Fresh high-level hire at Scottish digital skills academy CodeClan

Scottish digital skills academy CodeClan has continued its recent hiring spree with the appointment of Damien Miller as chief delivery officer.

Damien Miller becomes chief delivery officer at CodeClan, the digital skills academy. Picture: Killian McAleese

The organisation, which has campuses in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness, said Miller was joining from Computershare, where he was the IT group’s development manager and helped grow its software development team at its “global centre of excellence” in Edinburgh.

The latest high-level appointment comes just weeks after CodeClan hired Neil Brown from The Data Lab as chief operating officer.

The skills academy, which said it was experiencing record demand for its programming, data and bespoke courses, recently marked its fifth anniversary and has now produced more than 1,000 graduates since opening its doors.

Miller’s remit at CodeClan will include working closely with the senior leadership team around project management, strategy and growth plans.

He said: “I’ve greatly admired CodeClan as it has gone from strength to strength and become a household name on the tech scene through providing industry-ready graduates for organisations.

“As Scotland charts its economic recovery in the wake of Covid-19, it has never been more important to invest in our digital skills to help put the nation firmly on the map as a technology powerhouse. I’m also looking forward to giving something back to the software development community that gave so much to me in the early stages of my career.”

Chief executive Melinda Matthews-Clarkson said: “Damien has a strong track record as a people-focused, technical leader and will be a key part of CodeClan’s leadership team as we look to drive a number of projects and efficiencies over the next twelve months and beyond.”

Initially funded by the Scottish Government, CodeClan is now run as a not-for-profit self-funded organisation, working with hundreds of employers across Scotland ranging from start-ups to global corporates. It has produced more than 1,000 graduates since opening its doors in 2015.

In September, Bill Douglas was appointed as the academy’s new chair, replacing Polly Purvis.

Matthews-Clarkson said recently: “We are not going to pretend that the last few months have been easy, but it’s nice to take a moment to see how far we have come as we mark our 1,000th graduate.”

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