Carter Wilson, a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) and Indigenous Business Education Partners (IBEP) alumnus, has found success as a manager of ease, Indigenous Services at MNP. He credits his unique background as the son of a First Nations father and non-Indigenous mother for his strength in bridging communities. Wilson and his team at MNP work with Indigenous communities, businesses, and organizations to promote financial capacity building.

"We help Indigenous organizations’ finance function function better," says Wilson. "It might be that staff are feeling overwhelmed, and they need another staff member, or it can be advising on the structure of their finance department. They may come to us and say ‘something isn’t working. How do we fix it?’ And I’m usually part of the team that advises on how to fix it.”

Wilson's financial expertise and qualifications are necessary, but he also relies heavily on his communication and relationship-building skills. He starts every interaction by learning about the person, and building trust is a key element of his role.

"When I approach Indigenous communities, I don’t start with any business, I start by learning about them as a person. If they want to jump to it, great. But building trust is showing that you’re not just in it for transaction—you’re in it for them,” he says.

While Wilson's day-to-day exchanges are structured by communication and relationship-building skills, he also notes that building financial capacity is a process and not an instant step. Change is slow, and the history of trust and distrust in Indigenous communities is complex. Wilson's success in his role at MNP is attributed to his awareness of and willingness to continue learning about the histories of the communities he works with.

Wilson also gives back to the IBEP community by organizing opportunities for MNP to discuss job opportunities and meeting with IBEP students when he visits Winnipeg. For Wilson, it's essential to create a space where Indigenous candidates can voice their opinions about changes that need to happen and recommendations that need to be made.

IBEP is an initiative that welcomes all First Nation, Inuit, and Métis students who intend to pursue a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) at the I.H. Asper School of Business, regardless of the faculty of registration. The program's goal is to increase the number of Indigenous business leaders in Canada. For Wilson, his involvement in the program played a significant role in his success.

Through his work at MNP, Wilson hopes to continue to create financial capacity in Indigenous communities and build bridges between them. He believes that he can make a difference by influencing and working with other people. As he notes, that's how you change the world.