David Haynes | Talent Acquisition & HR

The Approach

Is your hiring engine built to scale?

A recruitment operation is a process, not a reaction. Here is how I build one and then run it, whether you're starting from scratch or fixing what's already there.

Discover

Understanding the growth plan, the roles you need to fill, and what hiring infrastructure exists today, if any.

Design

Designing the hiring model around your stage: employer brand, process and AI-augmented workflows.

Build

Implementing the tooling, attraction strategy and process, whether a first ATS or a full rebuild.

Lead

Running the function day to day: the team, the pipeline and the hiring managers. The process gets stronger with every hire instead of drifting back to reactive.

The Principle

Automation at the core. People at the touchpoints that matter.

Automation carries the admin, the scheduling and the chasing, so the process moves quickly and eases the load on hiring managers. The moments that candidates remember stay human.

In practice

At Cellular Origins I built AI-augmented workflows, including a brand-voice advert writer and automated requisition notifications, so the admin and the chasing ran themselves and the process moved fast. That freed the time for the human moments candidates remember, keeping personal contact through key updates and interviews, with more than 1,000 taking place in the first eight months.

Try the free tool - which task should you automate first?

Proven Impact

Numbers that moved the needle

Each figure comes from a specific engagement. The full story sits in the case studies below.

120 → 120

Cellular OriginsTime to hire cut by more than halfFrom 120 to 60 days, achieved within the first 4 months

Cellular Origins£420K saved in hiring costsAchieved within the first six months by hiring directly

Cellular Origins1,000+ candidate interviews managedAcross 8 months, building the hiring engine from scratch

Ieso Digital Health100% direct-fill rateAcross 21 permanent hires in 6 months, as sole TA resource

Case Studies

Selected work

Pharma-Tech Scale-up

Cellular Origins

Following $40m Series A funding, the business needed to scale headcount rapidly with no internal hiring infrastructure. I recruited and led the talent acquisition team, and rebuilt the recruitment operating model from the ground up with AI-augmented workflows.

120→60

Days to hire, halved within 4 months

Technical hires in the first 6 months

£420K

Agency fees saved

1,000

Candidate interviews across 8 months

Investor-backed SaaS Start-up

Ieso Digital Health

As sole TA resource, I made targeted improvements to the candidate experience, including introducing 'Meet the Hiring Manager' video calls when headhunting, all within an ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 compliant environment.

"David ran the entire hiring cycle, delivering 21 permanent hires in his first six months, all hired directly."Siobhan Brown FCIPD, former Head of HR, Ieso Digital Health

Direct fill rate across 21 permanent hires

In-house Talent Acquisition · Deep Tech & Med Tech

TTP plc

In the in-house talent acquisition team at TTP, a deep tech and med tech consultancy, I recruited across science, engineering and technical disciplines. I created a recruitment Preferred Supplier agreement and capability matrix to bring clarity and structure to agency management, and strengthened candidate attraction through recruitment marketing. I led the careers website content redevelopment, collaborating with the technical teams and the agency developing the site, and project-managed the employer brand video.

"David took ownership of rebuilding our recruitment supplier governance and capability matrix and played a major role in improving how we attracted candidates through recruitment marketing and communications."Andy Clapham, former Head of Talent Acquisition, TTP plc

TTP employer brand video

"David joined my marketing team on secondment and delivered like a marketer, not a recruiter passing through."Hayley Brooksbank, former Head of Marketing, TTP plc

Core Solutions

Where I add value

Hiring delivery and team leadership

I recruit, lead and coach the in-house team that fills your roles, and run a desk myself when the volume demands it. External search partners managed on the roles that warrant them.

45 technical hires in six months at Cellular Origins

Process and AI automation

Process redesign, ATS selection and automated workflows built around how your managers actually work, including regulated ISO environments.

Time to hire cut from 120 days to 60 within four months

Employer brand and attraction

Careers sites, employer brand video, content and campaigns that bring candidates to you directly, giving a stronger pool, better hires and lower agency spend.

£420K saved in agency fees, with only 11 roles agency-supported

Beyond the CV

A bit about me

Away from work I like to keep fit, and I've run the Cambridge Half Marathon several times to raise money for charities close to my heart, including the Alzheimer's Society, Cambridge Rape Crisis Centre and Cancer Research UK. I also play guitar, and every so often you'll catch me on stage with a band. First and foremost, though, I'm a family man and the adopted parent of our dear old cavapoo.

David running the Cambridge Half Marathon

DAVID
HAYNES