Systemic barriers continue to limit the representation of Black individuals in Alberta and British Columbia’s banking, finance, and tech sectors. This underrepresentation leads to various negative outcomes, including restricted career advancement opportunities, the reinforcement of racial biases, reduced innovation and competitiveness, and a lack of diverse perspectives and ideas.

The Improving the Representation of Blacks in Banking, Finance, and Tech Sectors in Alberta and British Columbia project is focused on identifying the barriers that impede Black representation, informing policy through evidence-based research and stakeholder dialogue, and developing targeted solutions over a 36-month period. 

This project is funded by ESDC Workplace Opportunities: Removing Barriers to Equity (WORBE) program, which is designed to support employers subject to the Employment Equity Act in their efforts to improve designated group representation in areas of low representation through partnerships and industry-tailored strategies.

Through this project, BWBN aims to advance newcomers, immigrants, persons with disabilities, and francophones into senior management, middle management, supervisory, and professional roles within the Finance and Tech sectors.

Project Objectives and Scope

The project is designed to achieve the following objectives:

  • Develop a comprehensive understanding of the diversity and inclusion challenges specific to the target sectors, incorporating a wide range of perspectives and stakeholder engagement.
  • Collaborate with stakeholders to create effective, sustainable solutions that address these identified barriers.
  • Enhance Black representation in the finance and tech sectors by crafting industry-specific solutions and scaling them across 10 finance employers. Additionally, diversity and inclusion tools will be extended to 30 tech employers.

BWBN will leverage its experience and partnerships to strengthen social action among key stakeholders, advocating for inclusive workplace practices and ensuring that policies and practices support the recruitment, retention, and advancement of Black professionals in banking, finance, and tech sectors in Alberta and British Columbia.

Project Outcomes

  • Increased understanding of barriers contributing to the under-representation of black professionals and leaders in the sectors.
  • Increased capacity of employers to address barriers.
  • Increased capacity of blacks to access sector opportunities and ascend to leadership positions.

Project Phases

Research and Survey
Completed
Mar 2024

Community Engagement
Completed
Aug 2024

Awareness + Co-creation Workshop
Completed
Sep 2024

FinTech/DEI Symposium (Alberta)
Nov 2024

FinTech/DEI Symposium (BC)
Feb 2025

Implementation

Get Involved

Your voice matters in shaping the future of Black representation in Alberta and British Columbia’s tech, banking, and finance sectors. Whether through focus group discussions, co-creation workshops, or storytelling events, there are many ways to get involved and make an impact. 

Together, we can design powerful interventions, enrich conversations, and support ideas and policies that drive real change. Let’s work together to build a more inclusive and equitable future—your contribution is key!

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Project Partners

We keep good company. This project is implemented in partnership with:

This project is funded by the government of Canada’s Workplace Opportunities: Removing Barriers to Equity (WORBE) Program.