Unseen Group

Author: Jess Wood

  • Blog: Recfest 2026, a recap

    Blog: Recfest 2026, a recap

    Event Recap

    Looking Back on RecFest 2026

    Early this July, the Unseen team had a fantastic day at RecFest 2026 over in Knebworth Park.

    Take a look at our highlight reel below!

    Key Themes

    From thought-provoking conversations to some friendly competition at the Unseen stand, it was brilliant to connect with so many talent acquisition and early careers professionals who are shaping the future of hiring.

    One of the biggest themes running through the day was the desire to create recruitment experiences that are more connected, more human and more effective.

    We had some genuinely interesting conversations around both the challenges and opportunities facing talent acquisition and early careers teams today.

    It was particularly encouraging to see so many organisations taking a step back to look at the bigger picture. Conversations were moving beyond simply filling vacancies and towards creating experiences that attract, engage and retain great people over the long term.

    Whether organisations were discussing assessment, candidate engagement, employer branding or onboarding, there was a shared focus on improving the complete candidate and employee journey rather than treating recruitment as a series of disconnected stages.

    Assessment

    There was huge interest in how fair, evidence-based assessment can improve hiring quality while creating a better experience for candidates.

    Engagement

    Teams are exploring new ways to engage candidates throughout the recruitment journey with more personalised and meaningful interactions.

    Authenticity

    Authentic, employee-generated content continues to grow in importance as organisations look for better ways to showcase their culture and attract the right talent.

    One thing became clear: Organisations are no longer looking for isolated recruitment tools. They’re looking for connected solutions that support candidates and employees at every stage of their journey.

    Thank You

    A huge thank you to everyone who stopped by the Unseen stand throughout the day.

    Whether you came over to discuss your recruitment challenges, learn more about our platforms or simply join in with a little healthy competition, it was a pleasure meeting so many passionate talent and careers professionals.

    We’re already looking forward to the next one!

    Missed us at RecFest?

    If we didn’t get chance to speak at RecFest, we’d love to show you how Unseen helps organisations create fairer, more engaging recruitment experiences.

  • Case Study: How National Grid streamlined their Early Careers assessment centres with TopScore

    Case Study: How National Grid streamlined their Early Careers assessment centres with TopScore

    Client logo
    TopScore logo
    Utilities & Energy

    How National Grid streamlined their Early Careers assessment centres with TopScore

    Supporting graduate, apprenticeship and social mobility assessment centres with a simpler, more consistent digital assessment experience.

    About the Customer

    Organisation

    National Grid

    Industry

    Utilities & Energy

    Use Case

    Graduate, apprenticeship and social mobility assessment centres

    Scale

    80+ assessment centres delivered annually

    The Challenge

    National Grid’s Early Careers team manages a high volume of assessment centres each year to recruit graduates, apprentices and candidates through social mobility programmes.

    Prior to adopting TopScore, assessment activities were delivered virtually, with processes spread across multiple systems. As the team evolved and scaled, they needed a more structured and reliable way to manage assessment centres while maintaining a positive experience for both assessors and candidates.

    With up to 80 assessment centres delivered annually and multiple stakeholder groups involved in each event, efficiency, consistency and ease of administration became critical.

    “TopScore has just been easy. Easy to use, easy to set up, and easy to manage. It’s become a key part of how we run our assessment centres.”

    The Solution

    Having previously used TopScore in other organisations, members of the National Grid team were confident in its ability to support large-scale assessment delivery.

    Since implementing TopScore in 2023, National Grid has used the platform across:

    Programme

    Graduate assessment centres

    Programme

    Advanced and higher apprenticeship programmes

    Initiative

    Social mobility recruitment initiatives

    Delivery

    Virtual and in-person assessment events

    The team uses TopScore to manage scheduling, assessment scoring, assessor coordination and candidate evaluation, creating a single source of truth throughout the assessment process.

    “We rely on the assessors assessing effectively so it is great for us to have all of the assessor notes and scores in one place.”

    The Impact

    Since implementing TopScore, National Grid has streamlined its assessment centre delivery, reducing administrative complexity and creating a simpler experience for everyone involved.

    The platform has supported improvements across usability, collaboration, scheduling and candidate experience.

    A Simpler Way to Run Assessment Centres

    For National Grid, one of the biggest benefits of TopScore has been ease of use.

    The platform enables assessors and administrators to quickly access schedules, record scores and manage assessment activities without extensive training or technical expertise.

    “It’s just a simple tool that is easy to use. You don’t need too much brain power to be able to use it.”

    Everything in One Place

    Before TopScore, assessment information was distributed across different systems and processes.

    Today, assessor notes, candidate scores and scheduling information are all stored centrally, giving the team confidence in their decision-making and reducing administrative overhead.

    The team uses assessor scores directly to inform hiring decisions, making consistency and visibility essential throughout the assessment process.

