Find out more about how the 50 – 30 Challenge will support diversity actions already taking place in many Canadian organizations and encourage other Canadian organizations to adopt practices to improve equity.
Sign up today!
All Canadian organizations are encouraged to sign up for the Challenge today by filling in the 50 – 30 Challenge form.
Have questions? Contact us at 50-30challengeinfodefi50-30info@ised-isde.gc.ca.
Why join the Challenge?
See what participants have to say about joining the 50 – 30 Challenge, the changes their organizations have made and why you should consider committing to these goals.
The What Works Toolkit
The What Works Toolkit is an online toolkit designed for all Canadian organizations looking to implement equality, diversity and inclusion practices.
Ecosystem Partners
The 50 – 30 Challenge Ecosystem Partners help participants adopt diversity practices within their organizations.
On this page
About the 50 – 30 Challenge
The 50 – 30 Challenge is an initiative between the Government of Canada, Canadian businesses and diversity organizations.
The goal of the program is to challenge Canadian organizations to increase the representation and inclusion of diverse groups within their workplaces, while highlighting the benefits of giving all Canadians a seat at the table.
The 50 – 30 Challenge asks that organizations aspire to two goals:
- Gender parity (50% women and/or non-binary people) on Canadian boards and/or in senior management; and
- Significant representation (30%) on Canadian boards and/or senior management of members of other equity-deserving groups, including those who identify as Racialized, Black, and/or People of colour ("Visible Minorities"), People with disabilities (including invisible and episodic disabilities), 2SLGBTQ+ and/or gender and sexually diverse individuals, and Aboriginal and/or Indigenous Peoples. The program and participants recognize Indigenous Peoples, including First Nations, Métis and Inuit, as founding Peoples of Canada and underrepresented in positions of economic influence and leadership.
The 50 – 30 Challenge was created in collaboration with various diversity organizations, institutions and networks:
The benefits
Diversity in the workplace makes good business sense. Organizations that are more diverse are:
- more likely to outperform their peers;
- twice as likely to meet or exceed financial targets; and
- eight times more likely to achieve better business outcomes.
Effective diversity and inclusion strategies can help organizations advance their goals. Many organizations have shown that leveraging diversity and inclusion can:
- attract the best and the brightest to broaden the talent pool and help overcome skill gaps in a rapidly transforming and increasingly volatile economy.Footnote 1
- perceive problems from different angles, identify new and unexplored market opportunities, and relate to unmet market needs.Footnote 2
- help them outperform financially. A recent studyFootnote 3 showed that companies with gender-diverse executive teams outperform those with little gender diversity by 48%. In terms of companies with culturally diverse executive teams versus companies with little cultural diversity among their executive ranks, the difference was 36%.
- promote innovation by bringing multiple perspectives and experiences to bear on complex problems. A 2018 studyFootnote 4 found that companies that have more diverse management teams have 19% higher revenue due to innovation.
Related links
- The 50 – 30 Challenge Prospectus
- Embracing diversity in the workplace: A good business decision
- Government of Canada launches two initiatives in support of the 50 – 30 Challenge
- Minister Champagne announces new measures to help companies meet their diversity and inclusion targets
- The 50 – 30 Challenge Publicly Available Specification (PAS)