Case Study: Strategic Support for Talent Platform

founders357
Mar 21
2 min read

Updated: Mar 25

Managing Partner: Justin Smith, Growth and Strategy Specialist

Founder and Company: Tom Freeman, CEO of Sanctuary Graduates (UK)

The Challenge

Sanctuary Graduates, led by founder and CEO Tom Freeman, has established itself as one of the UK’s leading platforms connecting diverse early career talent with top employers. As the company continued to grow, the team faced a pivotal challenge: how to scale a mission-driven organisation while preserving its core values and ensuring long-term commercial success.

Like many growing founder-led businesses, Sanctuary needed to address complex questions around strategy, operations, and growth — from building more structured internal processes to developing a clear and compelling story for its team and partners.

How We Worked Together

Over several years, I have worked closely with Sanctuary’s leadership as a trusted adviser, helping them navigate key growth decisions and seize new opportunities. Together, we have focused on:

Clarifying and sharpening the growth strategy, ensuring that Sanctuary could scale its impact while remaining true to its mission of promoting diversity and inclusion in graduate recruitment.
Supporting the development of scalable operational frameworks, enabling the leadership team to build a structure that could function independently of daily founder involvement.
Articulating a compelling vision that resonates with all stakeholders and aligns with the company’s values.
Acting as a sounding board for strategic decisions, including commercial partnerships, service expansion, team building, and market positioning.
Aligning commercial growth with social impact, ensuring that as the business grew, it continued to prioritise support for underrepresented graduates.

Rather than offering one-off advice, I have acted as a long-term partner to the organisation, focusing on practical and strategic support that evolves as the business grows.

What Happened as a Result

Through this ongoing partnership:

Sanctuary has successfully scaled its operations, growing the team and expanding the range of services offered, while maintaining a clear focus on its mission.
New revenue streams and growth strategies have been identified and implemented, broadening the company’s reach and impact in the graduate recruitment sector.
The value proposition for clients and partners has been refined, strengthening its competitive position in the market.
The leadership has gained greater clarity and confidence in guiding the business, enabling critical decisions with a long-term view.

The Outcome

Today, Sanctuary Graduates is recognised as a leader in diverse graduate recruitment, connecting thousands of students with leading employers and growing its influence across the UK. Under Tom Freeman’s leadership and supported by our ongoing work, the business has become stronger, more scalable, and well-positioned for future growth.

Key Reflection

Working alongside Sanctuary’s leadership team has reinforced a core belief: purpose-driven companies can achieve meaningful growth when they combine a strong sense of mission with clear strategy and disciplined execution.

At If Capital, we are passionate about supporting founders who are building businesses that make a real difference and are seeking to grow while staying true to their values. If you are facing similar questions about scaling with purpose, we would be delighted to have a conversation.