Welcome to the April edition of DIGIT Movers and Shakers, 2024!

Every month, our Movers and Shakers feature gives you the low-down on recent news in the Scottish tech ecosystem, from recruitment and partnerships to expansions and awards.

This month boasts a mix of cutting-edge organisations and key players doing exciting things — read on to find out what’s been happening!

Recruitment

Softworx Group Makes New Appointments to Board of Directors

Softworx Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Andy Slorach, head of business development, and Eddie Trainer, head of cyber & compliance, to the board of directors, with the company stating that their elevation to directorial positions reflects their significant contributions to the company’s growth and leadership.

Alan Smillie, CEO of The Softworx Group, commented: “Andy and Eddie have played integral roles in the growth of our business. Their addition to the board fortifies our senior management team as we enter the next phase of expansion, providing strong foundations and peace of mind for the future.”

Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland Appoints New Head of Cyber and Fraud

The Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland, has announced the appointment of former Police Scotland detective superintendent, Alex Dowall, to a pivotal position. With a career spanning over three decades in policing, Dowall is looking to bring both experience, and specialisation into his new role.

“This new role (…) is not just another step in my career, but a continuation of my lifelong commitment to public safety and justice. Throughout my extensive policing experience tackling Organised Crime, I’ve witnessed first-hand the evolving landscape where cyber threats intersect with traditional criminal activities like fraud,” said Dowall.

To read more, click here.

Scottish Enterprise Interim Chair’s Appointment Extended

The appointment of Scottish Enterprise’s interim chair Willie Mackie has been extended for him to continue in the role until 31 December 2024.

This will ensure continuity while a further appointment round is run for a chair to succeed Lord Smith, who stood down in July 2022.

The job description will reflect the specialist skills required to oversee implementation of the agency’s new strategic approach launched by the first minister in January.

To read more, click here.

Scots Law Firm Burness Paull Promotes Four to Partner

Burness Paull has elevated four lawyers to partner across energy, technology and real estate, which the firm deems as ‘important areas of strategic focus and success.’

The newly appointed partners are Victoria Tweed (energy), Murray Cree (technology and commercial), Paul Coyle and Mike Guthrie (both real estate).

To read more, click here.

Acumen Expands Its Team

Acumen, an engineer-powered cyber security service provider, announced it has appointed Spencer Misstear and Darren Sewell to its team to support its business growth plans and its expansion into new regions and sectors.

Spencer Misstear joins the Acumen team boasting 25 years of experience in sales and business development within some of the world’s leading enterprises. He will be using his extensive experience to support the strategic growth of Acumen, with a specific focus on enterprise and public sector organisations.

Darren Sewell has also been appointed, bringing with him over ten years of sales and channel experience. In his role, Darren will be helping raise awareness and drive sales for Acumen in the South of England, while also working to expand the organisation’s channel business.

Tricapital Angels Names New Chief Operating Officer

Angel investment group Tricapital Angels has named Lynne Cadenhead as its chief operating officer.

Edinburgh-based Tricapital is a syndicate of entrepreneurs, CEOs and business leaders that works in partnership with Scottish Enterprise to offer investment and expertise to early and mid-stage Scottish companies.

Prof Cadenhead has years of experience in start-up and equity investment, life sciences, business development, and strategic leadership.

Golden Charter Appoints Chief Technology Officer

Glasgow-based funeral plan provider, Golden Charter, has appointed highly experienced technology transformation leader, Stuart McWhinnie, as its chief technology officer.

McWhinnie brings extensive experience implementing robust technological change programmes within businesses, delivering digital, data and technology services and modernisation programmes across major organisations. These organisations include the pan-European automotive data provider, EurotaxGlass, UK-based social enterprise, Wisegroup, and Barclays Investment Bank.

N4 Partners Announces New Promotions

Glasgow-headquartered investment and advisory firm, N4 Partners (N4), announced the promotions of Andrew Leslie and Ruaridh MacFarlane, which comes hot on the heels of completing the first acquisition for its new property arm, N4 Property, located at Glasgow’s Blythswood Square, announced last month.

Andrew Leslie joined the firm in 2020 and following his new promotion to Director, will continue in his operational capacity driving value across N4’s portfolio of ambitious businesses with a focus on Opulus Financial, NeuroClin and Spirit Label.

London-based Ruaridh MacFarlane has been promoted to Associate Director at N4 and will work closely across the current direct investment portfolio and pipeline, while continuing a successful operational partnership with Paul Hodgkiss Designs.

Partnerships

CirrusHQ Announces Multi-Year Collaboration With AWS

CirrusHQ have announced a multi-year global Strategic Collaboration Agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS). This agreement builds on the successful relationship that AWS and CirrusHQ have built over the last 10 years.

The agreement reinforces CirrusHQ’s ability to deliver its services to education, public sector, E-commerce and media organisations worldwide, building on that long-term relationship through the development of specific solutions to help enable customers to modernise applications, optimise costs and migrate services to the cloud.

To read more, click here.

