Share your experience with LSE and help shape Reach – a new programme exploring how businesses can hire better, fill roles faster and reach more people.
It’s time to rethink traditional hiring processes
The demand for digital skills is growing faster than the talent pool. Nearly half of UK firms struggle to recruit for roles requiring digital skills, while 9 in 10 small-to-medium businesses report skills gaps. Unlike large employers, smaller companies have fewer resources to compete for talent or invest in training.
Many rely on the same shortcuts – personal networks, degrees and experience. But when this becomes the default way to find people, it can shrink the talent pool and mean good candidates go overlooked.
Reach (Research, Evidence & Approaches for Competitive Hiring) is exploring how looking beyond traditional criteria can help businesses find the people they need, while improving opportunities for people from lower-income backgrounds.
THE LONG-TERM VALUE OF THE REACH PROGRAMME
Reach more people
Connect with candidates you might not otherwise reach. Access a broader range of people to strengthen your team with different skills and perspectives.
Control salary costs
Uncover more ways to hire people from new or more diverse backgrounds to decrease salary pressure, manage inflation and make labour more affordable.
Find overlooked talent
Increase your chances of making a great hire. Look beyond traditional qualifications and experience to find capable candidates who might otherwise be missed.
Reduce hiring costs
Reduce your reliance on recruitment agencies. Explore alternative ways to find candidates that could make hiring more cost-effective.
Build skills you need
Identify people with potential and develop the skills your business needs. Access training, mentoring and expert support to help you get there.
Drive social impact
Create opportunities for people from lower-income backgrounds while meeting social value requirements for public sector contracts.
Reach is designed for UK business leaders who:
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Employ under 250 people
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Use technology in daily operations
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Plan to hire in the next 6-12 months
How it works
Phase 1: Share your experience
Reflect on the highs and lows of your organisation’s hiring process in a 50-minute 1:1 conversation with a research expert from LSE to help inform the practical tools and support delivered through Reach.
Taking part in phase two or phase three is optional.
When: Now until September 2026
What: 1 × 50-minute online call, no prep needed
Phase 2: Test new approaches
Around 120 businesses will help test and refine new approaches to hiring, informed by the research. Participants will receive practical support and resources to help them put the approaches into practice.
When: From Autumn-Winter 2026 onwards
What: Full details to be shared in advance
Phase 3: Scale what works
The most effective approaches will be refined and shared more widely, helping close to 2,000 small-to-medium businesses explore better ways to reach and hire talent.
When: Mid-2027 and beyond
What: Full details to be shared in advance
Your hiring experience can help shape what comes next
Take part in a 50-minute conversation with an expert from LSE and help inform the practical tools and support developed through Reach.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Reach is designed to support small-to-medium businesses in the UK that have under 250 employees, use technology in their daily operations and plan to hire in the next 6-12 months.
You may also sell technology-based products and services, but this is not a requirement.
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Right now, you’ll need to be able to commit to a 50-minute conversation on your organisation’s hiring experiences with a research expert from LSE. This forms Phase 1 of Reach and will inform the practical tools and support delivered in Phase 2 and 3.
From Phase 1, you can choose to continue into Phase 2 and Phase 3 once more information is shared. Progressing into these phases is not expected — hearing your perspective on recruitment is valuable enough.
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The interviews will be carried out by research experts from London School of Economics in collaboration with Be the Business.
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Interviews will take 50 minutes and happen online, in a one-to-one conversation with a research expert from LSE. You’ll be able to choose a time and day that best fits your schedule.
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Reach stands for Research, Evidence and Approaches to Competitive Hiring. The programme name is designed to encapsulate the robust academic research that backs the programme, as well as its practical aim: to improve access to talent and hiring practices for UK businesses.
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Great! Please send your message over to community@bethebusiness.com and a member of our team will be in touch.