Powering Black Talent: How Strategic Partnerships Drive Impact Across Canada and Beyond
Black professionals need more than jobs—they need mentorship, networks, and growth opportunities. The Black Talent Initiative (BTI) delivers on all three, connecting Black talent with career pathways while helping organizations build inclusive workplaces.
OLG has been a key partner for three years, sponsoring twelve Black professionals from our community to attend BTI’s IGNITE Black History Month Conference. Their support extends to mentorship panels, financial literacy workshops, and inclusive hiring —resulting in three BTI community members joining OLG.
Canada Life is driving impact coast to coast. At IGNITE Toronto, they sponsored the attendance of twelve Black professionals from our community. In Winnipeg, as Presenting Sponsor, they brought together 150 attendees from 44 employers. Nearly one-third gained new business opportunities, and over half gained insights to advance their careers. Social media amplified the reach, with 17.8K LinkedIn impressions and more than 19,000 Instagram views. Beyond events, Canada Life has sponsored UNBOUNDED, BTI’s Emancipation Day Commemoration, co-hosted ERG workshops, and will contribute to BTI’s Fall NAVIGATE ERG Summit with a keynote, media amplification, and programming input.
Jamieson Wellness has supported ERG workshops and community events, including the creation of a Toastmasters-inspired professional development program designed specifically for Black frontline workers in their Black ERG. Recognizing that these employees often lacked access to growth opportunities, BTI and Jamieson collaborated to design and deliver a four-part professional development workshop series tailored to their needs. The sessions were led by Black experts and facilitators from the BTI community and focused on enhancing skills, building empowerment, and providing actionable strategies for career advancement. The impact was significant: 90% of participants reported increased confidence in their career growth, and a few participants even advanced into new roles or expanded responsibilities within the company. This initiative not only strengthened individual career pathways but also demonstrated the importance of embedding equity into employee development.
NBA Canada has provided internship placements, volunteered at IGNITE, and invited BTI to their 2025 Partnership Conference—opening doors for Black talent. Through our internship program, NBA Canada has welcomed four BTI talent over the past four years, creating access to the sports industry, an industry historically difficult to break into. Every participant has successfully landed opportunities in major organizations such as FanDuel in Canada and Crystal Palace Football Club in the UK, showing the global impact of the program. In August 2025, NBA welcomed their fifth BTI talent into the organization, building on the program’s strong track record of success.
MiQ partnered with BTI on a rotational internship program that ran over two years, welcoming eight BTI talent to gain access, opportunity, and exposure to the programmatic advertising space. Each participant was paired with a mentor and given the opportunity to build new skills in a growing industry. The program has had lasting impact, with MiQ hiring three full-time employees from these cohorts. Remarkably, all three remain with the organization more than three and a half years later, a testament to the strength of the program and MiQ’s commitment to sustained growth for Black professionals.
Through these partnerships, careers advance, networks grow, and organizations gain access to top Black talent. By supporting BTI, companies are not just investing in talent—they are investing in communities, equity, and lasting change. OLG, Canada Life, NBA Canada, Jamieson Wellness, and MiQ demonstrate that meaningful partnerships create measurable impact.
Learn more about the Black Talent Initiative (BTI) and our work connecting Black talent with career pathways across Canada.