    “We don’t have a separate wash-up to calibrate the scores. We rely on the assessors assessing effectively so it is great for us to have all of the assessor notes and scores in one place.”

    Supporting High-Volume Hiring

    National Grid delivers a significant number of assessment centres every year, with volumes regularly reaching more than 80 events.

    TopScore’s scheduling capabilities have helped the team efficiently coordinate large numbers of assessors and candidates, while new functionality allowing multiple assessment centres to run within the same schedule has provided additional flexibility.

    “It’s easy to set up schedules. It’s easy to create new schedules. And now that we have multiple assessment centres that can be done on the same day in the same schedule, that has been great for us this year.”

    Positive Assessor & Candidate Experience

    The majority of National Grid’s assessors are internal stakeholders, making usability particularly important.

    According to the team, assessors have responded positively to the platform and find it straightforward to use during assessment events.

    Assessors have also benefited from TopScore’s accessibility features, language options and digital assessment delivery capabilities.

    “TopScore in terms of its usability for the candidates has been great. You’ve got the accessibility function and the option to where you can change the written and audio language.”

    A Reliable Partner for Assessment Delivery

    Since implementation, National Grid has experienced a smooth rollout and ongoing success with the platform.

    The team continues to use TopScore as a core part of its assessment strategy and recommends it to other organisations looking to improve the efficiency and consistency of their assessment centres.

    “I would definitely recommend it as a tool for any organisation to use.”

    Key Results

    Through implementing TopScore, National Grid has created a more efficient, consistent and scalable assessment process.

    80+ Assessment Centres

    Supporting graduate, apprenticeship and social mobility assessment centres annually.

    One Central Platform

    Scheduling, scoring, assessor collaboration and candidate evaluation managed in one place.

    Reduced Administration

    Less complexity by removing disconnected processes and bringing assessment data together.

    Positive User Experience

    Strong feedback from assessors and candidates using the platform during assessment events.

    Flexible Delivery

    Supporting both virtual and face-to-face assessment centres.

    Consistent Decisions

    Centralised scores and feedback helping teams make confident hiring decisions.

    “TopScore has just been easy. Easy to use, easy to set up, and easy to manage. It’s become a key part of how we run our assessment centres.”

    Conclusion

    Today, TopScore supports National Grid’s Early Careers assessment strategy by helping the team deliver consistent, efficient and candidate-focused assessment centres at scale.

    The platform has improved the way assessment activity is managed by reducing administration, bringing information into one place and creating a smoother experience for assessors, administrators and candidates.

    Through its ease of use, flexibility and ability to support large-scale assessment delivery, TopScore has become an important part of National Grid’s recruitment process.

    80+ Events Annually

    Supporting graduate, apprenticeship and social mobility assessment centres.

    Multiple Programmes

    Used across early careers recruitment initiatives and assessment formats.

    Improved Experience

    Providing a simpler journey for assessors and candidates alike.

    “TopScore has just been easy. Easy to use, easy to set up, and easy to manage. It’s become a key part of how we run our assessment centres.”

    Demo TopScore’s full range of features

    Chat to our team to book your bespoke demo of Unseen’s digital assessment centre platform, TopScore, to see its full range of features and how it can streamline your assessment centres.

  • Webinar: On Their Wavelength: Insights from research and real candidate journeys

    Webinar: On Their Wavelength: Insights from research and real candidate journeys

    On Their Wavelength

    Insights from research and real candidate journeys

    6th August | Online | 12-1pm

    Our experts reveal where candidate expectations and reality aren’t quite aligning, and where employers can have the greatest impact

    Register now

    Throughout Spring 2026 we surveyed 818 students, graduates and apprentices across the UK to understand how they experience the early careers market, the barriers they face, and how ready they feel for work.

    In our latest webinar, we discuss what employers need to do to ensure that they’re driving engagement with content that really works.

    Register to join the webinar

    Reserve your place and receive joining details straight to your inbox.

    What we’ll explore

    01

    How candidates navigate today’s market

    Discover how students, graduates and apprentices move through the early careers journey — from application to offer — and the challenges they’re encountering.

    02

    The confidence gap

    Understand the barriers candidates face, where confidence drops, and what “work readiness” actually means from their perspective.

    03

    What employers can do next

    Learn practical actions organisations can take to help candidates feel prepared, confident and ready to contribute from day one.

    Go beyond the statistics

    This session shares the real, lived experiences behind the data. We’ll explore what today’s candidates are telling us, where employers can make meaningful improvements, and how organisations can create recruitment experiences that build confidence, reduce barriers and improve early careers outcomes.

    Meet your hosts

    Hear directly from the team behind the research as they unpack the findings, share real candidate stories and discuss what employers can do next.

    Ben Williams
    Chief Scientist
    Unseen
    Connect on LinkedIn
    Sarah Brown
    Onboarding & Implementation Director
    Unseen
    Connect on LinkedIn

    Join us live

    Register today to secure your place.

