Overview
Chassis Autonomy is a deep tech company that enables autonomous mobility through actuation, with a focus on developing a class-leading steer-by-wire system for fully autonomous vehicles. The technology ensures that automated vehicles have the reliability and redundancy to continue to operate even in the event of a system or vehicle fault. In short, they make autonomous vehicles safe and reliable. After securing investment and a €2.5m European Innovation Council grant in 2022 and several customer programmes in 2023, the company is now scaling-up.
The Challenge
The founders knew that scaling fast without a strong people strategy is risky: execution slows, hiring mistakes happen and culture gets diluted. Chassis Autonomy needed a system to scale without breaking momentum. Value led, they focus on empowering team members, fostering accountability, and nurturing professional development.
To reach this goal, they sought to establish a robust operational framework that provides challenging work, growth opportunities, and a positive experience for team members. However, with limited internal resources, external support became crucial execute this strategic initiative.
“Steph is fully part of our team. She’s been doing an excellent job developing our People Ops in a way that supports our growth so that we create a great culture as we scale. She is solution oriented and finds simple ways to solve our challenges while also advising our leadership team on strategic matters.”
-Thomas Li, CTO and Co-Founder
The Solution
I provided Fractional Head of People support (1 day/week), which proved invaluable. I swiftly grasped their setup and provided expert guidance on their next scaling moves to:
Redesign onboarding: cutting ramp-up time for new hires.
Leadership advisory: Helping founders make better people decisions.
Team coaching: Helping junior hires be more effective in their roles
Hiring key engineers: Ensuring the right talent joined
The Results
My impact was transformative across the business. New hires who took a few months to ramp up, now do so in under a month. With a team that has grown from 12 to 18, new hires are now contributing effectively in a few weeks. Additionally, they are proud of our performance and career development which ensures a low staff turnover rate at 6.6% (under the 30.8% startup benchmark), saving thousands in hiring costs and lost productivity. I was instrumental in advising the leadership on strategic matters, hiring engineers and driving structural change across the organisation.
The Future
Chassis Autonomy continues to scale, focusing on team retention and leadership development to sustain innovation. By providing a clear path for development, they foster an engaging culture where team members’ contributions are recognised. through career growth and meaningful opportunities that alignwith both individual aspirations and company goals.