Award-winning podcast Black Magic Woman has launched a new partnership series with ANZ.
Lead image: Mundanara Bayles, Black Magic Woman podcast founder
The announcement comes with National Reconciliation Week (NRW) in the spotlight, highlighting efforts towards achieving reconciliation in Australia.
Featuring Indigenous business owners, suppliers, community partners, and ANZ employees, the series will highlight a range of voices in telling the stories of personal and business experiences with reconciliation.
The podcast aims to inspire a wide range of audiences and highlights ANZ’s commitment to supporting Indigenous businesses with a wide range of business operations, financial wellbeing, and employment opportunities.
Bayles, managing director of The Black Card, Supply Nation 2023 Indigenous Business Woman of the year, and Black Magic Woman podcast founder, is a recognised leader in helping to support Australia’s leading organisations to deliver on their RAP program outcomes, notes there has been natural alignment when it comes to the ongoing partnership with ANZ, which since 2020 has supported more than 1,750 employees in completing Black Card’s signature cultural capability program.
The partnership is based on five years of shared vision, in which ANZ has worked closely with Mundanara and the Black Card team to drive meaningful outcomes as part of its commitment to reconciliation for its national reconciliation program, culminating in the empowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people toward self-determination and in control of their financial wellbeing.
“I would love to see more Indigenous businesses engaging with ANZ for their banking needs. I am an ANZ customer and can speak first-hand about how much of a difference it makes when you have a business banker who is First Nations,” said Bayles.
“It is inspiring to see the ways in which ANZ can help Indigenous businesses to start and grow their operations, as well as creating many employment opportunities, not just at entry level with traineeships, but throughout ANZ’s organisation. Our vision is to see more Australian organisations representing our people and culture at the highest level,” she said.
Closing the gap on Indigenous unemployment rates has been a key driver for Mundanara across her body of work, over the last two decades. Data from Supply Nation shows every $1 spent on the Indigenous supply chain delivers a social return of $4.41, a significant indicator of the positive ripple effect this brings to the well-being and self-determination of First Nations people.
“ANZ is pleased to have the opportunity to make a difference in driving employment diversity, and financial wellbeing for First Nations business owners and entrepreneurs. This partnership offers a rich sense of purpose to all involved,” said Paul Presland, ANZ general manager, small to medium enterprise banking.
Black Magic Woman was the first Indigenous podcast signed by IHeartRadio in 2023 and is also available on the BlakCast Network.