    Register now
  • Case Study: Strengthening Hiring Outcomes for Cooper Parry

    Case Study: Strengthening Hiring Outcomes for Cooper Parry

    Client logo
    TopScore logo
    Financial Services

    Strengthening Hiring Outcomes for Cooper Parry

    In 2024, Cooper Parry implemented TopScore, transforming its early careers assessment centres from a manual, paper-based process into a fully digital, data-driven, and sustainable experience.

    This initiative was driven by a clear ambition: to improve decision quality, enhance candidate experience, reduce administrative burden, and align recruitment practices with B Corp values.

    TopScore was successfully embedded across assessment centres in our professional services teams, delivering measurable impact across efficiency, sustainability, and hiring outcomes.

    About the Customer

    Organisation

    Cooper Parry

    Industry

    Financial Services

    Use Case

    Managing assessment centres end-to-end

    Scale

    Annual efficiency gain of 106 hours of assessor time saved

    The Challenge

    Prior to implementation of Topscore, the assessment centre model was:

    – Heavily paper-based, creating operational inefficiencies and environmental impact

    – Admin-intensive, placing significant strain on recruiters and assessors

    – Inconsistent in evaluation, with decisions often influenced by opinion rather than structured scoring

    – Slow in feedback turnaround, negatively impacting candidate experience

    – Time-heavy, with wash-up sessions taking up to 3 hours

    As early careers hiring scaled, this approach became unsustainable and misaligned with the organisation’s ambition to deliver a modern, inclusive, and high-performing recruitment experience.

    “We didn’t stop recruiting during COVID, but we couldn’t do face-to-face assessment centres.”

    The Solution

    TopScore was introduced as a centralised digital platform to manage assessment centres end-to-end.

    The solution enabled:

    – Real-time scoring and feedback capture in one place

    – Structured, competency-based assessment, improving objectivity and consistency

    – Streamlined wash-up discussions, supported by clear data

    – Removal of paper-based processes, supporting sustainability goals

    – Improved collaboration between assessors, driving better decision-making

    The technology was implemented alongside a broader redesign of the early careers process, ensuring it enhanced both efficiency and experience.

    Impact

    Dramatic Time Savings & Efficiency Gains

    – Wash-up sessions reduced from ~3 hours to 30–60 minutes

    – Post-assessment admin reduced from 2 hours to 40 minutes per assessor

    – Annual efficiency gain of 106 hours of assessor time saved

    This has enabled recruiters and hiring managers to focus on higher-value activity, including candidate engagement and hiring decisions.

    Significant Sustainability Improvements

    – Elimination of paper-based processes saved ~4,000 sheets annually

    – Introduction of digital scoring and reusable materials significantly reduced waste

    These changes directly support the organisation’s B Corp commitments, embedding sustainability into recruitment operations.

    Enhanced Candidate Experience

    – Candidate satisfaction increased to from 4.2 to 4.81/5

    – Faster feedback turnaround and more engaging, structured assessment experience

    – Improved inclusivity, enabling candidates to perform at their best

    The new process has created a more transparent, supportive, and candidate-focused journey.

    Stronger Hiring Outcomes

    – Offer acceptance increased from 86.6% to 92%

    – Assessment centre-to-offer conversion improved to 48%

    – Early careers retention improved to 92% (up from 81%)

    The shift to structured, data-driven assessment has significantly improved both hiring quality and long-term success.

    Strategic Impact

    This initiative has delivered more than operational improvements it has driven a step change in how early careers recruitment is delivered.

    – Decision-making has moved from subjective judgement to data-led assessment, improving fairness and consistency

    – Assessors are more engaged and accountable, with clearer evaluation frameworks

    – Recruitment processes are now fully aligned to organisational values, particularly sustainability and inclusion

    – The model is now scalable and future-ready, capable of supporting continued business growth

    The implementation of TopScore has contributed to the evolution of Talent Acquisition into a modern, insight-led, and high-impact function.

    Why This Deserves Recognition

    This initiative demonstrates how technology, when implemented with clear purpose and strong execution, can transform Talent Acquisition outcomes.

    The impact is clear:

    – Significant time and efficiency gains

    – Meaningful environmental impact

    – Improved candidate experience and engagement

    – Stronger quality of hire and retention

    Most importantly, it has created a sustainable, scalable, and high-quality early careers hiring model, positioning Cooper Parry as a leader in innovative, values-driven recruitment.

    Demo TopScore’s full range of features

    Chat to our team to book your bespoke demo of Unseen’s digital assessment centre platform, TopScore.
    Test its full range of features and see how it can streamline your assessment centres.

  • Case Study: How British Airways supported 300 candidates with TopScore

    Case Study: How British Airways supported 300 candidates with TopScore

    How British Airways supported 300 candidates with TopScore

    About the Customer

    Organisation

    British Airways is the United Kingdom’s flag-carrier airline and the largest UK-based carrier by international fleet and destination size.

