Employee Engagement opportunities with Digital Xtra Fund tech initiatives

Engaging our Industry Partners

Digital Xtra Fund is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) enabling it to collaborate with a wide range of industry partners all working towards a common goal of helping young people succeed in an increasingly digital world.

Our model is very straightforward – we work with our partners to identify, finance, and assist extracurricular tech initiatives across the country. The more backing we have, the more initiatives we can support, and the more young people we can engage with tech.

Due to the generous support of our industry partners such as Baillie Gifford, CGI, Chroma Ventures, J.P. Morgan, Scotland Women in Technology, Scottish Government, and Skills Development Scotland, as well as many more, Digital Xtra Fund has awarded £875,000 to 137 initiatives across Scotland and helped nearly 45,000 young people have meaningful engagements with tech to date.

Digital Xtra Fund has committed to increasing our focus on facilitating collaborations between our industry partners and grant recipients. Through these engagements, we aim to:

help industry experts and professionals engage with and enthuse young people about tech while developing their understanding of the digital world
provide young people ‘real-world’ context to the digital skills they are learning
promote digital technologies as an attractive career path (including highlighting the breadth of careers in digital technologies)
dispel negative perceptions about digital technologies activities and careers through positive role models

The team at Digital Xtra Fund work closely with our industry partners and grant recipients to facilitate quality employee engagement opportunities. There are a wide variety of ways to volunteer – engagements can be virtual, in-person, or even pre-recorded. They can involve taking part in weekly sessions, career and skills talks, mentorship, or workplace visits. You could even help with the development of future activities.

Benefits of Employee Engagement

Volunteering with our grant recipients can provide skills development and increased motivation for employees, as well as contributing to their overall well-being. It’s a great way for our industry partners to exceed their corporate social responsibility objectives.

Working with young people and building partnerships in the local community enables our industry partners to not only provide valuable funding, but also give their time and support to help supported initiatives. Employees also gain the opportunity to develop key skills in areas such as leadership, creativity, and communication. Further benefits include increased confidence, resilience, and a better sense of fulfilment when they return to work

Our Partners also have the opportunity to participate in the grant awarding process by contributing expertise to the Application Evaluation Panel, thus helping guide the Fund’s investment priorities.

Please get in touch to learn more about becoming an industry partner and how your staff can help inspire a generation of digital leaders.

For more information on engaging with young people about tech:

Already a Partner?

If you are already a Digital Xtra Fund Partner or Supporter, please explore the current opportunities to volunteer and support this year’s supported initiatives (Round VII 2022/2023)

Find out more