Forshay

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of people's experience and HR services for a computer gaming company. We are the leader in the video games and publishing industry. Our global workforce is 10,500.

What challenge were you trying to address with Forshay?

We're working to improve our employee experience. My role includes making the program management process efficient, system implementation, and the scaling of the organizational perspective. We've had a chance to bring in various consultants to work with us on this vision.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Forshay has data analysts that are responsible for thinking about key metrics on assessing performance, effectiveness, and technical expertise in the analysis of our complex data. They are also redesigning our higher process efficiency efforts and holding workshops to recognize the current state, identify the future state, and build our roadmap for improving our processes.

They also have project management specialists who are helping us as we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Forshay also helps us work through complex workflows, such as our site reopening plans and how we can safely get our employees back to work. The team helps us plan our future state that is more versatile for the global workforce and what our business could look like when we emerge from the pandemic.

One of Forshay’s consultants developed a perspective for a roadmap to improve our people operations organization. That involved diagnostic work, developing organization design proposals, and change management proposals.  

How did you come to work with Forshay?

One of our leaders in the people experiences function who has a good working relationship with Sally (Founder) referred them.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested about $750,000 throughout our with various engagements with Forshay.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Forshay in July 2018 and the engagement is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

The consultants we brought in are deeply rooted as business partners and carry out their duties well beyond what a conventional project manager might do. We have gotten great feedback from our key partners, which is our primary metric for success.

How did Forshay perform from a project management standpoint?

Forshay’s project management performance was excellent. They used Smartsheet for work management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're extremely engaging and responsive. Forshay is in a position to rapidly source high-quality candidates with the criteria that we provide them and to provide us flexibility with choices and options. This model has worked well for us because when we recognize an immediate need, they can easily draw high-quality candidates who will be well matched to our needs.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I've shared this feedback with Forshay. One or two consultants did not perform as well as we had hoped, but they were open to suggestions. I think a few of their consultants were not familiar with our consultancy models.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Just be clear with the requirements upfront. If you are looking for staff augmentation, be specific about the exact skills needed, the nature and discipline of the work that will be performed, and the outputs required. The upfront framing and the dialog on the account are really important.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a winery and vineyard.

What challenge were you trying to address with Forshay?

We needed help with recruitment for the director of marketing position.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They ran and managed the recruitment process for the director of marketing position. We had an onboarding phone call with their lead recruiter and her manager. They engaged in conversations and learned more about my company, its culture, and the specifics of the role I was looking to fill. I provided them with a job description for the role. 

After reviewing that, they asked me several pointed and specific questions to get at what the “must-haves” were for a successful candidate. They boiled it down to the five things that a successful candidate must demonstrate to thrive within this position. 

Based on that, they then headed out for recruitment. They’re headquartered in the Bay Area, and my company is headquartered in the northern interior of the state. Recognizing what we were looking for was Bay Area talent. They reached out through their network and identified interested parties. They then did extensive phone screenings before my even receiving resumes of the candidates. They sent recaps of the phone screens that not only outlined an executive summary of what that person’s background was, but it described their opinion as to how this person could fit within our organization and added specific comments as it related to the five must-have categories that we had agreed on. From there, I scheduled video interviews with the lead candidates, given we’re in the COVID-19 environment. 

What is the team composition?

We had two points of contact throughout the entire duration of the efforts.

How did you come to work with Forshay?

I’m in a professional organization with their founder and have utilized them in the past for sourcing temporary talent. I didn’t consider any other companies. The quality of Forshay’s work is extraordinary. This is the first time I’ve worked with them for the recruitment of a permanent position. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from May–June 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The project lasted seven weeks, which is extraordinary. They were phenomenal to work with. They not only listened to what it is we were looking for, but they heard us. They read between the lines to understand what specific skillsets, experience, personality, and energy the candidate should bring to the position. They looked for a good fit not only in expertise but also in company culture, which is incredibly crucial for a family-run organization. 

I learned quite a bit throughout the process. Any opportunity to work with outside talent and learn along the way is an extraordinary one. I would not hesitate to recommend Forshay for any search, whether that’s regionally, statewide, or nationally. They certainly know how to get their feelers out, and they’re an excellent judge of character and talent.

How did Forshay perform from a project management standpoint?

They were spot on with project management. We established a weekly call, which allowed us to reconnect and review the candidates that they had screened. I reviewed the candidates that they had not yet screened but were in the queue. 

We then moved forward with the scheduling of the video interviews and then in-person interviews thereafter. It was a fluid process where we were assessing and evaluating candidates every week. That allowed us to move those early source candidates forward through the process while we continued the recruitment efforts.

