Yoto: Specialist Tech Hires

Yoto is a London based company specializing in interactive audio devices that provide screen-free entertainment and education for children.

The Challenge

We were introduced to Yoto’s People team via their Head of Product, following previous embedded work we had delivered together. At the time, Yoto was scaling rapidly, with headcount doubling year on year, and the People & Talent Manager operating as a single point of support across the business.

While Yoto was attracting interest organically, they were finding it difficult to reach candidates with the depth of experience required for specialist technology roles. With limited internal capacity for proactive sourcing, they needed external support to take roles to market properly and engage experienced engineers and product leaders.

Our Approach

Following a detailed briefing, we led a proactive search strategy focused on candidates with the right technical background and relevant sector experience. We took ownership of the end-to-end process, from market mapping and direct headhunting through to interview coordination and offer management.

Yoto’s mission and product proposition resonated strongly with candidates, which allowed us to engage the market effectively and maintain momentum throughout the process. We initially focused on two priority hires: a Senior Embedded Software Engineer and a Senior Product Manager.

The Results

• First hire completed in 9 days from briefing
• 8 placements made
• Average time to offer – 31 days

The first hire was completed just nine days after the initial briefing. Both initial roles were filled successfully, leading to a strong working relationship with Yoto’s leadership and People team.

Twelve months later, we were re-engaged to support a newly formed technology cluster, delivering a further seven hires across Embedded Engineering, Front End, Data and Cyber Security — supporting Yoto’s next phase of growth.