Reimagining Policymaking at City of Brampton
By Sarah Mazhar
In Brampton, my team and I have been reimagining how to develop policy in an ever-changing landscape. Over the years, policy development has evolved significantly. The traditional model, in which policies are developed by senior management and then passed down to staff, has become increasingly ineffective. Policies developed through this model often fail to achieve their intended outcomes. Various reasons could be attributed to this. The top-down approach often lacks practical insight and an operational perspective, both of which are critical for successful implementation. It also often lacks buy-in, resulting in unintended outcomes. Even those policies that work well initially, without mechanisms for staff feedback, become ineffective over time as conditions and environmental pressures change.
Policies are not just rules or frameworks, but rather, they are instruments of alignment and trust. When we began to rethink how policies were developed, we asked a simple but powerful question: What if policymaking could be as innovative as the services it enables? That question led us to redesign our policy program using the same principles that drive innovation: collaboration, empathy, experimentation, and continuous learning. By engaging staff across departments, developing tools and resources to build capacity, and embedding user-centered thinking in our processes, we have begun to transform policymaking from a top-down exercise into a shared, iterative practice that bridges the gap between design and delivery.
Laying the groundwork
The Policy Program was launched in 2017, following the Council's approval of a governing framework to modernize policy-making practices at the City.
In the first two years, the program established foundational elements to support policy development and tracking, ensuring appropriate processes and safeguards were in place to support effective program management. As the policy program continues to mature, its offerings to staff have also expanded.
We began to roll out phase two in 2019 with the introduction of the policy development guide. This was followed by the introduction of policy toolkits and resources to build policy capacity across the City. These resources include self-help tools such as review and prioritization tools, job aids, and materials for developing implementation and communication plans.
The third and current phase of the Program emphasizes innovation and collaboration, highlighted by the Corporate Policy Innovation Hub (The Hub), launched in 2023.
From Silo Culture to a High-Performance Integrated Ecosystem
Brampton took a bold innovative approach to modernizing policy development by launching the Hub – a corporate-wide space where staff from across the organization can participate in shaping policy. This includes frontline staff who witness the real-world implications of policies. The Hub has been designed to move policy work out of silos and into a shared environment that values lived experiences, practical insight, and collective problem-solving.
Brampton City Hall. Credit Jeff Hitchcock. Creative Commons 2.0
In practice, this means convening multidisciplinary teams early in policy development, often before a problem or potential solution is fully defined. For several policy initiatives, staff from service delivery, legal, finance, and communications were brought together through facilitated working groups to untangle and surface implementation risks, identify potentially unintended impacts, and co-design solutions that are built with users in mind.
The Hub empowers staff by giving them a voice, offering structured opportunities for engagement, and providing mechanisms for valuable feedback to improve the policy over time. Providing staff with the right tools and shared space, and facilitation support has fostered a safe environment for idea-sharing, experimentation, and collaboration, directly strengthening policy quality and improving service delivery to residents. The work of the Hub is anchored in four core goals:
1. Build policy capacity - Policy capacity refers to the skills and competencies required to design, develop, and implement policies. Through the Hub, Brampton has invested in internal capacity building by offering hands-on policy drop-ins, learning sessions, and real-time coaching embedded within active policy projects. Rather than relying on external consultants, staff learn by doing – by applying policy tools directly to their projects. As a result, teams are better equipped to lead future policy work independently, increasing efficiency, confidence, and organizational resilience.
2. Improve policy-making environments - Policy projects are increasingly multidisciplinary and multidimensional. At Brampton, improving the policy-making environment means intentionally reshaping the culture and processes used for policy development. The Hub introduced new engagement formats, including facilitated ideation and shared cocreation platforms on our SharePoint site. Over time, we have noticed that staff engage very differently depending on the formats used. Offering diverse engagement opportunities has led to increased engagement and better outcomes.
3. Promote innovation through collaboration – Innovation at the City has been advanced by bringing together multidisciplinary teams that blend subject-matter expertise with contextual and operational insight. Accessibility considerations, plain language materials, and shared foundational elements are built into engagements, enabling meaningful participation and stronger collective ownership of outcomes.
