Leading Tomorrow’s Diverse
Canada, Today

By Ratna Omidvar

The “Changing Face of Canada” — the growing diversity of our cities
and communities — is garnering a lot of attention these days.

And it isn’t hard to understand why. Canada is undergoing rapid
demographic change. Each year, we welcome between 225,000
and 250,000 newcomers from all corners of the globe – with the
highest proportion coming from China and India. Demographers are
predicting that by 2011, immigration will account for all labour force
growth, and by 2026 for all population growth.

But the truth is that the “face” of Canada has already changed. Today, 20% of people living in Canada are foreign-born and 4 million people in Canada are visible minorities. Already newcomers account for more than 70% of labour market growth and about 60% of newcomers have work experience which usually requires some kind of post-secondary education. 

Businesses and public institutions are beginning to recognize the opportunity that diversity can bring. Some business executives understand that a diverse staff can bring new ideas and skills – and can help them cater their business to increasingly diverse customers. For their part, public institutions are recognizing that its workforce must reflect the community, and that by representing it better, it can serve it better.

What does this diversity mean for the not-for-profit sector? It means that leaders in the sector must act now to ensure that their organization welcomes and reflects the diverse communities it serves.

Leadership in a Diverse Canada

Not-for-profit organizations are not a homogeneous group, and this sector includes many ethnic and cultural groups. Still, many of the larger more established organizations do not yet represent the diversity of Canada.

The not-for-profit sector employs 900,000 people – 8 percent of Canada’s paid workforce. Of these, 75% are women, most are highly educated, and they are somewhat older than the average Canadian worker. As these workers retire, leaders in the not-for-profit sector can actively recruit from immigrant groups who are highly skilled and educated.

To reach out to newcomers, leaders in not-for-profit organizations can change their recruitment strategies. They can:

• Expand the job search to reach out to newcomers. This may mean advertising in ethnic media or through websites and newsgroups dedicated to diverse groups.
• Involve senior managers and executives who are visible minorities in recruitment efforts. This will demonstrate to potential employees a commitment to equity in the organization.
• Invite newcomers as interns and for work placements. Careerbridge, is an organization which arranges 6-month work internships in Ontario.
• Encourage staff to mentor newcomers.
• Develop relationships with not-for-profit colleagues that represent skilled immigrants. For example, the Calgary Immigrant Women's Association has developed a partnership with the Royal Bank of Canada that has resulted in the bank hiring eight women. There is likely an organization like this one in your community with which you can develop a similar partnership.
• Work with recruitment agencies that represent visible minorities and newcomers. For example, Skills International is a database of international candidates which pre-screens internationally-trained individuals for employers in Ontario. 

In addition to changing recruitment efforts, leaders in the not-for-profit sector can review their selection policies to ensure that they are free of bias. An important part of this would be to examine the organization’s requirements for work experience. Many organizations require “Canadian” work experience. This devalues the experience that many newcomers have acquired overseas and organizations lose out on their talent.

Leaders can demonstrate commitment to diversity both internally, and externally to the community their organization serves. In practice, leaders can speak publicly about the benefits of diversity, enact an explicit zero tolerance policy for discriminatory behavior within their organization or find the resources to provide their staff with diversity training.

They could also ensure that their boards are diverse and representative of the population they serve.  Research and anecdotal experience has shown that diverse representation on boards can enhance an organization’s reputation, lead to better social results, and in some cases better fundraising. Dixon Hall, Canada’s largest public housing complex located in Toronto, has an ethnically diverse board which has allowed it to strengthen its community partnerships. 

The result of these practices will be a diverse workforce and leadership that will lead to more ideas, more innovation and ultimately – a healthier and stronger sector.

About Ratna Omidvar
Ratna is the Executive Director of The Maytree Foundation (http://www.maytree.com/), a private charitable foundation dedicated to reducing poverty and inequality and to building strong civic communities in Canada. Maytree supports the development of alternative social policy perspectives, and accelerating the settlement of refugees and immigrants in large urban centres. In 2004 Prime Minister Paul Martin appointed Ratna to his External Advisory Committee on Cities and Communities. Ratna currently serves as a director of Toronto City Summit Alliance (TCSA) and as board member of Tamarack - An Institute for Community Engagement.

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