Thank you very much for the question. I think it's a super-relevant question.
I've been working at PSPC since 2016, and all through 2017 and 2018 we focused on how to simplify procurement. We came to OGGO and were able to be witnesses, and we were able to take some great recommendations that were put forward by OGGO in terms of how to unbundle the federal procurement system to make it more accessible to Canadian SMEs.
Canada has a huge portion of its economy based on SMEs. We've spent the last five years looking at supplier diversity, at making sure that our procurement practices are inclusive and at working to figure out how to reduce barriers and how to make it less burdensome. You've probably heard ad nauseam about the e-procurement system, but imagine that every time you wanted to compete, you had to fill in paperwork and you had to show your certification and your ISO standards, which must be complete. Every time you miss putting in that certification, you're screened out. At least by having the e-procurement system, we're hoping that it will be a level playing field for SMEs to have quicker and easier access.
At the same time, I think we are struggling, based on what we've seen here as well. Do we have the right strategy to unbundle procurement? Where are we introducing risk? Where are we introducing complexity? How do we take all those considerations and create the balance to be able to deliver services?
We've heard a lot of different reports from the AG cited or spoken about recently. One that I was reviewing last night was the recent one on IT projects, and I think it's the one that was just referred to. In that context, the fundamental issue for the Government of Canada is that most of our systems are decades old. They were built in-house, not paper-based, and they have reliances. How do we move to a digital transformation to be able to deliver services to Canadians, and how do we see SMEs as part of that? These are the areas we are grappling with.
While I still have the floor, what I would also raise to the table's attention is that I believe that procurement is one spoke. The other spokes are the government's HR practices and staffing practices that should allow us to bring in people quickly with the right skill sets.
Fundamentally, as a deputy head, I really focus my attention on project management. I think that's a key piece of the equation that we need to talk about as a key part of the financial delegation. We need to talk about how the money is being spent and how things are being planned for, so that when we do procurement processes, they're actually meeting the timelines and they're properly planned, and that if you're buying something, you're not increasing through amendments the contract value exponentially.
I'll pause here. Thank you.