How to start-up companies to hire the right people and outstanding? startups how to find the right people at the right time? Famous Silicon Valley incubator Y Combinator head Sam Altman gives some of his views, experiences and reflections. Text / Y Combinator startups Sam Altman, head of financing in the future, the next big thing is recruitment. Hiring good employees is very important but it is very difficult. In fact, this is probably the most important thing the founders do. You often very easy to have this illusion: Do you have the ability to let a group of mediocre people who work to make a very great achievement. In fact, if you do poorly recruit, you will not be successful, the company is the founder of the formation of the team often produced products. Relying on your own, there is no way to build a great company. Here are some suggestions on recruitment: spend more time to do the vast majority of entrepreneurs hiring almost never spend enough time on recruitment. After you figure out a development vision and find a viable business model, you should probably begin to spend one-third to half of the time for recruitment. It sounds a little crazy, because you always have a lot of work to do over, but recruitment will always be things you have to do the most important and the best company and the best people are always complementary. You can not expect this matter to outsource: You need to spend more time to see people get those potential candidates for your company's favor, and to interview all people to communicate face to face. Prior to the company of more than 500 people, the founder / CEO must personally interview each candidate. A clear understanding of technology and skills required for job recruitment comes to spend time before you begin recruiting, you should spend more time to learn the position to do something. If you do not know the duties of the code geass wigs job, to get the right people would be very, very difficult. A typical example is a hacker CEO decides to hire a sales VP because he did not want to spend too much time on sales. In fact, this bit is not useful, he should come and look at this thing and do the details up about it. Only after that, he can convince everyone on the board why hiring this man to do it. Smart, efficient \u0026 mdash; \u0026 mdash; the most basic requirements for applicants for a particular role there will always be some corresponding specific requirements, but smart and efficient these two will always be the generally applicable requirements. And surprisingly, it is always very easy to forget this principle; the result is often that attracted people in the early start-up companies do not work (they may be unable to do any useful work). Fortunately, clever and efficient people are often hard to find. And those candidates to talk about what they have done in the end. Try to ask them about their most impressive projects and maximum results. Specifically, every day to ask them how to organize their time, or what things they completed last month. Target a specific area of depth to ask, and you find out what candidates do in the end: the achievements are very simple in a successful project. To figure out what way they are going to address specific questions about the position of your concern. If you query the relevant information later raised the right questions, which usually gives you a good feeling and efficient, and you will be able to talk one-hour final stage to determine how smart candidates. If you learn anything in the interview, which is very bad. If you feel bored in the interview, it is worse. A good interview usually feels like a conversation, not just questions and answers. Anyone remember that at a startup, you are more likely to hire in the next three to six months in a new job. You should find those smart and efficient personnel. Give them a few days to feel the character, you feel this is the most important of them tactical advice I want to give. Usually even after the interview, they work together in the end it is difficult to know how a case will be together, but if you work together after a while, which is very simple. If possible (this is almost always possible), before you officially hire him and let him work with you twelve days; you can try to put this in the evening or on weekends. If you are interviewing for a developer, let him some real but unimportant project write pieces of code. If PR job interview, let him write a media release, and look for reporters to pick thorns. And they sign some contract terms and contract workers as ordinary as this week to pay their remuneration. So far, about the people who work together and what will be the situation or the person in the end how qualified for this role, compared to a simple interview, you will get a more precise feel. And he will also get the personal experience of your company. Follow these channels that can find the right candidates Basically, this discussion will be attributed to the \u0026 ldquo; to make full use of your personal relationship network \u0026 rdquo ;. Even tenfold exaggeration nor excessive, the best source of candidates I've seen friends or friends of friends. Even if you do not think you can know so many people, please do not hesitate to find those people best. Even if only 5% chance of success, it is absolutely worth it. I know all the great start-up companies than most people imagine to spend a longer time in finding the right recruitment channels on this matter. The worst start-up companies are always looking for an excuse for their own laziness. When you hire someone, once you are convinced he is the right person, you should ask him to sit down, put his name to those who write you want to hire the list. You should try to do this thing. Often, in order to find the best people, you have to take the initiative. These people almost never