BIT SERVICE’S DEDICATION TO DIVERSITY – BEING PART OF THE INDIGENOUS ENGAGEMENT CHARTER OF THE SASKATCHEWAN CHAMBER

By: Evan Lucyk

Bit Service has proudly been serving the Canadian mining industry for over five decades now, and we are looking forward to serving our community for many more years to come. But just as important as providing excellent service and support for the community regarding the technical aspects of manufacturing and customer care is to us, we are equally dedicated to providing support on an emotional and investment level to our local community.

A big part of this support means investing back into the community by focusing on a dedication to diversity. Specifically, Bit Service has become a part of the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce (SCC) ’s Indigenous Engagement Charter, a task force specifically designed to help bridge the Indigenous engagement gap and bring the Saskatchewan Indigenous population to the same economic level as the Non-Indigenous population.

The Charter specifically focuses on educating and empowering businesses within Saskatchewan to become champions for diversity and Indigenous engagement by providing them with a “roadmap” of sorts and the necessary tools to become role models for reconciliation and continued progress.

We take our role seriously and feel proud and honored to be a part of this worthy endeavour. For our part at Bit Service, we update our Indigenous engagement strategy yearly and make it a point to dedicate ourselves to undergoing continuous Indigenous awareness training sessions year-round. Additionally, community engagement, offering opportunities for team members to volunteer in the community and participate in sponsorship and empowerment initiatives is key. We know that real and impactful change does not just happen and that it is not a one-time action but a progressive investment.

To ensure we are keeping aware of the changing climate, always pushing forward, and making sure we’re actually making necessary changes, we set concrete goals to meet each year. This accountability is our way of ensuring that we are fulfilling our promise to support and empower our community—all of our community—in a tangible way.

All of our employees regularly attend these educational engagement sessions, and part of our annual engagement strategy update always includes updated documentation pertaining to employment and retention, hiring policies, etc. It ensures we have the right things in place for achieving—and maintaining—an open, accepting, and enjoyable place to work for people of all backgrounds.

Being a part of the Charter specifies that all partners must have proper policies in place for everything from employment strategies and community engagement to education and training. This accountability has been incredible in helping us remain focused and on track and truly embrace the direction that we want to go as a company, so everybody’s on the same page to move our inclusion mandate forward.

Even though this is only our second year being officially involved with the Charter, we were already pushing a personal mandate for inclusion forward before joining. We are happy to be a part of something that brings our community together, something bigger than ourselves, and something our kids can be proud of.

For us, it’s not just a matter of running a company and turning a profit. That’s not impressive to our kids. What they will see—what will stick with them—is when they see us actively changing the world by changing people’s lives.

At the end of the day, when our children ask us, “What do you do?” we want to be able to tell them we’re doing something that helps people have every opportunity they should and achieve all they want to.

As we say here at Bit Service, we “strive to provide exceptional service and satisfaction to the customer, to deliver value and meet or exceed expectations.” We are dedicated to diversity and being the best version of ourselves as a company that is known for empowering, supporting, and always improving—for all.

If you’re curious about what Bit Service can do for you specifically or want to learn more about our core values, please don’t hesitate to reach out.