How small companies can recruit — and keep — big talent

You know you have a category-defining concept. You know you need top talent to scale. But how do you make your startup stand out among a crowded field of tech titans?

On this episode of the My First Million podcast, Sam Parr and Shaan Puri discuss some of the challenges small companies face when recruiting — especially when they’re competing against big dogs like Meta, Tesla, and Google.

“It is harder when you don’t have this huge prize, this huge mission, and this huge pie that you get to split amongst people,” Puri said.

Some of their ideas, plus a few of ours:

1. Recruit from your inner circle. These are people who are already aware of — and invested in — your work and mission. Please, especially in the early days, start here instead of turning to a recruiter or agency.
2. Your company’s size is an asset. Not everyone wants to be one in 5,000 employees. For highly driven people looking to grow as entrepreneurs, the opportunity to help grow a company is appealing. 
3. Look beyond LinkedIn. Sometimes what you need is someone with one or two extreme strengths — not the whole resume. Subreddits are a great place to scout for niche skills and interests. Dribbble and Behance are good platforms to find designers. AngelList, Tech Ladies, and LeanHire are helpful places to search for tech talent.

Still, it can be especially difficult for companies recruiting from a small pool of highly specialized STEM talent. And when you’re also aiming for diversity in hiring, that pool can seem even smaller. It’s worth the effort, though, as research shows that a diverse workforce leads to greater innovation and, in turn, profitability. And as behavioral scientist Aline Holzwarth writes for Forbes, there are a number of strategies that will make your company attractive to a diverse pool of applicants. These include: 

1. Listing open positions with “maximum specificity,” spelling out the actual responsibilities of the job and expectations for outcomes and milestones. Including “nice to haves” in your descriptions can deter applicants who feel they have to tick all the boxes.
2. Eliminate unconscious biases by blinding applicant resumes. This means removing information like names, universities attended, and addresses, which can signal things like gender, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. 
3. Build a heterogeneous hiring team that includes multiple people of different backgrounds. Allow members of this team to assess resumes independently and take part in the interview process. 

And sometimes the perfect employee is right under your nose. As Fast Company reports, internal hires tend to be enthusiastic, engaged and loyal. In fact, a survey by SmartRecruiters found that 75% of promoted employees — whether that’s an intern, contractor, or boomerang employee — will stay with a company for three years or more. 

Finally, don’t overlook the importance of a robust retention strategy. According to Business Insider, a competitive labor market means many companies might struggle to keep their most valuable employees. Conducting “stay interviews” is a good way to find out what workers want most and build policies accordingly. Fostering an environment that allows for trust and autonomy and creating clear pathways toward advancement opportunities also can help keep your workers happy.

And that, of course, opens whole new avenues for recruitment, as engaged employees can be your biggest cheerleaders.