Brisbane entrepreneur Jack Reis has called out lateral violence among Indigenous communities and urged unity after being recognised at this year’s Supply Nation awards.

Mr Reis won the Sam Tjengala Reuben Award, which recognises Indigenous people aged under 35 who demonstrated business acumen, growth and resilience, alongside meeting a critical gap in the Indigenous business sector.

Other individual winners on the night included Belinda Murdoch, Henri Fadli and Jasmine Newman.

Organisational winners included Indigeco, BGIS, Marawar, Kalinda IT, the Department of Defence and Indigenous Defence and Infrastructure Consortium/Boeing,.

Mr Reis, a Badulaig (Kenedth Ke) man from Badu Islands, said tensions outside of business hamstrung young Indigenous leaders trying to make their way in the world.

“We have a lot of lateral violence amongst us, and we don’t need our own people pulling us down,” he said

“We can work together and create an impact.”

That impact is important to Mr Reis, who is well aware statistically his life will be one decade shorter than his business partner’s who sits across the meeting room table.

Four years on, Mr Reis said the “if you see someone, you can be someone” mantra had led to scholarships and new pathways for Indigenous people into the information technology industry.

“A lot of our young mob see our sports stars and go ‘well there’s a pathway to be a sportster’,” he said.

Lateral violence is rampant in the Aboriginal community, so what is it?

“But four years ago, we couldn’t see anyone in our industry, and our industry pays very well, it is lucrative.

“So we wanted to create the same model, the JT of IT. Kids look up to (Johnathan Thurston( for football and we want the same for IT.”

Mr Reis said receiving the award was emblematic of, “The resilience, hard work and tenacity” that had gone into building Baidam Solutions.

“When I say resilience and tenacity…we were constantly being shut down,” he said.

“Knock on the next door, no, knock on the next door, no, until we became relevant.

“I think now, four years later people are seeing that.”

Mr Reis said he wanted to be a role model for family and his community.

• Story by Rachel Stringfellow