Matthew McAnally’s Post

Wanna learn about hiring directly from a startup founder? Our co-founder Andrew Rasmussen shares everything he's learned about growing a bootstrapped startup team. Canny's team also discusses the hiring process from both sides – recruitment and getting hired. Featuring: • Clare G., operations • Niall Dickin, engineer • Daniel Murray, engineer And tools like: • Tellent (formerly Recruitee) • RemoteOK forums • HackerNews: Who is hiring? (Y Combinator) Learn how we consistently attract top talent here. 👇 🌟

3 weeks ago I spoke with a 25 year old asking me for life advice. They were between jobs and asked me if they should start a business or keep working in other startups. This is what I told him: “Early in your career, you need to optimize for working with the smartest people possible.” Here’s why: You don’t know what excellence looks like yet. Early in my career I got lucky and worked with Joe Lonsdale who founded Palantir. I found him just as he was starting his next Venture called Addepar and I got to help him build that company as a very early hire. Both of those companies are multi-billion dollar organizations. When you get to work with radically talented people like Joe early in your career, it sets a pace for everything else you do. - you get to see how to rapidly scale an organization - you learn how to hire extremely talented people - how to find amazing business partners With Joe, I got to see how the sausage is made when you build a company from 0 to 200+ employees within 3-4 years. This is an experience I am fortunate to have, and very few others get to experience. But these smart people are out there, you just have to look for them. When you do find them, you’ll get to learn what true excellence in company building looks like. Then, you can take that and apply it to your own business years down the road.

Now is the time to join a start-up! 🚀 Why? - No need for drastic layoffs, cuts, and 'efficiency' - No need to live up to crazy, unjustified valuations - No board members/investors freaking out because of ☝ - Opportunity for wealth creation from equity - Clean cap tables - easier to secure future investment - Can scale efficiently (with AI, etc) from the start Start-ups sure aren't for everyone. But don't tell me they're too risky - just check out which companies are doing layoffs vs hiring 🤷♂️ #venturecapital #europeantech Thx Dealroom.co for the graphic

I’m strongly against shiny job descriptions, especially in early-stage startups. When people hear titles like ‘VP’, they often assume they’ll manage many people, focus on strategy all day, and take their time. While in startups, regardless of your role, you need to get your hands dirty, work hard, embrace change, and iterate quickly. There’s a major upside if the company succeeds: You get significant stock options, and you have a good chance of becoming an exec in a large company if you’re good. But it can’t be your only motivation: You need to love that grind. The excitement of building something new. Learn a ton of stuff. Wearing many hats. That your opinion and your performance matter more. Expectation setting here is key, to avoid making the wrong match for the company and the candidate. P.S. - Jiga is hiring! Check out job openings on the company page.

I am also curious why salaries in the EU for product & UX (and eng, probably) are quite low compared to Singapore or other parts of the world. I think European countries are trapped in the fact they are proud about on "we have a good welfare system and you don't need as much disposable income" or "we are so cultured that we have unlimited leave and good work-life balance also you can bike and here's our great public transportation system and look we have so many people trying to move here." Also when I interviewed with an Estonian company I know for a fact that they mention about "yeah, our living cost is low" — but okay, I don't see so much difference even with Germany or the Netherlands in terms of salary offering. Despite offering a fairly low salary/compensation, EU is very hard to get thru, in terms of job offers and relocations. They're not very immigration-friendly. Then, you still need to learn a third language whatever it is.

One major pitfall for early-stage founders? ⏱ Hesitating too much on hiring! Waiting for that 'perfect' candidate could be your downfall. Here's the real deal: Startup hiring is all about spotting the diamonds in the rough—those non-obvious, undervalued gems. ✨ And get this: If you’re doing it right, you’ll nail it about 50% of the time. So, what's the game plan? Move quickly, scale up fast, and never forget—the speed at which you execute is the game changer here. 🚀 Don’t let perfection be the enemy of progress. Your team’s potential awaits!

This past year has been tough for a wide range of tech companies, from startups to unicorns and more. After chatting with over 50 founders, CEOs, and VPs, one common theme emerges: many of these companies didn't have a solid grip on cost control. As a result, we're seeing emergency-like cuts and layoffs. On the other hand, we still see small and mid-size companies that keep hiring and growing!  COST CONTROL is the key!

Advice to early-stage startup founders that makes me go hmm 🤔: - Don't ship anything unless it's been A/B tested - Retain an executive search firm for your mid-level ops hire (4 person team) - Your first hire should be a chief of staff - Just keep grinding and it will happen - Don't tell anyone your secret plan or it will get stolen - Outsource as much as you can What else? #satire #founders #earlystagestartups

Founding a startup is like assembling the Avengers, but with roles like tech, product, and sales. But wait, if you treat your external hires like sidekicks, they could end up feeling like the third wheel! 🤷♂️ Let's break it down: Business/Sales founders with Product/Tech outsiders ✅ GTM on point from the get-go ✅ Crystal-clear P&L strategy ❌ Tech turnover is high ❌ Product expected to work magic Tech founders with everything from outside ✅ Epic execution skills ✅ Focused problem-solving ❌ Spray & paint GTM ❌ Operations becomes the catch-all Product & Tech founders with Sales from outside ✅ Super researched product/solution ✅ Smooth execution from day 1 ❌ GTM is so-so ❌ Someone's gotta handle sales Remember, these are like startup personality types. But here's the thing – Value your non-co-founding team members as the real game-changers they are! I learned the hard way going solo 7 years ago (fun times in hindsight 😅). This time, I've got the dream team with product, tech, operations, and payments – all in the co-founding mix! 🚀 #StartupLife #FoundingTeam #DreamTeam #SaaSJourney

💡 Discover the unique challenges and best practices associated with hiring for a startup and scale-up. 💼 Three weeks ago we uncovered the challenges of hiring for new and growing businesses. Don't miss out on these expert insights – watch the recording today: https://lnkd.in/e5rbKpxd