Recruiting for a startup. How to find the right people?

People are a major contributor to the shape and success of a startup. The out-of-the-box structure means that the people involved cannot be limited to rigidly designated positions. It becomes a necessity to take a more flexible approach to the work commissioned to them. This is why startup founders are more actively looking for creative partners who believe in the mission of their business, rather than mere employees following top-down orders. How to find the right people when recruiting for a startup? Read and find out.

Recruiting for a startup – table of contents:

1. Recruiting for a startup
2. Where to look for candidates?
3. Recruiting for a startup – summary

Recruiting for a startup

The foundation of any startup is an idea. It is the business concept that gives rise to any business, but no such initiative can be executed without thoughtful human intervention. As your business grows, certain staffing needs change. Therefore, from the very first days of your startup’s existence, it is worth analyzing all aspects related to human resources.

In most cases, any startup’s activity begins with the cooperation of a few funders, who form the core founding team. However, the dynamic growth of the business is associated with new challenges and responsibilities. At some point, therefore, it becomes no longer possible for such a small team to face them all.

Expanding a team is a natural process for any startup. Newly hired people help to achieve the most important goals, and often bring their creative ideas to the business as well. Thus, in order to maintain the company’s growth, it becomes necessary to open new recruitment processes.

Even before you start hiring new people, you should clearly define your requirements. A proper analysis of recruitment needs will help you determine whether further hires are definitely necessary, and to define what qualities the potential new colleagues should have.

Once you have identified the competencies you are looking for, it is time to consider the recruitment strategy best suited to your business structure. Depending on the specifics of the position, different channels of communication with the candidate can be used. A precise job description also proves helpful. It should include information about the purpose of the position at the startup, the scope of tasks, requirements or general working conditions.

Most startups rely on 3 basic types of competencies – business, technical and graphic design. At the same time, innovative ideas and a vision of continuous development make startup job offers very popular among creative candidates.

Due to their structure, startups are looking for independent employees who have considerable knowledge in a specific field and are strongly goal-oriented. That’s why it makes sense to work with people who see potential in even unconventional solutions.

The dynamics of change in the startup world to a large extent forces the people involved to be highly flexible in their actions and versatile in their approach to the work they do. Employees who are open to new challenges and willing to push their own boundaries work best.

It is the team members who really create the startup and influence its final shape. So it is obvious that they should have a good understanding of the goals and identify with the mission of the business as a whole. As a result, a team built of such people will be more independent, making it easier for them to solve various problems without the help of their superiors.

Where to look for candidates?

In the beginning, the most important thing is to make sure that none of the people you already employ have the competencies you are looking for, which were simply not previously identified. However, if it becomes necessary to recruit externally, it is worth using your own contacts or referrals from friends. This way you gain access to more trusted people, and the hiring process itself is significantly shortened.

It is also possible to use more traditional recruitment channels. Many startups use various portals or industry forums for this purpose, where they then post specially designed advertisements saying exactly what kind of employees are wanted at the given time.

However, even despite all the advantages associated with their innovation, startups often do not enjoy much popularity. Therefore, in many cases they stand no chance to attract talented candidates with their own brand or prestige. It is then worth using the potential of social media, which today is one of the cheapest and most effective marketing tools.

Searching for employees in this way makes it possible to familiarize them with the activities of the new company on the market, while allowing open communication. As a result, closer relationships are established, and talented candidates themselves can contact the startup with a proposal for cooperation at any time.

Recruiting for a startup – summary

The dynamics of startups require employees to be highly flexible and self-reliant. A team with a good understanding of the goals and fundamentals of the business is the backbone of startups. At the same time, the fact that positions have become less formalized and more universal has made candidates more likely to become key members of the entire innovative community.

Read also: 7 startup roles explained.

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