How to hire well: Greg Denton

Taking a role at an early-stage startup is taking a bet on the founding team, so it is critical you make it easy for candidates to get to know the team upfront, says Greg Denton, co-creator and growth lead at Matchstiq.

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You talk about the ‘old way’ of hiring – writing a job ad and following a traditional interview process. Why don’t you think this works?

The best people want to know a lot more than what’s written in a job ad, and they don’t want to have to fight for that insight. 

Two of the biggest things people want to know are who I’ll work for and who I’ll work alongside, but most companies keep that hidden too deep in the process. This means they miss out on great talent even considering the opportunity, and waste time qualifying candidates who could have ruled themselves out earlier if that richer information was provided upfront.

For startups, taking a more people-centric approach to talent attraction is even more critical to differentiate themselves because they don’t have the brand equity of established companies.

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The best talent isn’t necessarily keeping an eye on the job ads anyway, so how do you find them?

The best talent start considering their next role three to six months before they actively start looking, so founders need to be constantly hunting out talent well before when they need to hire. In the same way they think about marketing their product to an ideal customer, they need a clear idea of their ideal hire, which helps focus their efforts on communities where the people they want to attract are engaged.

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How do you suggest approaching them from there?

For smaller startups, the obvious first step is tapping into their immediate networks and contacting people on LinkedIn. This might initially be asking them for advice on the role they are hiring to softly gauge interest.

Startups should also lean into more creative ways to reach people. A startup team's makeup has an outsized influence on a candidate's decision, so startups should showcase their people and let candidates get to know them upfront. Here’s one example of how you could do it. 

Another example is to create a video overview of who they are, what they’re trying to accomplish and who they’d love to hear from. This doesn’t have to be more than a simple video shot on an iPhone. Ideally, this would be coupled with an open ‘ask me anything’ that anyone can access before they apply. Or they could host an AMA and invite aligned candidates to participate – maybe as a live Zoom that’s then recorded or a simpler asynchronous version.

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How do you suggest managing the hiring process from there?

Hiring is a function of attitude and process. Once you’ve decided how you want to treat people, give them a clear timeline of what to expect and stick to it. Put in the work upfront to get enough quality candidates into the process, and once you kick off the formal qualification process, don’t leave people guessing where they stand.

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What information is crucial for early-stage founders to share when hiring?

Joining an early-stage startup is taking a bet on the founder and the team. People want to understand the ‘why’ behind the problem they’re trying to solve and their vision. They want to know more about the team, that the business is well capitalised and by who. Also, does the company have an employee ownership programme? What are their values? Invest in painting as much of a picture upfront as possible, as it will save a lot of time in the long run.

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What information do founders need to know in return from candidates?

By having an open and honest dialogue from the beginning, both parties can get to know whether there’s natural alignment before proceeding to the next stage. Working for a startup can be messy, so candidates should be ready to clearly articulate their ‘why’ as early in the process as possible as well.

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What other resources would you point founders to who want to learn more about hiring?

We’ve written a complete guide on hiring. The tactics can vary a lot depending on the size and stage of the business, but this provides a structure and some questions that they can cherry-pick from.

We’ve also created a free Badger group with some leading people and culture leaders, who are open to sharing best practices and providing a safe space for founders and other leaders to ask questions. They can apply for one of the spots here.

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As told to Caitlin Sykes