Zinc is an award-winning all-in-one global background and reference-checking software that supercharges the capabilities of HR and hiring teams.
“One of the hardest bits has been growing from 30 people to 80.”
“Now new people are joining each week, and we want to make sure that culture stays the same.”
Charlotte Hall | Founder, Zinc
When Zinc began exploring coaching solutions, they were experiencing the kind of rapid growth that many startups dream of, scaling the team by 400% with ambitious expansion plans still ahead. Yet this impressive trajectory brought with it a crucial challenge: how to maintain the close-knit, trust-led culture that had been fundamental to their success.
The success of Zinc had led to a surge in new hires, many stepping into managerial roles for the first time. This rapid expansion raised several pressing questions for Zinc's leadership:
"When we first started looking at coaching, we were probably around 15 to 20 people. We had some external investment, but we didn't have a huge amount of support in terms of management and L&D infrastructure. Some of the managers hadn't been managers before, and as we grew the business, we wanted to ensure that people had a bit more support and a way to grow and learn about themselves."
“When I learned about More Happi, it seemed like an absolute no-brainer. Why wouldn’t we sign up to this amazing platform that can offer coaching to the whole business?”
Charlotte Hall | Founder, Zinc
While Zinc had implemented some learning and development initiatives, including a sales impact academy for their sales team, they needed something more comprehensive.
"In terms of coaching, my partner Luke was looking at Coach Hub, but it wasn't something we could offer the whole team. And we didn't want to do something like that because we wanted it to be open to everyone."
The solution came through More Happi's platform, which offered coaching accessible to all employees.
All employees could access coaching, regardless of their role or seniority.
As Zinc continued to grow rapidly, More Happi's platform could easily scale to meet the increasing demand for coaching.
More Happi's coaching approach allowed employees to explore a range of topics, from professional skills to personal growth.
By providing coaching proactively, Zinc aimed to equip their team with the tools to handle challenges before they escalated.
“The model’s great. The coaches on the platform were amazing. I’ve had so many different coaching sessions with different people and I get value from every call that I’ve had.”
Charlotte Hall | Founder, Zinc
Zinc integrated More Happi seamlessly into their operations, making it a central part of their employee experience from day one. The quality of the platform quickly drove organic adoption.
"When we onboard new employees, we have somewhere in the onboarding process to set up a More Happi session," Charlotte explains. "It's really, really useful to get someone onboarded into the team and book a session to talk about the new job, the new role, how they're feeling.”
This positive experience created a ripple effect throughout the organisation.
"When one person recommends a coach... that can sometimes lead to like a flurry of other people saying, 'Oh, I'd recommend that coach, or I'd recommend this person.' So that's really, really nice because it keeps the topic of More Happi going throughout the year. And it helps with adoption."
“It’s affected the company culture in a positive way. We love to be authentic, bring our authentic selves to work. I’ve heard snippets of conversations of people talking in the office about issues they brought up to a coach – it just leads to a bit more vulnerability.”
Charlotte Hall | Founder, Zinc
The impact of More Happi has been profound, touching every aspect of Zinc's operations. One of the most significant benefits has been in conflict resolution and time management. "It saved a lot of time," Charlotte emphasises. "It's been a lovely tool to suggest to people if you are having a bit of a pinch moment within end of quarter, or you've got some reporting or a presentation to put together."
The platform has also played a crucial role in fostering a more authentic workplace culture.
Key platform benefits include:
“The return on investment has been huge. It’s been absolutely invaluable in the business. The fact that we’re still talking about it weekly on Slack is testament to the impact.”
Charlotte Hall | Founder, Zinc
As Zinc continues to grow, More Happi remains central to their strategy. For Charlotte, the impact of More Happi can be summed up in one word: empowering.
"It's such a great platform that enables our employees to take ownership of their development and growth, whether that's through conflict resolution, career progression, or personal development. Even though I don't feel like I have the time for it, I'm carving out time and prioritising it because it helps me daily, weekly, yearly, with anything that's going on."
Future focus areas include supporting internal promotions and career development, enabling smooth transitions for new joiners, maintaining culture during continued growth, developing next generation leaders, and providing consistent support across all levels.
"My coach really enabled me to reflect and truly understand that my initial goal that I had held on a pedestal and invested a lot of significance to, was simply one of many measures of the system and small lifestyle and way of living changes I made is heading in the right direction. Very empowering session!"
"Great at helping me identify goals and objectives for the year ahead. Including exploring pitfalls and risks to overcome. Very helpful. Would recommend!"
"My coach encouraged me to think long term and also where and what I am growing into. He also helped me identify the thing that I had previously thought was missing."
"Helped me untangle a lot of complex, muddled thoughts about a work problem in a short space of time. By the end of our session we had managed to get to the root issue, and create some action points I can move forward with."
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