Good engineers are never unemployed.
Remarkable talent is attracted to remarkable companies. To build a remarkable company, you need remarkable talent. It’s a cold start problem, and you’ll have to invest large amount of your time solving time.
When you start your first company, the only hiring option available to you is cold outreach and your network. It’s unlikely you’ll get quality application on your job posts, wherever you post it. You’re company doesn’t yet have a reputation, you yourself don’t yet have a name others would quit their jobs for, and your idea is yet to be proven.
With this, the only option you have available is to go after people.
The best way to kick off recruiting is to ask the people you know. It’s the path of the least resistance because of the social capital you’ve built with the people who know you. People know people, and if they think highly of you, they’ll extend their network to help you.
Start by evaluating your list of LinkedIn connections to see if you know someone who might be a potential fit. It might not feel like you know that many people. However, chances are, you knew someone at school who’s now a software developer you’ve met someone at a networking event that might be a fit.
Shortlist your own network, and set up 30 minutes conversations to catch up. Your goal is to re-establish connection and see if that person is a fit to join you. You shouldn’t try to hire someone just because you know them. Knowing someone will give you a better chance of hiring them if you determine it’s a fit. Spend that time to see where they’re at in life and make up your mind whether they are a fit for your potential role. Be prepared to talk about your company at the end but don’t make the whole conversation about your company. Your goal is to re-establish connection and build rapport.
If, during the conversation, you feel it’s going well and you see them as part of the team, tell them more about your company. If you already talked about your company as part of the catching up, you can probe them by saying:
By the way, I’m building the founding engineering team for my company and after talking with you, I feel you might be a great fit for the role. Have you ever thought about joining a startup?
Listen attentively to what they say. In many cases, they wouldn’t eagerly jump on the opportunity, especially if they are busy with something else at the time. This will plant the seed in their mind that you both can develop as you uncover the topic.
You goal in this meeting is to determine whether you want them on your team and to figure out what’s important to them. Once you know what they are looking for and what their professional goals are, you can work with that to convince them to join your team.
When I got into hiring, there were only 5 Software Engineers I thought highly of. I knew more than that, but only five operated close to the top 1%. After speaking with them, I discovered that they weren’t a fit for Stan. After speaking with some, I had doubts about how good they are, while others didn’t have the Full Stack skillset I was search for. I needed another way to find talent.
Another path to find the right people is to ask your general network for introductions. I’ve learned to use this method more and more overtime. People know people, and that’s the main value of your network. I used to think a good engineering introduction would come from an engineer. Sometimes it’s true, but it’s just as likely to come from a non-technical referrer. The truth is, everyone has a network of people they think highly of, and those connections are often cross-functional. People don’t become friends because they work together, they become friends because they like each other.
Maybe you have a high school friend who chose to become a doctor. You follow different paths, and they often tell you great stories about saving lives. You don’t know much about medicine, but you respect them for what they do. One day someone asks if you know a medical professional that fits your friend’s description. Now, you don’t know many medical professional, but you know one you think highly of, so you connect them. And that’s all there is - you just helped someone find a person they were searching for. All it takes is to ask.
Go over your entire connection list on LinkedIn and shortlist everyone who’s likely to respond to you. Message every one of them describing who you’re searching for and ask for an introduction. Here’s a template I use:
Hi James, it’s been a while! How are you doing? I’m actually starting a company and I’m hiring a founding engineering team. Do you know a Full Stack software engineer who might be interested in joining an early stage startup?
Make sure to tell them what Full Stack engineering means if they are not technical. Keep the message light an on point so they can give you a quick yes or no. Don’t send a job description, they’re not going to read it. Send it only if they ask.
Your goal is to get a contact (or a few). Don’t ask the person to give you their vote of confidence or screen the candidate for you. All you need is a name and an intro.