Heriot-Watt and University of Houston Partner for Clean Energy Solutions

A landmark agreement between Heriot-Watt and the University of Houston aims to become a global force in combating climate change.

Representatives from each university met in the US in April to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), underscoring a commitment to work together on cutting-edge research as well as provide opportunities for students and staff to participate in international exchange programmes.

With a focus on clean energy, the joint agreement aims to address pressing societal challenges with the climate emergency at the forefront.

To read more, click here.

Zumo Partners with CCRI for Sustainable Crypto Carbon Footprint

Zumo, the Edinburgh-based B2B digital assets infrastructure company, has announced a new strategic partnership with Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute (CCRI), which provides data on the carbon exposure of investments and business activities related to blockchain.

CCRI’s interdisciplinary team has built a multi-year research track record with a specific focus on cryptocurrencies and their environmental impact. The organisation uses the latest data sources as well as methods based on peer-reviewed studies published in leading scientific journals.

CCRI will now provide the data and methodologies to enable Zumo to further develop its Oxygen solution. The first of its kind, Oxygen uses blockchain technology and strategically sourced market instruments, including renewable energy certificates (RECs), to enable financial institutions to measure, mitigate, and report on the carbon footprint of their digital asset activities.

To read more, click here.

Scottish Gas & Forster Group Partner to Boost Solar Power Adoption

The partnership aims to address the surge in demand for solar panel and battery storage technology among homeowners. According to Solar Power Portal, nearly 26,000 solar panels were installed in Scotland last year, which is a 174% increase from 2020 numbers.

Forster Group, headquartered in Brechin, Angus, has already made significant strides in the solar industry, providing services to one in five new homes across Scotland. Through this latest collaboration, Scottish Gas will now be able to offer solar power and battery technology installations to eligible customers not only in Scotland but also in England and Wales.

To read more, click here.

Strathclyde Uni Enters Partnership with Siemens to Drive Innovation

The University of Strathclyde has formed a strategic partnership with Siemens Energy to address the key challenges and opportunities to decarbonise our future energy system.

Strathclyde will become part of the energy giant’s innovation ecosystem, with a focus on research and innovation that accelerates the transition to net zero.

The partnership, which was formalised at a signing ceremony at the Innovation Center Berlin, aims to develop strategies and innovations that contribute to a more resilient, affordable and sustainable energy system.

To read more, click here.

Napier Uni and WES Partner for Women in Business Lab

Edinburgh Napier University has partnered with Women’s Enterprise Scotland (WES) to support more women getting into the business world.

In their new collaboration, called SDG5 Living, women looking to start a business or further their careers can find tailored training, resources, and networking.

The programme draw support from not only the university, but from WES Chair and entrepreneur in residence Lynne Cadenhead, who has expertise and experience as an entrepreneur, and is still the acting CEO of her third startup company, Immaculate Drinks.

To read more, click here.

FinTech Scotland and Smart Data Foundry Partner for Innovation Challenge

FinTech Scotland and Smart Data Foundry are collaborating to bring an industry-wide UK fintech innovation challenge to the market.

The challenge seeks to inspire the development of inclusive financial services for consumers, empowering them on their journey towards a secure financial future.

Building on the success of the previous SME business banking programme in 2023, the 2024 emphasis will be on new innovative solutions that can support people’s financial journeys as they plan for their later years.

To read more, click here.

Expansions

JPMorgan Chase Unveils Brand New Glasgow Office

JPMorgan Chase welcomed employees and guests to the ribbon cutting ceremony at its new office in Glasgow. Located on Argyle Street in the city’s International Finance District, the 270,000 sq ft, 14 storey building employed 3,900 construction workers and took five years to finish.

The building features ‘experiential’ meeting spaces, conference rooms, work cafés and games rooms. The layout of collaboration space is configurable, with several equipped with touchscreens. There are amenities such as a wellness studio, nursing and mindfulness rooms.

To read more, click here.

New Digital Pharma Manufacturing Facility Opens in Paisley

The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) is in collaboration with academia and industry leaders to develop a digital manufacturing facility in Paisley, Scotland.

Working with leaders in pharma and digital could help medicines reach patients up to a year faster, the Centre hopes.

The collaboration will develop a working model of a cloud-first manufacturing facility that will use technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and the Internet of Things (IoT) to accelerate the speed at which new medicines are made.

To read more, click here.

Awards

Virtual Van Gogh project nominated for Webby Award

A project involving University of the West of Scotland (UWS) has been nominated for a major international award – alongside pop culture icons such as Taylor Swift, Mr Beast, RuPaul and The Simpsons.

Virtual Van Gogh – created in conjunction with arts and heritage app Smartify on behalf of AT&T – is in the running for a Webby Award, which recognises the best of the internet.

As part of the project, the iconic Vincent Van Gogh painting Restaurant Rispal at Asnières has been transformed into a fully explorable virtual reality (VR) museum, packed with some of the artists most famous paintings from around the world.

The original artwork depicts the outside of a 19^th century café in France.