What First Peoples Group does

First Peoples Group is a privately held Canadian professional services firm headquartered in Ottawa with a second office in Ohsweken on the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. Founded in 2001 by Guy Freedman (Métis from Manitoba), the firm operates with 11-50 employees and is structured as 100% Indigenous-owned, -operated, and -staffed, led by First Nations, Métis, and Inuit principals and advised by senior Knowledge Keepers/Elders including Maria Campbell, Diane Longboat, and Fred Kelly. Its service portfolio comprises four integrated lines: Learning (Indigenous awareness training, in-person and online), Engagement (facilitation between organizations and Indigenous communities), Planning (Reconciliation Action Plans and strategic planning), and Research, Policy + Advisory Services (culturally grounded research and UNDRIP-related advisory).

The firm sells customized advisory, training, and engagement services through a direct, sales-led model to government (federal departments including CATSA and IRCC), healthcare (The Ottawa Hospital, Canadian Blood Services), higher education (Queen's University, Memorial University), and corporate clients (Hudson's Bay Company), with documented multi-year engagements and large-scale deployments such as cultural safety e-learning modules delivered to approximately 17,000 healthcare professionals. Revenue is generated through consulting fees on a project or retainer basis; pricing is not publicly disclosed. The firm pairs its advisory offering with an exclusive co-development partnership with Indigenous-owned creative agency Spruce Creative for branded content, e-learning, reports, and video, including a welcome video shown at IRCC citizenship ceremonies nationwide. Its underlying technology is its proprietary Indigenous knowledge framework — the "Natural Order of Humanity Within Creation" — combined with decades of experience from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission process, with no AI/ML or software product layer described.

Name

First Peoples Group

Legal name

First Peoples Group

Website

https://firstpeoplesgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

First Peoples Group is a 100% Indigenous-owned Canadian professional services firm that delivers Indigenous awareness training, engagement facilitation, Reconciliation Action Plan development, and culturally grounded policy and advisory services to government, healthcare, higher education, and corporate clients across Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Advisory Services: Revenue is generated through consulting fees for Indigenous strategic advisory services including learning/training programs, engagement facilitation, reconciliation action planning, and research/policy advisory. Services are customized to client needs and likely billed on a project or retainer basis.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

First Peoples Group is a 100% Indigenous-owned professional services firm that provides Indigenous strategic advisory to organizations across Canada. The firm delivers four interconnected service lines: Learning (Indigenous awareness training delivered by First Nations, Métis and Inuit experts in-person and online), Engagement (facilitation of meaningful dialogue between organizations and Indigenous communities), Planning (Reconciliation Action Plan development and strategic planning), and Research, Policy + Advisory Services (culturally grounded research, UNDRIP implementation support, and policy advocacy).

Product overview

First Peoples Group is a professional services firm offering a suite of four interconnected service lines: Learning (Indigenous awareness training delivered by First Nations, Métis and Inuit experts in-person and online), Engagement (facilitation and trust-building between organizations and Indigenous communities), Planning (Reconciliation Action Plans and strategic planning), and Research/Policy/Advisory Services (culturally grounded research and policy advocacy). The firm also produces custom content including e-learning modules, cultural safety training programs, and welcome videos for citizenship ceremonies. These services work together to support organizations in advancing reconciliation and strengthening relationships with Indigenous communities across Canada.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Learning Services Indigenous awareness training programs developed and delivered by senior First Nations, Métis and Inuit experts. Offered in in-person (full-day, half-day, executive sessions) and online formats with co-developed tools and resources. Targeted at organizations needing cultural competency training.
• Engagement Services Facilitation of meaningful engagements between governments, organizations and Indigenous communities, driving transformative conversations that foster trust, respect and positive lasting change. Targeted at organizations seeking to build authentic relationships with Indigenous communities.
• Planning Services Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) development using a seven-step approach, plus strategic planning services to help organizations translate vision into actionable steps. Targeted at organizations developing reconciliation frameworks and strategic goals.
• Research, Policy + Advisory Services Culturally grounded research, policy advocacy and strategic advisory services designed to create systemic change for Indigenous Peoples, including UNDRIP implementation support. Targeted at organizations needing policy-level guidance on Indigenous relations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Training delivered to approximately 17,000 healthcare professionals at The Ottawa Hospital
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Spruce CreativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFPG collaborates exclusively with Spruce Creative, an Indigenous-owned multi-media agency, to combine design, storytelling, and cultural insight in all projects. With Spruce's creative services, FPG extends its offerings to include logos and branding, reports, presentations, e-learning modules, and videos. This partnership was notably used for the IRCC citizenship ceremony welcome video project.
• Indigenous GeographicminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization featured alongside Spruce Creative in FPG's brand and communications ecosystem. Indigenous Geographic represents another Indigenous-owned organization in their collaborative network.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bob Joseph Consulting: Indigenous-owned Canadian firm offering cultural awareness training, Indigenous relations consulting, and policy advisory. Closest like-for-like competitor in Indigenous training and reconciliation advisory, targeting the same government, corporate, and education buyers.
• Indigenous Corporate Training Inc. Provides cross-cultural awareness training and Indigenous relations courses to Canadian businesses and government. Directly competes in the Learning service line and shares the same reconciliation / cultural competency buyer.
• Outcrop Communications: Indigenous-owned communications and engagement firm delivering strategic communications, stakeholder engagement, and Indigenous relations support. Overlaps on the Engagement and Planning service lines for government and corporate clients.
• Reconciliation Education: Specializes in K-12 and workplace reconciliation training, including the 4 Seasons of Reconciliation program adopted across Canadian schools and organizations. Competes head-to-head for training mandates that First Peoples Group also targets.

Others

• Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB): Member-based organization that connects Indigenous and non-Indigenous businesses and runs progressive Aboriginal relations (PAR) training. Ecosystem counterpart — same buyer base but a membership/credentialing model rather than bespoke advisory.

Emerging players

• Reconciliation Canada: National non-profit advancing public awareness of reconciliation, with ties to the Gord Downie-Chanie Wenjack legacy. Indirectly comparable as a thought-leadership and convening entity in the same reconciliation mandate space.
• Animikii Inc. Indigenous-owned digital agency offering web, app, and media production alongside Indigenous cultural consulting. Comparable on the Indigenous-owned branding and the Spruce Creative-style creative-services overlap.

Broad incumbents

• Deloitte Canada — Indigenous Services: Big Four firm with a national Indigenous Services practice covering advisory, audit, and consulting. Increasingly competes for the same large-scale reconciliation, UNDRIP implementation, and Indigenous engagement mandates at enterprise and government scale.
• KPMG Canada — Indigenous Services: Big Four firm with a dedicated Indigenous Services practice offering advisory and tax services to Indigenous communities, governments, and organizations. Competes for advisory mandates where scale and cross-functional capabilities are required.

Regional players

• CST Consultants (Canadian Shield Consultants): Indigenous-owned engineering and environmental consulting firm delivering infrastructure and environmental services to Indigenous communities across Canada. Same Indigenous-owned ethos and government/procurement customer base, but in a technical-services rather than policy/training niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/first-peoples-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about First Peoples Group