Celebrating a new era on National Indigenous Peoples Day

As Canada reflects on National Indigenous Day and a new era for Indigenous peoples in the country, Simon Fraser University’s Beedie School of Business is moving quickly towards the September commencement of its Executive MBA in Indigenous Business and Leadership. The program is one of many indicators that First Nations, Métis and Inuit people are entering a new era in which their communities and nations can return to prosperity.

The new EMBA, the first of its kind in the country, meets a growing need for senior-level management education for Indigenous managers and entrepreneurs, as well as individuals and organizations collaborating with Indigenous communities. It will provide executive-level education that reflects the growing role of business development for First Nations.

Participants will study core management concepts and principles already included in the Executive Master of Business Administration program but will also examine business and economic issues from the perspective of First Nations.

“This is an idea whose time has come,” said William Lindsay (Cree-Stoney), director of SFU’s Office for Aboriginal Peoples. “We’ve reached the stage where Indigenous people are in senior executive positions and could use some extra training to hone their skills. This will benefit participants, their communities, and the business world in general.”

“The Executive MBA in Indigenous Business and Leadership is a reflection of SFU’s commitment to using its education and research resources to support Indigenous peoples and communities,” said SFU President Andrew Petter in a media release last fall. “This program is particularly needed at a time when Indigenous peoples are striving to overcome longstanding challenges and seeking to take advantage of new challenges.”

SFU’s Beedie School is home to Canada’s first Executive MBA program, established in 1968. The school has a long-standing history of creating customized programs such as the EMBA in Indigenous Business and Leadership to the meet the needs of individual students.

“The Beedie School of Business believes that our biggest opportunity to create change for Indigenous people and communities in B.C. and Canada is by building capacity of groups of students with common interests and concerns,” says Beedie School Dean Daniel Shapiro.

For more information, contact Mark Selman, Program Director: Mark_Selman@sfu.ca