Continuous improvement at the City
The past two decades have seen great change in the City of Vaughan. As one of the fastest growing municipalities in Canada, the City has emerged from a collection of communities into a vibrant urban centre. This rapid growth has necessitated the need for change in many areas including the implementation of new policies and procedures.
Our goal is “continuous improvement” in terms of how the City operates. This includes an audit of each and every department in order to determine how well they are functioning and what, if any, changes need to be made in regards to existing policies and ones that are not in place, but may be necessary.
The development of recommended policies for the City will:
- Improve internal controls
- Improve the quality of performance in carrying out assigned responsibilities
- Result in the department operating more effectively and efficiently
The bottom line is to improve efficiency and deliver value to the taxpayer. Many of the audits are well underway and several, including the Building and Facilities audit, the Reserves and Investment Audit and the Economic Development Audit, are due to be
August 25, 2009 Update |
completed later this year.
Part of the continuous improvement process also includes a comprehensive review, update and expansion of the policy on expenses for Members of Council.
This review will focus on a number of areas including the Council Expense allowance, as well as cell phone use, mileage compensation and 407 bills, and the city’s definition of “official business.”
The auditor has been asked to provide recommendations that would be in keeping with common business practice and also take into account what is already being done in neighbouring municipalities.
A report will be presented in the fall with the goal of implementing the new Council Expense Policy on January 1, 2010. This policy will require Members of Council to post detailed spending information online by expenditure account, such as the cost of meals charged to their expense budgets.
The Internal Audit Report on Senior Management Team Expenses has been completed and was presented to the Audit and Operational Committee in June. This report was received and referred back to staff for another report that will make changes and adjustments.
This audit examined senior management expenses, including the use of corporate credit cards, mileage and 407 bills, leased vehicles and cell phones. This audit did not reveal any significant issues, but it was noted that there were opportunities for improvement. Throughout these audits it has been noted that due to Vaughan’s rapid growth, some procedures and practices have been changed while others have yet to be brought up-to-date.
By addressing the operational issues within the organization, the City is taking a permanent approach to resolving many of these issues.