CBC News uses the company’s website and public records to identify Black board members and, if possible, has each company confirm the information, although some companies did not respond.

One of the new board members is Lori-Ann Beausoleil.

“I have never seen such awareness of the importance and importance of diversity in my life,” said Beausoleil, a senior corporate consultant, who joined the boards of several listed companies after serving as a partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers for nearly 40 years. On the Toronto Stock Exchange.

“There is no more important role to influence change than the board of directors,” she said.

The CEO was asked to commit to the goal of recruiting black executives

In the past year, obstacles faced by blacks in all aspects of life have become the top issue. George Floyd was killed by a policeman in Minneapolis in May 2020. The murder triggered protests against police issues and other social injustices in the United States and Canada.

However, after the company lined up to support the “Black People’s Fate” campaign, attention was also focused on the corporate world. Face criticism when these words do not take any real action.

In Canada, a coalition of business leaders launched Black North Initiative Fighting against black systemic racism last summer and providing the company with a game plan.

BlackNorth encourages CEO Sign the commitment, Which includes the promise that at least 3.5% of Canadian executives and board positions will be held by black leaders by 2025.

“The next generation wants us to say,’Well, look at what they did. They encountered a crisis and turned it into an opportunity,'” said Dahabo Ahmed-Omer, executive director of the Black North Initiative.

She estimated that Canadian companies as a whole are far from their 3.5% target, and far below CBC’s black representatives in the top 100 companies. Since the program was launched, BlackNorth is collecting its own data on the number of black executives and plans to provide these data in July.

“I think the important thing is to be able to tell myself that it takes some time,” Ahmed Omer said in Ottawa.

But she said that more companies sign the pledge every week, and so far there have been more than 500 signatories-including private and public companies, hospitals, universities and even student associations.

Ahmed-Omer said that what is interesting is that she has also seen more people post on her network about their starting new executive positions.

“Every other day, I see a new announcement on LinkedIn-I see a black woman and I laugh from ear to ear because I said to myself,’That’s me. That’s my sister. That’s it. It’s my nine-year-old niece,'” she said.

“The reality is that our diversity is actually an asset.”

Corporate leadership often “recycles”

Advanced recruitment for executive positions and board positions is still usually limited to people you know.

“People open Rolodex to see who is in it. Over the years, many leaders have been reclaimed because of it,” said Jason Murray, who was inspired by the BlackNorth initiative and launched a BIPOC executive search in Toronto last July.

Murray said that he had hoped to work with the company in the first year to find jobs for 40 or 50 people, but he has already found 70 people in various fields.

“We are doing something that is very needed in the market,” he said.

Murray said that he is most encouraged by companies that publicly follow and set goals for themselves and reform their company policies.

“Some other companies have very good intentions, but need to make sure they integrate it into their culture and incorporate it into their policies and procedures so that it is sustainable. So this is not just a knee-jerk reaction. A moment.”

Leave a legacy

Sustainability is a challenge, and Beausoleil set her sights on her when she assumed the new board position. She said it started with an inclusive culture, ensuring that people can be who they are.

“Sometimes people don’t raise their hands because they feel they don’t belong to them,” she said.

Beausoleil said that she also plans to do everything she can to open the door behind her to ensure that more diverse leaders can keep up.

“So one day I can retire completely and see the beauty of mosaic in the board of directors and senior management teams of these companies. This is my dream,” she said.

“That will be the strongest legacy I can have.”

For more stories about the experience of black Canadians—from anti-black racism to success stories in the black community—check out Becoming Black in Canada, a CBC project that Canadian blacks can be proud of. You can read more stories here.