Designing organisations that scale
You've raised the money, opened the second site, or signed the deal that changes the size of the business. Yellow builds the people strategy, structure and decision-making infrastructure that has to be in place for that to actually work.
What we do…
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The plan that connects where you're growing to how your people need to work to get you there. The intentional design of every interaction your employees have with the business spanning org design, job design, procedural frameworks, and employee experience
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Finding people who fit the structure you've actually built, not just the next available candidate. Working alongside strategy we make sure your recruitment solution is a product of having the right structures in place and identifying the right role for your business, followed by the right person.
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Building on the capability that is already inside your team through leadership development and operational training focused on driving performance; whether that’s in end user experience or improved team effectiveness, we work with a business impact in mind
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Future-proofing your business through Ai adoption, automation, and efficient tech stacks - supporting from market research through to implementation
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The infrastructure that keeps people processes consistent as you scale — contracts, handbooks, onboarding and policy design built for where the business is heading, not just where it's been.
When growth outpaces strategy
Most growing businesses don't struggle because of ambition or opportunity. They struggle because the people side of the business hasn't kept the pace, and without the right strategy underneath, that misalignment quietly slows everything down.
Decision-making becomes harder. Performance gets inconsistent. The team that got you here isn't set up for what comes next.
Yellow works with leadership teams to close that gap across the full people function. Building the people strategy and operational foundations that let growing businesses move forward with clarity and confidence.
Who we help…
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You just changed the size of the business but your team hasn't caught up yet.
Investment lands, or the second site opens, and the way you've been leading people stops working. Roles blur. Decisions slow down. Things that shouldn't sit on your desk still do.
Yellow works directly with founders and MDs to build the people infrastructure that holds at the new scale: a strategy that matches where you're heading, clear roles and accountability across your leadership team and beyond.
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You know what needs to change. You don't have the hands to deliver it.
Yellow plugs in as strategic capacity for the projects you can't absorb into the team right now: a restructure, a workforce plan, a systems review, a manager training programme, or recruitment for the roles that work creates. We come in at the level the project needs and work alongside you until it's done.
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Your processes work. What's underneath them doesn't always hold.
Good people leave. Hires don't stick. Teams stop growing even when the numbers say they should. That gap is hard to name and easy to feel.
Yellow builds the strategic people layer; the structure, culture, manager capability, and the systems to support them — that connects what you're trying to achieve operationally to the people who have to deliver it.
The Team
Hannah is the founder of Yellow, a consultancy that works with organisations to strengthen leadership, structure and the systems that support their people.
CIPD-qualified and commercially trained, Hannah brings over 20 years of experience working with founder-led and growing businesses. Her early career in business development across marketing, tourism and hospitality operations gives her a practical understanding of how organisations actually run, not just how they look on paper.
Hannah Swarbrick-Done
Ian leads Talent & Recruitment at Yellow, supporting organisations to identify and secure the leadership and operational talent they need to perform and grow.
His career spans business development, operational leadership and recruitment, including senior roles within the Xander Group. This gives him an in-depth understanding of the hospitality industry and a clear view of what businesses need from the people they hire in practice.
Ian McIlroy
Not sure whether it’s strategy, structure, or capability holding you back?
The Strategy Assessment is a short diagnostic that shows you exactly where your people infrastructure stands for the stage you’re at now and what to fix first to unlock your next phase of growth.
Let’s Talk
If something on this page has resonated, the best next step is a short conversation. In 30 minutes we can usually get a clear picture of where the people challenges are coming from and what needs to happen first.
No obligation. Just a straight conversation.