​Knight Frank Finance appoint deverellsmith to facilitate expansion

Knight Frank Finance is a key function of the globally recognised real estate advisor, Knight Frank, and is one of the leading independent mortgage advisors in the UK. The team has a breadth of knowledge in all aspects of specialist real estate lending.

In 2020, deverellsmith were assigned a project with the aim to increase KFF’s headcount by 300%. The project is separated into 3 phases, each phase includes recruiting 25 new specialists. KFF recognised that the current internal capability did not have the resources to drive a hiring programme of circa 75 specialist hires over 18-24 months. Therefore, chose to outsource the challenge and selected deverellsmith as their talent solutions partner to design and drive the programme.

Before the project kicked-off, deverellsmith set clear objectives:

• Deliver through partnership with deverellsmith having full accountability for the programme

• Hire only the best quality talent, delivered with rigour and governance

• Hire to a clearly defined set of role priorities

• Hire to a simple and clear process for all concerned, with clear responsibilities

• Deliver an outstanding candidate experience

• Deliver a market leading and compelling KFF message

• Continue deverellsmith/KF successful and valued partnership

After the initial period of design and discovery, deverellsmith utilised the capability of its Data & Research function to identify every qualified Mortgage Broker which matched pre-determined criteria within the UK; the team identified more than 1100 potentially suitable candidates. Thereafter, deverellsmith’s delivery team built an in-house task team to work exclusively on the project and drive the programme 5 days a week.

Phase 1 of the project has been successfully completed on time, on budget and the two firms are pleased to report that the impact of the project has exceeded forecast revenue expectations. Phase 2 is at the final stages of completion and both firms are preparing for the concluding phase of the project.

Andrew Deverell-Smith commented, “The Client Solutions team at deverellsmith live, breathe and eat large-scale recruitment projects, so we were delighted to support Knight Frank Finance in reaching their long and short-term business objectives to upscale. The project was initiated before the 2021 pandemic and we continued to support KFF throughout challenging times, still sticking to timeframes set. I’m incredibly proud of what the team achieved and look forward to partnering with KFF in the future.”

Simon Gammon, Managing PArtner at Knight Frank Finance commented, "We engaged ds to drive a strategic growth project for us in the Summer of 2020, during the ‘Summer of Covid’, which was a great success.

So much so, that we have subsequently rolled out two further projects to similar success. We enjoy working with the team at ds as they are trustworthy, determined and clearly care about our business and making a difference."