Their process is time tested and well organized. They were flexible throughout the process. When we needed to speak more frequently than once a week, we did. They were always available to take my calls and highly responsive via email along the way.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They didn’t just listen to what I said; they heard what I meant. The person that I ended up hiring was actually, on paper, exactly what I didn’t want. They interviewed the candidate anyway, came back to me with the phone screen results, and said they fully appreciate that on paper this person doesn’t look like who we’re looking for. Then, they told us why they think she’s worth an hour on a video call. I agreed with them. We video called her. We brought her out for an in-person interview the next day. We extended her an offer the day after that. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I wouldn’t change a single thing. I would gladly recommend them to anyone.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Communication is key. Really share who you are in-depth as individuals, as a company, and what you’re looking for. The more you connect with them, the better they will be able to identify the nuances of what makes an organization fluid and what makes a new hire thrive. Be as much of an open book as you’re able to be.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I have a consulting practice that focuses on the future of work and education. This includes things such as talent strategy, diversity and belonging strategies, and team interventions that use design solutions.

What challenges were you trying to address with Forshay?

I’ve partnered with them for different HR-related projects over the years. I worked with Forshay while I was at Autodesk and Airbnb. I have not yet hired Forshay in my current role, as I'm just getting it off the ground.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided HR support to me while working with different companies, including Airbnb and Autodesk. Their team provided executive recruiting and staff augmentation services to clients. 

They also have a strong diversity and inclusion practice led by Lauren. She’s run trainings and helped design a longitudinal study on belonging for one of the companies I worked with. They also consulted on all of our learning programs at that company to ensure that diversity and belonging were threaded throughout. 

Their team did a pass-through rate analysis of recruiting data and broke it down based on the demographics of candidates. They advised us on what we were doing well and what we could do to improve our processes to mitigate biases or roadblocks to candidates because of their race or gender.  

What is the team composition?

Sally (Founder & Chief Curator) is my primary point of contact. We’ve worked together for over 20 years. I also work closely with Lauren (Diversity & Inclusion Partner. 

How did you come to work with Forshay?

Sally and I were in a professional development group together. Even prior to me purchasing her services, we had a strong professional relationship where we could collaborate with each other. 

How much have you invested in them?

I’ve worked with them through multiple companies. We spent $300,000 at one company, and $125,000 at another company.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together formally in 2014. Our relationship is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Lauren brings a lot of quantitative rigor to her work. For example, when we did the pass-through rate analysis, we were able to look at every stage of the hiring pipeline process and pinpoint if there were discrepancies based on race or gender.

We used that baseline data to look at future pass-through rate analysis results. This helps us ensure that the interventions we implemented led to improved outcomes. We also analyzed data on the sense of belonging among employees over time. 

They’ve taught us a lot about how to integrate data into our HR tactics to make sure the tactics we’re using are effective. 

How did Forshay perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication is great. They’re excellent at following up and assuring that our agreements are clear. There were little delays or slip-ups, but they were always short-lived, and they made everything right in the end. I know they’re always just a phone call away if I need anything. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re pushing boundaries in the space with work that is centered in scientific research and design thinking. Their approach is empathy-based and human-centered. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

As they’re growing, its important to have succession plans where different consultants can step in when others have to step out. They’re working on that right now. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers? 

They’re true partners. Their work is high-value, but it’s also high-touch so you need to be ready to roll your sleeves up and work with them. They’re a boutique firm that wants you to be engaged throughout the process.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of HR in a medical research institute.

What challenge were you trying to address with Forshay?

We were looking to hire a diversity program manager, so we hire Forshay as our recruiter.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We began with an initial intake conversation and provided Forshay with the job description of the position we needed to fill. They started reaching out to their network and came back with a slate of candidates for us to review.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two people, the director of recruitment and a junior recruiter.

How did you come to work with Forshay?

Forshay had done HR consulting services for us in the past, so we decided to work with them again.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent probably over $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement started sometime last summer, in May 2020. They were able to complete the recruitment around the end of the year when we made an offer to the selected candidate in December 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Forshay was able to round up candidates of mixed quality, as some were much stronger than others, but the team was very attentive and took the feedback that we gave them about each candidate. In that regard, they were very engaged, helpful, and easy to work with.

How did Forshay perform from a project management standpoint?

They were very good at keeping us informed. We mainly communicated via email or phone.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Forshay knows the HR space very well and they were extremely professional.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think they could’ve rounded stronger candidates, but it’s really hard to say if they would’ve been able to do that since we had really high standards.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have a very clear direction on the profile of the position that you’re looking to fill.