In January 2024, our firm was excited to release our first formal Disability Inclusion Action plan. While our commitment to Disability Inclusion is not new, this action plan is intended to accelerate and deepen our efforts to create a more inclusive and equitable workplace for People with Disabilities.
Source: Canadian Survey on Disability 2022, Statistics Canada
We are excited to work alongside our people, our clients and our communities to foster an inclusive workplace where everyone can use their strengths, be included and feel like they belong. We encourage you to reach out to discuss our disability inclusion efforts and action plan and we invite all organizations and people in Canada to join us in creating a more inclusive society. We are better, together.
Our vision
Our vision is to work alongside People with Disabilities to advance disability inclusion in Canada by fostering equity and inclusion within and outside our firm.
Our mission
We aim to advance an equitable and inclusive culture where People with Disabilities and their caregivers experience belonging and are supported to thrive and achieve their goals. We will do this by:
- Raising awareness of biases and removing barriers
- Providing ongoing education to advance equity,inclusion and build allyship
- Advocating for change in corporate Canada, leveraging our collective skills and passions to advance disability inclusion
KPMG’s people networks focused on advancing disability inclusion
Our Disability Inclusion and Special Family & Friends Network are passionate groups of individuals dedicated to advancing inclusion for People with Disabilities within the firm and in society. These Networks provide a safe space for community connection, lead national and global education initiatives to advance allyship, and help identify opportunities and barriers to inclusion.
Disability Inclusion Network
The Disability Inclusion Network was created to be a voice for People with Disabilities at the firm. The Network is focused on advancing education and awareness across KPMG in Canada on how to create a more inclusive, accessible workplace for People with Disabilities, regularly collaborating with internal teams and people networks along with external organizations and advocates.
Special Family & Friends Network
The Special Family & Friends Network is dedicated to supporting and promoting a culture of inclusion in the workplace and our communities by helping others understand the impact and value that individuals with exceptionalities can have in our society.
The aim of the network is to provide a supportive work community for parents, family members, friends and allies of children with multiple exceptionalities. They create opportunities for people to come together virtually and in person, for support, to share personal experiences, to learn about available resources and attend meaningful events, both internally and externally.
"KPMG’s Disablity inclusion Network group helped me see how to use my experience for good and promote the well‑being of others around me."
Katie Horne
Senior Consultant, Cybersecurity Halifax, Nova Scotia
Disability Inclusion Network Member
As the founder of our Disability Inclusion Network, I am proud to announce our firm’s inaugural Disability Inclusion Action Plan, underscoring our commitment to enhancing the experiences of People with Disabilities within our organization. By dedicating ourselves to eliminating workplace barriers for People with Disabilities, we pave the way for their improved outcomes – ensuring equitable employment and career opportunities, wellness, productivity, and a sense of belonging. Embracing disability inclusion not only fosters innovations and fresh perspectives but also significantly contributes to the betterment of our workplaces and society at large.
Goal 1 - An inclusive and equitable culture built on trust
We will continue to advance a culture where People with Disabilities and caregivers of People with Disabilities experience equity, well-being, safety, inclusion and belonging.
Diversity of the firm – representation goals for People with Disabilities
Our aim is to ensure our firm represents the diversity of the communities we live and work in. We know representation matters. To this end, our firm has set goals to increase representation of ID&E priority groups where we have gaps, including a goal to reach six per cent representation of People with Disabilities by October 1, 2025.
The purpose of these goals is to drive accountability and focus our collective efforts to remove barriers, address bias and create opportunities. These goals are linked to leadership compensation. We will achieve these goals through continually advancing an equitable and inclusive culture and implementing strategies that strengthen recruitment, onboarding, advancement, retention and development of our people.
Our progress
Goal 2 - Attraction, advancement and career growth
We will reflect the diversity of the communities in which we live and work by actively engaging and supporting People with Disabilities in achieving their career goals and continuously monitoring, identifying and removing bias and barriers in recruitment, advancement and retention.
Goal 3 - Education and awareness building
We will educate and inspire allies through ongoing disability inclusion education, advancing awareness and providing opportunities to build skills.
Goal 4 - Commit and inspire
We will commit sustainable resources, hold ourselves accountable to progress and share our journey to inspire change in corporate Canada.
Goal 5 - Collaboration and sponsorships
We will collaborate with community organizations that support and advocate with People with Disabilities, sponsor their efforts, initiatives and activities and leverage our national platform to amplify their impact.
Goal 6 - Accessible procurement
Embed and advance accessibility and disability inclusion in procurement processes and practices.
- We will build into future technology procurement opportunities a requirement for all vendors to demonstrate their ongoing commitment to accessibility and listening to the needs of People with Disabilities, including evidence they are actively embedding accessibility into their technology that will remove barriers for a broad range of disabilities
- We will continue to develop our knowledge, policies and relationships to advance accessibility and disability inclusion in our procurement processes
"If we could collectively start the process of creating REAL accessibility for people with all type of disabilities – that would be an amazing future."
Lissa Mitchell
Director of Operations, Strategic Alliances,
Toronto, Ontario,
Disability Inclusion Network Member
Our disability inclusion journey
As a firm, we have been on a journey to advance disability inclusion before the formation of our Disability Inclusion action plan. Here are some of the key milestones along that journey.
Pre 2020
- ID&E strategy launched, including targeted focus on mental health and People with Disabilities
- Introduced Chief Mental Health Officer – a first in corporate Canada
- Began ongoing mental health training for People Managers, Human Resources and all KPMG employees
- Began offering Mental Health Resilience training to our people
2020
- Launched our Disability Inclusion Network
- Relaunched Special Family & Friends Network
- Focused on disability inclusion education
- KPMG in Canada hosted the first KPMG Global Disability Inclusion Summit
- Initiated our first Mental Health People Network
- Began offering targeted mental health sessions for team members in ID&E priority groups
2021
- Introduced goals to reach 6 per cent representation of People with Disabilities in the firm by Oct 1, 2025
- Launched targeted neurodiversity recruitment programs
- Introduced innovative new Daily Living Benefit for People with Disabilities
- Focused education and awareness on advancing accessibility
2022
- Enhanced existing Employee & Family Assistance Program
- Created targeted recruitment programs and strategies for People with Disabilities
- Introduced the first scholarships for People with Disabilities
- Mental Health Networks activated in all KPMG regional offices
- First accessibility portal launched with accessibility resources and tools
2023
- Increased Mental Health Benefit to $3000
- Increased investments in education, scholarships, and internships for students with disabilities
If you have any questions or feedback about this plan, please contact our Inclusion, Diversity and Equity team. If you would like to request an alternative format or if you have suggestions on how we can make the plan more accessible, please email cdnersteam@kpmg.ca or call 1-888-466-4778 (option 3).
In building this plan, we consulted with organizations that are committed to advancing disability inclusion in Canada and around the world. We appreciate their collaboration, insight and wisdom to help ensure we are committed to actionable change that will positively impact People with Disabilities.
We would also like to thank KPMG in Canada’s DE&I Consulting practice for their role in supporting the creation of our firm’s collective Disability Inclusion Action plan. Learn more about how they can support your organization in advancing inclusion, equity, diversity and accessibility.
Land acknowledgment
We respectfully acknowledge that KPMG offices across Turtle Island (North America) are located on the traditional, treaty and unceded territories of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.
Indigenous Peoples share a sacred relation with the land and this land acknowledgment is the first step in learning about our history and taking action toward reconciliation.
