AIA’s Public Purpose
The AIA is a PRO (Professional Regulatory Organization) that exists to regulate agrologists to safeguard the health and safety of clients and the broader public who could be affected by poor practice. The Institute regulates agrologists by fulfilling core mandates in the Agrology Profession Act and Regulation.
Core Mandate
Core mandates are essential legal obligations that must be fulfilled. The Institute’s core mandates are listed in the Act, section 3: The Institute must govern regulated members in a manner that protects and serves the public interest, regulate the practice of agrology, and establish and maintain standards of registration, practice, and competence, a code of ethics, and programs of study and education courses for registration. The council’s core mandate is in section 6: to administer the Act, Regulation, and Bylaws to ensure that the Institute fulfills its own core mandates. The AIA’s Strategic Plan is justifiably based on the AIA’s core mandates. Although new legislation is imminent, the AIA’s core mandates are fundamental to all PROs. They are not likely to change.
Council Performance Management Plan
The council’s chief duty is to ensure that the Institute fulfills its core mandates under the Act. The council does this by sub-delegating authority to the CEO through bylaws. The CEO is responsible for operational activities in the Act, Regulation, and Bylaws. The council’s scope of authority brings the council into contact with the Institute’s operational activities in a few key areas. In particular, the council enacts rules concerning the in-training and continuing competence program and adopts standards of practice, a code of ethics, and bylaws. These residual actions have not been sub-delegated or, by law, cannot be sub-delegated. In any case, these actions must unambiguously be used to fulfill the Institute’s core mandates. Thus, the Performance Management Plan echoes the Strategic Plan and ties to the council’s scope of authority. It is organized by core mandate, now called “fields of performance responsibility”. The column under each core mandate enumerates performance objectives, measurable strategies for meeting them, measured outcomes that test the strategies, and the time frame within which to report on the measured outcomes. This is linked to the forthcoming legislative amendments. The Minister of Labour has advised PROs to prepare changes in 2022 (while continuing to operate under existing law) so they are ready to implement in 2023.