In this SDG Awards 2017 entry:
Voting Category: Small-to-Medium Organization
SDG Action
Matrix is committed to the advancement of inclusion in the Real Estate industry and Corporate Canada. Our objectives are strongly aligned with increasing diversity and inclusion, centered on the sustainable development and connections of people to the business.
Our platform of talent leadership and recruitment allows us to lead a variety of dialogues in advisory, co-branded and hosted events for knowledge sharing, pertinent to the industry’s most important asset: People. Engagement and involvement in programs that advocate and increase inclusion are central to complementing our daily activities. Further, we are focused on business sustainability through the alignment of our key pillars: advancement of women in leadership, education, diversity, and inclusion.
We are vocal and active in our support for inclusion, and strive to create opportunities for all in the workplace. We celebrate our own diversity internally and are reflective of many diverse groups within our team. In doing so, we embody our mission and it is reflective in our corporate structure and people.
Our objectives include:
- To increase awareness of the importance of inclusivity in Real Estate and Corporate Canada
- Establishment of an environment where more equal access to opportunities exist in the
workplace - The creation of leadership and talent management initiatives and programs for the
advancement of the industry - To Increase collaboration across industries and sectors for inclusion initiatives and actions
SDG Impact
We have created and executed the first Canadian Real Estate and Workplace Diversity Survey in 2016. The data report and summary shines light for the real estate industry to understand the realities of the importance of diversity and attitudes towards inclusion that shape: corporate policy creation, engagement, innovation and advancement in the workplace. The data extraction is focused with the following goals:
-
-
- To collect national data to fill a void of information about attitudes toward diversity within the Canadian Real Estate Industry
- To provide reliable and timely data to employers in the Canadian Real Estate Industry
- To identify and capture key trends that will help build the people structure of the Canadian Real Estate Industry
-
- In our day-to-day talent advisory business, we have advanced opportunities for women and emerging leaders, with an average of nearly 2/3 female placements and over 40% for emerging leaders under 35.
- We actively invest in progress toward inclusivity through partnerships, sponsorships, education, and committee participation.
- Founded and Implemented Matrix: RealTalk Series (2015) an initiative focused on the conversations between real estate professionals and the impact of business strategies through an interactive platform of seminars and podcasts.
- Co-Created #SheWithHe Initiative (2015) with ULI Toronto to increase the importance of awareness of men’s and women’s collaborative actions for gender parity in the real estate industry.
- Created and implemented Matrix: Talent Connectivity (2016) Canada’s first Internship & Leadership Program focused on emerging professionals for the real estate industry.
- Co-Branded events and knowledge sharing initiatives are centered on constructive dialogue toward solutions in our industry and beyond, with threads of inclusion built into each topic.
A few highlights and recognitions of Matrix and our team:
- Nominated for the W.P. J McCarthy Corporate Citizen of the Year Award with the Real Estate Institute of Canada (REIC) 2017
- Sponsorship Award from REIC Toronto Chapter in 2016
- Corporate Citizen of the Year Award from REIC Toronto Chapter in 2015
- Our Principal, Chandran Fernando, is a recipient of the 2016 RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award
- Nominee for a diversity award by the Toronto Board of Trade 2012
- Co-founded and co-executed Young Leadership Program for the Commercial Real Estate and Development Industry 2010
Future Plans
- To increase the focus on education and industry insight sharing with institutions, clients and associations
- To increase the focus on the participation of diverse groups on panel/event discussions to raise awareness of importance of inclusion in the workplace and business sustainability across Canada
- To increase the proportion of sponsorship budget toward groups focused on inclusion and sustainability of people in the Real Estate industry and Corporate Canada
- To build stronger relationships between the real estate industry and the public and academic sectors of Canada through leadership and training programs
- Continuation of our Real Estate and Workplace Diversity Survey reporting as a means to create further dialogue for the advancement of workplace inclusion
- The advancement of Matrix: Talent Connectivity in the academia sector across Canada
- Creating increased industry focus on advancing opportunities for women, young professionals, people of colour, LGBTQ2, and Indigenous peoples, we are focused on the importance of parity in Commercial Real Estate and Corporate Canada.
- Lead in the creation of tools for organizations to increase internal diversity and inclusive business practices
SDG Partnerships
Yes, we are active in involvement with organizations in collaborative initiatives for education, diversity & inclusion, and thought leadership on the value of people in business. We have active memberships and affiliations in the following organizations:
- Association of Canadian Search and Employment Staffing Services (ACSESS)
- Canadian Aboriginal Minority Supply Council (CASMC)
- Corporate Real Estate Women (CREW) Network
- Urban Land Institute (ULI) Toronto
- Real Estate Institute of Canada (REIC)
- International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
- National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP) Greater Toronto Chapter
- Company of Women
- BOMA Canada
- Toronto Region Board of Trade
- Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA)
- Global Compact Network Canada
- Canadian Real Estate Forums
In addition, we are active in the exploration of future partnerships opportunities. We are seeking partnership opportunities on initiatives with government and public corporations, private corporations, and academic institutions within Canada. Our focus is to create programs and initiatives geared towards leadership, training and development of corporate policy implementation, internship and career development for the sustainability of business through diversity and inclusion in real estate and corporate Canada.