Partnership with Purpose: Reflections on our Journey with tms
- Ebony Smith
- May 20
- 2 min read
Partnership with Purpose: Reflections on our Journey with tms
At The Brokerage, we believe lasting change happens when organisations go beyond performative action and commit to reimagining their systems. That’s exactly what we’ve seen in our partnership with tms – a global brand transformation company that believes in turning insight into impact. With creativity at their core and a human-first approach, tms helps brands build meaningful connections with people. Their values – curiosity, courage, and collaboration – aren’t just words on a page; they shape how they show up in the world.
Over the past 18 months, we’ve worked closely with tms to embed social mobility and inclusive practice into the fabric of their organisation. What follows is our reflection on the journey – what we did, what changed, and why this partnership is a model for what good DEI work can look like when it’s done with intention.
By Aisha Lysejko, Strategic Lead, The Brokerage
It’s not just who you hire. It’s what you change.
That’s why this partnership worked.
Over the last 18 months, we’ve worked with over 50 leaders at tms -from HR, Creative, Sourcing and Finance (to name a few).
This wasn’t box-ticking. This was real, embedded, systems-level work:
Assessing organisational practices
Introducing Social Mobility
Training managers to inclusively recruit & onboard talent
HR focus groups with our Young Leaders
Reverse Mentoring with Leadership
Org-wide reflection
Learning that led to action
Every step was met with openness. Curiosity. Care.
They learnt. And did the hardest thing – where most companies fall short:
They made CHANGES to their practices.
They also:
→ Hired an intern with us.
→ Provided work experience.
→ Supported their local school.
→ And are planning for more.
“It’s only the opportunity that’s lacking.”
Why did they commit so deeply?
Because they now know for sure:
“It really is only the opportunity that’s lacking”“This is all about finding the best talent for the roles”
On our final day, we didn’t just celebrate – we asked:
What’s next?
How do we embed more structural change?
And the leaders got to work figuring it out.
This is how DEI becomes culture:
→ Evidence-led
→ Lived experience centred
→ Systemic, not surface-level
→ Doors opened to overlooked talent
→ Backed by people who actually care
tms isn’t done.
They’ve just started building something that lasts.
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