Canada's Top Small & Medium Employers (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 36
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CANADA’S TOP SMALL & MEDIUM EMPLOYERS (2026)
Building community is in Johnston Group’s DNA
I
t didn’t take long for
Ainsley Rowan-Keogh to
feel at home at Johnston
Group. Born and raised
in Winnipeg, where the
employee benefit company is
based, Rowan-Keogh was drawn
to Johnston Group’s commitment
to community engagement.
“The opportunities for community work here feel endless,” says
the customer service coordinator,
who prioritizes giving back in her
personal life. “It means the world
to be able to come to a workplace
and do the things that you love as
well.”
As a member of the Purpose
and Contribution Committee,
which coordinates volunteers with
initiatives, Rowan-Keogh is at the
centre of Johnston Group’s giving
work.
At the same time, Rowan-Keogh
has the opportunity to improve
people’s lives on a full spectrum,
from one-on-one conversation
with clients in her customer care
role to volunteer work and largescale community sponsorships.
Giving is so embedded in the
organization that board rooms are
dedicated to partnerships, including United Way, the Winnipeg Art
Gallery-Qaumajuq and Habitat for
Humanity.
“Every day, I’m able to enrich
the lives of other people or help
make people's days even just a
little better than before you spoke
to them,” says Rowan-Keogh.
Her professional and personal
volunteer work came together
in fall 2025 during Socktober, a
sock drive for Main Street Project,
a charity supporting vulnerable
people in Winnipeg.
Rowan-Keogh, who grew up
volunteering with Winnipeg’s
unhoused populations alongside
her mother, was already an active
volunteer with Main Street.
“That’s a cause that’s dear to my
heart,” she says. “It’s something
I’ve always strived towards and
helped every little bit I can.”
Supporting the community is
something of a family tradition
at Johnston Group as well, says
co-president Will Johnston, who
shares leadership with his brother,
Matt Johnston.
“My dad always felt a responsibility to the staff and, as a local
small business, the community
at large,” says Johnston, whose
father, David Johnston, founded
the company in 1983.
As Johnston Group has grown,
so has its legacy of giving, which
started with United Way, a charitable network with a broad reach
in the local community. Today,
the company supports over 100
organizations.
Johnston believes that small
businesses are the lifeblood of the
community — and not only when
it comes to giving back. As a group
benefits provider, the company
helps take care of over 32,000
small businesses nationwide
through its products.
“Small businesses are the fabric
of the community, and it’s our
responsibility to help communities thrive,” says Johnston.
Being anchored to a sense of
purpose not only helps drive
the company forward in the big
picture, but it also creates a work
environment where staff feel
comfortable showing up as their
authentic selves.
Small businesses are the fabric of the community,
and it’s our responsibility to help communities thrive.
— Will Johnston
Co-President
Employees at Johnston Group take on the role of MC during the organization’s corporate retreat.
