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![\"Aaron](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4344751_web1_2026-06-25---Indigenous-chamber-01.jpeg\")
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Aaron Epp \/ Free Press<\/p>\n
Shelly Bulycz, right, the newly appointed CEO at the Indigenous Chamber of Commerce, with program manager Gabriel Lou\u00ebr after the organization\u2019s annual general meeting at Red River College Polytech\u2019s Notre Dame campus, Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI enjoyed retirement for a month and a half, two months, and then decided I needed a job,\u201d Bulycz said. \u201cThe rest is kind of history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Raised 600 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg in Barrows, Bulycz\u2019s educational background includes management, administrative law, governance, human resources, labour relations and organizational behaviour.<\/p>\n
A member of the Sapotaweyak Cree Nation, Bulycz brings more than 15 years of leadership experience supporting governance within Indigenous, non-profit and community organizations to her new role.<\/p>\n
The 56-year-old talked about her personal and professional background at the chamber\u2019s annual general meeting Thursday at Red River College Polytech\u2019s Notre Dame Avenue campus.<\/p>\n
After looking back, Bulycz turned her attention to the future and outlined the chamber\u2019s priorities for the coming months.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur main goal is to engage with our members,\u201d she said. \u201cMy main goal as the CEO is to help that membership grow (and) help our current membership (access) any opportunity that is presented to the ICC.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those opportunities will include online training sessions the chamber is organizing in partnership with the City of Winnipeg that will instruct members on how they can procure work from the city, Bulycz said.<\/p>\n
The chamber is looking at hosting new networking events and exploring how it might revamp its membership package, she added.<\/p>\n
Connecting with businesses in northern Manitoba and encouraging them to join the chamber is also a priority.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re moving in the right direction,\u201d Bulycz said. \u201cWe\u2019re strengthening our governance, we\u2019re strengthening our operations (and) we\u2019re working within our strategic plan. All the while, we\u2019re expanding opportunities for our members in networking, learning, collaboration and business growth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bulycz\u2019s appointment as CEO comes during a period of transition for the chamber, which was established in 2004 and currently counts around 200 members. In recent years, the chamber\u2019s board of directors has been transitioning from a working board to a governance board.<\/p>\n
As part of that transition, they hired the organization\u2019s first CEO, Renee Greyeyes, in May 2024. She left the organization in October 2025 and took the helm of the Manitoba Prospectors and Developers Association a month later. Board member Chris Henry took a leave from his position as treasurer to serve as the chamber\u2019s interim chief executive until Bulycz was hired.<\/p>\n
Bulycz\u2019s extensive experience with board governance made her a great choice for the role, said Adam Nepon, board chairperson.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a natural fit,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re resetting that foundation of how we are going to move forward sustainably, efficiently and effectively.\u201d<\/p>\n
Statistics Canada forecasts that in the next 10 to 15 years, one in five people in Manitoba will be Indigenous. Nepon said the chamber wants to see Indigenous representation in the province\u2019s business community grow at the same rate.<\/p>\n
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Economic reconciliation must involve Manitobans from all walks of life, he said, adding that non-Indigenous businesses and individuals are welcome to join the chamber.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got to climb that road and understand what it takes to meet the demands of what Manitoba\u2019s economy needs for growth,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the chamber is in a good financial position, Phil Cavey reported at the AGM.<\/p>\n
Cavey, a business adviser with MNP, noted that the chamber ended its most recent fiscal year with a surplus of $20,942, bouncing back from a deficit of $6,753 the previous year.<\/p>\n
aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
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Aaron Epp Aaron Epp reports on business for the Free Press. After freelancing for the paper for a decade, he joined the staff full-time in 2024. Read more about Aaron<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Aaron produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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