Charlie Franklin

Hiring the right sales, marketing, and CX leaders is incredibly challenging, especially for early-stage startups. Check out our ElevenX Talent's Janine O'Neill (she/her) and Dan Hurwitz discuss all things GtM hiring in this awesome podcast. Some great wisdom nuggets in this one. Watch the full episode, now live at howtounfuckyourstartup.com

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Team San Diego! I though you may find this as surprising as I did...we are not alone. Read this quick article from Jon Prentice's (Silicon Valley Bank) interview with with James Newell (Voyager Capital), published in GeekWire on Seattle's innovation ecosystem....they lament the SAME issues as we do in San Diego: * Lack of angel investors, (Especially, it calls out, given the local giant tech co's) * "We need low-conviction check writers." * Lack of "cachet associated with being an angel investor" - We have similar efforts (as described in the article) to drum up angel activity: NuFund Venture Group and, Interlock Capital (read the article and you'll see why the Interlock effort is tops as relates to "paying back into the ecosystem") Connect.org strives to 'connect' innovative companies with investors of all types (angel, VC, PE...) - just see "Innovation Day". Their Springboard program provides another great way for experienced entrepreneurs to give back through mentorship...as for the companies going through Springboard: "Ask for advice, and you often get $$" Your thoughts on the article or San Diego innovation ecosystem? https://lnkd.in/gfwq6mfq

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Thoughtful Monday read from Kellogg Insight -- We're all familiar with the concept of the gender pay gap at this point since the 1990s. However, new research from Nicola Bianci, assistant professor of strategy at Kellogg suggests that the relationship between men's and women's average #wages did indeed change in past four decades. The average man in the U.S. used to make 80% more than the average woman in 1976, and past over four decades, that gap has fallen to a 33%. Interestingly, there was no stark drop but rather a steady decline that has remained active for the long-term. So what's going on here? Some theorize that #older workers are retiring and newer workers are taking their place, relinquishing some higher paid positions. The reason why the 33% remains stagnant though, is because there's still a disproportionate amount of women in more "traditionally feminine" job positions rather than "male" careers. What do you think about this? Do you have any personal theories about the way the pay gap minimized and then #stagnated?

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As LLMs start trending towards commoditization, a pressing question becomes important – how can companies in the recruiting space use AI to maintain a competitive edge? Although we are seeing some strong indications that AI and specifically LLMs trend towards commoditization across all industries, there are specific scenarios where technological differentiation is possible. 🚩 Proprietary data In a world where everyone can access the same models with a few clicks, the value lies in proprietary data and not prompt engineering. Proprietary data has strategic applications in generative AI. It can be used for fine-tuning, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and additional prompt input. Taking this further to the recruiting industry, the value will come from unique data and from owning quality data that is diverse, relevant, and collected in an ethical, AI-policy & privacy-compliant way. Generally, I wouldn’t say I like writing about AI ethics, but in this case, I think it is worth talking about. The AI policies and the dynamics around their enforcement will only continue evolving. In the context of HR tech, where sensitive personal information is involved, how data is processed, interpreted, and utilized might be as crucial as owning exclusive data sets. Preparing for a future landscape where the legal integrity of data will be challenged a lot more often will help companies adapt to legal changes more swiftly. Are there other differentiation factors? 💡 Well, there is UX. Objectively, AI-powered products in all industries might require different UX or even devices from what we are used to today. There is undoubtedly some edge here, but considering the data collection path, it is much easier first. In conclusion, HR Tech companies looking to build a competitive edge using generative AI can leverage proprietary data ethically, enhance user experience, and stay ahead of regulatory changes.

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Notion Capital portfolio co TestGorilla release their annual skills based hiring report today. It's well worth a read for anyone trying to understand how best to attract & retain talent. Perhaps the most interesting data point is that 81% of companies are now using skills based hiring, up from 56% just 2 years ago. When you think about it this makes so much sense because skills based hiring: - Opens up new talent pools - Reduces bias & levels the playing field - Is a much better predictor of job success - And ultimately saves a ton of time & money It's no wonder that according to the research 93% of companies see skills based hiring as the No.1 trend in recruitment. Check out the report below - it's a really eye-opening read.

