Recruiting for Remote Positions

The best founders do one thing brilliantly... Hire. Here’s how we think about finding & attracting A-players for our portfolio companies: Most owners hire like they're running a restaurant. They think more cooks = faster service. Instead, they get a kitchen full of people bumping into each other, burning food, and blaming everyone else. That’s why hiring isn’t a numbers game. You don't need more people. You need the RIGHT people. It’s impossible to build a worthwhile business with mediocre talent. Over the years, we've developed a framework to find, attract, and close the top 0.001%. I call it the 4 C's to Top-Level Talent: 1. CURATE Start hiring before you start hiring. Follow smart people in your niche on Twitter. Connect on LinkedIn. Bookmark stuff that makes you say, "Damn, I wish I wrote that." Treat talent like a portfolio. Study first, invest later. The best hires happen when you're NOT desperately hiring. 1. CULTIVATE Engage without being weird. Compliment their stuff. Comment. Ask smart questions. Send them ideas. The best talent moves when THEY'RE ready, not when you need them. Plant seeds early. Water them consistently. 3. CLOSE When it's time to close the sale, go HARD. Fly them in. Meet their spouse. Pay more than you're comfortable with. I wasn't even looking for a company President when I met Marc. I wanted a CRO. But after one conversation, I knew he was our guy. So I changed the org to fit HIM. That's how good hires work. They change you. Don't squeeze top talent into your current structure. Bend your business around exceptional people. 4. CONTINUE Top performers won't always stay forever. That's okay. Even when they leave, keep them close. My old Head of Content now runs a 7-figure business. We still trade notes. They send better talent than any recruiter ever could. As someone who’s hired 100s of people, take it from me: Your best hires won't walk in the door with a resume in hand. They're already working somewhere else, crushing it. It’s your job to go find them. Hiring the right people is one of the most powerful growth levers for any business. If you want to see exactly how we attract and retain top-tier talent across our portfolio, I’ll be breaking it all down in an upcoming workshop (tomorrow). This is just one of several proven scaling strategies we’ll cover— more info here: https://lnkd.in/emd63SuT

Everyone in Silicon Valley is hiring. Very few are hiring well. Every day on Instagram, I get DMs from candidates frustrated by how broken the job market feels. And on LinkedIn? Recruiters are just as overwhelmed. So over the last three weeks, I’ve been meeting with recruiters and marketers in my network to understand where things are actually breaking down. The takeaway: it’s not a talent shortage - it’s signal overload. If you’re a recruiter drowning in resumes, intro calls, and “on paper they looked great,” here are three ways to make your life easier and attract better talent:  1. 𝗛𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰: Not a generic “We’re hiring a Marketing Lead - apply here.”I mean showing the process. Post a video explaining what you’re actually looking for. Share anonymized examples of what moves candidates forward (and what doesn’t). Talk about the good, the bad, and the messy. It creates social buzz, builds trust, and teaches candidates how to stand out before they apply.  2. 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿-𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽: Instead of endless intro calls, give candidates a short, async exercise tied to the real job - a Loom walkthrough, mini case, or 30-minute prompt. High-intent candidates lean in, low-intent ones opt out. You get a real signal before the first call. Candidates save time, and interviews become conversations, not auditions. I’ve been exploring tools like The Aurora Co. (www.theauroraco.com) which let recruiters create role-specific, AI-scored case exercises with structured feedback and analytics.  3. 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗮 “𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗛𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗝𝗼𝗯” 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁: Instead of overselling the role, be radically honest. Share what’s messy, what’s unclear, and what kind of person will struggle in this job. Is it scrappy? Under-resourced? Fast-changing? Say that. The wrong candidates will self-select out immediately, and the right ones will lean in harder. Recruiters waste less time on misaligned interviews, and candidates walk in with eyes wide open - which makes every conversation higher quality.

