Government, an Actor in Innovation

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1 Towards a Québec Innovation Policy Government, an Actor in Innovation Science and Technology in Public Administration Advisory report of the Conseil de la science et de la technologie Summary Governments play a number of important roles in the innovation system, as recent reports of the Conseil have shown. This report looks at one of the less well-known aspects: the role of government in pursuing research and other scientific and technical activities, either to support innovation or, more generally, to assist the state in exercising its responsibilities. The knowledge to act These activities - particularly research, socioeconomic studies, statistical inventories, and monitoring and forecasting - are essential to sound public service management, and also contribute in various ways to the innovation process. They provide the government with knowledge crucial to understand developments in various sectors, to elaborate wellinformed policies and programmes, and to better target measures to support innovation and other areas of government activity. A transition period This report comes at a time when government scientific and technical activities are in transition with the establishment of the Ministère de la Recherche, de la Science et de la Technologie (MRST), the creation of a ministerial committee, the major reorientation given to certain organizations and ministries, and significant changes to the network of federal research centers. A portrait of the situation The Conseil therefore deems it important to take stock and to better understand whether these changes will succeed in providing the Québec government with the resources, effective management framework and expertise required to implement a successful innovation policy and, more generally, to insure the sound management of government affairs. In other words, is the Québec government giving itself the knowledge tools required to meet the standards of a knowledge-based economy? A modest governmental sector Compared to Ontario and most other OECD countries, the governmental research capacity in Québec is modest by any standards: percentage of total R&D investment

2 (GERD), percentage of economic output (GDP), or per capita investment. Yet the ratio of Québec governmental R&D spending to GDP is at least as high as that of the other provincial governments. The explanation may be found in the limited number of federal research facilities in Québec. Indeed, most federal research laboratories are located in Ontario. The limited number of federal research facilities obviously has drawbacks for Québec. There are correspondingly fewer researchers and expertise, which would otherwise constitute a significant regional force able to reinforce collaborations both with universities and business, thus facilitating spin-off usage of research results. It also means that there are fewer research facilities readily accessible to business and researchers. This said, however, the federal research investments briefly described in the report are far from negligible, and greatly exceed those of the government of Québec. Further, R&D spending by both governments has declined in recent years, decreasing even more the impact of public research in Québec. However, the weaknesses in governmental research in Québec is not due solely to the relatively limited presence of federal research facilities. With regard to the conducting and managing of scientific and technical activities, the efforts of Québec government ministries have been uneven and suffer from major deficiencies. Although several ministries have set up research and study units that disseminate scientific and technical information and statistical data, many ministries and sectors invest little or nothing in research, particularly in strategic areas. In fact, R&D spending tends to be concentrated in traditional sectors. In almost all departments, research budgets and scientific and technical personnel have diminished over the last several years. In addition, there is little in the way of scientific publishing, either in journals of international caliber or in ministerial publications. The planning and managing of many sectors is pursued with little input from science and technology. Research and studies could and should be used to support policy planning, programme implementation, monitoring of activities and knowledge of clienteles, but many ministries lack the necessary resources. More generally, the annual Plans ministériels de gestion des dépenses (Ministerial Expenditure Management Plans), used to prepare government budgets, pay little attention to science and technology, and rarely mention ministerial priorities or achievements in research or in other science and technology-related activities. Yet the modernization of government management sought by the Conseil du Trésor and the focus on strategic planning should be accompanied by increased emphasis on knowledge development and sharing. Science and technology lack a true planning and management framework within the Québec government administration. In the absence of clear objectives, assessment of results is also inadequate in the rare instances it is performed at all. Since , the auditor general has released several reports on the framework and organization of

