Ashley Thompson Daly
Fractional CHRO / VP of People & Culture
With over 15 years of experience, Ashley Thompson Daly is a strategic HR leader and certified executive coach specializing in aligning people strategy with business goals to drive growth. She has a proven track record of building people-focused HR functions in diverse industries, including technology, manufacturing, and occupational testing, with notable roles at Vertical City and Share Occupational Testing. Ashley is passionate about enabling individuals, leaders, and teams to thrive by designing programs that build and develop a team to achieve an organization's most ambitious goals.
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Working Style: Hybrid
How Ashley Can Help Your Business
Navigating Culture Dilution During Rapid Growth
Is your company facing this?
Your business is scaling quickly, but you're experiencing high employee turnover, low engagement scores, and a sense that the original culture is suffering. Communication breakdowns are increasing as the team expands, and the connection between leadership and employees is weakening.
Ashley delivers:
A data-driven approach to understand what truly matters to your team. She implements strategies to reconnect leadership with employees, align departments, and intentionally design a culture that supports your growth goals, ensuring you don't lose the essence of what made you successful.
Building a Strategic People Function from the Ground Up
Is your company facing this?
Your organization is ready to move beyond basic HR tasks and requires a formal people strategy to support its aspirational goals. You need to build a people-focused HR function but are not yet ready to invest in a full-time, permanent senior leader.
Ashley delivers:
An expert partner who can conduct a full HR audit, co-design a strategic plan that integrates with your business objectives, and build the foundational programs—from compensation philosophy to performance management—that will attract, retain, and develop top talent.
Key Outcomes & Expertise
Strategic Leadership & Organizational Design
Conducting HR audits and co-designing multi-year strategic plans that align people functions with core business objectives.
Designing and articulating foundational documents, including compensation philosophies and workplace philosophies, to support organizational goals.
Leading operational planning cycles and developing robust internal communication cadences to ensure organizational alignment.
People & Performance Development
Designing and facilitating annual performance and compensation review cycles to drive high performance.
Creating and executing employee engagement surveys and action-planning programs to foster a positive and productive culture.
Mentoring and developing internal HR team members to build long-term organizational capability.
Executive & Team Coaching
Providing certified executive (PCC, CEC) and systemic team coaching (STC) to enhance leadership effectiveness and team cohesion.
Facilitating leadership development programs, performance enhancement coaching, and 1:1 sessions for executives and their teams.
Career Highlights & Quantifiable Impact
At Share Occupational Testing, spent six years significantly enhancing the company's HR infrastructure to directly support and enable sustained business growth.
At Vertical City, built out the people and culture function for a scaling technology business, partnering with a supportive leadership team that valued its people as a strategic advantage.
Led the co-design and execution of a new Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) to align employee and company interests for long-term success.
Designed and implemented multiple end-to-end engagement feedback and action planning programs, providing leadership with critical data to improve culture and retention.
Successfully architected and articulated complete compensation philosophies and structures designed to attract top talent and drive performance.
Served on the Advisory Council and HR/Governance Committee for Junior Achievement of Northern Alberta & NWT for six years, providing strategic guidance.
Ideal Client Profile
Leadership: Works best with leaders who view their people as a strategic advantage and are committed to investing in their development. Not a fit for organizations that view HR as a cost center.
Company Size: Ideal for scaling businesses, such as Series A and above, and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) with aspirational goals for transformative growth.
Industry: Industry-agnostic, with deep experience across technology, manufacturing, oil & gas, and consulting.
Engagement & Availability
Availability: 5 - 25 hours per week.
Start Date: Available upon request.
