fonction publique du Canada Get Cyber Safe Kimberley H. #CyberSecurity #GClearning #Canada

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Have your voices heard - Why is there NO "Action ( or Implementation ) Plan" - not just a Strategy ? - with metrics, indicators and targets to be measured, assessed and re-focused as necessary - for real transparency, accountability and progress ? Where are the federal Employment Equity Task Force recommendations - to set a more robust standard and provide a stronger role model for all territories and provinces to do likewise ? Why no mention of bringing forward a federal Racial Justice ( or Anti-Racism ) Act ? Other ?

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What better way to do data than with clearly-defined business problems, user-centricity and inclusion by design? Lovely podcast, Ima Okonny and Olivia Neal! #data #AI #GCdata

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