3 intramuros government science and technology activities, stressing that major efforts are required to achieve sound management in the field. The creation of the Ministère de la Recherche, de la Science et de la Technologie and the new policy scheduled for release next winter will undoubtedly improve the situation, but much remains to be done. In light of these observations, the Conseil formulates the following recommendations to the Québec government, and more particularly to the Minister of Research, Science and Technology. Various courses of action are also suggested. Recommendation 1 That the Minister of Research, Science and Technology oversee the preparation and coordinate the implementation of a government strategy for the development of scientific and technical activities essential to exercise the full range of governmental responsibilities. Research, socioeconomic studies and other scientific and technical activities are tools for knowledge which obviously have been neglected in many ministries, and which are far from being a priority in Québec government planning and management. The government has an important role to fulfill. It does not simply accompany the development of the knowledge-based economy. The government is a full-fledged actor therein. It is vital that science and technology be given their proper place in support of the decision making process as well as in policy and programme implementation. The Québec government must insure that it has the knowledge tools adequate to meet the standards of an innovation-based economy. Such a strategy should be tied to the science and technology policy currently under preparation, and be reflected in annual ministerial expenditure management plans (see the following recommendation). To implement this recommendation, the following measures should be adopted: A. In conjunction with the Ministerial Committee on Research, Science and Technology: Identify the scientific and technical activities required for sound public management, whether these be conducted within or outside of government;

4 To this end, identify the various aspects of government management that could benefit from scientific and technical support, set priorities accordingly, and prepare a timetable for implementation; Determine the in-house resources required: scientific and technical personnel and budgets; information resources; information technology and other infrastructures; Develop results indicators to measure the success of strategy implementation; Set up a strategy monitoring and adjustment mechanism. B. By the MRST: Set up and coordinate an observatory/network to monitor and assess the performance of Québec's science, technology and innovation system; Set up a mechanism to monitor and forecast developments in scientific and technical fields of strategic significance for the development of Québec's innovation capacity. Recommendation 2 That the Minister responsible for Research, Science and Technology coordinate the establishment of a science and technology management framework for government ministries. Few ministries have a scientific and technical activity management framework which would concern such elements as: setting of objectives, multiyear planning, periodic results measurement, use of performance indicators, management of scientific and technical personnel, regular provision of information to the public, etc. Ministerial expenditure management plans devote little attention to science and technology and do not currently represent an effective management framework. More specifically, the following measures should be taken in conjunction with the Ministerial Committee on Research, Science and Technology: Identify strategic orientations and issues, objectives, priorities for action, budget and assessment plans, and performance indicators for scientific and technical activities within each ministry; as the Conseil has previously recommended, these items should comprise a distinct science and technology section in the Ministerial Expenditure Management Plans drawn up each year as part of the government's budget process; Implement a specific management strategy for scientific and technical personnel aimed at maintaining and developing expertise, and including career planning,

5 professional development, publication incentives, participation in knowledge networks, etc.; Encourage organizational innovation in managing scientific and technical activities; Use systematic and ongoing control mechanisms to improve the strategic perspectives and coordination of government S&T activities: Ministerial Committee on Research, Science and Technology; external partner consultation mechanisms on a ministerial basis, etc.; Publish an annual review of Québec government research and scientific and technical activities complete with relevant indicators and progress reports. Recommendation 3 That government ministries seek out partnership in orienting and conducting research and scientific and technical activities related to their areas of responsibility. Many ministries have reorganized their science and technology activities and placed considerable emphasis on partnership, notably in conducting research, but also for activities such as dissemination of information. In addition to ensuring regular dialogue with partners, government ministries would be well advised to set up a permanent partner consultation mechanism and to seek advice on setting priorities and orientations for their scientific and technical activities. To this end, the following means should be adopted: Each ministry should have recourse to partners to perform certain scientific and technological activities complementary to those conducted in-house; In pursuing scientific and technological activities which support innovation in business and other organizations, each ministry should favour external partnerships; Each ministry should set up an external consultation mechanism to assist in establishing priorities and orientations for all of its scientific and technical activities.

6 Recommendation 4 That the minister responsible for Research, Science and Technology make it a priority to increase the number of federal research facilities as well as federal scientific and technical activities in Québec. Federal research center mandates, structures, and funding are changing in response to developments in science, technology, and the markets. In addition, new centers are being set up in emerging fields of endeavor and to take advantage of new technological niches. There are still relatively few federal laboratories in Québec, a situation that creates a significant deficit in expertise and readily accessible research facilities. To this end, it is recommended that the minister: Work with his partners to define a strategy for substantially increasing the level of federal scientific and technical activity and the number of federal research facilities in Québec; Rapidly undertake discussions with the federal government to this end; Develop and maintain a knowledge base on the network of federal research facilities in Canada and on federal scientific and technical activities as a whole.