Kelly J. Lendsay is a social entrepreneur who is internationally recognized as a one of foremost innovators of Indigenous inclusion. His career has been a series of catalytic flashpoints demonstrating that effective networks, corporate and community goals can translate smoothly into advancing educational, employment, and economic opportunities for Indigenous people. As president and CEO of the Aboriginal Human Resource Council, Kelly leads a unique social enterprise that helps transform employers into high performance organizations by climbing the Inclusion Continuum, a seven-stage road map to becoming an employer-of-choice.
In 2007, in recognition of their 100th anniversary, the University of Saskatchewan honoured Kelly as one of the University’s 100 Alumni of Influence – a designation given to 100 exceptional graduates whose accomplishments have influenced the growth and development of the University, the province, and the world during the last century.
Lendsay became the first director of the new Aboriginal Business Education program at the College of Commerce in 1995. There he helped initiate and nurture several Aboriginal business education programs, including Canada’s first M.B.A. with a specialization in Indigenous management. As a professor and program director, he helped mentor students and redefine the future role Canadian universities may play in developing an Indigenous economy. In 1998 he became the first President of the Aboriginal Human Resource Council and has helped grow the enterprise into Canada’s most recognized leading innovators in organizational inclusion performance.
Lendsay’s consulting study, The Impact of the Changing Aboriginal Population on the Saskatchewan Economy: 1995-2045, is one of the most widely cited sources on the implications of Aboriginal demographics and the economy.
His vigorous speaking, writing and workshops are widely acclaimed as powerful announcements of the challenges and prospects of full Aboriginal participation in the Canadian economy. In 2009 he was appointed a CIM Distinguished Lecturer by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum.
