WJM Inverness Committed to Helping Unlock Highlands Economic Potential

Published byAngus MacLeod

15th December 2025

Head of WJM’s Inverness office and a Highland CIC Ambassador, Angus MacLeod, highlights why collaboration and effective communication will be key to driving forward ambitions, following his attendance at the Highland Sustainable Development Summit.

Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie has committed over the coming year to supporting Highland CIC in its work to create a Highland Strategic Investment Fund, by bringing our legal expertise to bear.

Highland and Islands Enterprise’s research suggests that there is up to £100 billion coming to the Highlands and Islands in the form of transformational capital projects over the next ten years. It is essential that this opportunity delivers a sustainable legacy for the region: this is what Highland CIC aims to achieve by bringing together the renewables and tourism industries to work collaboratively with others.

It’s an initiative we have engaged with since its inception and one we see as vital to ensure a legacy for the Highlands and Islands that delivers social impact and economic benefit in a sustainable way, and that makes a positive contribution long-term.

Our role is to support with governance and structure to help create suitable vehicles for the delivery of Highland CIC’s agenda.

Strategic partnerships are going to be key. Local communities, industry participants and the public sector all need to work together to unlock the full potential of this opportunity.

There are several objectives which we are eager to help the organisation achieve including identifying where the opportunities are for our younger generations and fostering talent, employment and entrepreneurship, along with facilitating a global regenerative tourism model.

The Highland Sustainable Development Summit was a great opportunity to come together and hear from a host of people including Satya Tripathi from the Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet, who placed the Highlands in the heart of the worldwide effort to address climate change, as well as industry leaders highlighting the investments being made in the region.

For me though, the one of the most insightful segments was a panel of young people who articulated their experiences of growing up in the Highlands and Islands, and set out their ambitions for what working and living in the Highlands should be like in the future.

It was really invigorating to hear: they were optimistic and supportive, and passionate about this part of the world.

One of the key action points that came from the summit was that they need more concrete information about the opportunities now, in order to make the right decisions about their career journeys.

We want to see legacy projects such as infrastructure, housing and a culture of entrepreneurship as well as local businesses making the most of the supply chain opportunities and sustaining employment right across the region and as a business, we are keen to support businesses in making the most of these financial opportunities.

While it’s the renewables and tourism sectors that have come together, the potential impact for the regional economy as a whole is much more far-reaching. These powerhouse industries need the support of a whole host of other professions and trades, and there will be a demand for skills and labour across the whole economy of the Highlands and Islands.

Interesting, varied and rewarding careers will be built here, and our young people need to know that.

We must ensure that all young people in the area know what is potentially open to them, and help set up the region to thrive for generations to come.

This article first appeared in Executive Magazine