I attracted 53% of my old employer’s apprenticeship talent, with 1 simple tool and £0 budget. . I’ll be completely transparent… I LOVED my old job at Heathrow . In fact, I loved the airport so much, it poured out of me and overflowed onto the internet. . For over 5 years, I would pick up my phone and make daily videos about: . Things I was getting upto Things I was learning, and Advise I wish I knew earlier . The result? . A walking talking job description in the form of short, sharp and educational videos across instagram and TikTok… . “A Digital Twin” of my experience, so to speak . Now here’s the interesting part: . These videos were made with £0 budget and just my phone… as a result they were NOT: . Silky smooth shots Highly edited Scripted or planned . Instead they were: . Authentic Raw REAL! . They built trust and connection… . This resulted in THOUSANDS of messages with questions about the role I was doing… . And most importantly, how could they get this role too? Yeah… I answered all of them . Before I knew it, this online community had grown so rapidly it overtook the number of followers that Heathrow Airport had across its own social media channels 😅 . This is something every organisation can learn from… . Your best talent attraction strategy…is your own talent! . Allow them to have a voice! Allow them to use it! . This authenticity is the only thing that will stand out on social media and cut through the noise. . Anything else will just look and feel like an advert… . And we all know what happens when we see an Ad.. . *Skip* . . . Some organisations penalise their staff for speaking about their job on social media… . Those days are over. . The organisation that will attract the best talent of the future are the ones that encourage, empower and, dare i say it, TEACH their staff how to use social media! . Yes, thats right! Invest in building your own internal “influencers” . Give them a social media master class, teach them where the red lines are and encourage them to share their day to day experiences at work . Then sit back, and watch the magic happen. . Ps - If you like the idea of getting ahead of the curve and developing your own internal team of “influencers”, let’s talk. . #TheAirportGuy . #TalentAttraction #Aviation

Here's a brutal truth for managers: Hiring is the path to mediocrity. Recruiting is how great teams are built. If you don't know the difference, read this: The Hiring Reality: 🚩 Post a job → 300+ applicants flood in 🚩 Screen 50+ resumes → 90% are unqualified 🚩 Phone screen 15 people → Half ghost you 🚩 Interview 8 candidates → 3 months later 🚩 Make an offer → 50/50 chance they succeed 300 applications. 3 months. 1 average hire. The Recruiting Advantage: ✅ Maintain a list of 20 future stars → No application noise ✅ Spend 30 minutes monthly → Build real relationships ✅ Share company wins and culture → They know your mission ✅ Reach out when opportunity opens → They're already warm ✅ 2-3 interviews with team → Both sides test the fit 20 relationships. 3 weeks. 1 exceptional hire. The math is simple: • Same time investment • Higher quality candidates • Better success probability • Zero administrative waste Remember: The best talent isn't busy looking for jobs. They're busy building the skills you need. Which means when you post an urgent job opening: • You're competing for a limited supply of talent • Process focus crowds out real relationships • You'll likely settle due to urgency But when you recruit proactively: • You're competing in a talent market of one • Relationships can be nurtured over months • You get the best, not the best available The difference isn't effort. It's timing and intention. Start recruiting before you need to hire. Your future self will thank you. ♻️ Share to help other leaders build better teams 🔔 Follow Dave Kline for more insights that actually work PS - If you're still reading, you probably want to hire better. We've got a free 30-minute workshop coming up this week:  How Managers Use AI to Avoid These 3 Common Hiring Mistakes Please join us:  https://lnkd.in/epb6iYwT

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝟭𝟭, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆’𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱. What’s even more surprising is the kind of team we’ve built — not just remote, but sharp, driven, and values-aligned. They’re young. They’re hungry. And they care deeply about the work. What brings us together isn’t just the job — it’s a shared commitment to: • Pursuing excellence • Continuous marginal gains • Building for the long term • Elite teamwork And no — this didn’t happen by accident. It’s the result of an intentional hiring and onboarding process I’ve refined over the years. If you’re a founder scaling remotely, here’s what’s worked for me: 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭: 𝗕𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿. Know the role, skillset, and mindset that’ll thrive in your culture. If you’re vague, expect vague results. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟮: 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗶𝗹𝘁𝗲𝗿. Don’t just list duties. Highlight your values and what makes your company different. This draws the right people in — and repels the wrong ones. ✅Pro tip: Include a small test: “To apply, email hr@omnidigital.com.sg with the subject line: ‘Account Manager.’” Many skip this — and that alone filters for attention to detail. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟯: 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹. Be professional. Sell your company. The best talent has options. Set expectations early. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟰: 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀. It helps us compare candidates quantitatively and test commitment. ~30% don’t even attempt it — and that’s the point. It filters fast. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟱: 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀. Real-world tasks test communication, clarity, and effort. The best candidates deliver thoughtful work — not just fast work. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟲: 𝗢𝗻𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻. We set new hires up with: • A buddy • Full access to tools • 30, 60, and 90-day milestones • Daily + weekly check-ins One wrong hire can quietly ruin a good culture — I’ve seen it firsthand. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟳: 𝗘𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆. Watch closely in the first 2–4 weeks. If they’re not aligned, give feedback. Still not working? Let go quickly. I’ve kept the wrong hires too long — it cost us more than just salary. Building a remote team isn’t about hiring fast. It’s about hiring right. People who share your standards. Who want to grow with you. Who raise the bar for everyone else. It takes work — but when you get it right, it changes everything. 𝗚𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁? 𝗜’𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.

