For any companyGreat talent is key to successfully achieving goals and building scale, but hiring the best people is by no means done cheaply or quickly. However, startups face doubly difficult: In addition to finding great talent, they have to convince them to accept less compensation — and sometimes more work — than they would get working at a larger tech company.
But the current job market puts founders in a much better position. Speaking in a session focused on taking advantage of a weak job market at TechCrunch Disrupt 2023, Nick Kromidas, co-founder and CEO of Hunt Club; Samara Hernandez, Co-Founder at Chingona Ventures; and Noah Gale, co-founder of Tribe AI, all agreed that founders today are in a better position than they were two years ago.
According to Kromidas, the shocks we have seen in the labor market over the past few years have created an environment that startups can and should benefit from.
“There’s been a craze and mania for top talent in the last two or three years that has increased compensation along the way. If you’re an early-stage company trying to hire really great talent, you’ve been competing with growth-stage companies looking to go public “So it was really hard to hire meaningful people, because everyone was chasing the gold rush in the growth phase.” “It’s a really good normalization for tech startups.”
Hernandez added that the current less competitive hiring market also means that expectations around salaries and compensation are being reset. Startups shouldn’t feel like they need to make offers they can’t afford to get the best talent.
A softer business environment means that companies can hire slowly and thoughtfully as well, which was not the case a few years ago. Chromidas suggested startups tap into their networks and ask for referrals in order to fill roles with people looking to share in the company’s mission. He added that the layoffs are also likely to turn away a lot of “tourists” looking to work at startups thinking they will get rich quickly.