Helen Sanders

Every bad hire costs you £50-100K and 6 months you can't get back. I've spent 27 years making sure that doesn't happen.

My unusual journey started as the BBC's first female football commentator in 1997. While breaking barriers in the commentary box, I noticed something crucial: the teams that won weren't necessarily the ones with the most talented players. They were the ones where people just clicked.

That insight became the foundation of everything I do at HFBAC.

HFBAC = Hiring For and Building Awesome Companies (pronounced "Half-back")

WHY CLIENTS STAY:
Most recruiters disappear after the invoice clears. I don't.

13 companies I've worked with for 3+ years. 
11 more who've hired through me multiple times over 5+ years. 

Two partnerships spanning over a decade - including one where I've been their embedded Talent Partner for 10+ years.

My favourite success story? A US tech start-up company asked me to help build their UK team. I hired their second employee. Today they're 80+ people across both countries.

That's Chemistry First in action.

WHAT I DO NOW:
- Fractional Talent Partner: Your embedded Head of Talent - without the £80k salary. Hiring strategy, full-cycle recruiting, candidate experience. For growing teams of 15-100 who need serious talent capability without a full-time hire.

- Starter Retainer Monthly strategy: The bridge between DIY hiring and full talent support. For bootstrapped teams of 5-20 scaling fast.

- Project Hiring: Chemistry First methodology for critical hires - first hires, leadership, founding team roles.

I work with founders in the UK and US. British-American dual citizen who understands both markets from the inside.

WHY "CHEMISTRY FIRST"?

Chemistry matters more than credentials. Every time.

46% of hires fail within 18 months. 89% of those failures? Not skills - chemistry. 
That's why I test for values alignment and team dynamics BEFORE anything else.
Result: 90%+ success rate.

12-month replacement guarantee. Most recruiters give you 3 months. I give you a year.

WHAT DRIVES ME:

In 2008, my 3-year-old son was diagnosed with cancer.

Watching him fight - and win - taught me what really matters when pressure's on. 

People who show up for each other. People who refuse to give up on the team.

He's thriving today. 

Now I'm raising £1 million for Young Lives vs Cancer. A portion of every HFBAC engagement supports families facing the same fight.

When you work with me, you're not just building your team - you're part of something bigger.

LET'S CONNECT:
Growing a team? Let's talk → hfbac.com

Recruitment Strategic Partner | SME Recruitment Growth Specialist | CEO

There is an easier way to recruit and nurture new staff. Your People Partners can do it for you.

As a business owner responsible for every aspect of your company, knowing how to save time and money hiring your next member of staff is rather useful!

Would you love an easy, cost effective and efficient service to help you spend more time on the business and not just in it as you go about recruiting your next member of staff?

Good news.

You don't need to use a recruiter in the traditional sense.

I am Helen Sanders. And I head up a talented team of talent acquisition specialists who are Your People Partners.

You can use my 22 years (!) recruitment expertise in helping business owners like you to save time, save money, cut the risk of poor hires and remove the stress of the recruitment process.

Did I mention we are not an 'agency'?

If we work together, we're partners. We work together to make sure you hire well and your team can grow to meet your vision and better support your clients/customers.

Done-With-You:
We stand by you, jump in when you need, we guide and do the bits you cannot do, and you learn how to be really awesome at hiring. No, we're not trying to make you into a recruiter. Being a business owner who hires well can make or break your business. 

Done-As-You:
We are your in-house team. We ensure all people in touch with your company have an awesome experience of you, the business owner as well as your company. Given our partners (companies like yours) are between 3 and 50 staff, we know that you're competing for the talent you need.

All this for the same cost, or sometimes less, than a 'normal' recruitment agency.

Call me now on 0117 290 0208 for a chat about how we can take the stress out of your next hire, as well as support your growing team with all things 'people' and talent-related.

Frankie's Brownies

Delicious Brownies | Bespoke Corporate Gifting  |  Letterbox Gifting  | 

Delivering bespoke corporate gifting in the form of delicious Brownies! 

We can work together to: 
- Deliver bespoke, personalized Brownies to your clients and partners to celebrate your 'wins' 
- Reward and celebrate team achievements through delicious Brownies to say 'congratulations' 
- Bespoke branded Brownies for your events 
- Welcome Brownie Hampers to new colleagues and as Birthday Celebrations!

Interested in celebrating with delicious Brownies? Send me a message!

Founder

Speakers for Schools

Speakers for Schools was created to help level the playing field for UK state schools and their students to give them the same access to inspiring talks and engagement as available in the country's most respected public schools. 

Working with the UK's leading figures across sectors and fields, we help them give their time directly in a state school each year, and now with the launch of the Experience programme, we help their esteemed firms and organisations host work experience for the students who lack these opportunities the most.

