Leadership – Taking Indigenous Businesses into the Future
Increasingly communities want to take charge of their own futures and they understand that their community needs to move away from government support and activity to be sustainable and to thrive in the new economy. Here are five tips for taking Indigenous Business into the Future.
1. Create Local Economies
The future of Indigenous communities and cultures depends on the creation of real economies in Indigenous communities and on Indigenous people participating in the real economy. What that means is developing economies that rely on commerce and private enterprise. It means looking at the strengths in the communities, the ‘positive deviants’ amongst the mobs and exploring how their pathways can be replicated in a variety of industries.
2. Look and Learn from the next generation
Indigenous youth make up the greatest proportion of the Indigenous population in Australia. This is consistent with population distribution of developing countries around the world. So, in shaping a prosperous future for this growing population, how do we build the capacity of businesses and support the next generation?
Whilst baby boomers, gen Xers and even gen Ys lay pathways for the millennials, it is critical to look at what is driving youth in the new economy. The younger generations have grown up in a different world to their predecessors so what is relevant and interesting to them, needs to be a priority consideration. What are the kids, the teens and the young adults looking for? If they’re showing an interest in culture and country, build on that. If they’re interested in gaming and using apps on their phones, think about how this can be harnessed in a way that builds a positive future.
The previous generations’ hard work in combination with the millennials’ adoption of a new economy, will be what facilitates robust participation in all aspects of commerce and private enterprise – as employees, as business owners, as investors and as profit makers.
3. Collaborate
Everyone in business is in the relationship business, which means collaborating with other complementary organisations is the best way to serve clients, to effectively diversify your services, and grow.
4. Advocate for your Rights and Persist
Operating in a mixed economy, government always plays a role. In this context, it is important to lobby and advocate for Indigenous people to be at the decision-making table and but to have real voting powers. As Fred Chaney stated at the 2014 Indigenous Business, Enterprise and Corporations Conference, Indigenous people can no longer be considered an add-on to a development plan or policy, their rights can no longer be seen as an obstacle but as part of the process."
5. Be Healthy – of body, mind and spirit
There is no business, no happy future without a healthy community. Health and wellbeing – physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual are perhaps the biggest burden in moving toward a nation of prosperous Indigenous people. Advocate and lead in achieving healthy mind and body practices. Health will, in the end, determine prosperity.
Writer: Verity Leach - [email protected]
0401 953 908
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