FEATURE
FOCUS ON FIRST NATIONS CLEANING BUSINESSES NAIDOC Week puts a spotlight on Indigenous enterprise, but operators say the real work starts long before the contract is signed. Words Tim McDonald
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ach year, NAIDOC Week invites Australia to reflect on the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. For the cleaning and facilities management sector, it also offers a timely opportunity to examine a more uncomfortable question: when procurement policy promises so much, why does the gap between intent and lived experience remain so wide? The frameworks designed to support Indigenous business, chief among them the Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP) and Reconciliation Action Plans (RAPs), have undeniably opened doors. But for the operators on the ground, those doors still open into a hallway of obstacles: tight margins, inconsistent jurisdictional standards, capital constraints and a procurement culture that too often reduces genuine partnership to a financial transaction. Robert Grasso of Supply Nation, the peak body connecting corporate, government and not-for-profit members with verified Indigenous suppliers, points to structural fragmentation as a foundational problem. “There is a growing need to seek alignment between Commonwealth policy frameworks and those operating at state and territory level,” he says. “Standardisation across jurisdictions would provide more clarity and transparency for businesses.” For small to medium enterprises, which make up the bulk of the Indigenous cleaning sector, that lack of consistency compounds every other challenge they face.
THE GAP BETWEEN POLICY AND PRACTICE
For Joe Wallace, founder and managing director of Multhana, a name drawn from the Kalkadoon language of Far North Queensland, meaning ‘coming together to help each other’, the disconnection is experienced most acutely at the contract stage. “The gap often comes down to how policy intent works with everyday procurement decisions,” he says. “There's a strong and positive focus on increasing Indigenous participation but, in practice, contracts are still largely influenced by pricing, particularly in sectors like cleaning where margins are already tight.” 38 INCLEAN May / June / July 2026
Woollahra Group managing director Chris Schmid adds, “The biggest gap is between policy intent and commercial reality,” he says. “While Indigenous procurement policies create access, many Indigenous cleaning businesses still face tight margins, upfront mobilisation costs, short contract terms and payment cycles that don't reflect labour-intensive operations. These pressures are amplified for businesses scaling without large balance sheets.” His observation points to a system that measures success at the point of contract award rather than tracking whether businesses are genuinely stronger over time, a distinction that matters enormously when the goal is sustainable participation rather than symbolic inclusion. Wallace's concern runs parallel. Strict site compliance, Indigenous employment targets and razor-thin pricing expectations are three forces pulling in different directions, and Indigenous cleaning operators are left to reconcile them without the financial backing that would make it possible. “There are also practical realities that aren't always visible at a policy level,” Wallace says. “Delivering services for government and high-compliance sites comes with strict workforce requirements and, while creating employment opportunities is a key goal, there can be challenges in aligning those requirements with workforce availability at times.” Grasso acknowledges this dynamic, noting that Supply Nation plays an active role in bridging the capability gap. “Many businesses operating in the cleaning and facilities management sector are small- to medium-sized businesses and often struggle to access larger tender opportunities and contracts without supporting services and guidance,” he says. In 2024, Killara Services, a Supply Nation-verified Indigenous-owned business offering cleaning, maintenance and hygiene services nationally, was recognised as Certified Supplier of the Year at the Supplier Diversity Awards, a recognition that speaks to what is achievable when that support is in place.