    Focus Area

    The organisation recruits a significant volume of emerging talent each year across graduate, apprenticeship, engineering, head office, customer operations and regional programmes.

    300

    candidates supported this year alone

    50%

    reduction in assessor time

    20-35

    assessment days annually

    The Challenge

    Prior to implementing TopScore, British Airways relied on a combination of Microsoft Teams, breakout rooms and spreadsheets to manage virtual assessment centres. While functional, the process was highly manual, time-consuming and difficult to scale. Assessors had to manage multiple systems simultaneously, creating additional administration and operational complexity.

    As assessment activity increased following the pandemic, the team recognised the need for a more streamlined, professional and scalable solution that could improve both operational efficiency and the candidate experience.

    British Airways needed a solution that would:

    • Reduce the administration and complexity associated with running assessment centres.
    • Improve the candidate experience through clearer communication and a more professional process.
    • Support high-volume emerging talent recruitment at scale.
    • Enable assessors to collaborate effectively and make informed hiring decisions.
    • Deliver a consistent experience across multiple business functions and locations.

    The challenge was significant. Each year the team runs approximately 20–35 assessment centre days, often operating both morning and afternoon sessions, with between 250–300 candidates invited through the process across multiple schemes.

    Our Solution

    British Airways uses TopScore to manage its emerging talent assessment centres across graduate and apprenticeship programmes.

    The platform supports a wide range of assessment activities, including:

    • Presentations
    • Group exercises
    • Role plays
    • Interviews
    • Technical and practical exercises for engineering candidates

    TopScore is used as the dedicated assessment centre platform alongside British Airways’ existing recruitment system, Manage My Recruitment, which manages applications and vacancy advertising. Once candidates reach assessment centre stage, TopScore becomes the central platform for assessors, scoring, feedback and candidate management.

    “TopScore has been a fantastic tool for our assessment centres at British Airways. The platform is incredibly user-friendly for both candidates and assessors, and the consistency it brings to scoring and wash-ups is invaluable. The ability to provide clear, structured feedback to candidates is a real standout feature and hugely enhances the overall candidate experience. On top of that, the support team is exceptionally responsive, making the whole process seamless from start to finish.”

    – Client feedback

    Scale of Usage

    The platform is used across British Airways’ entire emerging talent offering, including:

    • Head Office
    • Customer Operations
    • Engineering
    • Regional Operations
    • International locations

    Assessors from across the organisation use TopScore, including teams based in London, Glasgow, Cardiff and the United States.

    Implementation

    Implementation was rapid and seamless. Following procurement, British Airways was onboarded quickly and moved from contract signing to running live assessment centres within a matter of months.

    The organisation signed during the autumn renewal period and was successfully using the platform for live assessment centres by January.

    Results

    Impact of implementing TopScore

    One of the most significant benefits delivered by TopScore has been operational efficiency. By replacing manual administration, spreadsheets and complex Teams-based processes, the platform has enabled the recruitment team to manage large-scale assessment centres far more effectively. Assessors have access to one centralised platform for candidate evaluation, scoring and reporting, dramatically reducing coordination effort and administration time.

    “The real cost savings for us are efficiency and time.”

    – Joanne Walsh, Emerging Talent Recruitment Manager at British Airways

    Reduced assessor time by at least 50%

    Thanks to TopScore’s efficient and streamlined marking and feedback functionality. This allows our assessors to focus more on candidate interaction rather than administration.

    300 candidates supported

    Through using TopScore this year alone

    Sustainability benefits

    There are significant sustainability gains, as all assessment materials are hosted within TopScore. This removes the need for printed materials, reducing paper usage while also enhancing data security and confidentiality.

    Candidate Experience Improvements

    TopScore has significantly improved the candidate experience by creating a more professional, structured and supportive assessment journey.The professionalism of the platform, combined with clear communications and technical support, helped create a smoother and more engaging experience for candidates.

    British Airways particularly valued the ability to provide feedback reports to candidates, ensuring that even unsuccessful applicants received meaningful insight from the process.

    Specific Pain Points Solved:

    • Reduced administration and manual effort
    • Improved assessment centre organisation
    • Enhanced candidate communication
    • Delivered a more professional and branded experience
    • Simplified assessor scoring and collaboration
    • Provided responsive technical support
    • Enabled scalable delivery across multiple locations and business functions

    Sustainability & Hybrid Working

    The platform enabled British Airways to successfully transition from virtual assessment centres during and immediately after the pandemic while maintaining consistency and fairness in the assessment process.

    Even after returning to face-to-face assessment centres, British Airways continues to use TopScore for assessor scoring, evaluation and feedback reporting, demonstrating the long-term value of the platform beyond virtual delivery.

    “The ongoing support we receive as an organisation from the TopScore team is always above and beyond, with very quick turnaround times, helpful answers and solutions. Nothing is ever too much trouble.”

