Performance Management: Not Just for Business

Last Friday, I attended three federal-provincial funding announcements. At the first presentation, ACOA Minister Keith Ashfield described a $1.75-million ACOA commitment, and provincial Finance Minister Greg Byrne added $4.5 million toward the creation of a Centre for Excellence in Advanced Learning Technologies, to be based in Fredericton.

At the second announcement, Mr. Ashfield offered $15.9 million from the feds' clean energy program, and provincial Energy Minister Jack Keir pitched in with $2 million from New Brunswick's coffers to support PowerShift, a regional consortium investing in smart-grid research and development.

At the third and final announcement before my weekend, Mr. Byrne directed another $150,000 of Business New Brunswick funds toward Enterprise Fredericton's Business Acceleration Centre, for which Mr. Ashfield pitched in another $89,000 from ACOA.

Let me first say how pleased the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce is to see strategic investments in the advanced learning sector, in energy R&D with the University of New Brunswick and in support of new technology startup businesses.

Much growth is expected from these areas of our economy, and directing funds toward education and research programs is one of the best ways to support long-term success.

These investments are also expected to yield employment, partnership and contract opportunities for numerous Fredericton residents and businesses, continuing to reinforce our reputation as a "smart city" and helping to attract more researchers and industry to the capital.

Friday afternoon, I got to thinking - how will we know if these investments pay off? While much picture taking and ink spilling is made over the announcements and projects initially, how often do we hear about the performance of past investments?

Certainly, if an investment is proven to be poor, the Opposition will let us know. Similarly, if an investment yields dramatic returns, the government finds a way to communicate it.

Like many of you, I receive a regular update from my pension and investment managers to let me know whether my contributions have grown over the period. This gives me the opportunity to make adjustments to my investment plan in order to maximize my return come retirement.

The chamber of commerce also generates an annual report and audited financial statements to show our members how we've spent their money. Each year, we hope to demonstrate the benefits delivered from their support of the chamber through progress on advocacy initiatives, networking and connection opportunities, as well as direct savings and benefit programs.

We're grateful that year after year, our more than 850 members continue to see value in this work.

So how do our federal and provincial governments review and report on their own efforts? At the State of the Province Address, we hear about results achieved in a broad and general sense, but specifics about these investments aren't usually uttered.

I'd love to see a regular report card, perhaps on a departmental basis, of the program investments and returns for Business New Brunswick, the Department of Energy and ACOA.

In a year from now, will the $6 million spent Friday have created 10 jobs? Contract work worth $50 million? Attracted three new companies and 500 new New Brunswickers?

Like a publicly traded company, I want to know what dividends my tax-dollar investment has produced.

Businesses have to be accountable to their staff, customers, shareholders and the revenue agency. Most employees undergo a performance review at least once a year to see how they've performed against their goals.

With all the great investments being made in our city, I look forward to clear performance reporting from our governments in the future.

The Fredericton Chamber of Commerce will be the first to welcome and celebrate the effort and results.

Have an idea to make Fredericton better? Susan Holt is the CEO of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, and she would love to hear from you. She can be reached at susanh@frederictonchamber.ca or 451-9744.

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