Remember that bustling little dining and entertainment tent that has been the hub of Kidney March activity every year? With the help of Strategic Group, that charming tent will be transformed into ‘Strategic Central’ in September 2017.
The Calgary-based company which owns, manages and develops office, retail and apartment properties across Canada, is the latest to step up to support Kidney March and the kidney community to make this transformation happen. Riaz Mamdani, the CEO of Strategic Group, has always placed a high degree of importance on community involvement.
“Businesses don’t operate in a vacuum,” Mr. Mamdani said in a recent interview. “Businesses are part of their community. We have a set of community values (Impact, Pride and Legacy) that are as important to us as our business values.”
Beyond what Mr. Mamdani describes as a social obligation to use our “intellect, muscle and capital to make the world a better place,” he insists on supporting good causes like Kidney March because “being visible in the community helps attract and motivate great people with similar values to work at the company – and that’s really what makes our business succeed.”
Mr. Mamdani is pleased that Kidney March has captured the imagination and passions of people within the organization; several people at Strategic Group have been personally affected by kidney disease and organ donation, including his own family.
When asked what he wanted the Kidney March community to know about the company, he said it was Strategic Group that could learn a lot from Kidney Marchers. “I know we will get a lot out of this new partnership with Kidney March. We are the ones who will be inspired by the perseverance, commitment and goal-setting that kidney patients have to master as part of coping with their disease.”
And Strategic Group has a lot to look forward to when it comes to being inspired. As a leadership sponsor, Strategic Group has teamed up with a kidney marcher who will represent the company at the Kidney March and be available to speak to employees about her experience. The Strategic Group Marcher is Nicole Wuetherick, a brave young woman who has had more than 100 surgeries in her journey with kidney disease. Nicole, now 20, was on dialysis for eight years before she received the precious gift of a kidney from a donor she will never know.
The Kidney March team is thrilled to have Strategic Group joining us as a partner in our efforts to raise awareness for kidney disease and organ donation! If you want to learn more about Strategic Group, please visit www.strategicgroup.ca. If you work for a company that would be interested in being a Kidney March sponsor, please contact Laura Flemming at 1.866.956.2724 or email laura.fleming@kidneyfoundation.ab.ca