Full Name
Barbara McKenzie
Title
CEO
Company
Metis Settlements Development Corporation
Speaker Bio
Ms. McKenzie is a change maker and disruptor. She has over 30 years’ experience in leadership, entrepreneurship and corporate growth, and strategic disruption.
She is the inaugural CEO of Indigenous investment management firm, the Metis Settlements Development Corporation (MSDC) building a portfolio of $100 million in assets under management and launching the Metis Settlements Impact Fund, the first and only Metis led impact fund in Canada in 2024. Under her leadership MSDC earned the prestigious Top Ten to Watch Award from the Indigenomics Institute, is developing several joint ventures and building a portfolio of companies passionate about economic reconciliation.
Ms. McKenzie has an Executive MBA from the Quantic School of Business and Technology, as well as a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Alberta and a Diploma in Marketing from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. She holds several certifications in corporate governance, project management, economic development and more.
Ms. McKenzie is known for her innovative thinking, with a passion for disruption and a deep knowledge of community. She has been involved in technology and innovation, economic development, banking, social enterprise, justice, and pensions sectors throughout her career, each time focusing on corporate change management as well as start up and scaling ventures.
Ms. McKenzie has led several of her own successful entrepreneurial ventures and including a venture focused on leading technology in the drone and UAV space to service industries such as construction, energy, agriculture, and utilities.
Ms. McKenzie also gives back to her community and is currently the board chair of the Christmas Bureau of Edmonton and a board director with the Canadian Council of Indigenous Business. She has held the role of co-chair for the Edmonton Regional Innovation Network, was member of the Red Deer Polytechnic Centre for Innovation in Manufacturing (CIMTAC) advisory board, and is the chair of the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology School of Business Entrepreneurship Program Advisory Committee. She is a seasoned public speaker and has won awards for many of her initiatives and projects.
She is the inaugural CEO of Indigenous investment management firm, the Metis Settlements Development Corporation (MSDC) building a portfolio of $100 million in assets under management and launching the Metis Settlements Impact Fund, the first and only Metis led impact fund in Canada in 2024. Under her leadership MSDC earned the prestigious Top Ten to Watch Award from the Indigenomics Institute, is developing several joint ventures and building a portfolio of companies passionate about economic reconciliation.
Ms. McKenzie has an Executive MBA from the Quantic School of Business and Technology, as well as a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Alberta and a Diploma in Marketing from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. She holds several certifications in corporate governance, project management, economic development and more.
Ms. McKenzie is known for her innovative thinking, with a passion for disruption and a deep knowledge of community. She has been involved in technology and innovation, economic development, banking, social enterprise, justice, and pensions sectors throughout her career, each time focusing on corporate change management as well as start up and scaling ventures.
Ms. McKenzie has led several of her own successful entrepreneurial ventures and including a venture focused on leading technology in the drone and UAV space to service industries such as construction, energy, agriculture, and utilities.
Ms. McKenzie also gives back to her community and is currently the board chair of the Christmas Bureau of Edmonton and a board director with the Canadian Council of Indigenous Business. She has held the role of co-chair for the Edmonton Regional Innovation Network, was member of the Red Deer Polytechnic Centre for Innovation in Manufacturing (CIMTAC) advisory board, and is the chair of the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology School of Business Entrepreneurship Program Advisory Committee. She is a seasoned public speaker and has won awards for many of her initiatives and projects.
Speaking At
