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Practical Guide to Writing Briefing Notes in the Government of Canada

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Practical Guide to Writing Briefing Notes in the Government of Canada Policy Brief June 2020 Author Robert Fonberg Practical Guide To Writing Briefing Notes In The Government Of Canada This policy brief has been funded by the Defence Secu- rity Foresight Group (DSFG), a network funded by the Mobi- lizing Insights in Defence and Security (MINDS) program that is designed to facilitate collab- oration and mobilize knowl- edge between the Department of National Defence, the Ca- nadian Armed Forces, and ac- ademia and other experts on defence and security issues. Overview The briefing note is an essential tool for convey- > both in narrow terms (e.g. within your depart- ing information and for contributing to the deci- ment sion-making process in all government depart- > Who needs to be aware and consulted and ments and agencies. It is used to explain and how much understanding do they have? express ideas, target sources of concern, analyze > How is the issue aligned with the govern- issues, provide advice, make recommendations ment’s priorities? and seek decisions. For accountability reasons all > Are stakeholder consultations required? government decisions are based on written docu- > How does this fit within the other priorities ments. the Minister or Deputy Minister is managing? In some cases, those decisions will be within the au- > as well as in broad terms (e.g. outside of your thority of the Minister (or Deputy Minister), while department) in others they will require cabinet deliberation and > What other departments have an interest in decision. In some cases, where the decision is within the issue? the authority of the Minister but is sensitive, there > And, if there is a decision to be taken, whose may be informal consultations with other Ministers decision is it and what is the process for making and departments/central agencies. it? > Will it require a Cabinet discussion/deci- In the public service, learning how to write a good sion? briefing note is an excellent way to understand and be involved in an organization’s decision-making Ensuring you have fully thought through the con- process. text, the decision-making environment, the key consultations, and avoiding surprises can often The purpose of this guide is to help you understand take more time than writing the note itself. how to think through your approach to a briefing note and to give you the skills to write briefing Over time, structuring and writing briefing notes notes in the federal government. The key elements and determining what needs to be in them will be- in, and process for the preparation of, briefing notes come second nature. As briefing notes are critical to are largely applicable across all departments. While accountable decision making, you will get a great each department will have their own specific for- return on the up-front investment in understanding mats for their notes (which may change over time) the purpose of such notes and how to approach the differences are more a matter of form than sub- and write them. stance. For a sample format see Annex A. If following a format and using a template is akin to the ‘science’ of writing a briefing note, there is also an ‘art’ to writing briefing notes. Understanding the context for the issue you are writing about is crucial, Modified from source material provided by the Canada School of Public Service Objective EXERCISE DETAILS As you prepare to write a briefing note, it is important that you understand the information To inform participants how to think through in this guide. and write effective briefing notes in clear, con- cise language. You should follow the steps set out in this guide closely depending on your experience To meet this objective, you will undertake an and skills. If you have little/no experience in exercise to write a briefing note based on an writing briefing notes, you should follow all the actual, specific request from a Minister or a steps more closely. As you begin writing, you Deputy Minister. Your work should be informed may want to work in groups, challenging one by the content and flow of this guide. Your note another (‘red-teaming’) to ensure that you are will be critiqued and graded. You will be given comfortable with your approach and have cov- ample time to write your note. ered all angles. OUTLINE You will need to decide whether this is an infor- There are four sections to this guide: mation note or an action note (for decision or next steps). You should try to keep the briefing Section 1 note to two pages; under no circumstances Planning the briefing note: establishing the should it exceed three pages. objective, analyzing the context, defining the issue, determining the recipient’s needs, and In this type of exercise, reading other people’s choosing what information to convey. notes and listening to the critiques is an