Leading by Example

Raymond Cohen: First, I’d like to thank you both for including the disability community in your planning and in your thoughts, particularly my own organization, the Canadian Abilities Foundation. I know, too, that Independent Living Canada is appreciative of the fact that you have shown the insight and sensitivity to ensure that consumers’ voices are taken into account. I’d also like to congratulate you on taking the initiative to be the first out of the gate with the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP). The RDSP is a profound initiative in terms of government programs, both in Canada and abroad. Do you think it was designed the right way to benefit the right people? And if so, what changes might we see in the lives of people with disabilities and their families?

Gilles Ouellette: The RDSP is so much better than what was available before that we haven’t tried to evaluate whether there was a better way of doing it. It’s a fabulous program. Maybe there will be tweaks down the road, but I can’t imagine there will be a major overhaul because it’s been extremely well received by our clients. One of its unique aspects is that it is applicable to the entire range of affluence. If somebody has limited means, he or she or a family member can open an account and start to get the government’s bond portion.  That aspect was extremely well thought out. For low-income families, there are these grants; for the high-income families, the tax deferral aspect of it is more important. You can see, the wealthier families, instead of waiting, making small annual contributions with the idea of getting the grants, it makes more sense for them to make a larger contribution and have the tax deferral for the larger amounts, for a longer period of time.

RC: The RDSP levels the playing field for people with disabilities. For many it spells out the difference between having a sense of prosperity or not.

GO: What’s been the reaction to it? I understand that your group lobbied for a long time for something like this, right?

RC: We have, from the start, felt enthusiasm for this initiative, but mostly we have wanted to support the people who thought it up in the first place; the credit belongs to many people at this point, but it was Al Etmanski and PLAN in British Columbia who really got the ball rolling. The RDSP is Al’s brainchild, and he and PLAN lobbied long and hard behind the scenes to get it through government. And also, the government’s expert group on this matter included Laurie Beachell of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities, Mr. James Love, QC, and Mr. Remy Girard, and they had a significant role in helping this groundbreaking legislation see the light of day. And, of course, without the political will coming from the Minister of Finance, the Hon. Jim Flaherty, and the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, the Hon. Diane Finley, this legislation would never have been adopted.

GO: And the reaction from your constituency has been very positive, I would think.

RC: Yes, the response has been positive. The challenge remains, however, to create greater awareness about the RDSP. There is quite a distance to go before people are well informed. Too often, people with disabilities have not had opportunities such as this. The RDSP offers a real opportunity for many people with disabilities to both accumulate a level of wealth and, just as importantly, develop a prosperity consciousness to accompany it. I see the RDSP, for many, as being a gangplank to a broader world of hitherto-unknown financial security.

GO: The RDSP, for BMO, has everything to do with relationship building with our clients. We know that if we do a good job, it will be mutually beneficial. Now that the opportunity is here, I couldn’t imagine not offering the RDSP. From a business standpoint, [you can see] why this is important to us, why it seemed natural that we would do it, and why there is no hesitation. But there’s also a cultural growth that we’ve experienced that led us to this.

Yasmin Meralli: We have a long-standing commitment to diversity. In 1992, we published our task force report on people with disabilities. As a result, a number of  things were initiated, beginning with dispelling myths around barriers. One of the findings was that a lot of accommodations can be made with no cost, [such as having flexible workday start times]. Another example is our centralized accommodation fund. [When a department is hiring, the cost of accommodation] shouldn’t enter the discussion or affect the choice of candidates. We’ve seen BMO’s leadership state their commitment to diversity very clearly. Embracing diversity is built into our values, into the culture of the company. There are tangible examples, such as our comprehensive pre-employment training programs for people with disabilities; people who may not have had opportunities to develop much in the way of work experience.

RC: You mentioned some of your initiatives in accommodating people with disabilities.
Are there other programs that come to mind?

YM: We’ve started a program with Lime Connect, an organization that’s rebranding the whole perception around disability. Together we’ve created a scholarship and internship program, offered to students in university or college. They work for us and get summer internship experience. And if they’re successful, there’s a commitment to look for permanent employment. Another organization we work closely with is NEADS, the National Educational Association of Disabled Students. We have a program from our BMO Capital Markets Group called Equity Through Education. They donate one day’s institutional trading commissions towards organizations that support communities that face barriers to education and employment – last year, it was $1.5 million. And it’s really focused on education. To date, $6.6 million has been raised, and 2,000 people have benefited through the programs. So we partner with NEADS to offer scholarships, but more importantly, to provide access: job strategy forums where students can learn about self-branding and self assessment. We also provide advice on résumé writing. The forums are focused on helping students with disabilities be successful in employment.

RC: There must be a business case, too, for linking diversity to the customers of BMO.

YM: BMO aspires to be an exemplar in customer service. Plus, if you look at the employee base and the customer, they’re really two sides of the same coin. Most, if not all, of our employees are also customers. But fundamentally it’s about relationships. The buying power of people with disabilities is estimated at $25 billion. Studies show that people who have a person in the family or a friend or know somebody close that has a disability will look favourably at giving their business to an organization that has a great reputation for serving people with disabilities. So it goes much broader than the direct
purchase power. And fundamentally, at BMO, it’s that broader concept of diversity – recognizing that our customers +come from a wide background, and this is central to our relationship. It’s a broad based approach, which can translate into employment.

GO: We like to think that part of the motivation for the emphasis on diversity is a broader commitment to the client base. We’ve been focused on this for two decades…and things only get done if there’s a commitment from the top. Otherwise, things tend to wither away, and there’s been a commitment here, certainly on the part of the CEOs, for two decades.

RC: What would you say to people who aren’t sure if a financial plan is within their grasp?

GO: Financial planning is an integral part of a relationship with the client. Our objective is for all clients to have a financial plan. We can provide very basic plans to more complex ones. People want to know where they’re going, and when they have a plan, they get peace of mind. People find the whole concept of money complicated – and really, the industry has made a virtue of complicating it. We’re trying to simplify the whole process and clarify for them so that they can make the choices they need. Our clients are intelligent; they can make their own choices. But they need to understand what the options are. And I think that when we go through financial plans with our clients, I’d be hard-pressed to find clients who qualify for the RDSP where this wouldn’t be an integral part of our planning. So it’s a fabulous tool. Perhaps of interest to disability organizations across the country is the fact that we, with the help of the Canadian Abilities Foundation and Independent Living Canada, have developed an educational workshop for people with a disability or the families of those living with a disability about the RDSP and how it fits within their overall financial situation. We will be offering to partner with any organization that would like us to come and educate their members on the RDSP. We’re trying to reach out to the disability community, and partnerships with local organizations
are an important way for us to do that. I think that it all relates to the point Yasmin made earlier. It’s so much a part of the culture now that when this program came up, it was brought to me because our people were sensitive to it. And once the program was explained, there was no question that we would go ahead. Two decades ago, if the work hadn’t been done and we hadn’t started down this road, we might have looked at it differently. On the issue of diversity, you don’t turn on the switch one day and turn it off the next. It’s a long journey, and if we hadn’t been doing this for a couple of decades, we might have had a different reaction to the program.

RC: Thank you both for your insights. It’s undeniable that you’re leading by example. I’m sure your offerings will be well received by Canada’s growing population of people with disabilities.

For more RDSP information, please visit www.bmo.com/RDSP