Annika Sanderson’s Post

Hiring a Founding Engineer can seem like chasing a unicorn, but not for us ;) We recently helped an early-stage Fintech startup hire one. Here's how it went: The Founding team reached out to us as they were having difficulty identifying the right person and both Founders did not have technical backgrounds. They had not worked with a recruiter before and was hesitant about the cost. The solution: our 'hire now pay over time' model Financing sorted, we got to work. In just 6 weeks, we signed the Founding Engineer for their team. It boiled down to three key strategies: 1. Alignment. Through weekly calls, an initial workshop, and timely feedback, we ensured everyone stayed connected and focused. 2. Access. We both tapped into our vetted talent pool and actively headhunted key talent, focusing not just on technical skills but also on a shared passion for the mission. 3. Awareness. We armed them with competitive compensation strategies and insights into what top talent desires, significantly boosting conversion rates. Being NY-based gives us unique leverage too. We were able to meet in person and build a relationship with the candidate. This had a big advantage to them accepting the role. TL;DR: I love helping mission-driven Founders get the right people on board. PS. We are experts at finding the best innovation talent. DM me if you're looking to get quality talent on board fast in Q2.

Your tech stack evolved. Did your talent stack? 🅰️-Players don't just solve problems. They prevent them.  🅱️-Players don't just encounter obstacles. They become them. Your team is your code. Is it optimized or full of legacy decisions? ✅ Culture isn't what you say. It's what you tolerate. ✅ Don't hire for where you are. Hire for where you're terrified to go. ✅ Firing fast isn't cruel. Keeping someone in the wrong role is. ✅ Waiting too long for improvement is betting against opportunity cost. ✅ Loyalty to the wrong person is disloyalty to the right team. ✅ The best hires don't fill gaps. They create new possibilities. ✅ Your job isn't to grow headcount. It's to grow impact. What'd I miss? #SaaS #Founder #Startup

The average startup spends 96 hours and $25k to hire a single technical candidate. That sucks. But Kirk Fernandes, cofounder of Merit, is doing something about it 👇 Kirk grew up in a suburb of Toronto. He loved math and art as a kid. But it took a conversation with a mentor to realize that architecture might not be as good a career path as computer science. After several co-ops and a degree from Waterloo he became a PM at Microsoft. He then joined an NYC startup called Hightower which later merged with a Series B company called VTS. Around then he was introduced by my dear friend Belinda Ju to his cofounder Randy Brown, ex-CTO of a YC startup. In 2019, they founded Merit to offer tech mentorship to under-networked talent. Like teenage Kirk! As a mentor and tiny angel investor in Merit, I've admired how they've built an extensive network of 📈 high achieving 🧑🏽🎓 early career 👩🏾💻 tech talent who are poised to make a massive impact on the tech industry And along the way, they've very cleverly aggregated experienced & generous Eng, Design + PM mentors Folks who love to give back, and just might be open to the right opportunities. It's this pool of tech veterans that Merit is now unleashing part 2 of their plan—to help early-stage startups, like the ones Kirk worked at, acquire the talent they need to change the world. And btw—they don't do contingent fees Flat fees = more money deployed in the biz So if you are a founder or CTO hiring for product, design or engineering roles: See if Merit could accelerate your hiring plans with diverse and high achieving professionals who would never otherwise apply for your open roles. 👉 https://lnkd.in/eUu3-q-R - 👋 Hey there—I'm 🌱 Jason Shen, the Outlier Coach. I help founders lead through hard pivots. DM or use the link in bio to learn more about working together!

The more I study great startups, the more I believe this is true: To build an outlier company, you have to have outlier strategies to finding, winning, and leveraging the best talent. A lot of the time, these strategies look pretty weird! Five examples: 1. Stripe was willing to wait 3+ years to hire some of its earliest recruits. The Collisons were patient when it came to winning gamechanging talent. 2. Levels is a totally remote and asynchronous. The company is built to optimize deep work time for all of its employees. 3. Peak Games used to hold candidate interviews at midnight (!). It was a way to screen for interest in the job and the hunger necessary to make a startup work. 4. Traba expects its employees to work ~12 hours a day, taking inspiration from Olympic athletes. It's not unusual for employees to work from 8am - 10pm. 5. Linear holds 2-5 work trials before it officially advances an offer to a candidate. It's a way of testing for a mutual fit before committing. What other examples of unusual hiring/culture-building are out there? I'd love to hear them.

Whenever I see job postings like these, I get angry. Because I know another great developer is probably losing out on working for an incredible startup. If you don’t know, these companies hire to place engineers all the time. But there’s a few things they do I disagree with: - They control the salary (and the bonus) which means startups can’t reward top performers - They assign the developer, so you have no choice in picking a dev who is aligned - They aren’t incentivized for your success, just placing engineers in seats We have built Remotely to be the opposite of this model. Completely. - You choose the candidates, and they choose you - You control comp - We take time to understand your needs and mission - Powered by tech, not spreadsheets If just one more startup knew this because of this post, I’d be happy. You don’t even have to go with us - but please don’t pick a company like this to help with your scaling journey.

