We Are Social, a globally renowned social-first creative agency, has fundamentally reshaped its talent acquisition framework through a four-and-a-half-year partnership with Workable, an advanced applicant tracking system (ATS). This strategic overhaul has resulted in significant improvements across key recruitment metrics, including a substantial reduction in time-to-hire, enhanced candidate experience, and the establishment of a unified, data-driven hiring process across its extensive international operations. The agency, which boasts a client roster featuring world-leading brands like Adidas, Amazon Music, and Lucozade, recognized the critical need for a sophisticated solution to manage its complex global recruitment demands, ultimately transforming what was once a "clunky" and inconsistent system into a streamlined, competitive advantage.
We Are Social: A Global Creative Powerhouse and Its Talent Imperative
At its core, We Are Social stands as a vanguard in the digital marketing landscape, operating at the dynamic intersection of culture, creativity, and data. As a social-first agency, its mission is to help brands connect with audiences through innovative content and campaigns that resonate deeply within online communities. This specialized focus necessitates a highly diverse and exceptionally skilled workforce, comprising over 1,000 employees distributed across numerous offices spanning multiple continents. The breadth of disciplines required is vast, ranging from agile content creators and community managers who are attuned to the nuances of digital culture, to strategic global heads of research and insights who drive data-informed decision-making.
The agency’s rapid growth and the highly competitive nature of the creative and technology sectors mean that attracting, assessing, and onboarding top-tier talent is not merely an operational task but a strategic imperative. Each hire represents an investment in the agency’s ability to innovate, deliver exceptional client work, and maintain its leadership position. However, this global footprint and the diverse skill sets required presented a formidable logistical challenge for its talent acquisition team. Managing recruitment across varied markets, each with its own cultural nuances, legal requirements, and talent pools, demanded a robust, scalable, and adaptable solution that could unify processes without stifling local flexibility.
The Pre-Workable Landscape: A Recruitment Bottleneck
Before the integration of Workable, We Are Social’s recruitment infrastructure was emblematic of many fast-growing companies attempting to manage complex operations with insufficient tools. The system was characterized by a "patchwork of Google Sheets," a common, yet ultimately unsustainable, method for tracking candidate information. This fragmented approach led to a myriad of inefficiencies and critical pain points that directly impacted the agency’s ability to attract and secure talent.
Candidate data was scattered across disparate spreadsheets, often owned by different teams or individual recruiters, leading to inconsistent updates, duplicate entries, and a lack of a single, reliable source of truth. This meant that a comprehensive, real-time overview of the hiring pipeline was virtually impossible to obtain. Without a centralized platform, crucial feedback from hiring managers was difficult to collect and organize, impeding collaborative decision-making and often delaying the progression of promising candidates. Process consistency, a cornerstone of fair and efficient hiring, was severely compromised; while some candidates might experience a smooth, well-managed journey, others inevitably "fell through the gaps" due to a lack of structured communication workflows.
The consequences extended beyond internal inefficiencies. The candidate experience, a vital component of employer branding in a talent-short market, suffered significantly. Inconsistent communication, delayed responses, or a confusing application process could deter top candidates who often have multiple offers on the table. For a creative agency that thrives on its reputation and the quality of its people, such an uneven experience posed a tangible risk to its ability to attract the best. Furthermore, the absence of unified, actionable data meant that the talent acquisition team lacked the necessary insights to understand global hiring performance, identify bottlenecks in specific markets, or make informed, strategic decisions about where to allocate resources for improvement. As one leader noted, the process was "pretty slow" and "very clunky," highlighting the urgent need for a consolidated, global solution.
The Strategic Shift: Identifying the Need for a Unified ATS
Recognizing these systemic limitations, We Are Social embarked on a strategic quest for a solution that could transcend the capabilities of a mere database. The agency understood that its global ambition and talent imperative demanded a sophisticated platform capable of addressing several key requirements simultaneously. Firstly, it needed a system that could standardize recruitment processes across its diverse global offices without sacrificing the inherent flexibility required to operate effectively in very different local markets. A one-size-fits-all approach would not suffice; the solution had to be adaptable.
Secondly, the chosen tool needed to be genuinely user-friendly for hiring managers, many of whom are not full-time recruiters but integral to the assessment and selection process. Ease of use would ensure adoption, consistent engagement, and timely feedback, reducing the burden on the central talent acquisition team. Finally, and crucially, the agency sought a system that would make the talent acquisition team’s work visible and measurable. This meant providing robust reporting and analytics capabilities that could transform raw data into actionable insights, enabling continuous improvement and strategic planning.
Workable emerged as the ideal partner, precisely addressing these multifaceted needs. Its platform offered a singular, centralized system to manage candidates globally, effectively replacing the disparate Google Sheets and establishing a "one source of truth." The system’s automation capabilities promised to significantly reduce manual coordination tasks, freeing up recruiters to focus on more strategic initiatives. Crucially, Workable’s comprehensive reporting features provided unprecedented access to data that had simply never existed before in a unified format, offering real-time insights into recruitment health. Moreover, its structured framework seamlessly supported We Are Social’s commitment to skills-based hiring, integrating scorecards into the workflow without necessitating a complete overhaul of existing internal processes.
Workable’s Implementation and Immediate Impact: A Chronological Analysis
The journey with Workable, spanning four and a half years, has been one of continuous evolution and refinement for We Are Social’s talent acquisition function. The implementation phase involved a strategic rollout across its global network, ensuring that each office could leverage the platform’s capabilities while maintaining localized adaptations where necessary. This phased approach allowed for effective training and integration, ensuring that all stakeholders, from recruiters to hiring managers, were comfortable and proficient with the new system.
