Empowering People to Drive Meaningful Change from Day One

At Afiniti, onboarding is designed to be dynamic, flexible and empowering – helping new colleagues feel connected and supported from day one. With a refreshed onboarding programme, the Afiniti Induction Village sits at the heart of the programme: a digital, interactive environment that wraps around the entire process, offering practical guidance, reminders for live sessions and tailored, self-paced learning for every role.

In this Talent Insight, Change Consultant Muhammad Rahman shares how the onboarding experience helped him settle in quickly to Afiniti life, his evolving approach to engagement and communication strategy, and how his experience continues to shape the way he helps clients deliver meaningful, lasting change.

My onboarding experience was intuitive and dynamic. From the very start there were multiple check in-points to make sure I was comfortable and settling in well. Afiniti’s very own Afiniti Induction Village played a huge role in helping me understand the business, the work we do and the values we proudly live by.

I also really enjoyed the virtual coffee meets with colleagues from different engagements – they gave me a flavour of the diverse work Afiniti is involved in and helped me build connections across the company early on.  

My experience has taught me that engagement and communication aren’t just support activities – they’re critical levers for adoption and long-term success. This perspective has shaped my approach in several ways.

I now begin by clearly mapping stakeholder groups, not just by their role but also by their influence, level of impact and readiness. This helps me tailor engagement strategies that resonate with the right people in the right way, ensuring the message lands and drives the desired outcomes.

I’ve learned that the most effective engagement connects emotionally as well as logically – giving people clarity, confidence and a sense of ownership.

When done right communications and engagement can turn passive participants into active champions of change. It’s about making people feel part of the journey, not just recipients of information.

For a global pharmaceutical company, I led a communications and engagement initiative to support the rollout of new content and insight tools to a key user group. We used teaser videos, “connect and learn” sessions, and user guides to generate interest and build confidence. A strong internal campaign – with new sites and bold visuals and messaging – helped position the change as exciting and valuable rather than disruptive.

I want to play a larger role in shaping the end-to-end transformation journey – from designing future ways of working to aligning operating models and embedding engagement strategies from the very start.

As digital tools become increasingly integrated into everyday processes, I want to ensure change remains both deliverable and sustainable.

I’m particularly excited about the role Afiniti can play in helping organisations embrace AI as part of broader transformation. I want to help clients pair digital innovation with strong engagement strategies and clear operating models to drive real, lasting change.

I’m also inspired by Afiniti’s own digital initiatives, such as Digilab and experiment board. These forums have really fuelled my digital curiosity and continue to influence how I think about transformation in a rapidly evolving world.

If you’re looking for your next challenge in business change consulting, explore our current opportunities. Alternatively, share your CV via our contact form – we’d love to start a conversation about how we could work together in the future