We all want to hire the best people - but a mistake so many founders make is ignoring step 1: Build a talent magnet 🧲 Psychometric testing, blind referencing, task-based assignments and culture-fit interviews - all great tools for selecting talent... But if your top of funnel is only 50 candidates per role - you're better off investing time in building the top of funnel rather than selection. At my first company we built a talent magnet that attracted 2,000 candidates per role (pre AI applications). Here are the core steps to building top of funnel in hiring: 1. Define your culture - ensure it is authentic and 'controversial' 2. Craft your employer brand - the reasons people enjoy working at your company (beyond your culture) - eg at sequel those might be working with the world's best athletes on a daily basis, funding pioneering founders, a 'dope' office with a roof terrace & plenty of socialising space, an experienced team with multiple exits 3. Pick your benefits carefully - you are what you attract - at sequel we offer a learning budget, free gym membership, private healthcare, a generous parental policy and proactive wellness screenings - therefore we have healthy team members with a hunger to learn and who want to have families one day 4. Talk about the above publicly - post on LinkedIn, attend events, talk to the press, apply for awards 5. Craft job descriptions optimising for top-of-funnel - remove barriers like requirements for certain levels of education, include wide salary ranges (and pick the range carefully), offer equity if you can, link to other resources to help people learn about your brand (eg we have a team video on our website) 6. Use an ATS & post widely to job boards - we use Workable and post to 20+ job boards for every role 7. Host events - hackathons are a great way to build relationships with engineering and product talent and spend extended period of time seeing how they work 8. Outbound - do not just rely on inbound - create an ideal candidate profile with a detailed dream job history - and start pro-actively reaching out to people who fit the profile Focus on attraction before you invest time in selection. It's a bit like dating... Any other tips for building a magnet for talent?

Candidate fraud is rampant. Some recent examples I've seen: - fake candidates using the resume/LinkedIn of real people - people using AI filters in interviews - people fabricating experience on their resume - different people showing up at different stages of interviews Companies are already doing many of the following to catch fraud: - checking IP addresses for a match between the stated location and app location - checking for VPN usage since this could indicate someone is attempting to hide their location - checking for unusual behaviors like an app that should take 15 minutes being submitted in 30 seconds as an example indicating an AI-generated app vs human-generated one. - checking the age of your email address - checking the account behind your phone number - reviewing your LinkedIn account to see how it matches the content of your resume - contacting you via LinkedIn to ensure you are the person who applied - checking your previous applications to the company for consistency across experiences - recording interviews or taking pictures at each stage to verify the same person is showing up - verifying the identity and IP address of your references - holding on site interviews, even for remote jobs - running more thorough background checks and employment verifications Most companies recognize that some of the above "flags" will be present in legitimate candidates. For example, VPN use is quite common for many in tech, lots of people use phones that may show a parent or partner's name on the account, you might be applying while on vacation, etc. But if multiple flags are present, they may decide the risk is too great and simply move on the next candidate. So if I were applying right now, I would: 1. Be aware of the above when applying. 2. Put a picture on your profile (this may minimize the chances of someone using your name/profile to apply for jobs and also helps employers verify you are in fact the person on the interview). 3. Consider the content on your public social media profiles - companies will be checking more and more to mitigate their risks, and that means they'll have more line of sight into you how you think about the workplace, your expertise, etc. Make sure this is additive, rather than something that raises flags. Finally, I'll note that the common responses I see to the above are things like, "well employers made this an issue by making it so hard to get a job". And while I could have a conversation about why this is illogical, it's honestly just not even worth a discussion. Because no company is sitting there right now thinking, "gosh, people are struggling to navigate this job market, let's just open ourselves up to risk." They're just not. Their priority is to minimize risks. Hiring a fraudulent candidate with bad intentions could put their entire company at risk and they aren't going to do that. So if you're navigating a job search - especially for remote tech jobs, keep this in mind, and adjust accordingly.

