As the first Deaf female executive in Sorenson UK’s leadership, Semhar Beyene brings rich diverse experience to her role as Director of Marketing.

Born Deaf into a family of hearing members, Semhar is also first-generation British born after her parents migrated to the UK from Eritrea. Studying her key education at a Deaf boarding school, and travelling the world after graduation, Semhar has spent her life, immersing both cultures, communication, and communities.

Semhar began her career as a creative designer, where she has worked for corporate and charity brands across technology, research, and healthcare industries – Cochlear Europe, The International Institute of Strategic Studies and RNID to name a few. With over 17 years of in-house and agency experience, her key specialism stems from art direction, where she focused on bringing pioneering concepts to life for brands, products, and services to elevate and inspire the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities, both locally and globally. She started her journey with Sorenson as a Creative Marketing Manager, tasked to lead SignVideo’s new brand identity and messaging across digital, print, and social platforms. With her versatile experience in global business regions, she has built collaborative transatlantic relationships with key stakeholders in the UK and US at Sorenson HQ, where she undertook a role as part of the global brand team for the Sorenson rebrand, implementing brand immersion workshops and interviewing Sorenson’s C-suite with the renowned Deaf designer, Ravi Vasavan.

In her current role, Semhar brings together experience developed over the years, serving in different marketing roles as well as her extensive first-hand experiences in accessibility and inclusion in communications in all aspects. She is excited to support Sorenson’s mission to expand opportunities for underserved communities and championing a culture of belonging and this begins with building relationships where everyone is meaningfully understood.

Semhar graduated from the University of the Creative Arts with a Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design and continues her passion for promoting Deaf leadership and representation with her work as the Vice Chair of deaf charity, RAD (Royal Association for Deaf People) and other media TV work.