A majority First Nations-owned business has celebrated a decade of delivering high impact professional services that have enhanced economic and sustainable outcomes across Australia.
Perth-based IPS Management Consultants was established in 2015 to provide evaluation, advisory, organisational development, and workforce capability services to federal and state governments, large corporations, small businesses and community organisations.
Co-founder and CEO, Katina Law, said IPS aspired to create employment pathways to careers in professional services for First Nations people, as well as opportunities for equity ownership in the business.
Reflecting on the decade of growth and impact, Ms Law said she was incredibly proud to reach 10 years in the industry.
"IPS was founded with a vision to create real and lasting change," she said.
"We help empower First Nations people, businesses and communities to thrive.
"Ten years on, we're seeing the ripple effects of that vision across Australia."
Along with co-CEO Julie Hillier and executive directors Damien Chalk and Cameron Wood, IPS has grown to a national workforce of more than 60 employees across WA, South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and the ACT, with First Nations people now representing 26 per cent of its team - including more than half of its senior executive, director and leadership roles.
The award-winning consultancy has been recognised twice as Supply Nation's certified supplier of the year (2018 and 2019), a testament to its sustained leadership and advocacy for First Nations economic empowerment.
Ms Law said the next decade was about deepening IPS' impact, particularly across Closing the Gap targets.
"Closing the Gap is more than a policy goal; it's a national opportunity to reimagine how we deliver services and share power," she said.
"Genuine partnership and cultural safety must underpin every decision, every reform, and every outcome we strive to achieve.
"Future generations are counting on us to get this right."
IPS programs over the decade
Track to Success is a whole-of-system pathway transitioning people from prison into sustainable jobs in WA's rail and construction sectors, supporting up to 120 WA prisoners during the last six months of their sentence.
Yaka Dandjoo 'Ready for Work' equipped unemployed and entry-level people with skills for long-term careers in construction, with 191 participants across 13 cohorts resulting in 132 people securing employment on the Bunbury Outer Ring Road project or within the broader construction sector.
IPS Liminal™ is a trailblazing initiative that combines First Nations knowledge, neuroscience and human-centred design to shift culture and re-shape workforce systems, with hundreds of federal and state government participants across Australia.
Beyond acclaimed programs, IPS delivers high-impact consulting across government, corporate and community sectors, grounded in cultural integrity, while focused on measurable outcomes.
Ms Law said IPS had delivered strategic planning across 1.5 million km² of Aboriginal land and supported more than 250 First Nations businesses and organisations build capability, attract investment, and drive impact in sectors such as tourism, renewable energy, native foods, and construction.
Recent projects include working with PKKP Aboriginal Corporation and Trusts, Tjurabalan Native Title Land Aboriginal Corporation, Oak Valley Aboriginal Corporation, and Maralinga Tjarutja Inc.
"Our approach, grounded in First Nations ways of knowing, being and doing, was recently showcased to the department of Industry, Science and Resources during Reconciliation Week 2025," Ms Law said.
Business advisory and economic development was another key IPS service, enhancing capacity so small businesses and entrepreneurs could turn ideas into investable ventures and scale what works.
"Our clients receive support in transforming ideas into sustainable ventures, be that viability assessments, market analysis, risk evaluation or business planning for start-ups and growth organisations," Ms Law said.
IPS' partnership with the Small Business Development Corporation helped its team conduct 5,082 one-on-one advisory sessions to small businesses in regional WA in 2025 alone.
Establishing new standards for methodological rigour, ethical integrity, and cultural safety are other areas of focus for IPS.
"By centring First Nations governance, respecting data sovereignty, and amplifying community voices, we deliver actionable insights and measurable change," Ms Law said.
Current and recent evaluations span youth justice diversion, early childhood support, disaster recovery, housing, health, cultural mapping and land management.
Leadership, coaching and capability programs at IPS equip leaders to navigate complexity, drive cultural change and deliver measurable impact across government, corporate and community sectors.
Recent examples have included a compelling, three-year gender equity program for a national sporting organisation, and providing uplifting cultural safety capability for more than 250 senior leaders in a federal government department.
IPS is part of Australia's thriving Indigenous business sector, now comprising almost 14,000 First Nations-owned businesses that contribute more than $16 billion to the Australian economy each year, and employ around 117,000 people.
Since its founding, IPS has been a powerful advocate for the sector, working alongside governments and the private sector to drive structural reform and create sustainable pathways for economic independence.
Founded in the same year as the federal government's Indigenous Procurement Policy, IPS reflected the policy's vision to enable Indigenous entrepreneurship to flourish and strengthen the national economy through procurement, partnerships, and innovation.
Under the Commonwealth's Indigenous Procurement Policy, Indigenous businesses have received more than $9.5 billion in contracting opportunities across more than 64,000 contracts since 2015.