Job listing red flags to watch out for. 🚩 A job listing should make you feel excited, not exhausted. Here’s what to watch out for: 🚩 Vague salary talk – “competitive” pay. Competitive with what? We love a clear salary or range here. 🚩 Buzzword overload – “We want a self-starter, rockstar, unicorn, ninja.” Translation: we have no idea what this job actually is. 🚩 Suspiciously long requirements list – "Entry-level, must have 5 years’ experience." Either they don’t know what they need, or they’re hoping to get three jobs in one. 🚩 Endless enthusiasm, zero details – “We’re a fast-paced, dynamic team!” Cool, but what will you actually be doing? 🚩 A mystery hiring process – 7 interviews, a presentation, a trial project, then tumbleweed... 🚩 Non-existent benefits – “We offer a great culture” isn’t a benefit. Neither is "pension scheme" without details. 🚩 Pressure to accept fast – “We need an answer today.” A good employer gives you time to decide. A bad one hopes you won’t think too hard. 🚩 High turnover, low explanation – If the role has been recruited for three times in a year ask why. What job listing red flags have you spotted?

How to Spot a Bullshit Job Posting in 60 Seconds (Candidate Guide) A friend sent me a job posting last week. "Should I apply?" I read it. Took me 30 seconds to say no. "It's fake," I told her. "Or at least, they're not serious about filling it." She was confused. The company was real. The role sounded good. What did I see that she missed? Here's my framework for spotting bullshit job postings before you waste hours applying. Red Flag #1: The requirements don't match the level "Entry-level position. Must have 5 years experience." I see this constantly. Junior role asking for senior skills. Or they want someone who can lead teams, manage budgets, and set strategy—but they're paying graduate rates. They want senior talent at junior prices. Or they copied the job description from somewhere else without understanding what they actually need. Either way, they're not serious about filling this properly. Red Flag #2: Lists every skill under the sun "Must be expert in: Python, Java, C++, JavaScript, Ruby, SQL, AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, machine learning, data science, project management, and Mandarin." That's not one job. That's an entire IT department. Real postings focus on what actually matters. Three to five key skills max. When they list twenty requirements, they're either delusional about what one person can do, or they haven't thought through what they need. Red Flag #3: Vague about what you'll actually do "You'll be responsible for driving synergies and optimizing cross-functional deliverables." I've been recruiting for years. I still don't know what that means. Real jobs describe actual work. "You'll manage client accounts, prepare monthly reports, and lead weekly team meetings." Specific. Clear. Honest. Red Flag #4: The posting's been up for months Check the date. If it's been posted for 90+ days and keeps getting reposted? They're not hiring. They're either collecting resumes for "future opportunities" or the role keeps getting cancelled and reopened because the company can't get their act together. Red Flag #5: "Urgently hiring" but the process takes forever Posted three months ago with "URGENT" in the title. If it was urgent, they'd have filled it by now. This tells me they're picky to the point of paralysis, or the role isn't actually important enough to prioritize. The reality: Your time is valuable. Every hour spent applying to fake postings is an hour you could spend on real opportunities. I tell candidates: if you see three or more of these red flags, skip it. Apply to jobs where the company actually knows what they want and can articulate it clearly. Good companies write good job postings. The rest are wasting your time. Save yourself the frustration. Spot the bullshit early. #JobSearch #CareerAdvice #Recruitment

WORD OF WARNING JOB SEEKERS! A dear friend of mine was recently contacted by someone presenting as a recruiter about a role with a well-known software company. He provided very specific details — the role, company, salary, and benefits. He even boasted that the candidates he puts forward “always get interviews” because he prescreens their references and submits both the resume and the references to the client. Trusting the process, she provided several references. Soon after, all of those contacts received calls — not about her candidacy, but with sales pitches for the recruiter’s services. Here’s what she uncovered: there was no job. When she called the company directly, they confirmed they weren’t hiring for that role and had never heard of his recruiting firm. She documented everything with screenshots and reported him to LinkedIn. Red flags to watch for: • Requests for multiple references before you’ve had any interview or confirmation of candidacy. • A recruiter who emphasizes “prescreening” or “special access” to gain your trust. The job market is challenging enough without tactics like this. Sharing this as a reminder to all candidates: protect your network, and trust your instincts.