go to work, so do not put your limited scope in hiring those people who are looking for work. A more difficult question is how should you go from the circle of acquaintances hooked: I do not think I do have a great answer. A friend said, \u0026 ldquo; ganging is Silicon Valley's most popular form of relationship \u0026 rdquo ;. Do not you find limited range of candidates in your area. For you are in the Bay Area, this proposal is very correct; many, many people want to move here. The excavation of candidates as a long-term investment for: you may even now need to spend some time with some people a year in the future you will not specifically talk about changing jobs to communicate. Use your investments and their social network to fatestay night wigs find candidates. Investors in your mailing list and let them know what kind of people you need to hire. Incidentally, if I was ready to venture into the ranks of the company to hire talent, I will try to make this look more like a private exchange recruitment, because it really works. I prefer that let me see how everyone I happen relationships with a candidate service, such services can help members of my company to search for networking (LinkedIn may be more suitable for recruiting sales staff but not very suitable for the recruitment of developers). Draw a pie, do not worry about this cake will not draw too far to hire the best people, you have to draw pie. In addition to hope beyond a good team work, candidates need to see your painting pie. For example, why this work is more important than the other opportunities? Before you worry about other things, to motivate people to draw pie is probably the most important thing you to set up a good team can do. As a founder, you assume everyone is the same for your company and excited like you. The truth is not so. You need to spend a lot of time to draw pie motivate them. If you draw a good pie, onimenokyo wigs and very good at going to sell it. You might hire talented employees of code geass wigs some excess capacity. Do not worry, in a fast-growing start-up companies, they soon found that their capacity is not necessarily sufficient to adapt to these challenges. You should use your board and your investors to help you get closer to candidates. Once you decide you want to hire someone, immediately switch to close mode. For example, to become the new recruits who report directly to the object, try to communicate with him once a day. Hire the people you like in Stripe (a US online payment platform), I believe they call it \u0026 ldquo; \u0026 rdquo ;: Sunday test this if you want to date anyone. You will not want to come to the company Sunday. Like working with your people on the right company culture it is very important. I have rarely seen such a situation: I do not like a candidate death note wigs but it is also very suitable candidates. I just want to recruit once, and that was a mistake. That is, even if you still want some diversification of values, you still need some constant uniform standards: for example, honest, intelligent and so on. Depending on circumstances, you may also need more. Set up a corporate culture and values used as criteria for recruitment to spend more time to figure out your company's culture and values in the end is what? (There are some great case on the Internet). Try to ensure that everyone in the company knows what their values are and are convinced of it. Every person you hire should be in line with this corporate culture and values. Andrew Mason (Groupon founder) said: \u0026 ldquo; values are used to meet the individual in the context of a conflict of interest can be made consciously, with you as the founder would go to make the same decision (for example: \u0026 ldquo; subscriber growth \u0026 rdquo; with respect to the \u0026 ldquo; Customer Satisfaction \u0026 rdquo; which is more important). \u0026 Rdquo; put your values regarded as a creed. Use these values to screen candidates, if he does not meet the standards that you set the value, even if he can not hire him again outstanding. We need diverse perspectives and different personality characteristics, which is a good thing (for example, in your team, you will also want some nerd and some athletes), but the values of the startups disorder is extremely bad. Some people are too attached to their own values, they may abandon the values you set up; you might finally have to start to get rid of these people. Incidentally, in the early start-up stage, try to refrain from recruiting telecommuting employees. Because culture has always been to rely on people to spread, you must ensure that everyone is working in the same place. Do not compromise on start-up companies to start, you will always need urgently some people, it is very likely you will be to hire some of the not so clever and corporate culture fit or people to help you put a specific task to complete . Especially in the early stages, do not compromise. A random but bad hires will leave irreparable and may result in dangerous company died. Lose an opportunity to delay the launch of a product, or any other losses than hiring a mediocre person strong to come. The best people will always attract the best people other; once you hire a mediocre man in the office, it is difficult to reverse the whole situation. On a number of generous benefits, but there must be equity incentive in the early days, you might almost all are very frugal. But the treatment given talents is an exception. But when you are generous, be sure to pay special attention given to equity incentives. Ideally, you should pay the applicant's salary slightly lower than the market price, but have a very generous equity incentive. \u0026 Ldquo; experienced \u0026 rdquo; candidates typically have relatively high personal wages, and sometimes you may need to pay more compensation, but remember