Talent Search / Market Insight
How a Leading UK Retailer Uses All Five Talent Acumen Services
How a leading UK retailer uses every Talent Acumen service, choosing the right option for each need
5 of 5 service lines used |
9 departments, from the board down |
£187,500+ saved on three hires |
A leading UK retailer with several well-known brands has used every one of Talent Acumen's service lines: talent mapping, approach only, end-to-end search, pipelining and market insight. It chose a different service for each need, across nine departments, from the board down, and paid a day rate for the work rather than a percentage of salary.
At a glance
| Client | A leading UK retailer with several well-known brands |
| Services used | All five: talent mapping, approach only, end-to-end search, pipelining and market insight |
| Departments supported | Nine areas: the Board, People, Technology and Digital, Transformation, Buying and Product, Design, Supply Chain and Sourcing, Customer and Loyalty, and Sustainability. Over 20 roles across its brands and central services |
| Board-level work | Two independent non-executive appointments (the group Audit and Risk Committee and the financial services board) and a specialist Technology, Data and AI Committee |
| Fee model | Transparent day rate, not a percentage of salary |
| Executive appointments | Three, each on £250,000+, saving at least £187,500 against a 25% search fee |
Our service lines, and how this client used them
Each service can be bought on its own or combined with others. This client used all five.
| Service | What it is | How the client used it |
|---|---|---|
| Talent mapping | A researched picture of who does the job today, where they sit and what they look like | Mapped people leaders across its brands, and more than 50 senior technology leaders, shared as slide decks for the hiring team |
| Approach only | Confidential approaches to a list the client already has, with screening and a written profile for each person who engages | Approached 25 senior technology leaders from the client's own list under NDA, then added names of our own |
| End-to-end search | The full process, from mapping and anonymous first calls to NDA, screening, shortlist and interview | Ran a senior People search for a newly created, unannounced role, with weekly progress updates |
| Pipelining | Building and keeping warm a bank of strong candidates, with notes on what matters to each, ready for future roles | Tracked around 50 technology leaders, and one first engaged for one role was later appointed to another |
| Market insight | Research on how competitors organise teams, reporting lines and pay, to inform decisions before a role is fixed | Compared leadership structures at five major UK retailers, including where the digital P&L sits, and gathered package information to help set salaries |
At board level too
The same services worked for the boardroom, where the market is smaller, more senior and harder to reach.
| Mandate | What it involved | How we helped |
|---|---|---|
| Independent non-executive member, group Audit and Risk Committee | An independent seat on the committee overseeing the group's accounts, audit, risk management and internal control, around five meetings a year | A search across sectors for a qualified accountant, most likely a CFO, with audit committee, cyber and data risk, and consumer and digital experience |
| Independent Non-Executive Director, financial services arm | The final seat on a four-person statutory board for a newly formed, FCA-regulated subsidiary | Talent mapping of around 30 candidates in two weeks, grouped into three pools, then a second round of mapping alongside advertising and approaches |
| Technology, Data and AI Committee | Four specialist advisers, not full NEDs, giving the board expert challenge on technology, data and AI | Talent mapping across CTOs, chief architects, consultancy leaders and academics, plus market insight on the UK's leading university clusters in AI, supply chain analytics and responsible AI |
Three executive appointments, at a fraction of the usual cost
Alongside this wider work, the client appointed three executives through Talent Acumen, each on a base salary of £250,000 or more. At a typical search fee of 25% of salary, those roles alone would have cost at least £187,500.
| Role | Department | Base salary | Typical fee at 25% |
|---|---|---|---|
| People Director | People | £250,000+ | £62,500+ |
| Chief Information Officer | Technology | £250,000+ | £62,500+ |
| Director of Technology | Technology | £250,000+ | £62,500+ |
| Total | £187,500+ |
Our day rate meant the client paid for the research each role needed, not a share of the salary.
Different options for different needs
No two hiring needs are the same, so the client didn't use one fixed process. It picked the service that fitted each situation, and often combined them.
| When the client needed to... | It used |
|---|---|
| Understand a market before deciding what a role should look like | Market insight and talent mapping |
| Test whether the right person existed at all | Talent mapping, followed by confidential approaches |
| Reach people it had already identified, discreetly | Approach only |
| Fill a new, unannounced senior role from start to finish | End-to-end search |
| Have strong candidates ready for roles not yet open | Pipelining |
| Set a salary for a role still being designed | Market insight on packages |
| Find board members and specialist advisers | Talent mapping, market insight and confidential approaches |
Start small, extend only if needed. The client could begin with its own list and add mapping or search later, paying only for the time used.
Research that builds over time. The same team worked across departments and brands, so each project gave the next a head start.
Discretion built in. Anonymous first calls and NDAs let the client explore sensitive changes without signalling its plans.
Briefs shaped by evidence. Feedback from the market helped the client refine roles before committing to them.
What we can do for your business
This client is a retailer, but nothing about these services is specific to retail. The same research methods work for any industry and any function, from board and advisory appointments to technology, finance, HR, operations, legal and sales.
Talent mapping for any role, team or location, so you can see the market before you hire.
Approach only when you already know who you want to speak to and need it done discreetly.
End-to-end search for senior and hard-to-fill roles, from first call to appointment.
Pipelining to keep strong people warm for the roles you know are coming.
Market insight on competitor structures, reporting lines and pay to inform your decisions.
You can use one service for a single project or combine several across your business. We can also provide embedded research support for set periods, from two weeks to twelve months. Whatever you choose, you pay a transparent day rate for the work, not a percentage of salary.