Employer Relations sat down with Ryan Hall CPA, CA to discuss the importance of diversity and inclusion in the profession and how becoming a Pre-Approved Program Route (PPR) employer can help make your workforce more diverse. Ryan is the Chief Financial Officer of Nuna Group of Companies.
- I understand Nuna Group of Companies is majority Inuit-owned. Can you tell us a little bit more about Nuna?
Ryan Hall CPA, CA, CFO, Nuna Group of Companies
Nuna has been around since 1993 and our majority owner is Kitikmeot Corporation, which is the business arm of the Kitikmeot Inuit Association. We started out as a small contracting company working specifically in the north. We have a stated mandate to hire locally. We pride ourselves on seeking, identifying, hiring, training, and developing personnel that self-identify as Indigenous. While the work that Nuna does may not be unique from a construction perspective, our business model is unique, as are the places we operate in and the people we work with. We have developed lots of interesting business partnerships.
- What made you decide to become a Pre-Approved Program Route (PPR) employer?
We have an existing employee who was going through CPA PEP and wanted to stay with Nuna when they were done. The more we investigated the pre-approved program, the more we thought it would work for us. A pre-approved program is a great way to attract candidates, and it takes some of the anxiety out of candidates’ lives.
- You focus on hiring Indigenous and local people, and have a future goal of having an Indigenous CPA in a senior role in 5-10 years. How does becoming a PPR help support that goal and support the development of Indigenous and First Nations professionals interested in accounting?
Becoming a PPR is just the starting point for us. We have to think long term, which is how our business model works. The PPR is a long-term investment for us. We want to attract and invest in Indigenous talent; we’re an Indigenous company by nature. We want to replicate the success we’ve seen out at our sites in our administrative office in Edmonton.
- How do you think becoming a PPR employer will help you actively recruit and support the development of talented professionals?
We’re hoping the PPR will help give us an opportunity to meet candidates and students and provide resources that will help us develop the candidates in our program. The size of our company sometimes presents challenges in this regard.
- Why is diversity and inclusion important to your organization?
Diversity and inclusion are at the forefront of what Nuna does. It’s a critical factor to be able to partner up with the communities impacted by the project sites we work at. From a site perspective, we’ve always had the mantra that we’re not able to succeed unless we treat the community and the individuals in the community with respect. We want to continue to enhance and improve this aspect at our administrative office.
- Why is it important to hire diverse candidates?
The breadth of experiences people bring is truly important. Hiring individuals with different experiences enables diversity and range of thought across many spectrums of the work environment, often presenting unique solutions. We really want to bring diversity of thought from all different walks of life. It’s important to see business problems through a different lens.
- Is there anything you’d like to add?
We’re really encouraged by the opportunity to attract and find different candidates that work and live in some of these northern communities across Canada. We look to them to be the future decision makers of Nuna.
The views expressed in this post are those of Ryan Hall CPA, CA. Please visit cpaalberta.ca for the latest guidelines regarding Practical Experience.
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