Land Acknowledgement
The Institute for Citizen-Centred Service respectfully acknowledges that we live and work on the traditional lands of the Indigenous Peoples (Inuit, First Nations, Métis) of Canada. We honour the ancestry, heritage, and gifts of the Indigenous Peoples and give thanks to them.
Message from the President
Over the past year, the ICCS has moved from laying the groundwork to strengthening the foundation needed for meaningful collaboration across Canada’s public sectors. Securing sustainable funding for the ICCS has improved the organization’s ability to provide trusted advice and support to our members and the important work they advance together.
This year also marked a more mature approach to collaboration, meaningfully growing the connective tissue across—and between—jurisdictions and the broader ecosystem. Today’s environment has created a backdrop that has brought into sharper focus the importance of a coordinated approach and working together on shared challenges.
The ICCS team continues to impress me with their ability to align member-led initiatives, work closely with our members, provide timely strategic advice, and anticipate needs. Thank you to them and to our members in helping to remove barriers and meet Canadians’ needs and expectations.
Mark Burns, President
Message from the Executive Director
As governments navigate increasingly complex and interconnected challenges, the Institute’s role as a trusted space for bilateral, multi-lateral, and pan-Canadian collaboration remains essential. Our focus has been practical: enabling the partnerships, collaborations and work needed to turn shared commitments into tangible action and outcomes.
I am proud of the progress we made this year to further strengthen how the ICCS supports members. We have improved how we plan and deliver to better support bilateral and multi-lateral initiatives as they move from concept to implementation. We also expanded our footprint by engaging with a broader ecosystem of partners.
The aim in our collective work is to help break down barriers to improve how people and businesses in Canada interact with their governments. For our members, it also means helping to minimize duplication, reduce costs, align where possible, and build on each other’s strengths in areas like artificial intelligence and vendor management. In this vein, a new federal/provincial/territorial (FPT) table on cyber security was created. The new table reflects the growing importance of protecting Canada in today’s digital world while providing a space to implement last year’s inaugural FPT cyber security collaboration agreement and address emerging threats.
I am grateful to our members whose dedication has been key in working to address challenges and opportunities stemming from global uncertainty, including in the areas of cyber security, procurement, artificial intelligence, and public sector skills. And I am excited for the ICCS to keep enabling this important work and supporting the practical, collaborative delivery that Canadians expect.
Lin Zhu, Executive Director
Who We Are
The ICCS is a non-partisan, not-for-profit team of advisors, doers, and connectors focused on helping governments deliver integrated citizen-centred services that work for Canadians. Created by, and for, the public sector, the ICCS serves as a single window to access information, analysis, advice, and support services for senior executive tables.
As a trusted pan-Canadian forum that fosters and facilitates the flow of information and the sharing of expertise and resources to support member objectives, the ICCS works with, convenes, and advises federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal colleagues and subject matter experts to remove barriers to access to services.
What We Do
- Enable and support interjurisdictional collaboration to advance digital government and deliver tangible results for individuals and businesses in Canada.
- Provide secretariat and strategic planning services to key senior public sector leadership teams, tables, and councils with focus on pan-Canadian collaboration.
- Assess the progress of the Canadian public sector in meeting individuals' and businesses' expectations and measure their level of satisfaction with service delivery.
- Champion citizen-centred services and serve as a public sector resource for advice and access to best practices and tools that promote accessible public-sector services.
Effective Information Sharing
The core of the ICCS’s work continues to be providing trusted advice, support, and a practical platform for members to advance shared priorities more effectively. In support of the pan-Canadian collaboration agenda, the ICCS formalized a partnership that provides ongoing support to federal, provincial, and territorial Ministers and Deputy Ministers on cyber security, digital government, and artificial intelligence. This work helps ensure that shared commitments are translated into tangible action by working through common challenges as well as identifying key priorities and opportunities. The ICCS further supports the work by serving as a hub for collaboration and access to briefing materials that support effective delivery of priority collaborations.
With the Deputy Ministers' table, the ICCS works on strategic discussions and desired outcomes for the FPT Symposium on Cyber Security, Digital, and Artificial Intelligence, a forum for ministers. The annual symposium fosters cooperation between governments, and advances pan-Canadian initiatives in areas that are increasingly central to how governments serve people and businesses in Canada. By bringing jurisdictions together around shared issues and practical deliverables, the ICCS helps create the conditions for sustained collaboration from concept through to implementation.
The Institute helped organize a new interjurisdictional forum dedicated to cyber security, and the implementation of the pan-Canadian information sharing collaboration agreement, the Public Sector Cyber Council (PSCC). The ICCS also continued to support pan-Canadian inter-jurisdictional councils focused on citizen-centred service delivery through its work with the Public Sector Chief Information Officer Council (PSCIOC), the Public Sector Service Delivery Council (PSSDC), and the Joint Councils (made up of PSCIOC and the PSSDC). Working with these fora that bring together federal, provincial, and territorial partners, we identified common challenges, supported the sharing of information and best practices, and helped develop practical solutions to support more seamless services across all levels of government.
Enabling Inter-jurisdictional Work
At the heart of the ICCS’s work is its role as a neutral platform for inter-jurisdictional collaboration and shared learning; helping members advance pan-Canadian priorities while keeping citizen-centred service delivery in focus.
Building on ministerial commitments made at the FPT Symposium on Cyber Security, Digital, and Artificial Intelligence, the ICCS supported practical collaboration across several sectors, including vendor management, cyber security, interoperability, artificial intelligence, and service delivery. The ICCS and its members advanced pan-Canadian initiatives such as the cyber security information-sharing agreement and enabling artificial intelligence in the public service. The Institute worked closely with various councils to align work and efforts through the councils. We also enabled member-led work like projects related to Indigenous names, projects that demonstrate the value of a stable, well-supported pan-Canadian forum.
