Hiring For Startups:
Lucky Hunter Practical Tips

We will not state the evident points, like 'there's a deficit of candidates', or working at startups is always a risk.' Today, we offer you deeper issues.

The expectations set by the startup founders may not always align with the practical working environment. You have the freedom to seek out a highly skilled senior professional, even if their office is situated far from the city centre. No one prohibits you from doing so, and you may discover a qualified expert willing to join your project, even in the face of challenging conditions.

However, there is one crucial thing to remember. To attract such talent, you must be prepared to provide enticing incentives, such as a competitive salary (stock options may not be sufficient in this scenario), engaging and ambitious tasks within a promising project, and the potential for rapid career advancement.

In the evolving landscape of the modern business world, startups face an increased challenge in gaining the attention of potential candidates. Potential employees are now more selective, favouring established companies with a strong market presence. Consequently, assure candidates that your organisation can offer them a stable income for six months to a year.

Attracting a specialist to join a startup relies on establishing favourable working conditions. However, the definition of comfort in a professional setting varies from one specialist to another. To address this issue effectively, you need to define the profile of your ideal candidate, making it the second issue faced by startup founders.

It is good to understand the necessary hard skills and tech stack a candidate needs to work on your project. But there are other important points to cover: soft skills, experience, level, and motivational strategy.

You need to have a clear understanding of these points before you start the search. Unfortunately, not every founder bothers answering these questions, leading to predictable outcomes.

So, before researching, you need to determine the specific profile of the specialist you seek. Maybe you require a motivated Junior-level specialist, or you opt for someone more experienced. It depends on future tasks and your goals.

It might not be an easy task, so do not hesitate to reach out to IT recruitment agencies for assistance. IT recruiters will pose several questions regarding your project and goals to determine your candidate profile and save you some time.

Based on our extensive experience, it is evident that effective motivation is a key factor in hiring an IT specialist. Your goal should be to spark the candidate's interest by demonstrating that working at your startup is an attractive and inspiring opportunity. Charm them ;)

Furthermore, we've observed that smooth progress is best achieved through swift processes. It includes providing prompt feedback to candidates, minimising the number of selection stages (particularly in the case of startup hires, eliminating test assignments), and attractive offers.

Any delays in the hiring process increase the likelihood of a candidate accepting an offer from another company. While it's a harsh reality, it allows you to be better prepared and hire only the best IT specialists.