    – Joanne Walsh, Emerging Talent Recruitment Manager at British Airways

    Conclusion

    Today, TopScore supports hundreds of candidates and dozens of assessment centres annually, helping British Airways improve efficiency, enhance candidate experience and deliver consistent assessment outcomes across the organisation. The platform’s ease of use, flexibility and outstanding customer support have made it an integral part of the airline’s early careers recruitment strategy, as British Airways now uses TopScore to support:

    • 20–35 assessment centre days annually
    • Multiple assessment centre sessions each day
    • Approximately 250–300 emerging talent candidates per cycle
    • Assessment centres across numerous business functions and locations

    Demo TopScore’s full range of features

    Chat to our team to book in your bespoke demo of Unseen’s digital assessment centre platform, TopScore, to see its full range of features and how they can streamline your assessment centres.

  • Your voice: Hearing from our customer community

    Your voice: Hearing from our customer community

    At the heart of everything we do is our community.

    The people and organisations who trust our tools every day to deliver meaningful, impactful talent experiences. That’s why we recently ran our first customer happiness survey as Unseen group across our technology platforms – and we couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who took the time to share their thoughts. The results are already helping us to develop our digital assessment centres, assessment design, psychometric testing and candidate experience tools.

    For us, feedback isn’t just a box to tick. It’s how we grow. It’s how we stay honest with ourselves, sharpen our focus, and make sure we’re genuinely meeting the needs of the people we serve. This survey was a big step in formalising that commitment, and the insights we’ve gathered will shape how we work – starting right now.

    Firstly, a huge thank you to our team!

    Our team received outstanding recognition from customers, who described them as responsive, knowledgeable, and genuinely supportive. That kind of feedback doesn’t happen by accident, it’s the result of people who care deeply about the work they do and the customers they support every day.

    Beyond the science and technology that underpins our tools, our Customer Experience team exists to deliver talent experiences that are scalable, fair and human using their technical knowledge and recruitment expertise. They provide a direct line for development and support, so we’re delighted to hear this reflected in our customers’ real experience.

    We’re so pleased to hear from our customer community that they feel supported by our collaborative team. Here’s some of what they had to say:

    Client Feedback
    “Impeccable support from the team.”
    Client Feedback
    “Charlotte is incredibly helpful and very responsive!”
    Client Feedback
    “Help & Assistance when required is first class and on point, thank you.”
    Client Feedback
    “Amazing customer support team and always on hand if we have any issues.”
    Client Feedback
    “Adam and the team are fantastic and so quick at coming back to us, nothing is ever too much trouble and our issues always get sorted.”

    And the numbers back it up.

    Our overall Net Promoter Score landed in the ‘Excellent’ category.

     A benchmark that reflects just how strongly our customers feel about recommending us to others. Our platforms were described as effective, practical, and well supported, which is a real testament to the dedication across every part of the business.

    Looking ahead: Continuous development driven by science and storytelling

    While we’re pleased with this feedback and great score, what excites us most is what comes next.

    We’re taking the feedback from this survey and building it directly into how we work, both immediately and in the longer term. At Unseen, we bring together technology, psychology and human storytelling across all stages of the talent journey, so continually evolving our software and support is critical to serving our customers.

    That work is already well underway, and we can’t wait to share more as it develops.

    We’re also doubling down on telling the story of our brilliant team, because the people behind the technology are just as important as the technology itself. And we’ll be working hard to ensure every customer, whether new or long-standing, feels the full value of what we deliver together.

    This feedback is being used to influence our roadmap and future product developments, so we can continue to provide our clients with the excellent service they’re used to. We’ll be surveying again, tracking our progress, and holding ourselves accountable to continuous improvement.

    The momentum is real, the team is fired up, and the best is very much still to come. Thank you for being part of this journey with us.

  • How Yodel cut time-to-hire by 38%

    How Yodel cut time-to-hire by 38%

    How Yodel cut time-to-hire by 38%

    About the Customer

    Organisation

    Yodel

    Technology used

    Candidate Experience Chatbot

    Focus areas

    Demystifying which Driver opportunity was the best fit for each candidate and automating elements of the recruitment process whilst measuring candidate experience throughout

    Client Quote

    “The exercise reminds us of the sheer amount of information candidates don’t know, that we assume they do know; we’ve now created a more thoughtful, richer candidate experience that we can build on and constantly improve.”

    197,700

    chatbot conversations in the first 2 years

    97% positive feedback

    from candidates undergoing the screening process delivered by the screening bot

    68,983 candidates

    screened by the screening bot

    The Challenge

    Yodel deliver millions of parcels a year, across 60 sites, to every UK postcode. The Yodel Resourcing team recruit over 4,500 Drivers annually and receive over 1,200 applications per week.

    This number increases to 5,500 applications per week as they hire additional resource for their peak delivery season covering Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Christmas.

