Culture
SWEET 16: The 16 Lessons We’ve Learnt In Our 16 Years
It’s been 16 years since Varina Nissen and Natasha Olsson-Seeto launched OnTalent in January 2010, with the goal of connecting
January 13, 2026
Every business has a story. Ours starts with a conversation.
Not a boardroom presentation or a perfectly planned strategy session. Just two experienced executives talking honestly about what wasn’t working in the corporate world. Slow decisions. Change happening without consultation. Systems that often forgot the most important part of any organisation… its people.
From that conversation came a simple but powerful idea: work should connect people and purpose.
And with that idea, OnTalent was born.
Today, OnTalent is a female-owned and led boutique talent advisory business that partners with organisations to find and develop leaders who make a real impact. But behind that success are three women whose experience, perspectives and leadership helped shape what OnTalent has become: Natasha Olsson-Seeto, Deborah Wilson and Varina Nissan.
This International Women’s Day, we’re celebrating the women behind the business.
At the centre of the OnTalent story is co-founder and Chief Executive, Natasha Olsson-Seeto.
Natasha has spent over three decades working in executive search and recruitment, partnering with boards, CEOs and senior leaders to make some of Queensland’s most significant leadership appointments.
But long before OnTalent existed, Natasha had already built an impressive career across professional services and large-scale recruitment, including roles with PwC, Deloitte and the launch of Manpower’s Australian Professional brand.
Those years gave her deep insight into how organisations really work and where they sometimes fall short.
What she saw again and again was that great leadership decisions are about far more than filling roles. They’re about understanding people, purpose and long-term impact.
So she built a business around that belief.
Today Natasha still works closely with boards and senior executives on CEO, C-suite and board appointments, helping organisations find leaders who can navigate complex environments and deliver meaningful change.
She also brings that same perspective to governance roles, serving as the current President of the Recruitment, Consulting and Staffing Association (RCSA), Deputy Chair of Foodbank Queensland, and a member of Queensland Rugby’s People and Safety Committee.
In many ways, Natasha’s career has always been about one thing: helping leaders step into roles where they can make a difference.
If Natasha built the foundations, Deborah Wilson helped expand what OnTalent could become.
Deborah joined the business in 2017 and shortly after became a shareholder, bringing with her a rare mix of commercial leadership and deep expertise in recruitment, executive development and governance through her numerous board directorships.
Before joining OnTalent, Deborah held executive roles within global recruitment organisations and was the CEO of an ASX-listed company, giving her firsthand experience of the challenges and pressures senior leaders face.
At OnTalent, she works closely with executives and aspiring board directors, helping them clarify their leadership value, strengthen governance capability and prepare for the next step in their careers.
Deborah was instrumental in the design and development of what is now the Careers, Leadership & Consulting (CLC) division, which has grown into one of Queensland’s most trusted providers of executive development and career transition services.
Her approach is known for being practical and grounded. No theory without real-world application. No leadership buzzwords without substance.
She facilitates board forums, coaches senior leaders and supports executive teams navigating change.
In short, Deborah helps leaders not only get the job, but grow into the leader the role demands.
While less visible day-to-day, Varina Nissan has played an important role as a shareholder and strategic partner in the OnTalent story.
Varina brings a strong background in international recruitment and business strategy, including her time as Managing Director of Manpower Australia and New Zealand.
During her tenure there, she led significant strategic transformation using tools like strategy mapping and balanced scorecards to connect employee engagement, customer value and financial outcomes.
Her focus on clear strategy, communication and organisational alignment helped deliver measurable business turnaround and long-term performance improvements.
Those same strategic insights have contributed to the broader thinking behind OnTalent’s growth and governance.
Sometimes the most important voices in a business are the ones working quietly behind the scenes, helping ensure the long-term direction stays clear.
From its earliest days, OnTalent was built around a shared belief:
Organisations succeed when their people do.
Since opening with just two employees in 2010, the business has grown into a respected talent advisory firm specialising in the hire to retire journey – from executive search, leadership development and overall career success and team and organisational growth.
Along the way there have been plenty of key milestones:
But the most important part of the journey has never been the milestones.
It’s the people.
Every employee who has worked here. Every client who has trusted us with leadership decisions. Every executive who has taken the next step in their career.
What makes OnTalent special isn’t just that it’s female-owned and led.
It’s the culture that has been built around it.
Integrity. Collaboration. Respect. Doing the right thing even when it’s difficult.
Those values shape how the team works with clients, with leaders and with each other.
And it’s why OnTalent continues to focus on the same mission that started with that first conversation years ago:
Connecting people and purpose.
International Women’s Day is a moment to recognise women who lead, challenge the status quo and create opportunities for others.
Natasha, Deborah and Varina have each done that in their own way, and continue to do this in 2026.
They’ve built a business, supported thousands of leaders and helped shape organisations.
And the OnTalent story is still being written.
The best chapters are still ahead.
It’s been 16 years since Varina Nissen and Natasha Olsson-Seeto launched OnTalent in January 2010, with the goal of connecting
Do you rate yourself as an approachable and quality leader. Have you created a safe environment for people to talk.
Workplace culture never happens by accident. It is a catalytic response to something specific. The best organisations are those that
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