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How To Recruit The Best Engineers And Sales Reps

Overview

Shownote

Highlights

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Chapters

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How To Recruit The Best Engineers And Sales Reps

Y Combinator Startup Podcast

Nov 07
Y Combinator Startup Podcast

Y Combinator Startup Podcast

Nov 07
OverviewShownoteHighlightsTranscriptChaptersPins

Shownote

Most founders think hiring is about interviewing. But it's actually about selling.For Startup School, Juicebox co-founder & CEO David Paffenholz joins YC's Harj Taggar to share how early-stage founders can find, pitch, and close top engineering and sales t...

Highlights

Hiring is often misunderstood as a tactical process centered on interviews, but for early-stage founders, it's fundamentally about persuasion and relationship-building. In a competitive landscape where startups vie for talent against well-funded giants, the ability to attract and win top performers hinges on more than just job descriptions—it demands strategy, authenticity, and vision.
07:50
Hiring at early-stage startups requires treating sourcing like outbound sales.
16:10
Personalized outreach significantly improves candidate response rates.
23:24
Selling the company must precede candidate assessment in startup hiring.
28:29
Being creative and not afraid to break rules in outreach can be effective if authentic
37:59
Hiring is a repeated game; elite founders are always recruiting.

Chapters

What really attracts top talent to unknown startups?
00:00
How do you hire standout engineers and sales leaders?
10:50
When should founders sell the vision—and why before the interview?
18:41
Why does your outreach need to feel personal, not polished?
28:29
Is your hiring strategy built for the long game?
37:59

Transcript

Harj Taggar: Today, we're going to hear from David Paffenholz, co-founder and CEO of Juicebox, about how to source great engineering and sales talents. Juicebox is an AI sourcing platform backed by Sequoia and used by Ramp, Cursor, and PerplexD to recruit ...