    This means that the team need to hire 3,500 new Drivers in just a few months. Yodel offer several different types of opportunity to those who want to become Drivers, including self-employed and employed roles. To attract the right numbers, Yodel also offer full-time and part-time opportunities.

    Whilst this means that all needs are catered for, those new to a Driver role could find the options overwhelming.

    Our Solution

    Meet & Engage ran a collaborative workshop with Yodel’s resourcing team with the purpose to:

    • Demystify which Driver opportunity was the best fit for each candidate
    • Measure candidate experience at several points and gather feedback to allow continuous improvement
    • Automate elements of the recruitment process

    The first initiative was to create three Candidate Experience Bots for each of the three key Driving opportunities that would sit on the relevant pages of the career’s website. Each Bot would have a dialogue with a candidate about that specific opportunity and serve them the relevant roles available.

    The second part of the plan included producing three Candidate Experience Bots that would be deployed to screen candidates once they had completed their online application via the ATS. The team believed that this would give candidates the flexibility to complete this stage of the process at a time to suit them and in a format they were familiar with. In addition, this would give the Resourcing Team more scope to focus on other candidate experience initiatives.

    Having mapped out these processes, Meet & Engage and the Yodel team worked on the Bot dialogue and assets required to create rich and relevant conversations with candidates. Meet & Engage worked closely with the Yodel ATS and creative partner (responsible for the careers website) to ensure relevant integrations could be put in place.

    Results

    Impact of the chatbots
    42% of bot chats

    took place outside of office hours, when recruiters would otherwise be unable to respond with a personalised candidate experience

    95-98

    Net Promoter Score indicated by candidate feedback

    38% reduction

    in the average time to hire

    Demo Meet & Engage’s full range of features

    Demo Unseen’s candidate experience and onboarding platform, Meet & Engage, to see its full range of features and how they can elevate your candidate experience.

  • How to develop a Company Culture before hiring for it

    How to develop a Company Culture before hiring for it

    What is Company Culture?

    Company culture is a bit of an abstract concept; many think they understand it, but few can define it or explain how their culture was developed and maintained.

    What is company culture and how important is it to get right?

    Let’s start with a definition of company culture. The Cambridge Dictionary defines corporate culture as: ‘The beliefs and ideas that a company has and the way in which they affect how it does business and how its employees behave.’

    It’s a good definition; it seems logical, straightforward, and concise. The problem is, it all too often seems that not many companies define their culture this way. Moreover, don’t all companies (especially when you ask their leaders) purport to have a ‘good corporate culture’?

    The problem with misunderstanding your culture

    It seems logical that business founders will be responsible for establishing a company culture and defining what that culture should be.

    This culture is typically based on the company founders’ own personal values, vision, and their preferred working environment – and that culture will be imparted to the next member of staff, then the next, then the next… this seems like a logical strategy – but this is where many businesses start to struggle.

    When a company culture is defined this way, the first few members of staff all end up being just like the company founder(s), meaning they may all share the same personal values, vision and work environment preferences. This all sounds great, and the recipe for a productive work environment, but when you start to dig a little deeper, is the best recruitment policy to employ ‘people that the founders would enjoy having a beer with’?

    It’s a fairly common example: ‘we have a great company culture… we all go out for a beer after work on a Friday!’
    But does this really mean the company has a great culture? Who says? Does it also mean that those people who can’t/don’t want to join the Friday beer club, won’t be model employees, who fully buy in to the business’ values and goals?

    Although the beer example might be quite extreme, the point is that the ‘pint after work’ definition of good company culture does nothing for the long-term success of the business.

    As a business increases its revenue, inevitably, more staff are required to meet demands; new staff with new skill sets to be brought in and new processes are to be implemented to streamline operations. This requires recruiting a very different set of individuals, with different personalities and unique personal aspirations.

    Culture and hiring

    The effect of a badly-defined company culture

    A badly-defined company culture leaves the hiring manager asking all the wrong questions in interviews: is this person going to get on well with the rest of the team? Do I have anything in common with them? Are they like me? Will they be a good cultural fit (will they fancy a beer on Friday after work)?

    Now this is where mistakes are made by some:

    It’s not so much unconscious bias on the part of the hiring manager, as it is them genuinely believing this person doesn’t represent a cultural fit with the company. The issue is, the very cultural fit against which the candidate is being measured, has been defined in the wrong way!

    This means that the hiring manager, all through wanting to perpetuate a poorly- defined company culture, is potentially missing out on the best person/people for the vacancies.

    ‘If we mention all of these great things we do, will this candidate work 10-hour days and weekends when we need them to?’

    The ‘Friday beer’ example was only provided to illustrate a point; there are so many other examples of badly defined company culture that are far more common, and often detrimental. And it’s not always driven by the founders’ own personal values, vision and preferred work environment – it’s often erroneously defined by other ways.