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Inspired by what we’re building at Build Momentum. We realized tech recruiting is broken—non-technical recruiters struggle to find and attract the best talent. That’s why we’ve flipped the script and developed a community-based recruiting approach: a trusted network of elite engineers, embedded within Latam’s top tech communities. The best engineers know the best engineers, and we tap into these deep, authentic connections to deliver top talent faster and with better fit. Want to see how we’re doing it differently? Check out our post

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If you want to elicit honesty in interviews, try leading with vulnerability. By modeling openness, candidates are more likely to reciprocate and open up to you. As Kelly Culler shared on Talent All-Stars, this approach yields results every time. Check out the latest episode for more insights! (Link to episode in comment below)

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SHRM estimates a bad hire can cost as much as $240,000 - but it’s even higher in PE backed companies. Why? ❌ A bad hire sets a company behind the growth trajectory by 1-2 YEARS ❌ They earn less multiples ❌ The PE sponsor and company suffers reputational damage People come to me when they can’t afford to miss on hire. The senior leader they need is critical to the value creation plan. They’re typically Operations, Finance and Commercial leaders. Everything comes down to PEOPLE + PROCESS. The right WHO who knows the HOW. At ECA each search is carefully staffed with a dedicated team who: ✅ Is led by a PhD researcher ✅ Are experts at game-changing search strategies ✅ Follow a disciplined process We are so confident in our success rate, we guarantee it. Stay tuned for a sneak peek at how we share full-funnel transparency and give you an 80%+ chance of meeting your dream hire in the first 3 weeks of a search.

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It’s time for August’s Workforce Wrap Up! This month’s piece covers: ❄ Data indicating a slowing labor market, including reduced job opening and a slight uptick in layoffs 📉 An overview on why BLS reported the US created 818,000 fewer jobs than originally estimated 🏘 New research indicating why the housing market was hit with a double whammy with rate hikes and recent data on housing affordability (or lack thereof) 💰 An interesting analysis from the Census Bureau and Opportunity Insights on intergenerational economic mobility for Americans born into low income families 💡 New data on widening economic inequality between high and low-income families, especially after the pandemic 💲 And, lastly, an overview of the Harris and Trump economic plans and early data attempting to predict the impact of each on the economy https://lnkd.in/egCVZuuQ

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In his latest piece, Paul Graham dives into a thought-provoking realization sparked by Brian Chesky's memorable talk at a recent YC event: **what if the conventional wisdom on scaling companies is fundamentally flawed for founders?** Graham dissects why advice that works for professional managers often fails founders, leading to disastrous results. He introduces the concept of "Founder Mode" — a distinct approach to running a company that clashes with traditional management practices. Graham argues that embracing this mode could be the key to unlocking greater success for startups, potentially revolutionizing how founders scale their companies. Made me think. https://lnkd.in/exHmEE5M

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We’re thrilled to unveil our 2024 State of Talent report! Thanks to Matt Schulman, CEO/founder of Pave, for partnering with us. Thanks also to the whole Pave team that helped (especially Frances Mitchell!) The last few years in talent have been, as I was quoted in Fortune this morning, "super weird" - we put together this report to offer a broad view of what's happening, what we expect to happen the second half of this year, and what founders & People teams can do to prepare. 📍 Managing Spend: In ‘23-24, more companies froze merit increases to manage budgets. Despite similar median merit cycle increases, average increases are lower YoY. 📍 Focus on Retention: Attention has shifted from hiring to retention of top performers, with expected attrition increases in H2. The rise in applications per role + the increase in job postings suggest a competitive rest of the year. 📍 Job Postings as Leading Indicators: Job postings can signal future salary changes. Data Science/ML saw a 56.4% increase in ‘23, with salaries rising. Sales, Marketing, and Product also saw significant growth in Q1. SF continued to see more competition than other US areas. 📍 Sales Talent: Top-quality sales talent is more competitive, especially for top percentile talent. Last year, 23% of companies grew their sales teams; 86% plan to expand this year, with 2/3 of those aiming to double their headcount (thank you for the data Bravado!) 📍 AI's Impact on Job Families: Ai disrupts roles like Customer Support, which has the highest apps per job posting and significant salary changes YoY. Though engineers aren’t being replaced by AI yet, the potential automation of roles like sales development raises questions about career ladders. 📍 Managing Equity Burn: To manage burn, companies are limiting equity to certain levels, reducing targets, and exploring new geographies. Equity burn is a major concern, especially for late stage privates and public companies. Companies are concentrating their equity comp towards great leadership and strong, autonomous ICs. 📍 Geography-Based Equity Adjustments: Surprisingly, geography-based adjustments aren't more common. Outside of the top few US tech metros, equity comp can be as low as 50-60% of Tier 1, and even lower internationally. 📍 New Equity Structures: Data shows that late stage private companies see a 60-70% increase in burn with refresh programs. Companies are experimenting with 1- and 3-year grants, backweighted vesting schedules, and other new structures, led by changes in public tech companies. For a deeper dive into these insights and more, check out the full 2024 State of Talent Report here: https://lnkd.in/g_yTTxFz