Events Manager 

Creating Change Podcast

The main aim of the Creating Change Podcast is to inspire young people to create an active change in their communities through podcasts, and blog posts. Whether their thing is Climate Change or Mental Health, we want to encourage young people to stand up to the plate and create change.

Podcast Host

WhiteHat GB

Community Programme Manager 

International Bullying Prevention Association

Working with external stakeholders such as public officials, online activists, young people, Instagram, Facebook and industry senior leaders to run global roundtables focussing on interfaith bullying, youth bullying and online harassment. 

These roundtables in turn enabled me to produce tipsheets and toolkits that have been shared as online safety resources within the tech industry and activist communities preventing online bullying and harassment.

Project Manager, Facebook Projects 

INvolve - The Inclusion People

INvolve is a global membership organisation and consultancy championing diversity and inclusion in businesses. Through the delivery of events, programmes, thought leadership and advisory services, INvolve helps firms drive cultural change and create inclusive workplaces where any individual can succeed. 

We also publish annual role model lists recognising and celebrating business leaders and future leaders who are breaking down barriers at work and inspiring the next generation of diverse talent.

My duties within this role include:

Manage the development and implementation of UK and International LGBT+, Women in Business and BAME equality programmes 

Manage & implement global mentoring programmes to match senior executives to emerging leaders to create 
successful mentoring partnerships to enable diverse success and cross-industry skill sharing within the workplace using digital platforms.

B2B Event Management, including venue liaison, logistics, and contract negotiations 

Support LGBT+ and BAME and Women in Business C-Suite Senior Executives and junior staff members to 
reach their full potential within the  workplace through board readiness, executive sponsor, emerging leaders 
and employee resource group programmes and events

Liaise with senior executive speakers, programme partners, and venue hosts to enable successful events 
and programmes

Manage external committees, advisory boards, and working groups to shape and inform workplace initiatives 

Work alongside marketing & digital comms teams to implement marketing and engagement strategies

Programme strategy implementation, evaluation, and research 

Line management of Programmes Team

Stakeholder management and engagement

Events, Programmes (D&I) and Mentoring Manager

The Diana Award

My extensive portfolio of events planning experience span my 9 years of employment at The Diana Award, a legacy charity set up in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, working as Events & Marketing Manager. Throughout this time, I have organised several high profile events from drinks receptions, celebration events, interactive performance events, hackathons, campaign launches, corporate showcase events, national award ceremonies, focus groups, national and international conferences and regional events of which have been attended by high profile stakeholders and supporters such as HRH Prince William, MPs and local dignitaries.

Within my role as Events & Marketing Manager, I am responsible for:

-International and national event management across several formats

-Working with high profile venues such as 10 Downing Street, Kensington Palace, Facebook HQ, Google HQ, ASOS HQ, Vodafone HQ and Alexandra Palace. 

-Line management of events team, interns, and volunteers

-Managing and project planning events, programmes and projects

-Stakeholder and partnerships management

-Celebrity ambassador engagement and attainment

-Managing national youth board and focus groups, including safeguarding and child protection aspects
  
-Meeting set KPIs and targets in relation to funded projects and campaigns, ensuring over 24,000 young people and 2500 staff and professionals from across the globe have been equipped with crucial anti-bullying skills

-Anti-Bullying Campaign finance management

-Anti-Bullying Campaign strategy and delivery plan

-Website management and content creation 

-Social media channel and digital engagement management 

-Digital marketing for overall campaign and branded merchandise 

-Evaluation, impact and data analysis and data recording through CRM systems

-Facilitation and delivery of training events for young people and staff members, on the topic of bullying

-Liaising with comms team on matters including marketing, branding and press opportunities.

Events & Marketing Manager, Anti-Bullying Campaign

Responsibilities for the role of Programme Coordinator for Anti-Bullying Campaign included:

-Event coordination across several formats including regional training days, showcase events, award ceremonies and volunteer training

-Managing flagship national anti-bullying week events across the UK

-Liaising with schools to encourage registrations and interest in upcoming anti-bullying training days within regions across the UK 

-E-Marketing including e-newsletters to stakeholders, e-promotion of upcoming events through social media and marketing posters

-Delivering aftercare service to schools and young people who have received anti-bullying training to encourage attainment of the anti-bullying programme

-Coordinating the anti-bullying programme as a whole including managing the diary and delivery plan for anti-bullying events team.

Programme Co-ordinator, Anti-Bullying Ambassadors Programme

Responsibilities for the role of Project Officer for The Diana Award included:

-Facilities management for the team and office

-Administrative support to the team 

-Event coordination for award scheme events 

-Project management of national award schemes

-Building relationships with stakeholders and attaining engagement 

-Directly working with young people to gain knowledge of current youth affairs through focus groups 

-Supporting the CEO and SMT team through diary management, briefing preparations, and trustee meeting reports. 

- Coordination of project mail-outs for marketing and certificate mailings

Project Officer

taplio

The Battle

Helen Sanders

Frankie Michaela Spivey

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?