Key outcomes linked to the ICCS's role
- Stronger pan-Canadian alignment: Supported governments in working together on shared digital, AI, cyber security, interoperability, and service delivery priorities.
- Practical collaboration: Created space for jurisdictions to share approaches, tools, and lessons learned through the ICCS’s neutral convening role.
- Citizen-centred focus: Kept service improvement and the needs of Canadians at the centre of inter-jurisdictional work.
- Sustained leadership support: Provided the structure and continuity needed for senior public sector leaders to advance common priorities through various fora.
During 2025–2026, the ICCS provided comprehensive secretariat support and organized regular meetings for the Joint Councils, the Public Sector Service Delivery Council (PSSDC), the Public Sector Chief Information Officer Council (PSCIOC), and the Public Sector Cyber Security Council (PSCC). The PSCC, as a catalyst for pan-Canadian cyber security collaboration, brought together cyber leaders, who worked to implement the pan-Canadian collaboration agreement and advance practical initiatives to improve information sharing, preparedness, and cyber resilience. The PSCIOC advanced critical priorities focussed on emerging digital practices and artificial intelligence.
The PSSDC spearheaded several initiatives, including a pan-Canadian Service Mapping project to enhance cross-jurisdictional collaboration, a project to support Indigenous name inclusion (Phase II of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action #1), a pan-Canadian Training Inventory to optimize resources, and a comprehensive Blueprint on Vital Events to streamline secure data exchange.
Concurrently, the Joint Councils championed broader efforts like the Digital Government Study, which aims to provide an accurate view of Canada's digital landscape with federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal perspectives. By aligning digital strategy with operational delivery and remaining responsive to a fluid external environment, the councils continue to strengthen Canada's digital capacity to build a resilient, innovative, and digitally trusted public sector for all Canadians.
Helping Organizations Improve Through Research
Implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #17 (ITRCA17)
In 2025–2026, the ICCS helped to advance work to support Indigenous persons in reclaiming traditional names as part of phase I of the Implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #17 initiative. Through a detailed survey of all ten provinces, three territories, as well as five federal departments and agencies, the initiative mapped current practices and identified key policy and technical considerations across jurisdictions. The resulting report consolidated findings and set out practical recommendations for short-, medium-, and long-term implementation. Building on this progress, Phase II objectives have been approved by the PSSDC and will move into implementation in 2026–2027, focusing on the short-term recommendations and laying the groundwork for continued interjurisdictional collaboration.
Digital Government Study
The ICCS, sponsored by the Canadian Digital Service, developed a new study of the digital government landscape across Canada. Designed to align with the United Nations E-Government Survey framework, the study will provide a pan-Canadian narrative on digital government maturity and direction, with federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal perspectives. This year’s work established the scope, methodology, and delivery approach for the study. Results are expected in the fall of 2026 and will provide a foundation for future biennial studies, supporting ongoing benchmarking, learning, and collaboration across jurisdictions.
Citizens First 2026
Working with a new research partner, the ICCS launched Citizens First 2026, the eleventh iteration of its flagship public sector service research series. The study introduces significant updates to the survey methodology, questionnaire design, and data collection while preserving the continuity and value of this decades-long research data. With a renewed focus on digital channels and the use of artificial intelligence, Citizens First 2026 is positioned to provide timely insights into evolving service expectations and experiences. Results are expected in late summer 2026 and will inform future service improvement priorities across participating jurisdictions.
Funding for Service Access Issues Faced by Vulnerable, Marginalized, and Underserved Populations
The ICCS secured federal Strategic Engagement and Research Program funding for a three-year research project on service access issues faced by vulnerable, marginalized, and underserved populations. The project will examine barriers experienced by key population segments, including Indigenous peoples, racialized communities, persons with disabilities, newcomers and refugees, low-income individuals, and seniors. This positions the ICCS to lead nationally relevant research that will generate actionable recommendations for policymakers, strengthen public service accessibility, and advance equity and inclusion. Over the next three years, the project will include research activities, stakeholder engagement, and the development of a community of practice for public sector researchers. Findings will be shared through a final report, workshops, webinars, conferences, and direct engagement with stakeholders.
Board of Directors
Mark Burns - ICCS Board President and Director, eServices for Citizens, Information & Communications Technology Highways & Public Works, Government of Yukon
Kathryn Bulko - Executive Director, Municipal Information Systems Association of Canada (MISA Canada)
Mark Healy - ICCS Vice-President and Assistant Deputy Minister, Municipal and Community Affairs, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
Gillian Latham - ICCS Secretary and Executive Director, In Person Services, Service Nova Scotia, Service Nova Scotia
Sean McLeish - ICCS Board Treasurer, Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Information Officer, Government of Yukon
Mohammad Qureshi - Corporate Chief Information Officer / Associate Deputy Minister, Government Information Technology Ontario, Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery, Government of Ontario
Richard Henderson - Assistant Deputy Minister and Corporate Chief Information Office, Government of Alberta
Paul Wagner - Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Digital Service / Government of Canada
Tracy Wood - Chief Digital and Operating Officer, Treasury Board Secretariat, Prince Edward Island
Lin Zhu - Executive Director, Institute for Citizen-Centred Service
Financials
At a Glance
The ICCS ended the year in a strong financial position, with revenues exceeding program expenditures by $158,839. After accounting for amortization of capital assets of $534 and interest income of $10,733, the organization reported an overall excess of revenue over expenditures of $169,078, providing a positive year-end result and continued stability to support its member-focused work.
- Program Revenues - $1,532,616
- Program Expenditures - $1,373,777