Workload Migration (WLM) Program

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Introduction

Are you a department or agency looking for information on Shared Services Canada (SSC) Workload Migration Program and how it is delivered? If yes, you’ve come to the right place!

If you are looking for information on navigating the Application Modernization Investment Framework which is closely linked to SSC WLM, please visit the Application Modernization GCwiki page managed by Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Office of the Chief Information Officer (TBS OCIO).

Overview

Under SSC 3.0, the Workload Migration (WLM) Program facilitates the migration of government applications from aging legacy data centers to modern, more secure and reliable solutions – whether cloud, state-of-the-art enterprise data centre (EDC) or a hybrid of the two. The ultimate purpose is to migrate department workloads to reliable, modern, and secure hosting options.

More specifically, the WLM Program will:

Enable a new generation of digital service delivery offerings to Canadians; ·
Ensure that existing government applications are migrated off aging, vulnerable IT infrastructure; ·
Deliver on the government’s vision of a modern, digitally enabled public service, as well as the drive to prioritize cloud based computing.

Current WLM Projects

Since its formal launched in 2018, the WLM Program initiated 14 projects currently underway (six in Wave 1 and eight in Wave 2):

The WLM Program has received initial funding until 2022 and will seek additional funding to support future waves of workload migration priorities.

Benefits for Departments or Agencies

Information technology (IT) infrastructure is a key Government of Canada priority. A WLM project will provide your department or agency with one or more of the following benefits:

Reduce risk and increase reliability of IT infrastructure;
Improve and secure GC cyber and IT security;
Leverage new Cloud technologies;
Better serve Canadians with secure digital technology to ensure successful delivery of the various government programs and services as well as protect the privacy of Canadians and others interacting with the government;
Support the GC Policy on Service and Digital which state how GC organizations manage service delivery, information and data, information technology, and cyber security in the digital era.

Prioritization Critera

SSC works in collaboration with the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) at Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) to prioritize WLM projects using the state of the data centre, the health of the applications, and the readiness of the partner department or agency as criteria Specifically, prioritization is based on:

At-Risk IT Infrastructure: lease expiry, failing infrastructure (including network), facilities pressure, power, space, cooling, condition of data center
At-Risk Applications: presence of critical workloads, customer readiness to migrate (specifically to cloud), High Business Value, high degree of technical risk

The prioritization of WLM projects ultimately requires the approval from the Government of Canada Chief Information Officer (GC CIO), following endorsements from the following governance bodies:

WLM Working Group (co-chaired by SSC’s WLM Program and TBS’ OCIO)
GC Enterprise Architecture Review Board (GC EARB)
Assistant Deputy Minister Committee on Enterprise Priorities and Planning (ADM CEPP)
Deputy Minister Committee on Enterprise Priorities and Planning (DM CEPP)

Once a project has been endorsed by the aforementioned governance bodies, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) is signed by the GC CIO and participating department.

Governance approval process

Step by step process

How Departments or Agencies Can Prepare

For additional information on what departments or agencies should consider when making migration plans (investment planning, departmental support, availability of funds, etc.), departments or agencies may contact their SSC Client Executive.

Lessons Learned

Continuous learning and improvement is a cornerstone of SSC WLM Program as it strengthens the ability to build upon expertise to drive value across the organization and partner departments.

Thanks to contributions from Statistics Canada and TBS Information Management and Technology Directorate (IMTD), the following lessons learned have been gathered from the Application Modernization & Workload Migration Program Update, presented before the GC Enterprise Architecture Review Board (GC EARB) on October 31, 2019:

Change is hard. Cloud requires a major culture shift in the organization, especially in IT as it means radical transformation to some roles. Organizational change management must be at the forefront.
Strong support required by Deputy Head and all levels of Senior Leadership. Due to the magnitude of change required and the underlying complexity, the senior management table must demonstrate consistent, strong leadership to ensure success.
Cloud is a journey, not a destination. It is very complex, and may take longer than expected. Start immediately, before you have all of the information as fully embracing cloud may take years.
Partner with others. Having an integrated project team with SSC has been key success factor. Leverage the expertise of industry and of others that have gone before you.
Voice your concerns immediately. Including monitoring costs and having a strong understanding of what the costs should be - more importantly, voice your concerns immediately to the vendor so that they may investigate and adjust accordingly.
Be Agile. Departments should work with a singular vision and purpose, while keeping flexibility to adapt as the journey to cloud is ever changing.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

SSC in collaboration with the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) at Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) developed a Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) document to provide departments with additional information to understand how the WLM Program supports departments and agencies through its projects and activities.

For any further questions or comments, please contact our [Program delivery team].