Sep 30

Sep 30 Four Key Ways Founders Can Champion Truth & Reconciliation Within Their Companies

This year, for the first time ever, large parts of Canada will observe the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. As Brenda Gunn, research director at the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, explained to CTV, the day is meant to be “a day that we honour all the children who survived residential schools, as well as honour and recognize those who did not return.”

It’s an important step towards reconciliation, especially in a year in which over 1,300 unmarked graves were found at former residential school sites. Making the day a federal holiday fulfills one of 94 calls to action laid out by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015, which aims to facilitate reconciliation among former residential school students, their families, communities, and Canada as a whole.

However, there’s much more that we can — and should — be doing daily to support Indigenous peoples and the call for truth and reconciliation in Canada. And as entrepreneurs and business owners, there are key steps we can take to work towards truth and reconciliation within our own businesses.

If you’re a founder or leader, here are five ways you can support truth and reconciliation in Canada.

Four steps founders can take to support truth and reconciliation in Canada

1. Commit to supporting Indigenous businesses in your supply chain.

According to Smith Business Insight, there are over 40,000 Indigenous-owned businesses currently operating across industries in Canada and contributing over $12 billion to the national GDP. Regardless of what industry you work in, there are likely Indigenous suppliers that you can add to your supply chain — helping support Indigenous businesses across the country.

Not sure where to get started? The Canadian Council of Aboriginal Businesses (CCAB) has an Aboriginal Procurement Marketplace called Supply Change, which can help you procure goods from Indigenous-owned businesses.

2. Diversify your hiring and actively increase Indigenous representation in your recruitment.

According to a 2017 survey by Indigenous Works, 85% of corporate Canadian businesses have no plans in place to engage with Indigenous people or communities. Even when businesses do, they often do so without the education to create an inclusive environment, with “a lack of awareness of Indigenous culture” coming in as the third most common reason Indigenous employees voluntarily left organizations in 2019.

This often holds First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people back from more fully participating in the Canadian economy, and it keeps businesses from reaping the benefits of a more diverse and integrated workforce. Fortunately, there are online programs and recruitment specialists in Canada that can help you diversify your hiring and actively learn how to create an inclusive environment at work.

3. Invest in Indigenous businesses and entrepreneurs.

In 2003, for every dollar of market capital that was accessed by Canadians, First Nations and Inuit only received 8 cents in funding. A decade later, despite increasing awareness, that number had only increased by one cent.

Several organizations are making headway in terms of increasing investment in Indigenous start-ups and businesses. Several investment firms, such as Raven Indigenous Capital Partners and the Indigenous Growth Fund, have brought millions in funding to Indigenous businesses like Cheekbone Beauty, Satya Organic, and Animikii. However, there’s still a long way to go before we reach parity.

Entrepreneurs and businesses can do their part by ensuring their investments are diversified and actively supporting the growth of Indigenous businesses in Canada.

4. Donate to Indigenous organizations.

According to Canadian Charity Law, only about half a percent of all the funds granted by Canadian charities in 2018 went to Indigenous groups and organizations — despite Indigenous people accounting for 4.9% of Canada’s population. That means Indigenous groups are receiving $1 in funding for every $178 granted to non-Indigenous groups.

Each year, businesses donate time and money to charities, but we clearly have a lot of work to do in diversifying those donations. Consider donating to Indigenous organizations when the opportunity arises, and — if you’re unable to donate funds at the moment — consider how you can get involved when it comes to lending your time or expertise to Indigenous charities.

Moving towards truth and reconciliation for a sustainable, conscious capitalism in Canada

The truth of the matter is, as Canadians, we not only have an obligation to focus on truth and reconciliation — but we need it. In fact, if we’re to create a conscious capitalism that is inclusive of the environment, diverse communities, and creating shareholder value, we need to learn from Indigenous values.

Take, for instance, the Seventh Generation Principle. Based on a Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) philosophy, the Seventh Generation Principle states that every decision we make today should lead to a sustainable world seven generations from now.

That stands in stark contrast to the “growth at all costs” economic model that’s prevalent in business today — and which experts have repeatedly said is fueling climate change and economic disparities. (As Richard P. Rumelt writes in Good Strategy/Bad Strategy, “Slowing growth is a problem for Wall Street but is a natural stage in the development of any noncancerous entity.”)

On this first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, at the Angela Wallace Impact Agency, we’ll be asking ourselves how our companies, products, and purposes can serve to champion the rights of Indigenous peoples and Indigenous owned businesses. We’ve started by making a modest donation to Toronto Indigenous Harm Reduction and including a land acknowledgement on our website.

“I invite you to join me in reflecting on our shared responsibility to achieve Truth and Reconciliation as a nation, which starts with facing history and ourselves,” Ange says.

We hope to give back more as our company grows. In 2022, AWIA will expand our support of Indigenous businesses in two ways: by becoming a non-Indigenous SME member of the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business and working to partner with a youth-focused community organization to provide a paid internship(s) to Indigenous candidate(s) under the age of 30. We’ll share about these initiatives by July 1, 2022.

We invite you to comment below how you’re working towards truth and reconciliation within your own companies, and share any thoughts you have with us.

Authored by content co-conspirator Kenza Moller: professional story-telling for impact-oriented companies, agencies and thought leaders.