“I want to help other women to trust their voices and take up space”: The Sydney-based founder going global with a game-changing recruitment app

Rachelle Yilmaz, founder of Ausphin and Visumé, discusses why humanising the hiring process is essential for global recruitment. With the launch of a game-changing new app, the multifaceted “problem-solving” entrepreneur is intent on helping more great talent be seen and heard.

Rachelle Yilmaz knows exactly how it feels to have her credibility tested in real time.

While the Sydney-based founder was scaling her education provider and migration consultancy company, Ausphin, and launching the recruitment app Visumé, she says she often fought for a voice in male-dominated rooms. This isn’t exclusive to Yilmaz, as while women make up over 52 per cent of the hospitality industry, only 30 per cent of leadership positions are held by women, according to a recent report. Similarly, 25 per cent of the tech workforce are female, yet women hold only 11 per cent of executive roles.

“I was asked in front of 10 hospitality leaders, all men, ‘Rachelle, what have you got to offer us? This is your business, and it has only been running a short time,’” Yilmaz says. “I had to prove everything I presented. Being a woman in tech, sometimes they see me, but there’s always a question about whether I’m credible.”

Following a career at Victoria University, Yilmaz founded Ausphin in 2012 to solve problems in the early-career and hospitality sectors she felt were preventing trainees’ progression. Ausphin, a registered training organisation (RTO), focuses on hands-on learning and head-first education, collapsing the four-year graduation timeline into a practical 12-month curriculum.

Put simply, Ausphin is built for trainees who want to get up and go, and Yilmaz has focused her attention on removing barriers. Although she is not classically trained in the culinary sector, she describes herself as someone who “eats problems for breakfast” and is passionate about people.

“Everything about Ausphin Group is about supporting the life journey of our candidates and talent,” says Yilmaz. “I believe that wherever you are born or wherever you are in the world, everyone should be given a chance, and time is so important. Through education, traineeships, and recruitment, Ausphin can make an impact by innovating these spaces to benefit talent in their career journeys.”

University days: How Yilmaz changed the curriculum

When Yilmaz worked for Victoria University in recruitment and professional development, she noticed an alarming disconnect: students and candidates weren’t landing the jobs they studied for. For Yilmaz, it was heartbreaking, and her problem-solving nature kicked in to find a solution.

“I feel it is a responsibility to ensure these graduates get a job,” Yilmaz says. “There’s no point in them studying, paying heaps of money, and not getting a job in their sector. It’s just over $40,000 for those IT hospitality courses. It’s a lot of money.”

Yilmaz believed the only way was for Victoria University to revise its IT and hospitality training to better align with sector employability. She surveyed employers on their immediate needs and successfully petitioned the university to revise its curriculum. She observed that employers wanted tangible evidence that candidates could perform the roles, and hands-on experience was being prioritised.

There was pushback, but also results. “I told them, ‘Guys, these are the things we need if you want me to place these graduates into jobs immediately.’” Her pilot program led to students being employed “right at the campus” and stepping into new roles upon graduation.

Years later, as a founder, Yilmaz took these learnings even further.

Seeing is believing: How Visumé showcases the next generation

The ultimate manifestation of Yilmaz’s vision was the launch of Visumé, available through Ausphin.

“The Visumé name came about from replacing ‘resume’. That is why it is Visumé, a video resume,” says Yilmaz. “I think the Visumé evolution was just a frustration of our experience as a recruitment agency, seeing great talent go unseen, unselected, and not having the opportunity for those job positions.”

Visumé is not simply a video resume tool, according to Yilmaz, but a global hiring platform built to create stronger visibility, connection, and trust between employers and talent across borders. It also enables direct messaging between employers and candidates, allowing both sides to connect earlier, build familiarity, and assess fit before the formal hiring process begins.

Yilmaz says that showcasing personality alongside technical skills gives recruiters a chance to see the person behind the credentials before an interview. An early pilot provided strong validation.

“It makes the process more human,” says Yilmaz. “Five years ago, we made video profiles mandatory at Ausphin. Since then, I’ve seen selection rates improve by 90 per cent when people connect this way, making a stressful process enjoyable.” 

Visumé is now being used in Australia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the Philippines, with plans to expand its presence in Asia and the Middle East.

“We’re not just helping employers hire globally, we’re helping them connect globally before they hire,” says Yilmaz, who isn’t shy about her ambition to take Visumé to the world. 

“I want to help other women to trust their voices and take up space.”

To learn more about Visume and the future of hospitality hiring, visit visumejobs.com