Scotland National Strategy for Economic Transformation: industry leadership groups and sector groups - evidence

6. Digital Technologies Sector

Industry Aspirations to 2030

The technology sector is critically important for Scotland’s economic transformation, and is forecast to be Scotland’s second fastest growing sector. It aspires to elevate Scotland’s tech ecosystem to a world class level and to create a pipeline of profitable, scalable tech businesses.

Industry Opportunities

The sector is optimistic about the years ahead and is performing at levels similar to prior to the pandemic. Investment in the sector has seen higher growth than average, which increases potential opportunities.

Industry Challenges

The technology sector’s key challenges relate to accessing a range of support:

• there is unprecedented demand for support, both guidance and financial, to help businesses take advantage of digital technologies that will improve their competitiveness, productivity and resilience;
• the industry needs to ensure that, alongside any financial support there is, there is continued improvement and enhancement of enterprise support offer to businesses; and,
• SMEs face challenges including: lack of awareness of the benefits of digital adoption, weaknesses in the support available to them; and, a fragmented digital ecosystem where the tech suppliers, enterprise support and SMEs need to do more to maximise opportunities to collaborate.

Ongoing and Planned Activity forIndustry

These include:

• the industry has an extensive programme of action planned, which includesthe Scottish Technology Ecosystem Review (STER) – an industry-led blueprint for the Scottish tech industry that is aimed at elevating the ecosystem to a world-class level and creating a pipeline of profitable, scalable tech businesses. £7 million has been allocated to support the first year of implementation;
• Work is underway with partners on various work streams spanning people and education, infrastructure and investment;
• specific projects include establishing a national network of ‘Tech Scaler’ technology hubs to support the next generation of Scottish start-ups; investing in Scottish Government’s Ecosystem Fund, which will help build the best possible environments for Scotland’s start-ups to succeed; and working to improve the foundational talent pipeline for successful tech start-ups in Scotland’s universities and schools; and,
• the new Tech Scaler network will be located in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee and Inverness.