Meet Shaheen Hajira
Even with rooms full of visible and invisible diversity, most workshops and meetings are still designed for a “default” participant. The result is disengagement, missed perspectives and lost potential.
Hi, I’m Shaheen. I work at the intersection of inclusion, learning design and real-world practice, helping organisations move beyond intention to actually building inclusive environments that work.
As an Inclusive Learning Strategist and Founder of Ta’leem Consulting, I lead a social enterprise dedicated to designing accessible, equitable and high-impact learning experiences. With a Masters in Learning Science and Technology and over 13 years of experience across corporate, government, higher education and purpose-led organisations, I am widely recognised for translating inclusion into practical strategies that improve participation, performance and outcomes. My work is underpinned by the Inclusive Learning Framework, a structured approach to embedding inclusion into learning and facilitation.
A regular speaker at conferences and on podcasts, I am known for my warm, thought-provoking style and my ability to make complex ideas clear and actionable. I help leaders and teams uncover the often invisible barriers shaping their systems, and support them to design more inclusive ways of working in the moments that matter.
My Why
I am driven by a simple but common gap I keep seeing in my work. Even in well-intentioned organisations, we continue to design for a “default” participant, and in doing so, we unintentionally exclude, overlook and underutilise so much talent. There is no "default." As humans, we are all distinctive.
What drives me is the opportunity to make this visible. To help people notice what they have been trained not to see, and to realise that inclusion is not an abstract ideal, but something shaped in everyday decisions. The way we run meetings, design learning, communicate expectations and define success.
Living and working at the intersection of privilege and marginalisation at the same time, I draw on my lived experience to move forward with understanding, while using my privilege to speak in ways that raise us all together!
My Accomplishments
Some of the work I am most proud of reflects both depth of experience and the impact it has created in practice.
With over 13 years in learning and development, I have worked across corporate, government, higher education, consultancies and purpose-led organisations, designing learning experiences that are both inclusive and effective. A defining part of my journey was building a learning and development function from the ground up within a disability organisation, shaping programs that centred access, participation and real-world impact.
Over the past 6 years, my work has focused deeply on inclusive learning. This led to the development of the Inclusive Learning Framework, a structured approach I designed from scratch to help organisations embed inclusion into how learning is designed, facilitated and experienced.
Key highlights include:
- Built and led a Learning and Development function from the ground up within a disability organisation - Designed and licensed the Inclusive Learning Framework, now used to embed inclusive practice across programs and teams - Delivered workshops and learning experiences across diverse sectors including corporate, higher education, government and purpose-led organisations - Supported leaders and teams to move from intention to practical, embedded inclusive practices in their day-to-day work - Recognised for translating complex inclusion concepts into clear, actionable strategies that improve participation and performance - Regularly invited to speak at conferences and podcasts on inclusive learning, leadership and design
Through my work with a wide range of clients, from large organisations to early-stage teams, I am known for bridging theory and practice. I help teams move beyond intention to practical, sustainable change that improves participation, surfaces diverse perspectives and strengthens outcomes.
Fun facts
I am a trained improviser! With over 2 years of improv training and another year of being on the house team I now use applied improvisation in my workshops to create engagement and drive different perspectives!
How I can help
Recognise and remove invisible barriers I help leaders and teams identify the often unseen design choices, norms and assumptions that limit participation, equity and performance.
Move from intention to practical action I equip teams with clear, realistic strategies to embed inclusion into everyday decisions, from how meetings are run to how learning is designed and delivered. These are design choices, not abstract ideas!
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