4. Optimize policy outcomes - Robust feedback loops during implementation are crucial to improving policy outcomes. Several initiatives supported through the Hub adopted an iterative approach- introducing pilot phases, shorter review cycles, and structured check-ins with implementation teams. Rather than waiting for a formal review period, early signals from practice informed potential adjustments and improvements. Over time, successful initiatives transitioned into longer review cycles, balancing organizational consistency with responsiveness and continuous improvement.
Lessons from Practice: Building policy capacity at the Municipal Level learnings
In my experience working in the municipal government, one of the most consistent gaps I have observed is access to structured learning and professional development. Compared to our provincial and federal counterparts, who often benefit from centralized training resources for capacity building, municipal policy practitioners are frequently left at a disadvantage.
Yet municipalities are where policy meets practice most directly. We operate closest to the residents, implement policies in real time, and manage complexity with fewer supports. This makes the lack of shared learning resources not just a capacity issue, but a collective vulnerability across the sector.
Over the past several years at the City of Brampton, we have been intentional about addressing this gap internally by experimenting with new ways to build policy capacity, strengthen collaboration, and bridge the traditional divide between policy development and implementation. As our work has progressed, we have been increasingly approached by other municipalities seeking to understand what we have done, what has worked, and what we would do differently.
Sharing these learnings is both a response to that interest and an act of advocacy. Municipalities are stronger when we learn from one another. By openly sharing practical lessons, rather than guarding them, we can reduce duplication, accelerate innovation, and collectively raise the quality of policy work across the sector.
What follows are key lessons from our experience that may be useful to municipalities seeking to strengthen their policy ecosystems and establish a central policy Hub. Here are some lessons we've learned to help guide the process:
Scope the needs of the organization: Understanding your organization's needs and capabilities is paramount. Engage staff across the corporation to identify pain points and strengths. This can be done through surveys and questionnaires. Alternatively, interviews or focus groups can be beneficial, as they enable organizers to gather detailed feedback and ask follow-up questions. Based on this feedback, program goals should be developed that align with the organization's strategic goals. Prioritize efforts toward processes that have the greatest impact on achieving the organizational goals. This approach not only ensures alignment with strategic priorities but also helps in securing buy-in by clearly demonstrating the impact and value of addressing identified needs.
Develop a maturity plan: Creating a Hub requires foundational elements. It is important to first establish internal processes, define values, and outline the program goals. Develop basic resources to support capacity building. Engaging staff once these foundational pieces are in place ensures everyone has the tools and knowledge needed to participate fully. This preparation lays the groundwork for a successful, sustainable structure that fosters collaboration and drives innovation within the organization.
Get buy-in from senior management: Organization-wide participation is crucial for the success of initiatives like the Hub. Therefore, securing senior management buy-in is essential. Engage senior management to help them understand the needs and goals of the initiatives being introduced. Use suitable engagement methods, such as briefings or workshops, and don’t hesitate to ask senior management to communicate the project's value to their staff to increase participation and appreciation.
Tackle funding constraints with creativity: Pair training and workshops with other units to pool funds. Aligning initiatives can increase both budget and impact. For example, partnering with units such as training and development (human resources), or business improvement teams can achieve shared objectives and double the impact.
Show employees how to engage:
Introducing change takes time. Develop an employee engagement plan with guides to help staff understand how they can benefit from the Hub. Highlighting advantages can generate interest and increase engagement, especially among staff who may be hesitant or unfamiliar with the new initiative.
Experiment with various engagement styles: Offer a variety of engagement opportunities, such as co-design sessions, workshops, and networking events, to spark conversations. There are plenty of free software tools that can be utilized to boost engagement and make participation easier.
Share your successes: Policy design and development work often goes unnoticed, making it crucial to invest considerable effort in showcasing the value added to the organization. Share success stories, project learnings, and other key performance indicators to highlight achievements. Building visibility and highlighting successes can help overcome the challenge of being overlooked, a common issue for internal service providers. This approach not only generates interest but also secures greater buy-in for future projects, as employees are more likely to engage with teams and initiatives that demonstrate success.
As I reflect on this journey of reimagining policymaking at the City of Brampton, I have come to realize that true innovation in policy is not just about tools or frameworks, but rather about shifting mindsets. Leading this work has reaffirmed my belief that, in the face of change and uncertainty, reassessing our approach and mindset is the most powerful response, taking us a long way in the right direction.
Sarah Mazhar is the A/Manager, Organization Performance and Policy and serves as Chair of the Women Empowerment Network at the City of Brampton