William MacLeod is a James Bay Cree, born on the land and raised in Mistissini. He lives in his community and is married with four children and is a proud grandfather. He started his contributions to his community by serving the Cree Nation of Mistissini as councillor for four years and was later elected Deputy Chief for two years. He continued his local involvement with Mistissini as its Executive Director for seven years and Director of Community Development for four years and Treasurer for two. Today, he is serving as a councillor once again.
MacLeod has always had a close relationship with the land and this is reflected in the positions he has held as Wildlife Conservation Officer for the Quebec government, Tourism Coordinator for Mistissini and his appointment to the Hunting Fishing Trapper Committee of the Grand Council of the Crees/Cree Regional Authority, a position he has held for seven years. He is an avid hunter and fisherman and goes out on the land every opportunity he gets. If he is not on his trapline, you can find him driving balls on the golf course.
His journey has led him to being the President of the Cree Construction and Development Company, a position he has held since 2002. The company was founded in 1976, and remains 100% Cree-owned and has contributed to shaping the communities and economic infrastructures of James Bay, Ontario and Manitoba. He takes great pride in the fact that 45-60% of the employees are Cree. Training is always on-going, therefore, continually impacting the socio-economic face of the communities and regions. The company has become one of the largest and most successful construction companies in Quebec. Gestion ADC, the sister catering and janitorial services company, was ranked in PROFIT 2008’s Most profitable companies in Quebec.
MacLeod currently sits as a Board member on all the joint ventures CCDC establishes. He was appointed to Vice President of the Cree Jobs Partnership (CJP) Initiative with Emploi-Québec, aimed to train over 300 Cree people in the various construction professions. This goal will be achieved by March 2012 at which time the program will expire.
He continuously strives to pursue new business opportunities and this is demonstrated in the groundbreaking partnerships throughout the James Bay territory and across Canada.
