- General Amendment
- Application Amendment
- Standard operating procedures for accessibility at ISED
General Amendment
Note: The 2023–2025 Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada Description of Feedback Process follows the Accessible Canada Act and the Accessible Canada Regulations on required formatting and content.
At Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), the Director General of the Human Resources Branch, supported by the Accessibility Secretariat, is responsible for receiving feedback on barriers as well as receiving feedback on the 2023–2025 ISED Accessibility Plan (the Plan). The Accessibility Secretariat of the Human Resources Branch is the author of the Plan.
The Director General of the Human Resources Branch may also be contacted to request a copy of the Description of Feedback Process or the Plan in an alternate format.
To request the Description of Feedback Process or the Plan in an alternate format, (Braille, large print, etc.), please fill out the Publication Request Form or contact:
ISED Citizen Services Centre
Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada
C.D. Howe Building
235 Queen Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0H5
Canada
Telephone (toll-free in Canada): 1-800-328-6189
Telephone (international): 613-954-5031
TTY (for hearing impaired): 1-866-694-8389
Business hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)
Email: ISED@ised-isde.gc.ca
The Accessibility Secretariat will work with its partners across ISED and the Government of Canada to prevent barriers, remove reported barriers and develop reports on progress.
Members of the public can give feedback on barriers and the Plan in different ways:
Online – Members of the public can visit the Accessibility at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada web page and fill out the Accessibility Feedback Form. This option can be anonymous.
Direct link: ised-isde.canada.ca/accessibility-at-ised
Email – Members of the public can email their feedback to ISED at ISEDAccessibilityPlan-PlandAccessibilitedISDE@ISED-ISDE.gc.ca
Mail – Members of the public can mail their feedback to ISED at:
Accessibility Secretariat
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
C.D. Howe Building
235 Queen Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H5
Canada
Telephone – Members of the public can call the ISED Citizen Services Centre from Monday to Friday during business hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).
Telephone (toll-free in Canada): 1-800-328-6189
Telephone (Ottawa): 613-954-5031
TTY: 1-866-694-8389
Fax – Members of the public can fax the ISED Citizen Services Centre at 343-291-1913.
Employees at ISED can use the internal version of the Accessibility Feedback Form to report barriers. Employees can access the internal form through the ISED intranet main page when logged on to their ISED devices.
Some people may want to provide feedback in an alternate format. If so, they can contact the Accessibility Secretariat by online form, email, mail, telephone or fax to make the appropriate arrangements.
ISED will acknowledge feedback on accessibility using the same method by which it was shared, in accordance with the ISED Citizen Services Centre service standards. ISED will not acknowledge receipt of feedback that was sent anonymously but will process the feedback appropriately.
Application Amendment
The 2023-2025 Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada Accessibility Plan (the Plan) applies to the following sectors and portfolio organizations:
- Audit and Evaluation Branch
- Canadian Intellectual Property Office
- Competition Bureau Canada
- Corporate Management Sector
- Digital Transformation Service Sector
- Industry Sector
- Innovation Canada
- ISED Legal Services
- Office of the Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer
- Office of the Corporate Secretary
- Office of Life Sciences and Biomanufacturing Readiness
- Ombudsman for Mental Health and Employee Well-Being
- Science and Research Sector
- Small Business and Marketplace Services
- Spectrum and Telecommunications Sector
- Strategic Communications and Marketing Sector
- Strategy and Innovation Policy Sector
Additionally, the Plan applies to Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (OSB). The department understands that Schedule IV of the Financial Administration Act applies to OSB. However, the OSB is under ISED’s financial structure and is not considered a separate entity in terms of financial reporting in the department. Therefore, OSB is included and is supported by the Plan.
Standard operating procedures for accessibility at ISED
Over 2023–2025, ISED will embed accessibility into its internal governance structure.
ISED has established a series of new standard operating procedures to ensure to implement change and monitor progress. These new procedures relate to (1) barrier identification, removal and prevention and (2) reporting and monitoring.
Barrier identification, removal and prevention
As explained in the "General" section, members of the public and ISED employees can report barriers to accessibility in different ways. These reports will be used to make changes at ISED so that its spaces, operations and policies are more accessible for everybody, especially people with disabilities.
ISED's sectors will have the responsibility to proactively identify barriers to accessibility in their policies, programs, practices and services. The Accessibility Secretariat will coordinate regular data collection activities with sectors to identify barriers and monitor progress in their removal.
Data collected from these activities will be included in ISED's annual progress reports.
Reporting and monitoring
ISED knows that consultation, reporting, and collaboration with the disability community are critical to ensuring we are on the right path.
Beginning in 2023, on a quarterly basis, the Director General of the Human Resources Branch will report to the Persons with Disabilities Network (PWD-N) on progress related to accessibility at ISED. The Director General will be supported by the Persons with Disabilities Champion. The quarterly reports will also be shared with ISED's senior management team, including the Assistant Deputy Minister's Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee. The quarterly reports will include information on ISED's progress in responding to identified barriers to ensure accountability and transparency.
To implement a reporting structure and mechanism, the Diversity and Inclusion Sub-committee will include accessibility in its terms of reference. The Diversity and Inclusion Sub-committee receives secretarial support from the Diversity and Inclusion Team, part of the Accessibility Secretariat within the Human Resources Branch. The Sub-committee will provide support in addressing complex barriers collected through the feedback forms, sector call-outs and the Accessibility Plan and progress report consultations.
Preserving copies of feedback
ISED will keep all electronic and print copies of feedback for 7 years from the date it was received. An electronic tracking sheet will be used internally to record all feedback received. The tracking sheet will record information on type of feedback, the format and the date it was received. The tracking sheet will be accessed, updated and monitored by the ISED Accessibility Secretariat.
Feedback submitted through the online form will be preserved on the JIRA ticketing system and saved electronically on a secure folder on Microsoft SharePoint that only the ISED Accessibility Secretariat can access.
Feedback received by email will be saved in the Accessibility Plan inbox, which is monitored by the ISED Accessibility Secretariat.
Feedback received by mail will be saved in the ISED Accessibility Secretariat's filing system at 235 Queen Street, Ottawa.
Feedback received through the phone will be recorded by the ISED employee by completing a feedback intake form. The recorded feedback on the form will be sent to the Accessibility Secretariat and saved in a secured folder on Microsoft SharePoint.
Feedback received by fax will be copied, printed and stored in the Accessibility Secretariat's filing system at 235 Queen Street, Ottawa.
Taking feedback into consideration
The Accessibility Secretariat will continue to process and action internal and external barrier reports received through the Accessibility Feedback Form. In some cases, barrier reports are complex and require more intense coordination, strategic thinking, and/or collaboration between groups and sectors.
When a complex barrier report is received, the Accessibility Secretariat will contact necessary stakeholders to resolve the barrier. The implicated stakeholders are required to convene for a meeting to discuss the barrier report and develop a solution within 5 business days after receiving the barrier report from the Accessibility Secretariat.
The Accessibility Secretariat will increase capacity to conduct barrier trend analysis based on feedback received from the internal and external feedback forms. By conducting qualitative analysis over time of the barrier reports received, the Accessibility Secretariat can identify emerging trends and prevent new barriers from being developed at ISED. The barrier trend analysis will inform ISED's progress reports and the development of future goals.