The immediate and measurable impacts were evident across several critical areas, fundamentally transforming We Are Social’s ability to attract and retain top talent:
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Accelerated Time to Hire and Time to Fill: One of the most significant achievements has been the average reduction of 5 to 10 days in both time to hire and time to fill. In the fast-paced creative industry, where talent is fiercely contested, this reduction translates directly into tangible business benefits. Faster offers mean that We Are Social can secure top candidates before competitors, reducing the risk of losing prime talent. Furthermore, shortened vacancy periods significantly reduce "vacancy costs"—the financial impact of an open position on team productivity, project delays, and potential revenue loss. Industry benchmarks often cite the average time to hire in creative roles as upwards of 30-45 days; We Are Social’s ability to shave off a week or more positions them as a highly efficient and attractive employer.
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Enhanced Candidate Experience: Workable’s automated, stage-based communication across the full recruitment pipeline has revolutionized the candidate journey. Gone are the days of inconsistent or delayed responses. Candidates now receive prompt, consistent, and professional communications at every touchpoint, from initial application acknowledgment to interview scheduling and offer letters. This consistency not only improves the candidate’s perception of We Are Social as an organized and considerate employer but also significantly bolsters its employer brand, which is crucial for attracting future talent in a highly competitive market. Studies consistently show that a positive candidate experience can lead to greater engagement and even turn unsuccessful candidates into future advocates or customers.
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Unprecedented Process Consistency and Data Integrity: The transition from fragmented Google Sheets to a single Applicant Tracking System has established a "one source of truth" for all global offices and hiring teams. This centralization eliminates data silos, reduces manual errors, and ensures that everyone is working from the most current and accurate information. The consistency in process across all markets helps ensure fairness and compliance, critical considerations for a global entity. It also provides a robust framework for auditing and improving recruitment workflows.
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Robust Skills-Based Hiring: Workable’s integration of scorecards directly into the hiring workflow has empowered We Are Social to implement a truly structured and evidence-based evaluation process. For every role and market, candidates are assessed against predefined, objective criteria, minimizing unconscious bias and ensuring that hiring decisions are based purely on skills, experience, and cultural fit relevant to the job. This not only leads to better hiring outcomes but also reinforces the agency’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, providing a transparent and equitable assessment framework.
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Increased Hiring Manager Accountability: The system’s automated feedback notifications and evaluation prompts have dramatically improved hiring manager engagement and accountability. Recruiters no longer need to spend valuable time "chasing" managers for feedback. Instead, Workable proactively nudges them, ensuring that feedback is provided promptly and consistently. This streamlines the decision-making process, reduces delays, and fosters a more collaborative and efficient hiring ecosystem.
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Comprehensive Reporting and Analytics: For the first time, We Are Social’s talent acquisition team has access to real-time data on critical metrics such as candidate source, time to hire, and time to fill. This rich data provides a clear and comprehensive picture of global recruitment health, allowing the team to identify areas of strength and weakness. For example, they can now pinpoint which sourcing channels deliver the highest quality candidates, where specific bottlenecks occur in the pipeline, and the effectiveness of different recruitment strategies. This data-driven approach facilitates continuous improvement and strategic resource allocation, optimizing recruitment ROI.
Beyond the Product: The Value of Partnership
The success of Workable at We Are Social extends beyond the technical capabilities of the platform itself; it is significantly bolstered by the quality of the partnership. Simon, a key stakeholder in the talent acquisition team, specifically highlights Workable’s customer service as a defining aspect of the relationship. In a lean talent acquisition function operating across multiple time zones and diverse markets, responsive and genuinely helpful support is not just a convenience but a necessity.
The Workable support team’s consistent availability and proactive assistance have proven invaluable, especially when navigating the complexities of global recruitment or optimizing the system for specific market needs. This level of dedicated support transforms Workable from merely a vendor into a strategic partner, deeply invested in We Are Social’s success. This collaborative spirit ensures that the platform continuously evolves to meet the agency’s dynamic needs, reinforcing the long-term value of the relationship. As Simon articulated, "In addition to Workable being a great product, the customer service is definitely one of the key highlights. Super supportive, super helpful, and always on hand when we need them."
Broader Implications and Competitive Advantage
After four and a half years of collaboration, We Are Social’s talent acquisition function has undergone a profound transformation. What was once a disparate and often inefficient process, reliant on manual efforts and fragmented data, has evolved into a faster, more consistent, and inherently data-driven operation. The migration from cumbersome spreadsheets to a unified, intelligent platform has systematically removed structural friction at every stage of the hiring process.
The implications of this transformation are far-reaching. Hiring managers are now more engaged and accountable, contributing to a more efficient and collaborative recruitment culture. Candidates, the lifeblood of any creative agency, receive a superior and more professional experience, enhancing We Are Social’s reputation as a desirable employer. Crucially, the talent acquisition team now possesses the unprecedented visibility required to manage a complex global operation effectively, coupled with the analytical data necessary for continuous improvement and strategic foresight.
For a social-first creative agency like We Are Social, whose very existence and competitive edge depend on its ability to attract and retain exceptional talent across a vast spectrum of disciplines and geographies, these improvements are not merely "back-office" enhancements. They represent a fundamental competitive advantage. In an industry where talent is the ultimate differentiator, having a world-class talent acquisition engine ensures that We Are Social can consistently bring in the brightest minds, fuel its innovation, and continue to deliver groundbreaking campaigns for its global clientele. This strategic investment in recruitment technology underscores the agency’s commitment to operational excellence and its vision for sustained leadership in the ever-evolving digital landscape.
