Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/337874
P PROCUREMENT www.vanguardcanada.com JUNE/JULY 2014 37 "In Senior Executive roles both in government and the private sector I have watched my investment both on dollars and staff resources return three- fold in the quality of the people that graduate from this program...I have seen this change occur in over one hundred graduates and the change in most has been profound." — Kim Gillis, Vice President and Managing Director, Boeing Defence Australia "The Executive Masters in Complex Project Management provided me with the opportunity to learn new approaches to managing projects by apply- ing methods that can withstand the temporal stresses affecting the project direction and that are focused on the final effect rather than on specific solutions." — Major Crown Project Manager, Department of National Defence "The course was a game changer for me in the way I now approach complex situations..." — Project Control Officer, Major Crown Project, Department of National Defence TESTIMONIALS achieve their objectives, the ones that do not have garnered increasing attention. The effects are eroded public confidence, delayed deliveries, cost overruns, litigation and reduced corporate profitability. The result is a drag on prosperity, inhibited in- novation and dissatisfaction among both clients and suppliers. The ultimate impact is on Canada's reputation as a place to do complex projects. Federal government initiatives based on the Jenkins and Emerson reports will assist in resolution of these issues. Until commu- nication and trust is rebuilt, and until so- phisticated project management skill-sets can be repeatedly regenerated, problems will persist. Therefore, as a vital enabler, there is a need for a Canadian educational center to engage, educate, research and network on the management of complex projects. Telfer aims to complement the re- cent federal Defence Procurement Strategy with focused functional education relevant to multiple sectors. Why partner with Australia? Australia has a similar form of government, size and ac- quisition process. Australia faced a perfect storm of complex project and procure- ment challenges a decade ago, centred on complex submarine and early-warning air- craft projects. There was a comprehensive response that included definition of the competencies and attributes required by the leaders of these complex endeavours. Telfer's partner university won the con- tract to develop and design the programs, and has systematically evolved the delivery model and content. The critical differences between simple projects in controlled environments, and complex projects in turbulent times, are business acumen, systemic thinking and strategic relationships. Together they per- mit the navigation of complexity in an inte- grative and creative manner, thereby achiev- ing the results sought by all stakeholders. After searching through the educational programs of our major allies, it was clear that Australia had the best education prac- tices for a Westminster-style democracy. Rather than re-invent the solution, it is more logical and much quicker to apply a proven product, adapted where needed to meet Canada's unique circumstances. Lastly, why is there a relative void in com- plex project education capacity in Canada? This is perhaps the most vexing question of them all. During the early Cold War era, Canada depended upon the acumen built up during the industrial mobilization of World War II and the Defence Production Sharing Agreement with the United States. The Avro Arrow decision in 1959 saw an immediate dispersal of aerospace talent and the loss of significant complex project ca- pacity. The Major Crown Projects of the 1980's and 1990's featured system integration of largely off-shore sub-systems, while the 2000's saw a significant number of mili- tary-off-the-shelf procurements in support of operations in Afghanistan. This entire period saw a continuing draw-down on the number of government project-dedicated positions due to fiscal stringency. The lim- ited throughput and mainly technical focus of the army technical staff officer course and the RCAF aerospace systems course were insufficient to sustain the expertise base. Only recently has there been any em- phasis on professionalization for govern- ment civilians. In the prime and sub-contractor com- panies involved across Canada, these large projects were often seen as episodic compe- titions, each with ramp-up and tear-down phases, with minimal long-term regard for building talent sets. The small number of new complex projects, combined with slow gestation and uncertainties, militated against industry investment in people. It often became easier to hire skilled practi- tioners from foreign jurisdictions as and when needed. Together with military and public ser- vice demographics, the net effect was a loss of national capacity to manage com- plex projects and procurements, at a time when accountability standards were rising, technology was accelerating and business techniques were becoming ever more so- phisticated. In 2007, the Auditor General reported "concerns about the problems caused by a lack of skilled, experienced staff assigned to manage many major ac- quisitions." The bottom line is that the effective management of large and complex proj- ects is a strategic imperative for govern- ment at all levels, and for industry. For a country like Canada built on iconic com- plex projects such as the Canadian Pacific Railway and Vimy Ridge, the capacity to regenerate complex project, program and procurement leadership skills is funda- mental to our security and prosperity.