The Scottish Ethnic Minority Talent Summit and Festival (SEMTSF) 2024 was the first of its kind, hosting a series of events to support the diversification of Scotland’s workforce and improve outcomes across communities.
The inaugural Talent Summit was hosted by The DataKirk on Thursday 31 October 2024 at Tynecastle Park in Edinburgh and was presented by Helene Rodger, CEO, Passion4Fusion and Bruce Walker, Founder of Ecosystems Builders.
DataKirk are an Edinburgh based social enterprise founded in May 2019 with the aim to close the data divide and change the face of Scotland’s future talent pool by increasing the representation of disadvantaged groups in the data economy.
Manira Ahmad, Chief Officer, Public Health Scotland opened the Talent Summit with the Chair’s remark, putting the connection between community and opportunity at the forefront and reinforcing the importance of multiculturalism in the workforce.
Manira said: “It’s about Scotland building a really inclusive, diverse community so that we create a welcoming, safe environment where everyone has access.”
“Scotland, as a nation, is richer when we take away groupthink and become really open to intense conversations that will help us grow, and help our institutions and organisations grow.”
Talent driven event
Through thought-provoking panel discussions, keynote speeches from industry leaders, and interactive roundtable sessions, the audience of local employers, academicians, corporate organisations, non-profits, and government agencies were given insight into the tools and strategies needed to build, navigate and manage a thriving multi-cultural workforce in Scotland.
Key topics included:
- The Role of Allyship in the Workplace
- The Future of Scotland’s Workforce
- Conflict Resolution in Diverse Teams
- Inclusive & Responsible AI Recruitment Practices
- Cultural Intelligence in Leadership
- Best Practices for Inclusivity in the Workplace
- Overcoming Challenges in Multi-Cultural Teams
- Building Cultural Competence
In the afternoon, sportscotland Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager, Atta Yaqub joined the round table to discuss Overcoming Challenges in Multi-Cultural Teams alongside Yekemi Otaru, Chancellor, University of West of Scotland, Zara Hedges, CEO, Winning Scotland, and Lara Oyedele, CEO, Black on Board.
The experienced panel explored the challenges, strategies, benefits and successes of multi-cultural teams - placing an emphasis on retaining diversity, recognising cultural differences and supportive leadership.
Finding next-gen talent
The DataKirk’s CEO, Fash Fasoro, brought to life the positive impact that the social enterprise has made in the five-years since being founded.
The Talent for Data programme has launched 139 people into Scotland’s tech scene and the Data Literacy Club has helped 232 children with digital skills.
The TACT scheme brought 45 women into growth sectors, the Entrepreneurial Accelerator helped 48 minority founders launch businesses, and Talent On Board has positioned 22 people in company boardrooms.
Fash said: “Every programme, every conversation, and every action we embrace today, builds a future where our workforce isn’t just skilled or innovative, but also representative and fair.”
Fair Work First guidance
The keynote by Thomas C. Arthur, Minister for Employment & Investment, Scottish Government empowered the audience to embrace diversity in building inclusive workplaces.
The new ‘Fair Work First’ guidance has been launched to help address barriers for priority groups, including those from ethnic minorities.
Thomas said: “While our fair work agenda lays the foundation for a labour market built on fairness and opportunity for all, we know that minorities face unique challenges none greater than the harms of racism, which require us to take targeted action.”
He added: “That’s why our anti-racist employment strategy is designed to confront the scale and complexity of racism head-on.”
“We continue to work with racialised minority colleagues to understand the barriers they face, hearing what we get right and importantly what we can do better.”
About the Scottish Ethnic Minority Talent Summit and Festival (SEMTSF)
SEMTSF was a 5-day talent-driven event that ran from 28 October to 1 November 2024 with fresh perspective for a more inclusive future.
The goal of SEMTSF 24 is to unlock the full potential of Scotland’s ethnic minority talent pool.
Through a series of dynamic events, workshops, and discussions, SEMTSF 24 empowered individuals and fostered collaboration with the aim to build a more prosperous and inclusive Scotland for everyone.
