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About Ontario

Canada's Top 100 Employers 2009
Canada's Best Diversity Employers 2008

A Culture of Innovation

The Ontario Public Service has earned a reputation as an innovative organization. Like private sector companies that are constantly upgrading their product lines and services to serve their customers better, we are constantly transforming the public service to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

You don’t have to take our word for it. The OPS has been recognized internationally, nationally and provincially for its innovation.

Since the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) launched its biennial awards program in 1998, Ontario has won the gold medal for innovation twice. In 1998, it was for redesigning public services to be more customer-friendly. In 2002, it was for connecting across ministries and creating one-stop access for a range of services and programs in the OPS.

Our innovations in service delivery make government work better for the people of Ontario. Representatives from more than 30 countries have visited Ontario to see how we do it.

  • The Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC) awarded the OPS a bronze medal for innovative management in 2004 for championing collaboration among various branches of the public service to achieve better services, more efficient government and increased innovation.

So many of the breakthroughs in service delivery in both the private and public sectors are based on information technology (IT). The OPS has taken home a number of IT-related awards in recent years.

  • The Ontario government’s health information portal, www.HealthyOntario.com, which provides easy access to thousands of pages of consumer health information, has won a number of international awards for excellence on the worldwide web. In 2004, it was cited as one of the world’s top sites in the Webby Awards of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. See for yourself at www.HealthyOntario.com.
  • Based in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Land Information Ontario (LIO) has won a number of awards, including the Pioneer Award from E-Government Magazine (Washington, D.C.) in 2003. The LIO team has created a virtual warehouse of data about the geography of Ontario and a data exchange program that allows information sharing among governments and other public sector partners. You can visit LIO at www.lio.gov.on.ca.

We are proud of what we have accomplished. But the hallmark of a successful modern public service is the capacity and the determination to continue to adapt, to be relevant, flexible and effective in dealing successfully with the pressures of today’s fast-paced world, and to anticipate future challenges and opportunities.

We are innovating and modernizing to improve how we serve the people of Ontario by harnessing the creativity of our workforce and the power of new technologies. ServiceOntario provides province-wide, one-stop access to government services and information, in person, online and by phone.

  • ServiceOntario has pioneered a money-back guarantee for timely service – a first in North America for government. Starting with the issuing of birth certificates within 15 business days or your money back, this no-nonsense approach to efficiency is expected to expand to other routine government transactions.
  • A partnership between the Ontario government, the federal government and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario created a joint secretariat, website and public contact centre to manage a funding program to renew and improve public infrastructure in rural Ontario communities.

We are innovating and modernizing to ensure that we continue to attract, retain and develop dynamic people with talent and drive, and sustain a work environment that nurtures tomorrow’s leaders today.

  • The OPS Human Resources Plan (2005-08) focuses on engaging employees, attracting talent and building capacity to sustain a world-class organization. To make sure this plan works, we are asking the people who know best – our employees – how we are doing. More than 14,000 OPS employees responded to a randomized employee satisfaction survey in 2006. Their responses helped us to identify priority areas for action to support our workforce.

We encourage innovation within the Ontario Public Service. We engage our employees to find creative solutions.

  • The OPS Ideas program enables employees to submit their creative ideas to improve services and reduce costs. Every employee idea is given thoughtful consideration. Close to 100 ideas have been accepted for implementation in the three months since the program’s launch.
  • The Innovation Fund provides one-time seed money to implement innovative projects initiated by the employee. Since 2004, 35 projects have been implemented with potential savings of up to $5.0 million.