We have helped multi-disciplinary, matrix organisations, such as Nesta and Citizens Advice, create transparent career frameworks that support specialists, generalists and collaboration. Through research-led co-design, we build modular systems that enable non-linear progression, strengthen cross-disciplinary collaboration, and give people the clarity they need to grow.
“I found this approach incredibly valuable because of how it shifted our focus from uniqueness to community… it helped us relate more to each other, appreciate our shared strengths, and look at our overlapping skillsets as a source of strength.”
Tom Birch, Head of Delivery at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
The Challenge
Multi-disciplinary, matrix-managed organisations can face a common set of capability challenges:
Lack of clarity for individuals.
Unclear career progression makes it difficult for people to know what’s expected or how to advance.
Silos between disciplines.
Many frameworks and approaches focus on single specialisms, isolate roles, and limit collaboration.
Undersupported line management.
People promoted without proper tools and support can’t effectively support individuals’ growth.
Individualist approaches to capability.
Fragmented learning and development prevent strategic capacity building.
The Tacit Solution
Rather than applying off-the-shelf answers, we start with discovery to understand your challenges, context, and culture. Then we work collaboratively to develop modern approaches to capability and progression that grow professional expertise while building connections across disciplines and multidisciplinary teams.
We do this by
Defining disciplines as outcomes rather than in terms of tools or methods, to create flexibility for how people demonstrate capability while maintaining clear expectations.
Mapping roles in context so each role can be understood in relation to the other disciplines it encompasses, making connections visible.
Building modular frameworks where capability descriptions work consistently across roles, to uncover shared strengths and collaborative working, rather than defending differences.
Enabling non-linear career paths using frameworks that explicitly support people moving between adjacent roles, developing breadth as well as depth.
Creating reusable approaches that equip organisations to maintain and evolve frameworks independently.
Examples of our work
Citizens Advice: Creating Transparency and Community
A newly reset Design, Data and Technology function approached Tacit to help them with clarity on how disciplines fit together and how people could progress. Through discovery interviews and collaborative workshops, we developed explicit definitions for each discipline across the department and established a shared language. We built role profiles that place each role in context and created a framework outlining progression pathways for each role, creating clarity for individuals and the organisation..
The Impact:
As Giulia Merlo, Head of User Research & Design, described, the approach “shifted our focus from uniqueness to community” and helped teams “appreciate our shared strengths” rather than defend their differences. The framework became both fluid (allowing roles to evolve without full restructures) and practical.
Nesta: From Opacity to Clarity
With no clear capability frameworks in place, Nesta faced an opaque system that created frustration for people and some confusion about how to progress. Nesta approached Tacit to help with this challenge. Through discovery conversations and intensive workshops, we co-created a modular and flexible capability framework, establishing shared language and a repeatable approach that Nesta continued to populate independently, creating ownership for Nesta and clarity for people.
The Impact we made
Transformed an opaque system into clear, transparent pathways for professional development that people could navigate confidently and could form the basis for career development conversations.
The Impact Across All Clients
For People: Clear expectations, guidance that allows for self-navigation and multiple potential progression paths.
For Managers: Practical tools for career conversations, shared language across the organisation.
For Organisations: Visibility of gaps, strategic hiring decisions, reduced silos, frameworks that scale without constant restructuring.
Services Used
- Organisation Discovery research and analysis
- Capability/progression Framework Development
- Workshop Design and Facilitation
- Organisational Consulting
Ready to Build Clarity and Connection?
If your organisation is struggling with unclear career paths, siloed disciplines, or disconnected capability approaches, let’s talk about how a modern progression framework could transform how your people grow and work together.