Congratulations, you’re hired. Isn’t it what we expect when hired? You can imagine it in the case of regular IT recruitment, but hiring developers for a startup is a different trip altogether wherein you may be hired without an interview or maybe straight as CTO of the company. The oversimplified IT recruitment can be pretty expensive for startups with limited funding to begin with. Hence, ‘Developer Hiring’ at startups should look like defining the technical needs in the head first, i.e., Ask yourself - Are you a founder with no grasp over technology? If yes, having a co-founder from tech background can help you have the ball in your court early in the game & can save a significant chunk of your project budget. Does he have the technical skillset needed to grow your business? Having a passionate & proactive developer who’s there to paint the bigger picture & not just do the assigned tasks can be the game's ace. Wearing multiple hats is a skill one must look for while hiring a developer, especially if you’re looking for someone who can step into the shoes of the CTO. We hope you find the best tips. #hiring #solutionvalley #developmentcompany #webdevelopment #mobileappdevelopment #itconsulting #employeeexperience

🚀 Startup Software Manager Hired in Just 30 Days!🌟 Last month, we successfully completed leadership searches for two partners, achieving results in a short turnaround time. Our recent search focused on recruiting a Software Manager for a SaaS media startup in California. We sought an experienced Software Engineer with the right blend of sector knowledge, technical expertise, leadership experience, and the ability to manage teams across time zones. As a startup ourselves, we dedicate time to truly understand the needs of our partners, leveraging our extensive experience to identify and screen for the perfect fit. If you’re a tech startup founder in search of skilled headhunters for your hiring needs, let’s connect! I’d love to see how we can assist you. #TechStartups #StartupHiring #SoftwareManager #SaaS #Leadership #TalentAcquisition #Headhunting #StartupFounders #Recruitment #TechTalent

The more I study great startups, the more I believe this is true: To build an outlier company, you have to have outlier strategies to finding, winning, and leveraging the best talent. A lot of the time, these strategies look pretty weird! Five examples: 1. Stripe was willing to wait 3+ years to hire some of its earliest recruits. The Collisons were patient when it came to winning gamechanging talent. 2. Levels is a totally remote and asynchronous. The company is built to optimize deep work time for all of its employees. 3. Peak Games used to hold candidate interviews at midnight (!). It was a way to screen for interest in the job and the hunger necessary to make a startup work. 4. Traba expects its employees to work ~12 hours a day, taking inspiration from Olympic athletes. It's not unusual for employees to work from 8am - 10pm. 5. Linear holds 2-5 work trials before it officially advances an offer to a candidate. It's a way of testing for a mutual fit before committing. What other examples of unusual hiring/culture-building are out there? I'd love to hear them.

What is it I actually do? Spoiler Alert - I don't craft beer. Last week I had discussions with 3 different startups around what it is I do - all starting with the question "do you just hire software developers?" It got me thinking and I quickly realised my superpower isn't hiring software developers despite it making up 80% of my business - my strength is my ability and enthusiasm for scaling startups. So my plan for 2024 is to lean into my key strengths: 1. Bullshit-free recruitment advice. 2. Building and scaling technology startups. 3. Full talent partnership to help define strategy, approach and search. 4. Limited to a maximum of 5 active clients at any one time. I'm also looking at expanding my service offerings to include: 1. Retained Search for Individual Hires. 2. Client Partnership for Team Builds. 3. Fractional Talent Management for scale-ups needing 6 months + partnership. The aim is to provide startups and scale-ups a one stop shop when it comes to engaging, attracting and retaining the best talent. The above is how I want FORM careers to look like / feel like in 2025. Proper Talent Partnership.

**In-person SWE roles at top NYC startups** Things are heating up at July, and we’re on the hunt for a fresh face to join our new office and take the last open desk (for now)! As a company, we’ve always kept things lean, operating with a “hire slow” philosophy to make sure we only bring on absolute KILLERS — and every one of them have been found through LinkedIn. If you’re looking for a new opportunity and want to play at the highest level, I would challenge you to apply. What we're looking for: 1️⃣ Side project junkies (people who love to build) 2️⃣ People who obsess over the details 3️⃣ Founder mentality 4️⃣ Those that love to hustle and want to level-up in all areas If not with us, a few of my good friends are also on the hunt for similar candidates. Daniel Andrews (Playground), Benjamin Döpfner (Vesto), Avante Price (Posh), Keyan K. (222), and Steven Schwartz (Whop), are also on the prowl for talented NYC based engineers that fit the above description. Comment your email down below and someone from our team will reach out with more information about the role! If you don't want your current employer to see you're interested in joining the dark side, DM me! I hope to chat soon 😉 #nyc #startups #growth