    For example, wanting to present a culture that the company thinks that staff and prospective hires will want… but the reality is far different from the concept.

    Having break-out areas, cool, edgy office furniture, and free snacks – the whole ‘work hard/play hard culture’, often translating to staff having to work 60 hours a week to be rewarded with a free Dominos at the end of the month, doesn’t feel like a great culture.

    Of course, we’re not suggesting that every company that has these policies and perceived benefits in place are disingenuous – far from it! But it does happen far too often that staff are misinformed about the role, and that many hiring managers are assessing cultural fit by asking internal questions such as ‘if we mention all of these great things we do, will this candidate work 10-hour days and weekends when we need them to?’

    Many growing businesses are struggling to effectively define their culture, but this is a key step that needs to be completed before you can start to hire for cultural fit – so, how can this be done?

    Step 1

    Establish an organisational values framework

    Nowadays, it’s becoming more and more important to develop an organisational values model. Company values are the core set of beliefs that a company has and gives all staff the opportunity to get behind the same goals.

    Some examples of company values could include:

      Openness, transparency, accountability and creativity

    When developing company values, take plenty of time to get it right; it’s pivotal and will underpin everything from hiring to strategy, process to profits. Brainstorm with your team, involve as many stakeholders as possible. Include staff, shareholder, customers, and suppliers – what are the traits we have as a business that we want to keep, what do we want to eliminate and what do we want to do that we don’t currently? Having a core set of company values sets in place will help to shape the company mission and vision.

    Step 2

    Implement a mission statement and document your vision

    If you don’t have one already, implement a company mission statement, and a written vision that is communicated to all staff. It’s something that everybody can get behind if it’s done properly. Alongside values, it forms the foundation of company culture.

    Although it’s a decision for company owners and leaders, it’s hugely important that collaboration with staff occurs to build this mission statement so everybody is bought in from the outset. The mission statement should encapsulate the business vision and why the business exists; it’s crucial. Additionally, Mission-driven workers are 54 percent more likely to stay at the company for 5 years.

    A crucial step in building your new culture is to assess against your newly developed values. Carry out anonymous staff surveys to see how your current staff feel you’re performing against values. If, for example, once of your values is “we are open”, anonymously survey your staff to see if they believe the business is as open as it can be; ask open-ended questions to find out where the company is performing well, and not so well, and look to provide interventions based on areas of perceived weakness.

    Step 3

    Assess against your new values and mission

    360 feedback assessments are also a crucial way of seeing how aligned an individual (particularly a manager – as they’re often responsible for employee dissatisfaction) is aligned to the organisational values, and its culture.

    Structure a 360 assessment around organisational key values and competencies and have their managers, direct reports, peers, other colleagues and even customers rate the individual against these competencies and values. This is a fantastic way of being able to highlight how aligned, or misaligned an individual is to the values and culture of a company, and gives an individual the opportunity to receive constructive and honest feedback from people they work with.

    By incorporating these tools into your internal processes, it gives each member of staff the opportunity to feed back and contribute to the cultural shape of the business, whilst at the same time giving ownership of individuals’ personal and professional journey. For the business, it hugely helps to shape the internal culture, ensuring that all members of staff know exactly what the culture is, how it’s been developed and how it should be upheld.

    Step 4

    Foster the culture

    Once the above steps have been carried out, the management can start to foster the organisational culture. This will not happen overnight but done properly it can work wonders for businesses. It is the responsibility of, initially, the leadership team and subsequently the entire staff base to maintain a positive company culture, based on the values and mission. And it’s incredibly important for the culture to be inclusive for all.

    If one of the values that is developed is ‘team spirit’ – don’t just put a pool table in the office: look to reward the entire team when things go well – organise team days that are inclusive to all. In addition to the pub Fridays, offer a suitable alternative to those staff that are unable to join – use some imagination and creativity!

    For businesses that have ‘integrity’ as a core value, make sure you’re as ethical, fair, and honest with your staff as you are with your customers: update them on company financials, future plans and your expectations of them.

    The list is endless, but you can probably see how having a robust core set of values in place, should impact all your stakeholders in the same way – it builds consistency and supports in building an incredible organisational culture.

    Conclusion

    Company culture is absolutely paramount and is pivotal to the success of a company. Making sure that your business has a culture to be proud of will help you get the most from your current staff base and ensure that you recruit those that align with your organisation – and who feel your organisation aligns with them!

    Speak to an expert

    Share your goals and challenges with our qualified team to discover how Unseen can help you to hire your way.

  • Designing Your Selection Process: The Basics and Beyond

    Designing Your Selection Process: The Basics and Beyond

    The importance of a well designed selection process

    A well-designed selection process improves hiring outcomes, strengthens your employer brand, and gives candidates a fair and consistent experience.

    Many organisations still rely on processes that have simply grown over time rather than being deliberately designed. This means that interviews are unstructured, assessments feel disconnected, and decisions depend too heavily on individual judgement.

