Leaders International launches national Diversity and Indigenous Board Practice

Ottawa, ON – August 25, 2020 – Leaders International, one of Canada’s largest executive search firms, has launched a new national Diversity and Indigenous Board practice, based in Ottawa. The practice will be led by Brenda LaRose, a Métis Anishinaabe citizen and senior Partner at the firm, who brings over 25 years of Indigenous recruitment experience within the executive search industry.

“Leaders has been planning this new initiative for the past year, prior to COVID-19. Recent events clearly show that there is a need for greater diversity on the boards of Canadian corporations to better reflect the reality of our country”, said Richard Joly, a Managing Partner at Leaders International.

A recently released study by Ryerson University’s Diversity Institute revealed that Black and racialized people are under-represented, sometimes non-existent, on boards in eight major cities across Canada. The representation of women, Indigenous persons, racialized persons, persons with a disability, and persons of a minority sexual orientation and/or gender identity on boards is so low that these communities often do not even show up on surveys.

“There is no reason that explains the absence of these groups on the boards of major corporations in Canada. My two decades of executive search experience has shown me that these communities have highly qualified, experienced and educated individuals that would be assets on any board in this country”, said LaRose.

About Leaders International

Leaders International combines the extensive experience of Davies Park Executive Search (est. 1989), Higgins Executive Search (est. 1999), and Leaders International (est. 2008). In 2018, these three firms came together to form one of the leading, most innovative, and trusted executive search firms in Canada.

Our leadership team is represented across our offices in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver. This breadth of scope ensures that each client receives senior-level expertise and access to top-level candidates across the country. In addition to our national presence, we have also built strong, successful alliances with international partners to provide us with access to exceptional candidates on a global scale.

Please click here for more information about our Diversity & Indigenous Practice.

Leaders International