Podcast episode #16 – How to set up a hiring strategy for startups with Audrey Bisch, a talent acquisition expert

In this episode of Help’n’trade podcast, Audrey Bisch goes deep on the topics of hiring strategy for startups and how to set it up. We answer questions such as where to find the next employee or how to set up the hiring process. Also, Audrey shares her insights on the importance of the company culture and benefits vs. challenges in regards to diversity.

Diversity in the team

The topic of diversity may feel as a buzz word these days. Everyone is striving to have diverse teams. Yet, not everyone understands that there are also challenges which diverse teams may face. Such as communication, individual self esteem and cultural fit. Despite the initial challenges however, with the right hiring strategy, diverse teams do outperform homogeneous groups. Variety of perspectives offers more opportunities for out of the box problem solving and shared vision. Shared vision, interestingly enough is more prominent in successful diverse teams and works as a glue that sticks the team together. This is especially important in startups, which environment is very dynamic and requires a lot of flexibility.

Prioritizing is a key

Hiring process can be costly and time consuming. Therefore it is important to answer basic hiring questions, before you actually go on with the search for the best candidates. When thinking of the next hire, try to answer questions such as:

– What is exactly the kind of a person we are looking for?
– How can we attract candidates?
– How does the candidate fit into the startup culture?
– Do we have a standardized hiring process?
– Do we have access to a network of talent such as alumni network?
– What is the budget?
– Do we need external agency?

Summary

Hiring strategy for startups is about resource allocation in the first place. Make sure you choose the path of least costs and effort required and that you explore various paths before eventually deciding to outsource the process entirely. Secondly, increase the chance of a good fit through checking that the person fits the company culture. It is essential for the team to be on the same boat and complement lacking skills. Next, make sure the candidate is bringing diversity into your team, as that makes a great team a winning team.

Next steps

If you would like to have more insights on the questions above, just listen to Audreys suggestions and the experience she shares in our podcast.

…And if you are curious as what is Help’n’Trade, read our blog post, where we introduced Help’n’Trade or about us page.

If you want to stay in touch or appear on the podcast, contact us via our social media channels or drop us an e-mail on: contact@helpandtrade.com.
Also, don’t forget to check our application: https://helpntrade.com

00:24 – Introduction Audrey
03:05 – How to set up a diverse team
05:35 – Challenges of diverse teams
07:00 – How to overcome the challenge of communication in diverse teams
08:50 – Efficiency of homogeneous teams versus various perspective of diverse teams
09:50 – How does startup culture define hiring decisions
11:45 – Roadmap for hiring
15:00 – How to prioritize the hiring candidates
17:20 – Setting up hiring process
19:20 – When to get external help searching for candidates
21:05 – Costs of external agency
21:50 – How to lay off employees which do not fit to the startup environment any longer
24:35 – Startups often overlook older candidates
24:45 – What startups overlook when hiring also depends on the culture
26:15 – Present your company during interviews, make yourself attractive for candidates
27:10 – Hard skills versus soft skills when hiring
28:55 – How to reach out to Audrey

Our team