import- ant part of learning. Often in these exercises Section 2 you will be asked to distribute your note to oth- Searching for and producing information: er participants in the course and then take ten determining reliable sources and extracting minutes each to present the key point of your relevant information. note to the class, as though you were briefing your Minister or DM. You can make this exercise Section 3 more realistic by having one student stand in as Writing a draft of the briefing note: analyz- the Minister to seek clarifications, ask questions ing the main sections, structuring content, and and make any required decisions. You should writing the text. assume that the Minister will have read your briefing note in advance, and that his or her po- Section 4 litical staff will have provided the Minister with Reviewing the draft briefing note: confirm- their own comments and questions (which you ing the objective is met, reviewing the text, and will not be privy to). ensuring the note is complete. This type of collective review and critique of the While this guide sets out the four sections in a notes provides important insights into how se- sequenced format, it is important to understand nior public servants would exercise a challenge that in practice the work and thinking in each of function. these sections is happening somewhat in paral- lel, and more often than not, in close collabora- As you work through the sections below, keep tion with your colleagues. in mind how the information and guidance ap- ply to this type of exercise: the actual writing of a briefing note to the Minister or DM. Table of Contents Section 1: Planning the Briefing Note . 1 OVERVIEW . 1 1.1 SET THE OBJECTIVE . 1 1.2 ANALYZING THE CONTEXT . 1 1.3 SETTING OUT THE NOTE’S MAIN ISSUE . 2 1.4 DETERMINING THE RECIPIENT’S NEEDS ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������2 Section 2: Researching and Producing Information ���������������������������������������������6 OVERVIEW . 6 2.1 IMPORTANCE OF CONSULTATION ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������6 2.2 INFORMATION ACCURACY . 6 2.3 IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH . 6 2.4 FRAME OF REFERENCE . 6 2.5 IMPORTANT CONTEXTUAL READING MATERIAL . 6 Section 3: Writing the Draft Version of the Note . 8 OVERVIEW . 8 3.1 ESSENTIAL PARTS AND SECTIONS . 8 3.2 STRUCTURING THE NOTE ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������11 3.3 WRITING YOUR DRAFT . .12 Section 4: Reviewing the Briefing Note . .13 OVERVIEW . .13 4.1 WRITING THE FINAL VERSION . .13 FINAL CHECKLIST . .15 Annex A (Sample Template) ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������16 Section 1: Planning the Briefing Note OVERVIEW In all instances, the arguments need to reflect the In this section, we will look at the steps in plan- relevant points of view, be based on evidence, ning the briefing note: and must not include personal bias. > Setting the objective; General format to be followed for your brief- > Analyzing the context; ing notes: > Defining the main issue; and > Determining the Minister’s ‘needs.’ You can find a sample template in Annex A. Choose one that you feel is appropriate and 1.1 SET THE OBJECTIVE modify it if you think there is a need to do so. If you are uncertain about any specific aspects of Regardless of the topic being addressed, brief- the template, use your judgement. ing notes are intended to achieve one (or more) of the following objectives: to inform, to recom- 1.2 ANALYZING THE CONTEXT mend, to submit for decision or to request ap- proval. Overview Informing > The context dictates the scope of the is- sue statement. > “Informing” means conveying information on > The issue statement determines the note’s a given subject; e.g. describing a new policy content. or initiative, following up on a matter, provid- ing a projection, explaining an event. Briefing notes are not written in a vacuum. A note is always underlain by a context – e.g. a set Recommending or advising of circumstances or a triggering event or a gov- ernment policy or priority. > Recommend taking action or advise on a process required to get to a final decision. For briefing notes, that context dictates the scope of the issue statement, which, in turn, de- Submitting for decision/requesting approval termines the note’s content. > Presenting information, analysis and op- Without knowing the context, it is hard to de- tions with the aim of getting someone to make fine the issue statement. Without the issue state- a decision; e.g. a number of options are available ment, it may prove difficult to determine the as part of a new initiative and the Minister has to document’s content. If we have no filter for elim- decide on the preferred option. inating unnecessary information, we are inclined to include too many details in the briefing note. In any case, the briefing note often has to argue a point and convince the reader of pursuing a particular course of action.
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