Ahtna, incorporated: moving together--as one--for success.

• Author: Stricker, Julie
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: Corporate 100 - Services and growth of Ahtna Inc.

"A very long time ago, there was a group of Ahtna people who were trying to decide the best way to cross over a swift moving river. The people knew that sending one at a time or worse, separating and everyone doing their own thing, could mean losing one or all of the group. As they were taught, they picked up a long stick that each of them held onto and they moved together, as one, to successfully and safely cross the river."

This story, passed down to Ahtna, Inc. Chairman Nick Jackson by his father-in-law, recently passed Traditional Chief Ben Neeley, is at the heart of the corporate culture of Ahtna, Inc. Ahtna, one of the top Alaska-owned corporations in the state with total revenues of $201 million in fiscal year 2013, has about 1,900 shareholders of Ahtna Athabascan descent, many of whom still live in the scenic Copper River Valley where the corporation is headquartered.

Steady Growth

Over the years, Ahtna, Inc. has grown steadily, strengthening its bottom line and expanding its family of subsidiaries, which have operations across the nation, primarily in government services and construction. As an Alaska Native corporation created under the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, Ahtna has dual mandates: one is to create a profitable business model to support shareholders financially; the other is to help meet shareholders' cultural, economic, and social needs.

At Ahtna, the two mandates are closely aligned. The corporation sponsors job training, scholarships and internships for shareholders and descendants, cultural camps; and actively backs measures designed to increase local decision-making in hunting and fishing issues. The corporation is making decisions with an eye on the future, President Michelle Anderson tells shareholders in Ahtna's most recent annual report.

"The Ahtna Board is making business decisions looking generations out. This forward thinking shows in the investments that have been made across the companies including the protection of customary and traditional hunting and fishing, education of shareholders and descendants, and the establishment of a monetary trust that is intended to provide cash distributions for generations to come.

"These board actions also call to mind a 'corporate behavior' that Ahtna people have been practicing since time immemorial. That is the practice of taking care of our people, our villages, and the environment in which we live."

The Ahtna Board and management understand the importance...