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Join me TODAY at 3 pm eastern for Cracking the Promotion Code, some tips that too many of my clients don't understand about advancing to greater levels of leadership, power and authority in their careers. RSVP 👉 👉 https://lnkd.in/eyZyXqUj (Note: This event is exclusively available to StartUp Marketer (SUM) members. Not a member? Click the link above to join.) #CareerGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #PromotionStrategies #ExecutiveCoaching

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Today, GTMfund’s is excited to announce to launch of Operator, its first incubated company. Max Altschuler (founder of GTMfund) teamed up with co-founder Adam M. (design engineer and 0-1 builder) and co-founder Mark Kosoglow (Outreach employee #1 and former SVP of Global Sales) to create Operator.ai alongside an insanely talented team Pleasant Middelhof, Jeremy Jonas, Carl Gunderson. We've entered a period called “The Great Ignore”. Spam and irrelevant, poorly-automated outbound campaigns are running rampant.   Operator gives you an easy-to-use Growth Engineer that allows you to build and enrich lists with accurate data, and run experiments and queries using AI to generate highly targeted outreach.    Check out their website to get updates, early access, and see how they are taking the world back to 2 touches meant to attract buyers into conversations that convert, instead of 20 touches meant to make sure you hit your activity number: https://www.operator.ai/

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Today, Two Chairs announces $72M of new funding to continue building a world where everyone has access to exceptional mental health care. Since late 2017, when Maveron led the Two Chairs Series A, the need for mental health services has grown considerably as our society has become lonelier and more isolated than ever. At the same time, our culture’s willingness to openly acknowledge these challenges is greater than ever. Sadly, the rapid growth of Two Chairs affirms the fact that our society is in desperate need of better mental health support. Two Chairs has built a business that believes clinical quality is the defining characteristic of success. Alex Katz has always emphasized the paramountcy of measurement-based clinical outcomes, which the team works tirelessly to achieve. In the process, Two Chairs has illustrated that embracing the ‘move fast and break things’ mentality doesn’t always work. Instead, Two Chairs opted for a different approach: they went slow to go fast. They built a proprietary algorithm that matches patients with the perfect therapist at the onset and hired a team of W2 clinicians oriented toward providing the highest quality care available. Even as the Two Chairs team has grown, their culture has remained small. This has enabled more intimate relationships within the team and between clients and clinicians. Reflecting on this milestone brings me back to the founding of Maveron and the values we hold dear. In 1998, my friend Howard Schultz and I founded Maveron to help entrepreneurs build companies that improve the lives of everyday people—their employees and their customers. There is perhaps no better example of this than Two Chairs. *** Thank you to TechCrunch's Marina Temkin, CFA for the great write-up. https://tcrn.ch/4aMt7yG

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Retaining top talent in the competitive business landscape is crucial for sustained growth. While initial stock options are powerful, their allure can diminish as they vest. In my recent post I explain the different strategies, models, and benchmarks for implementing effective equity refreshes. #CenterOfExcellence Evolution Equity Partners https://lnkd.in/eFx-_ERD

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RETHINKING RETIREMENT We've been investing in the Future of Work since we launched BBG Ventures, targeting underserved segments like deskless workers (Anthill, OX) and solopreneurs (Topline Pro). Over the summer we spent time digging into another deeply underserved segment of the workforce: Boomers. By the end of this decade, the entire generation will have hit retirement age and, for the first time, Americans 65+ will outnumber those under 18. This has huge implications for every aspect of society, and it mandates that we start thinking differently about retirement. The question for all of us is this: Can we re-focus healthy Americans 60+ on a new phase of productivity, a “third act” that enables them to keep learning, keep earning, keep socially-engaged and contributing to the nation’s economic growth? And what role can AI play in helping every senior identify their unique skill set and personal priorities — and connect them with the right opportunities? We have some thoughts on how to make this happen, and we'd love you to give it a read, add your feedback, forward it to a founder who's working in this arena (or who you think might be intrigued), and share it! AgeTech has been too focused on death and decay; it's time we embrace longevity and give older Americans a way to keep working -- on their terms. cc: Carol Magalhães Isaacs, CFA Nisha Dua, Claire Biernacki, Drew Silverman Fennessy