that the great companies are not usually created by experienced people (and some particularly special role in the field may be exceptions) With that I'm sure will be sprayed dead, but this is definitely the right strategic choices: If you want to have a level higher than the market wage, please come quickly to a large company, but not to think about what Options. Ideally, you should just let them be paid to employees on hand less tense appropriate remuneration. Option more difficult to master, but a good program before 20 candidates can get your investment options suggested twice. Not bad for a state but not completely began erupting companies, some rough numbers I've seen is probably the first engineer to obtain 1.5% of options twentieth place probably get 0.25%, but the difference is plus or minus very large. YC company engineers for almost all have a flat wage structure, and it looks pretty good. This wage is usually higher than employees elsewhere can get to be less, but they clearly loved their jobs and believe the stock will be very valuable. This willingness to put money in the future to make the employees are in a startup company you really need. Unless things get really bad, these engineers will get more higher than high wages high returns elsewhere. That does not count their work environment will greatly better than the latter. You may need to learn to do some compromises. Learn to negotiate, in short, in order to hire someone to break your reckless treatment of the structure is very bad, these rumors would be spread out, and everyone will become very discouraged. Danger alert and trust your instincts during the interview and negotiation, there are some things we must draw attention, because they often mean the guy might not do the job at a startup company. For example, too much care about his identity is a signal; too much attention to some, such as \u0026 ldquo; my organization in the end how many reports \u0026 rdquo; that sort of thing is a more serious signal. You will soon produce a feeling about these things, do not turn a blind eye to this feeling. If you have indescribable feeling that people want to say, then do not want this man. Always Open Jobs Unfortunately, more often than not you would like to recruit recruiting, would like to recruit able to move. You have to see it as your lifelong career, not just you suddenly want a person to fill the vacancy when it is thought to do. In this process, some are not to be expected; if you find that some people are very suitable for certain roles, but the roles you may not need in the next two months, you should still hire him at once. Rapid fire I almost never seen a rookie can do it fast enough, founder expelled; I almost never met a few years after the founders still can not learn quickly dismissed. You almost can not guarantee that your employment is 100% correct. When this is clearly a mistake, it can not be right. Instead of letting everyone hanging on a rope doing \u0026 ldquo; become good \u0026 rdquo; sort of illusion, as soon as possible so that the relevant personnel quickly parted ways. When you come across something you have to let him leave the person, this is particularly the right choice: If they only in your company for a few months, which is almost nothing important experience in his resume. And everyone else in the company before you may have noticed the guy is not OK. Enact strict hiring procedures so that everyone in your team to participate in deciding whether to hire them interview people to the ranks, and to write down their thoughts. If during a misunderstanding, this would be very useful to reflect on it later. After the interview to leave, and the entire team to do a brief interview in private discussions will be very useful. Allow employees to bring their candidate dining out. Insisted that everyone on time and well prepared for the interview. To ensure that every candidate with enthusiasm for your company when you leave a good impression. Make arrangements: should have a dedicated person responsible for coordinating the entire interview process, to ensure that each topic you would like to ask each was asked, and when the end of the interview, called everyone together to discuss, among others. And to develop a common framework on how to decide whether to employment, such as: Do you need unanimous consent? Remember, even if you team where some people are very good at doing their job at hand, but that does not mean they'll be good interviewers. Church Members how to become a very important interviewer. Many do not arbitrarily Recruitment Job founder simply because it looks cool job, there are people always ask how many employees you have in the end. Companies usually do not work more stick big time. Take time to think about how to do at least Cosplay Costumes feasible conditions unnecessary labor is always worth it, and the team can be small is as small as possible. Do not hiring and recruitment. Recruitment should be a no way to approach, there are ways to do it yourself to recruit. Man, I wish you good luck. Recruitment is very difficult but very important work. And do not forget that after you recruit over, you need to find ways to keep these people. Remember to communicate with them often, when a good manager, holding full discussions regularly to ensure that everyone in a happy state and adequate exercise, and so on. Remember that one must always be to maintain the momentum forward: This retaining talent is very important. Every six months to give them some new tasks and roles. Of course, also continue to focus on how to attract new talent who joined in: it makes other talented people want to remain in the company. Remember to identify and cultivate new talent. This is not necessarily like to solve a new problem that people feel to have fun, but it will ultimately determine your success.