    If you want better results, the process needs to be built with more intent. So, how can you go about designing a selection process that truly works for you?

    Step 1

    Start with a clear definition of success

    Before even thinking about assessment methods, you need to decide on what ‘good’ looks like in the role you’re trying to fill.

    That means identifying the capabilities, behaviours, and potential indicators that are genuinely linked to performance. Without that foundation, it’s difficult to assess candidates in a meaningful or consistent way.

    Once defined, these criteria should inform every stage of the process. Whether you’re using interviews, job simulations or task-based assessments, each element should be tied back to those same measures of success.

    Structured assessment design plays an important role here. It allows you to move away from instinct-led decisions and towards a more consistent and evidence-based approach.

    Step 2

    Design the process as a connected journey

    Selection processes are often built in stages that don’t fully connect. Candidates repeat similar information in different formats, while hiring teams gather overlapping or incomplete insights.

    A stronger approach is to treat the process as a single, joined-up journey. Each stage should build on the previous one:
    • Early stages can focus on core capabilities and potential
    • Later stages can explore depth, judgement and real-world application
    • Final decisions should draw on a complete and consistent set of evidence

    This reduces duplication, improves efficiency, and gives hiring teams greater confidence in their decisions.

    Assessment centres continue to play an important role here, particularly for roles where collaboration, communication and decision-making need to be observed in practice. Designed well, they allow organisations to see how candidates perform in realistic scenarios.

    Step 3

    Keep candidate experience practical and relevant

    Candidate experience is shaped by clarity, relevance and respect for time. Processes that feel overly long, repetitive or unclear tend to lead to disengagement. In contrast, well-designed processes feel focused and purposeful.

    A few principles make a noticeable difference:
    • Clear instructions and expectations at every stage
    • Assessment tasks that reflect real aspects of the role
    • Consistency in how candidates are evaluated
    • Communication that feels timely and considered

    Employee-generated content can support this by giving candidates a more realistic understanding of the role and organisation. Seeing and hearing from employees helps set expectations and can make assessments feel more grounded in real work, replacing static or overly polished materials with something more representative of day-to-day experience.

    Step 4

    Build fairness into the design

    Fairness needs to be considered upfront rather than reviewed after the fact.

    Unstructured interviews, inconsistent scoring and unclear criteria all introduce bias. Over time, this affects both hiring quality and trust in the process.

    A more structured approach helps to address this:
    • Standardised assessment methods across candidates
    • Clear scoring criteria linked to role requirements
    • Interview frameworks that reduce subjectivity
    • Documentation and data that support decision-making

    Combining structured psychometric assessment with well-designed assessment centres allows organisations to build a more complete and balanced picture of each candidate, while maintaining consistency across the process.

    Step 5

    Bring it together

    Designing a strong selection process comes down to clarity, structure and consistency.

    That means being clear on what success looks like, building a process where each stage adds meaningful insight, and using the right tools to support fair and evidence-based decisions.

    Used together, these approaches help create a selection process that is more predictive, more engaging, and more reliable.

    Conclusion

    If your current process feels inconsistent or overly dependent on individual judgement, it’s worth reviewing how it has been designed.

    Small changes in structure and assessment approach can have a significant impact on both hiring outcomes and candidate experience.

    Speak to an expert

    Share your goals and challenges with our qualified team to discover how Unseen can help you to hire your way.

  • Webinar: Rethinking Early Careers: What needs to change in 2026

    Webinar: Rethinking Early Careers: What needs to change in 2026

    Rethinking Early Careers:
    What Needs to Change in 2026

    Join Ali Hackett, Unseen’s Customer Experience Director, along with Anne Marie Campion, Emerging Talent Specialist at the Institute of Student Employers, and Dr. Frances Trought, DEI expert, in this forward-looking session.

    Together, they’ll be sharing what they’re seeing across the Early Careers market, and what needs to change.

    Watch on demand

    Enter your details to access the recording.

    The topics we’ll be covering:

    What feels different about this year’s early careers cycle

    Dive deeper into how the early careers landscape is being affected by work readiness challenges, skills gaps and early attrition.

    How attraction, engagement, assessment, and selection should evolve

    Learn how employers can balance efficiency with candidate experience as expectations shift and AI evolves.

    Where organisations risk losing talent

    Find out how you can strengthen engagement and work readiness between offer and start date, as we share advice on designing a more connected and resilient early careers strategy.

    Materials you will receive

    • A concise post-session summary with key takeaways
    • On-demand access to the webinar recording

    Meet the speakers


    Ali Hackett
    Customer Experience Director,
    Unseen

    Anne Marie Campion
    Emerging Talent Specialist,
    Institute of Student Employers

    Dr Frances Trought
    Founder,
    Everything D&I

    Claire Monks
    Graduate Programme Manager
    NHS Wales

    Watch now on demand

    Access the recording