What First Nations Co. does

First Nations Co. is an Aboriginal-owned consulting firm headquartered in Brisbane (Quandamooka Country), Queensland, Australia, founded in 2021 and operating nationwide. The firm delivers four core service offerings — Systems Change, Transformation & Implementation, Strategy & Governance, and Cultural Safety — to federal and state government agencies, Primary Health Networks, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, and non-profit community organisations. Its engagements are project-based and built around co-design principles, self-determination, and strengths-based methodologies grounded in First Nations knowledge systems, with explicit alignment to the Closing the Gap National Agreement priority reform areas.

The firm's competitive position rests on a credentialed First Nations leadership team (CEO Marni Tuala, former CATSINaM President and registered midwife; founder Leilani Darwin, ex-Black Dog Institute) and consultants drawn from organisations including BCG and EY, alongside medical doctors, social workers, and lived-experience practitioners. Underlying "technology" consists of cultural frameworks rather than software platforms — the firm's intellectual property is its methodology for community-led co-design, cultural safety assessment, and systems transformation. No technology platform, API, or AI tooling is offered or disclosed. Notable client engagements include the Australian Human Rights Commission's National Anti-Racism Framework and suicide prevention program support for WA Primary Health Alliance and Marathon Health.

The business model is sales-led and relationship-based, with revenue generated through professional services consulting engagements. Pricing is quote-based and negotiated per project; no public pricing or contract values are disclosed. Distribution is entirely direct-to-organisation via senior-led client engagement, with no self-service or channel-based delivery. Marketing relies on the firm's website, publications, and client testimonials rather than paid channels. The firm holds Supply Nation certification, providing verified access to Australian Indigenous business procurement pipelines.

Name

First Nations Co.

Legal name

First Nations Co.

Website

https://firstnationsco.com.au

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

First Nations Co. is an Aboriginal-owned consulting firm based in Brisbane, Australia, delivering systems change, transformation, governance, and cultural safety services to government, healthcare, and community organisations nationwide through relationship-led, project-based engagements.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: Professional consulting engagements providing systems change, transformation, strategy, governance, and cultural safety services to government and community organizations. Engagements are project-based and tailored to client needs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

First Nations Co. is an Aboriginal-owned consulting firm that delivers four core professional services — Systems Change, Transformation & Implementation, Strategy & Governance, and Cultural Safety — to government agencies, Primary Health Networks, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, and NGOs across Australia. Engagements are project-based and collaborative, grounded in First Nations knowledge systems, co-design principles, and self-determination, with the goal of dismantling systemic barriers and aligning client organisations with the Closing the Gap National Agreement.

Product overview

First Nations Co. is an Aboriginal-owned consulting firm offering a unified suite of consulting services rather than a technology product or software platform. The company provides four core service offerings: Systems Change (collaborative assessment and reshaping of systems with culturally aligned frameworks), Transformation & Implementation (guiding organisations through transformation informed by self-determination), Strategy & Governance (culturally grounded governance solutions drawing on First Nations leadership), and Cultural Safety (creating environments where First Nations voices are central). These services are delivered through collaborative engagement with communities and organisations to drive meaningful, sustainable change aligned with the Closing the Gap National Agreement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Systems Change Consulting service that collaborates with communities and organisations to critically assess, challenge, and reshape systems using culturally aligned frameworks that ensure First Nations voices guide the transformation process. Intended for government agencies, healthcare organisations, and community organisations undertaking systemic reform.
• Transformation & Implementation Consulting service that walks alongside organisations in their transformation journey, ensuring every step is informed by self-determination and cultural alignment, including designing governance frameworks and strengthening leadership capacity. Intended for organisations undertaking First Nations-informed transformation programmes.
• Strategy & Governance Governance solutions drawing on First Nations leadership and ways of knowing, offering culturally grounded strategies that equip organisations with resilient, accountable frameworks. Intended for organisations seeking culturally grounded strategy and governance design.
• Cultural Safety Cornerstone consulting service that supports organisations in creating environments where First Nations voices are central, ensuring engagement is rooted in trust, respect, and shared accountability. Includes cultural safety assessment and implementation at the systems level. Intended for government, healthcare, and community organisations seeking cultural safety reform.

Quantifiable outcome

• Timely delivery of National Anti-Racism Framework report that underpins Australian Human Rights Commission's framework
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Aboriginal Strategy Group: Aboriginal Strategy Group is an Aboriginal-owned advisory firm providing strategy, policy, and cultural engagement services to government and corporate clients across Australia. It directly competes with First Nations Co. for Indigenous strategy and governance mandates.
• PwC Australia (Indigenous Consulting): PwC Australia's Indigenous Consulting practice is the largest Big Four Indigenous advisory offering in Australia, providing strategy, governance, and cultural advisory to government and corporate clients. It directly competes with First Nations Co. on federal and state Aboriginal engagement work, with the structural difference of being a Big Four subsidiary rather than an Aboriginal-owned firm.
• Real Futures: Real Futures is an Aboriginal-owned consultancy providing strategic advisory, engagement, and capacity-building services to government and corporate Australia. It is a direct Aboriginal-owned peer competing in overlapping Indigenous engagement and systems change mandates.
• Kiah Consulting: Kiah Consulting is an Aboriginal-owned management consultancy providing strategy, governance, and engagement services to government and corporate clients in Australia. It is one of the closest Aboriginal-owned direct peers to First Nations Co. in terms of size, mission, and service offering.

Emerging players

• Barayamal: Barayamal is an Aboriginal-owned social enterprise providing Indigenous business development, training, and advisory services. It is an emerging player in the Indigenous economic development and capacity-building space, with partial overlap to First Nations Co.'s transformation and governance work.
• First Australians Capital: First Australians Capital is an Aboriginal-led advisory and investment organisation supporting Indigenous entrepreneurship and economic self-determination. It is an emerging player focused on Indigenous economic development with adjacent rather than directly overlapping service offerings to First Nations Co.
• Trickster Company: Trickster Company is an Indigenous-owned creative and strategic advisory firm based in Aotearoa New Zealand, working at the intersection of Indigenous storytelling, strategy, and systems change. It is an emerging player in the broader Indigenous consulting space with a regional (NZ) focus and overlapping methodology around self-determination and community-led design.

Broad incumbents

• Nous Group: Nous Group is an Australian management consultancy specializing in public policy, social outcomes, and complex system reform across government, healthcare, and education. It is a broad incumbent that frequently partners with or competes against Aboriginal-owned consultancies on Closing the Gap-adjacent transformation and evaluation work.
• Deloitte Australia (Indigenous Practice): Deloitte Australia's Indigenous practice delivers Indigenous advisory, strategy, and transformation work across federal, state, and corporate sectors. As a Big Four consultancy, it competes for the same government and large-corporate Indigenous engagement mandates that First Nations Co. targets.
• KPMG Australia (Indigenous Services): KPMG Australia operates a dedicated Indigenous Services practice within its broader consulting portfolio, advising government and ASX-listed clients on Indigenous engagement, procurement, and cultural safety. It is a broad incumbent offering overlapping capabilities at greater scale and with existing government master contracts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/first-nations-co

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Nations Co.