The biggest challenge a start-up founder will face is when the time comes to hire staff. Securing the perfect candidate is no mean feat. They need to be a good cultural fit for the start-up, as well as having the necessary skill set. Naturally, every start-up founder will want to hire the right candidate, but they will also be concerned about the length of time it takes to recruit or how much it is going to cost.

Finding the perfect match needs strategic thinking, an analytical mind – and a mix of experience, practice, and intuition. Perhaps surprisingly, next to a concern of lack of skills the biggest concern for start-ups recruiting talent is the lack of engagement they see from candidates. Of course, the latter really does sound the alarm bell. If a prospective employee is not suitably engaged and enthused during the recruitment process you have to worry what their attitude might be six or nine months down the line.

Qualities the right candidate needs

Founders might be concerned about candidates’ lack of experience of working in a start-up culture. Obviously, you would expect all candidates to possess the necessary skills for a role. However, interviewers need to bear in mind that working for a start-up can be very challenging in itself. To be successful, you really need to be able to offer more than just the necessary set of skills. Passion and commitment are required too. Regardless of how skilled they might be, a candidate who lacks intensity and dedication will be an employee that falls short.

Outstanding candidates bring much more to the table than an impressive set of skills. They have a sparkle in their eyes. These are the people that will become the greatest assets to a start-up. Individual candidate profiles are obviously important for all roles. However, the greatest benefit is felt is when an individual fits seamlessly into the wider team. When you are looking for the greatest impact on the revenue, product development and lifecycle of a start-up or scale-up, making sure that you have the right team behind you will go a long way to determining the success of your venture.

Hiring the right people is always likely to be the biggest challenge that start-up founders face. Those that can invest a significant amount of time recruiting key staff are likely to see the best results. Another approach is to treat hiring like a product. Product development can require almost insane levels of discipline and focus. If the same levels can be reached in the search for staff, the outlook is rosy. Of course, start-up leaders have multiple tasks to focus on at any given time, so that level of dedication to hiring A-players is something that a lot of start-up leaders might struggle with.

If you have found yourself in this situation and are having trouble hiring the right candidates, are frustrated about the time it’s taking, or you are seeing too many candidates that are not a good fit for you, get in touch today. AlpinaSearch is Europe’s premier talent search firm dedicated to supporting software start-ups and scale-ups.