Our Experience
Capacity Building
It has been our honour to have worked with the leaders of many communities and we have had the opportunity to deliver training and participate in mentorship arrangements that have contributed to the capacity of Aboriginal people to direct and lead their businesses.
We have provided corporate governance training in culturally appropriate formats to boards of directors and facilitated cross cultural training for non-Indigenous staff.
As part of reciprocal leadership development, we have provided and received mentoring and engaged in a partnership relationship with senior executive staff using arrangements such as ‘co’ roles – two identical positions filled by both an Indigenous and non-Indigenous employee – to facilitate greater learning and provide a unique skill set in being able to deliver executive level management in a culturally informed manner.
We have implemented tailored Indigenous employment strategies, targeted at increasing engagement, skills development, providing real job opportunities and boosting the local economy – one such strategy resulting in the business achieving a rate of over 50% Indigenous employment!
Economic Development & Social Enterprise
We have worked in a number of organisations that have been successful in generating own source revenue, thus reducing reliance on government funding, and in providing pathways for employment, enterprise and development.
Some examples:
- Establishing a bush medicine enterprise engaging women in the production of traditional medicinal products for sale to market.
- Planning and engaging the necessary expertise to reinvigorate and expand a defunct art centre, resulting in production increasing by over $100,000, expanding engagement of artists from 6 to over 100 and consistently achieving profitability margins.
- Expanding a subsidiary for-profit unit of a CATSI Act registered business to enable them to be appropriately resourced and governed to the satisfaction of the Australian Government, resulting in contracts awarded to the subsidiary under the SIHIP housing program and employment service contracts.
Corporate Governance and ORIC
Having held senior executive roles of numerous CATSI Act1 registered businesses, we are highly adept at understanding, interpreting and implementing appropriate practices to ensure compliance with the Act and any other requirements or recommendations of the regulatory body, ORIC2.
We have worked with ORIC registered examiners to conduct health checks and examinations of business’s and engaged with Corporations who have been placed in special administration.
It is this experience that gives us the in-depth understanding of the CATSI Act but more importantly, how it practically applies to businesses, from start up through to de-registration, including:
- Development and review of Rule Books
- Ensuring business practices and use of corporation resources comply with Rule Books
- Development and implementation of transfers of delegations and appropriate controls around expenditure
- Development of appropriate financial management protocols and reporting mechanisms
- Implementation of Rule Book and CATSI Act requirements as they practically apply, such as notices, appointment of members and directors’ permissions, etc
- Maintaining necessary registers and information
- Facilitate members and directors’ meetings, including issuing notices, preparing agendas and minutes, etc
- Acted as company secretary
- Lodging reports with ORIC
- Provide guidance and training to directors on their obligations and responsibilities
- Conduct internal health checks of the Corporation to ensure compliance and identify areas for improvement
We have a strong history of, and drive for, establishing the best practice corporate governance and internal control frameworks that will stand your business with the top registered Aboriginal corporations. See ‘OUR SERVICES’ for more information as to how we can help you.
1 Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act
2 Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations
Business Planning & Development
of relevant skills, experience and cultural knowledge, to support your business in the development and implementation of effective and appropriate strategic and operational plans that can set your vision in action.
Some examples:
- Developing a strategic plan for an $11 million Aboriginal corporation focused on the preservation and promotion of culture;
- Developing operational plans for art centres, men’s shed, language centres, cultural enterprises and youth engagement programs;
- Business restructures, one resulting in the ability of a Corporation to trade for 3 years longer than its original plans had intended;
- Briefing and engaging expert providers; and
- Participating in and implementation of external review or specialist recommendations.
Where Have We Been
We have been fortunate to have both lived and worked in and with communities across Queensland and the Northern Territory including:
Mount Isa, Camooweal, Cloncurry, Torres Strait, Daly River, Wadeye, Peppimenarti, Palumpa, Beswick, Barunga, Mataranka, Borroloola, Angurugu, Milyakburra, Umbakumba and Nhulunbuy.
We have worked with Indigenous business’s and people in the following broad sectors:
- Art centres and galleries
- Language centres
- Social enterprise
- Cultural enterprise
- Civil and construction
- Education
- Workplace Rehabilitation
- Retail
- Prevocational training
- Social programs
- Corporate advisory services
- Land & sea management ranger groups
- Horticulture
- Cultural heritage and monitoring