Why Rockborne
We exist to build data capability that lasts.
For clients, that means faster results, stronger adoption, and measurable impact. For people, it means launching and growing careers in an inclusive field. This dual focus drives everything we do.
Our approach combines technical excellence in analytics, engineering, and AI with commercial fluency and the human skills needed to turn insight into action.
We don’t just place talent or deliver projects — we embed capability. Through diverse consultant development, expert-led upskilling, and agile squads, we build lasting data and AI strength within your teams.
As part of the Harnham Group, we draw on 20 years of data and AI hiring expertise to scale the right skills at the right time. Our commitment to diversity ensures teams reflect their customers and deliver work with real-world impact.
If you want data and AI capability that compounds, not just completes, we’re the partner who builds it — people-first and outcome-driven.
We back potential
With coaching, value blended skills as much as technical depth, and share risk so clients can scale responsibly. As part of the Harnham Group, we benefit from deep market insight and strong networks—useful foundations for what we care about most: building confident, diverse teams who turn analysis into clear decisions and agreed next steps.
Our dual impact
We believe that the best data teams are built from diverse talent and balanced skill sets. There’s no secret sauce: we focus on spotting potential from a wide pool, bring people into the Rockborne Academy, for 12 weeks of training in AI, Tableau and Power, plus communication and stakeholder skills. With ongoing coaching, they arrive ready to contribute. For clients, that means consultants who add value quickly and fit how your organisation works.
We also know leaders are under real pressure. Our model is flexible and shares risk: start at the scale you need, adjust as priorities change, and convert to permanent when it’s right. The result is one partnership serving two outcomes: stronger, more representative teams for clients, and meaningful careers for talented people built to last beyond the first project.
Culture & communication
We believe communication, influence and alignment are just as important as technical skill. We train people to connect (not just code) so that insight lands with the right audience and turns into action. This leads to data being used increasingly to make key decisions, and more seamless integration between the data teams and the wider org resulting in the growth of data-driven culture.
We want every senior leader to become a “data person,” building fluency and confidence so boards ask better questions and make stronger, data-aided decisions. We focus on the core habits of data storytelling, and practical prompts leaders can use with their teams. This results in higher adoption, fewer clarification loops and faster time-to-value across your data work.
How Rockborne began and where it’s going
Rockborne began with a clear problem. Capable people were being overlooked and data leaders were struggling to build teams that deliver consistently. In 2021, drawing on our Harnham Group background, we set out to solve both: create fair routes into data careers and give organisations a practical way to grow reliable teams.
The Harnham connection gave us market visibility into how hiring decisions are made, where delivery slows, and which practices lead to consistent results in Data and AI. We built Rockborne around those lessons. Our Diverse Data Talent pathway (formerly ATD) selects high-potential people from a wide range of backgrounds and prepares them for early roles in data teams. Training covers core tools and methods plus communication and stakeholder skills, so consultants contribute quickly and work well with non-technical colleagues. Many later become permanent employees with their host organisations.
As client needs evolved, so did we. Our training now includes data storytelling for decision-makers, leadership adoption, and AI and LLM literacy and enablement. We also form focused delivery teams to progress priority work such as BI dashboards, KPI frameworks, AI pilots and LLM enablement, with handover packs and coaching so in-house teams can run and extend the work confidently.
Today, we focus on three connected areas: diverse talent, training, and delivery.
What drives us every day
Our mission is to empower people into data careers and unlock potential in the teams they join. We help organisations lead change with confident, evidence-based decisions.
Diversity and inclusion sit at the centre of our work. We look beyond traditional STEM and degree routes and hire for potential from a wide range of backgrounds, because different perspectives lead to better questions and better outcomes. Our role is to remove barriers, provide clear development paths, and help people succeed within real teams.
We care about quality and real-world readiness. The Rockborne Academy builds core technical skills alongside communication and business skills so consultants explain insights clearly, work well with stakeholders, and deliver results leaders can adopt and measure.
We deliver this mission through training, placement and ongoing support. We coach high-potential people through our academy, place them into client teams where they can contribute quickly, and continue development with structured feedback and further learning. We also upskill client teams with practitioner-led programmes so knowledge spreads and sticks. Where clients need delivery support, we assemble focused teams and return the work with complete documentation so it keeps running well.
Our commitment is clear: open access to Data and AI careers, build balanced high-performing teams, and lasting capability.