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Big news, Friends! 🎉🎉 I’m thrilled to announce the launch of Chapter Two Consulting, along with my longtime friends and partners Ray Zambroski, Phillip Grove, and Don Fleming.  These guys are Seattle tech veterans, with long track records of helping numerous Seattle startups and fast scalers build business-critical software and great engineering teams. Chapter Two Consulting is a culmination of decades of building trusted relationships, hard-won experience (and a few hard lessons), and great admiration for those who get up every morning and enter the arena. I’ve worked with some of you for many, many years.  Some measured in decades!  It’s been my absolute pleasure and honor; I look forward to many more. Ready to write the next chapter in your story?  Don’t go it alone; we’re here to help! Dan Sr. Partner and Co-founder, Chapter Two Consulting https://chapter2team.com ------------------- Announcing the Launch of Chapter Two Consulting: Your Engineering Powerhouse. At Chapter Two, we believe engineers are the architects of innovation—building the products, technologies, and infrastructures that shape our future. With roots in the Pacific Northwest’s hub of creativity, and deep technical prowess, we’re here to connect bold thinkers with the resources, talent, and strategy they need to make a lasting impact. Seattle’s engineering community is our home. From early-stage startups to scaling enterprises, we recognize the challenges engineering leaders face when assembling teams, launching breakthrough technologies, and scaling with purpose. We’ve built Chapter Two to empower innovators with a tailored recruitment and consulting service designed specifically to address these kinds of problems. Our team brings deep expertise across technical disciplines and industries, enabling us to align your organization’s vision with the right talent and strategies. Whether you’re solving critical technical challenges, refining your product roadmap or scaling an R&D team, we’re your partner every step of the way. We work flexibly and collaboratively to support your growth, offering: - Consulting engagements that tackle immediate challenges while building frameworks for long-term success. - - Engineering recruitment to match you with exceptional talent across software, hardware, and interdisciplinary domains - - Long term partnership for emerging technical leaders navigating complex and changing team growth requirements. At Chapter Two, we’re not just recruiters or consultants—we’re a part of your team. We’re inspired by the builders and innovators who call Seattle home, and we’re dedicated to helping you engineer your vision into reality. Let’s connect and explore how we can drive your success together.

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I’ve transitioned from growing a career in venture-backed companies to leading a bootstrapped startup.  FAANG and publicly traded companies make LinkedIn headlines, but I’m going the other way into the startup, bootstrapping space. The path has been defined by three main things: Hard work and planning People and leaders Risk (and a changing relationship with risk) I started on the traditional corporate route because that was what I was exposed to, and what I looked up to as the route that led to stability, growth, and prominence. The startup scene wasn’t even on my radar, and at the time it was definitely seen as a riskier play. So I built my career working hard in companies like GE, JPMorgan, and Charles Schwab. While I was in San Francisco at the latter, I was exposed to the tech scene and joined Optimizely. I definitely saw it as a risky move. This is where good people came in. I was lucky to work with great leaders (like ✌🏼❤️ Eddie Nguyen, Sherali Karimov, and Matt Althauser. Some of these led me to Amplitude to build their EMEA business. I learned a lot about building and scaling a business into a public company. It was a wild ride that also included the birth of both of my children. A solid footing made me ready for a new chapter in the startup space with Lokalise then Flagsmith, a bootstrapped developer-led startup. Which takes us to now! I’ve gone from VC to bootstrapped. But that doesn’t mean dismissing the former or drawing a line in the sand. Instead, I see it as a way of rounding out the journey. The things you learn in a VC company are invaluable. The people I’ve met are indispensable. And when the unexpected comes up (which it will), I’ll use the skills I’ve learned from the many before me to best deal with it. My goal is to leverage my experience from the venture space—but shift to a focus on building a business efficiently. Will I be in the bootstrapped space forever? Who knows. But right now I’m happy and excited, and that’s worth a little risk. 

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