Courtney B.

Experience

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  Shine Talent Consulting

  Founder & Chief Talent Architect

  Jan 2024 - Present

  Shine Talent Consulting is a Talent Architecture firm that helps founders, CEOs, and executive teams design the organizational systems that turn strategy into execution. We partner with organizations to align organizational structure, leadership capabilities, decision rights, talent strategy & acquisition, and the people systems that enable sustainable growth.

  • Partner with founders and executive teams to design the organizational structures, leadership teams, and talent strategies that enable growth.
  • Led Saige Consulting through the acquisition of a Lithuanian software firm and divestiture of its Canadian entity, directing organizational integration, talent strategy, HR operations, and cross-border compliance.
  • Contributed to more than $2M in new business opportunities by helping secure two outsourced HR transformation engagements with the State of Alaska.
  • Designed Murder Hornet's People operating model, including org structure, competency frameworks, performance management, compensation, policies, time reporting, and employee handbook to enable scalable growth.
  • Partnered with DEPT's OpenAI leadership team to assess organizational structure, leadership needs, and executive hiring strategy, helping align the organization for rapid client growth and placing key leadership talent.
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  Raw Materials

  Head of People & Talent

  Sep 2022 - Dec 2023

  Raw Materials is an independent product design agency that creates bespoke digital products and connected experiences for leading global brands. As Head of People & Talent, I led the global People function across the U.S., Canada, South America, and Europe, partnering with executive leadership to build the organizational infrastructure needed to support growth and performance.

  • Built the agency-wide titling structure and core competency framework across Creative, Technology, Delivery, Client Services, Strategy, and Operations, establishing consistent expectations and career pathways across disciplines.
  • Designed the organization’s compensation architecture and career framework, creating clear advancement pathways and strengthening succession planning across departments.
  • Designed the organization's compensation architecture, career framework, and competency model, creating clear role definitions, advancement pathways, and succession planning across departments.
  • Modernized the employee lifecycle by implementing the company's first ATS, redesigning onboarding for a fully remote workforce, and launching engagement surveys with executive accountability plans.
  • Improved operating margins and reduced costs by redesigning Total Rewards, auditing HR technology, and aligning workforce plans with business priorities.
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  The Many

  Executive Director, Talent & Culture

  Sep 2021 - Aug 2022

  The Many is an independent integrated advertising agency combining creative, strategy, media, and production to build culturally relevant brand experiences and campaigns. As Executive Director of Talent & Culture, I led the agency’s People and Talent function, partnering with executive leadership on organizational growth, culture, talent strategy, and workforce planning during a period of rapid expansion and new business growth.

  • Increased agency headcount by 25% and BIPOC representation by 30% across all departments in six months by expanding the talent strategy nationally and implementing more inclusive hiring practices.
  • Built the agency's first Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), using employee research and feedback to design scalable communities that strengthened inclusion, engagement, and belonging.
  • Enabled $2M in new eBay work by building multidisciplinary teams and hiring 25 critical roles across the business.
  • Expanded the agency’s national talent reach by redesigning the careers experience and launching Flip the Script, increasing career-site traffic by 84% and converting the campaign into direct hires.
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  Huge, Inc.

  VP, Global People & Talent

  Apr 2019 - Aug 2021

  Huge is a global design and innovation company that creates products and experiences for some of the world’s leading brands, combining creative talent, data, and emerging technology. As VP of Global People & Talent, I led global talent strategy and recruiting across 12 international offices, partnering with executive leadership on workforce planning, organizational design, and strategic hiring.

  • Reimagined the global talent function by replacing a decentralized, office-based recruiting model with a centralized operating structure organized around functional expertise, creating greater organizational alignment across 12 international offices.
  • Partnered with executive leadership on workforce planning, organizational design, and strategic hiring to ensure talent investments supported business priorities and long-term growth.
  • Built and led a global team of 30+ recruiters supporting more than 500 annual hires, reducing average time-to-fill from 65 to 31 days while improving consistency, quality, and scalability across regions.
  • Strengthened organizational capability by expanding representation across key disciplines and launching strategic talent initiatives, including Huge Schools, which converted all eight inaugural UX interns into full-time employees.
  • Led Huge Women, a 600+ member global network, creating a leadership series that became a year-round mentorship program and client-facing panels that strengthened relationships and generated new business.
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  Edelman

  VP, Creative Talent Strategy & Acquisition

  Feb 2014 - Mar 2019

  Edelman is the world’s largest communications firm, partnering with leading businesses and organizations across brand, corporate communications, marketing, digital, and creative. I was brought in to build and scale Edelman’s creative practice, establishing the leadership, capabilities, and talent strategy needed to transform an emerging offering into a profitable, award-winning business.

  • Helped grow the creative organization from fewer than 10 to 175+ people, partnering with executive leadership on organizational design, leadership strategy, and talent to support its rapid expansion.
  • Built Edelman’s creative leadership team, hiring 12 EVPs across key and emerging disciplines in 18 months and establishing the leadership foundation for a profitable standalone creative P&L.
  • Contributed to more than $10M in new revenue by aligning organizational growth with business strategy, enabling the creative practice to become profitable within its second year.
  • Elevated Edelman’s creative industry presence through partnerships with The One Club and D&AD, launching programs across key markets that expanded access to emerging talent and produced four direct hires.
  • Served on the Steering Committee for Edelman's Global Women's Executive Network (GWEN), advancing initiatives focused on leadership development, mentorship, gender parity, and pay equity.