Results at a glance and operating context

During 2019–20, Statistics Canada made significant progress toward its modernization goals, including its goals to engage with Canadians, share best practices and expertise, build capacity, and generate new, innovative solutions to help create a data-driven society and economy. The initiatives and projects featured in this report demonstrate the impact that the agency has had on the lives of Canadians.

Creating a modern and flexible workplace

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency transitioned to a remote workplace overnight—a feat only possible because of in-flight modernization activities.

• Ongoing security and informatics enhancements for remote work allowed the agency to deliver its mission-critical programs, such as the Labour Force Survey, when they were most needed without missing a beat.
• Parallel to technical enhancements, a corporate culture change was initiated during 2019–20 toward a more agile, flexible and responsive organization.

Delivering user-centric services

The agency is client-focused; it wants to ensure that users have the information they want when they want it and how they want it.

• Canadians asked for more data visualizations, such as user-friendly online interactive tools and fun infographics, and the agency responded. In 2019–20 alone, the agency doubled its number of data visualization tools and increased its infographics holdings by 35%. Users also wanted more social media activity—there were over 520,000 social media interactions in 2019–20.
• User satisfaction results revealed that, in 2019–20, 80% of users were satisfied with the statistical information provided by Statistics Canada, including with the over 38,000 products that were accessed in approximately 20.3 million visits to the agency's website.

Collaborating and engaging with Canadians

This past year, Statistics Canada pursued an unprecedented number of collaborative activities and initiatives across all levels of government; internationally; and with the private sector, non-governmental organizations and others.

• In the summer of 2019, the agency demonstrated its commitment to collaboration and engagement by creating a new corporate Strategic Engagement Field, dedicated to meeting the statistical needs of Canadians. Collaboration and engagement activities resulted in more granular and timely data related to housing, tourism, justice, health and manufacturing, to name a few.
• To foster increased collaboration with other organizations, many speeches and special outreach and engagement events occurred. Specific external audiences included the Empire Club, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. The agency also collaborated with international partners; for example, the agency was a member of 180 international forums in 2019–20.
• The Canadian Statistics Advisory Council (CSAC)—the independent body comprised of statistical experts from across the country mandated to report to Canadians annually on the overall health of the national statistical system—met for the first time in 2019–20.

Using leading-edge methods

The agency's modernization journey paved the way for work on leading-edge methods. Canadians and businesses want detailed, high-quality, real-time statistical information, and the agency is committed to using innovative methods to meet these increasing data needs.

• Statistics Canada continued to produce more data while reducing the response burden on Canadians through new projects, including producing cannabis consumption data based on wastewater and using satellite imagery to replace some agriculture surveys.
• Statistics Canada presented leading-edge methods on a global scale regarding its implementation of the Necessity and Proportionality Framework. The framework ensures and demonstrates transparency about the agency's processes to protect privacy and confidentiality by ensuring that all projects meet a real need (necessity) and are of an appropriate magnitude or size of effort (proportionality).

Building statistical capacity and fostering data literacy

For a data-driven society and economy, society must understand and use statistics. To help build statistical capacity with partners and foster data literacy among Canadians so they can effectively use the agency's data, Statistics Canada provided leadership nationally and internationally.

• In 2019–20, the agency supported the government-wide implementation of the Data Strategy Roadmap for the Federal Public Service and released its own Statistics Canada Data Strategy to outline how the agency will continue to govern and manage its valuable data assets for Canadians.
• Statistics Canada provided direct support and training to over 127 Indigenous communities, organizations and governments to help them build their own data and research capabilities, including developing indexes, indicators and portals to address their specialized statistical needs.
• With over 5,875 participants in 2019–20, Statistics Canada's workshop and webinar series improved data literacy by providing Canadians with direct access to its extensive survey methodology and analysis expertise.

As the impacts of COVID-19 continue to be felt, Statistics Canada continues to capture an accurate social and economic portrait of the nation and provide Canadians with the information they need to make important decisions during these extraordinary times. The agency also accelerated the collection and release of COVID-19-related information to create new insights that are urgently needed to respond to and address the COVID-19 pandemic.

For more information on Statistics Canada's plans, priorities and results achieved, see the "Results: what we achieved" section of this report.