From Disjointed Processes to a Cohesive Talent Roadmap
Attracting top talent is only the beginning. The real challenge lies in building a system that consistently hires right, integrates fast, and retains strong.
This organisation was reaching a critical inflection point. While the ambition and scale were growing, the talent systems were lagging behind. Hiring felt unpredictable.
Branding lacked alignment. Onboarding was patchy. And high-potential employees didn’t see a clear path forward.
Internally, teams were stretched. Externally, the employer brand wasn’t making the cut. The disconnect was costing time, momentum, and trust.
What We Found?
- The employer brand messaging wasn’t resonating, it felt unclear or inconsistent
- Hiring processes lacked structure, slowing decisions and creating poor candidate experiences
- Onboarding felt impersonal, leaving new hires unsure of their role and path
- Turnover was high in critical teams, signalling disengagement
- There was no structured leadership pipeline or growth journey
- A significant chunk of existing talent didn’t match the organisation’s future needs
What We Built?
- A refreshed employer value proposition, aligning internal and external messaging and cultivating a culture of appreciation
- Structured hiring systems — from semi-structured interviews and feedback loops to hiring strategy, bias-awareness training and talent ambassador development
- A personalised onboarding journey that integrated culture, storytelling, peer learning, and role clarity from day one
- Transparent career paths and tailored development plans that helped retain and re-engage high-performers
- A strategic talent realignment that identified and reskilled 30% of the workforce and outplaced mismatched talent to improve productivity
The EQ Angle That Made It Work
- We focused on clarity and belonging in the onboarding experience, so new hires felt seen from day one and the existing team knew how they would fit into the organisation.
- Created interviewer pairings, brought clarity in the hiring process by defining not just skills but the values, fitment into the team.
- Framed reskilling conversations with empathy, purpose, and future readiness
- Letting go mismatched talent with respect, financial security and help to look for a better suited opportunity.
- We designed every touchpoint, from hiring to onboarding, with the emotional journey in mind, not just the functional steps
- Created psychological safety during interviews by replacing interrogation with conversation and connection
- Turned onboarding into a grounding experience, helping new hires feel anchored, not just informed
- Framed reskilling decisions with empathy and honesty, focusing on growth potential instead of performance gaps
- Built development plans that factored in individual aspirations, strengths, and human pace—not just org charts and KPIs
- Kept communication consistent, kind, and context-rich throughout change, so teams felt guided, not blindsided
- 75% increase in quality applications, with stronger brand perception and pull
- Offer-to-join ratio rose from 40% to 85%, with smoother, faster hiring cycles
- Internal referral hiring rose from 0% to 30% within a year
- Onboarding integration improved, and satisfaction rose across cohorts (though there was a lot of scope for improvement there).
- Retention stabilised in high-impact teams, driven by clarity and growth visibility
What We Learned?
- Fixing talent problems isn’t about plugging gaps, it’s about designing flow.
- Great people stay when they are seen, challenged, and supported.
- Structure brings speed. Culture brings depth. Emotional intelligence makes it stick.
- This wasn’t about managing talent. It was about unlocking it.
