City of Vaughan

KLB Consulting led the Better Your Business: Tourism Diversity program, an innovative DEI initiative designed to build capacity and readiness among Vaughan’s tourism-facing businesses. The project closely mirrors the structure and intent of the OSW Tourism Market Readiness Program, as it involved direct engagement with a cohort of tourism businesses, personalized coaching, and the development of tailored improvement plans.

The program launched with a high-impact, full-day DEI workshop that brought together businesses, tourism leaders, and equity practitioners for shared learning and dialogue. Following the event, KLB conducted individual business assessments to understand operational contexts, challenges, and equity-readiness. From there, we co-developed 16 fully customized DEI strategies that were each branded and aligned with the respective business’s values, goals, and customer base.

Each participating business received one-on-one coaching to implement their strategy, addressing areas such as inclusive hiring, accessible service delivery, and diverse customer engagement. KLB also developed and delivered a sector-wide Tourism Diversity Toolkit and real-time frameworks for inclusive recruitment, retention, and workplace culture.

This project demonstrated our ability to work across a network of businesses with varied needs, delivering both individualized outcomes and sector-wide tools. It aligns closely with the OSW program’s goals of supporting readiness, improving service delivery, and strengthening the region’s inclusive visitor economy.